The Brewers have already spent quite a bit of money raising salaries of current players, especially Prince Fielder, and signing Trevor Hoffman and Braden Looper. I am sure they also don’t want to have a Chris Capuano situation. Why pay a lot of money to have a pitcher out for at least half of the season?

Looper, 34, went 12-14 with a 4.16 ERA in 33 starts for the Cards last year. He managed to pitch 199 innings last year, more than any other Brewer in 2008. The deal will be finalized with a physical but Doug Melvin is “optimistic” it will be finished by the end of the week.

The Brewers are finally set for the new year and it will be exciting to see if their pitching turns around. My projected starting lineup is as follows:

1. Yovani Gallardo
2. Jeff Suppan
3. Manny Parra
4. Braden Looper
5. Dave Bush

This is bad news for Seth McClung who was hoping to have a starter role, something he has been working hard towards. This is also bad news for new acquire Chase Wright who might have made a starting spot if there were injuries during the season. There is no word yet who will be sent down to the Minors, but it most likely will be a pitcher.

Jeremy Jeffress, who will be 21 for the entire season, is bound to be an inspirational pitcher in Huntsville this year. Many Brewers fans have heard his name since being drafted in 2006, primarily due to his off the field problems which have held him back. Jeffress, a right-handed starter, has a three pitch arsenol including a fastball, curveball and changeup. Jeffress has a good fastball in the low 90’s touching the mid-to-high 90’s when needed. However, both his curveball and changeup need improvement. His ERA has consistantly climbed with moving up in the Minors, but this will be a good chance for him to show the club what he’s got. He took home Pitcher of the Week in both the Southern League and Florida State League last year. This will be his first full year in Double-A and he will have to prove he can focus on the field and work on his control.

Donovan Hand, who will turn 23 around the start of the season, is also going to be playing his first full year in Double-A. Hand was drafted in 2007 and has made great progress in the Minors since that time. He pitched a combined 3.93 ERA over 26 games between Class A Advanced Brevard County and Huntsville last season. Once called up to Huntsville he posted two complete games, out of 12 started. He had a rough time after his call up allowing a .312 on-base percentage as well. Hand is primarily a sinker ball pitcher and has a four-seamer, two-seamer, sinker, slider and changeup. Hand’s fastball only reaches the high-80’s to low-90’s on the radar.

Martin Maldonado, who will be 22 for the majority of the season, is the only current catcher listed on Huntsville’s roster and has not played an entire season in Double-A. He was a draft choice of the Angels in 2004, but signed a contract with the Brewers in early 2007. Maldonado has to work on his offense this year. Although he had a good on-base percentage last season, a combined .290, his combined batting average was just .229 with two home runs and 17 RBIs. This Winter he batted .125 with two RBIs and a .160 on-base percentage in 11 games.  However, his defense is quite good, a career .986, and might be the reason they put him into the Huntsville lineup. The Stars had quite a bit of power and offense in 2008. If Maldonado stays in Huntsville look for him to be playing great defense.

Another name Brewers fans are going to be familiar with is Lorenzo Cain. Cain, yet another outfield prospect the Brewers could use to bolster pitching prospects, was a 2004 draft pick of the Brewers. He made a jump from Brevard County to Triple-A Nashville last year and batted a combined .279 with 31 doubles, nine triples, 11 home runs, 60 RBIs and a .356 on-base percentage. He also managed to steal 25 bases, while being caught only six times. Look for Cain to be a starter in center field this season for Huntsville in his first full season in Double-A where he will make the All-Star team. Cain also managed to bat .333  with four doubles, five home runs, four stolen bases and a .382 on-base percentage this Fall in just 18 games. Look for Cain to be called up to Nashville sometime this season if he continues his 2008 performance.

In short, after review of the 2009 roster it looks as though the team is going to be stacked offensively again. This speaks directly for the entire Brewers organization. The one problem we have is pitching, primarily because our prospects are young and developing. The one thing we have plenty of, outfielders. We have dealt outfielders in the majority of our recent trades, including Matt LaPorta and Eric Fryer to name a few. Look for the Stars to be offensive “Stars” in the Southern League again this year. The Stars may make the playoffs this season, but the primary makeup of pitchers are nearing their mid 20’s.

Ginter is officially listed on Triple-A Nashville’s roster. This is another move the Brewers are making trying to bolster the starting lineup.

A Milwaukee radio station stated the Brewers will most likely sign the free agent righty. The report was also posted on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s website. The Brewers had contact with Looper this off-season but it looked as though nothing was to come of it after signing Trevor Hoffman and spending most of their money for the 2009 season.

Looper is an experienced veteran who spent most of his career in relief. The last two seasons he has started for the Cardinals going 12-12 with a 4.94 ERA in 2007 and 12-14 with a 4.16 ERA in 2008, in 33 starts and a career-high 199 innings. The Brewers are looking at Looper now with the notion that the price tag has dropped.

This would be a very smart move. The one thing the Brewers are still missing is a starting lineup. If the Brewers are able to sign Looper I would be confident with their team for the 2009 season, something that I felt I would never say this Winter. The Brewers have really turned around their strategy this off-season.