by Bill Johnson

Random thoughts today.

What's wrong with the Brewers? This is a case of missing the forest because of the trees. Injuries are a factor, but the biggest issue by far is the absence of Prince Fielder. Six of the Brewers last eight losses have been by one run. They are 4-20 in games in which they did not hit a home run. Would they have won all of those games if Fielder were still anchored at first base? No, but I can venture to say they would've won a few. I don't know if the Brewers could have gotten together an offer big enough to bring back Fielder, or if it would've been a good move. It's obvious that right now, in 2012, the Brewers miss Fielder horribly. With everything else that has happened to the Brewers in '12, they would be contending in the Central were Fielder still here. As it is, they are wavering between buyer and seller. 

Speaking of buying and selling, with regard to Zack Greinke, the Brewers need to be buyers. BUY,BUY,BUY!!!!!!! Do not nickel and dime the potential Cy Young winner!!! Do not outsmart yourself by trying to trade him for prospects, then sign him back. Show him the love, right now, and show him the cash. Let him know that he is a Brewer now and a Brewer for many tomorrow's to come. A long term deal will mean the Brewers will have one of the league's best hitters (Braun) and the league's best pitchers (Greinke) as the team's foundation for years to come. Even if you mix and match around Braun and Greinke with free agents and youngsters, you will be a contender. Don't outsmart yourself, Doug (or should I say Mark!) Lock up Greinke.

The Bucks will draft on Thursday night. As in most seasons, the Bucks are in the lower end of the lottery picks (12th.) Not high enough to get a franchise player. Not low enough to get a sleeper. Just high enough to continue to be mediocre and irrelevant. Discussions will continue about a new facility for the Bucks in Milwaukee, but that's all they'll be: discussions. They won't get beyond the point of discussion because people don't want to lose their jobs. In our recent recall elections, part of a negative ad against John Lehmann mentioned funds for upgrades to the Bucks scoreboard as "pork." We're talking about maintenance, but those in charge of that campaign (which lost in a very tight race) believed that public sentiment against spending any money at all on the Bucks was incredibly strong. Herb Kohl is a great businessman and a popular Senator. As an NBA owner, he's among the worst. He has micro managed this team into near oblivion. Outside of a small fringe group in Southeastern Wisconsin, no one cares about the Bucks. This is incredibly sad when discussing a franchise that was so successful on the floor in the years before Kohl bought it. People constantly tell me that I should be grateful that Herb Kohl saved the Bucks in Milwaukee. Really? Saved them from what? Last time I checked, it was the Petits that ponied up for the Bradley Center. Didn't that do more to keep the Bucks in Milwaukee? For my money, all Herb Kohl has done is insult the intelligence of Bucks fans by constantly trying to cobble together an eight seed in the playoffs. I may be a little too hard on nobody's Senator but yours, though. It's very possible that no owner, other than maybe Mark Cuban, could have made it go in Milwaukee. To win in the NBA, a team needs stars. A team needs at least one top five player and several in the top 20. Those guys don't want to play in Milwaukee. Nothing will change that any time soon. Our weather during the NBA season is dismal. Our downtown doesn't posses the options that NBA stars are looking for. Our facility is hemorrhaging money. So, who will the Bucks take on Thursday night? Does it really matter?

The Packers start training camp on July 26th. With the Brewers struggling and last year's unsatisfying outcome, this camp will be scrutinized like none in many years. It's an uncomfortable situation for the Packers and their fans. After a 15-1 season and a first round playoff disappointment, it is truly Super Bowl Championship or bust. That's it. While the regular season and playoffs will be entertaining, the Packers season will be an abject failure unless they win the Super Bowl.

No pressure.

To those of you that are against the death penalty, how ya feeling about Jerry Sandusky continuing to breathe air? Not only breathe it, but live very well, I'm sure, courtesy of the taxpayers of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. I wonder if PA can hire whoever it was in the Wisconsin Penal System that cooked up the plot to have Dahmer whacked. (Jesse Anderson was just collateral damage.) Maybe we can hire him out? Probably best to just let Sandusky walk around in gen pop for 20 minutes or so. That's about all it would take.

"Hey! Teacher! Leave those kids alone!"