If there ever was a team that had kryptonite, the Brewers have exactly that. Or at least historically, the ‘-onth’ following April has the same component for the Cream City Nine. After a superb start in April, we are now declaring the removal of the letter, following ‘L’ from the alphabet when it is the first letter in a word. Thus, for the next 27 days, the team will be known as the ‘-ilwaukee Brewers’. Hey! Baseball is filled with superstitions. This is the least we can do for the ‘Barley & Hops’ boys.
Without question, Saturday evening in Cincinnati was a ‘-atchup’ of pitching excellence with the red-hot Johnny Cueto with 10 Ks nearly unhittable. His change-up, fastball and cutter worked ‘-agic’ at Great American Ballpark. ‘-atched up against the very consistent Yovani Gallardo, the Crew’s #1 starter, the game really became a ‘-atter’ of inches. This was clearly shown in the fourth inning as Phillips bounced a ball past Segura for a hit and later in the inning, Ludwig had a ball escape a diving first baseman (Reynolds) to his right and a diving second baseman (Gannett) to his left as the seeing-eye ball drove in the runs which would be enough for the ‘-agnificent Cueto on this evening. He gave up only three hits. The Reds ‘-anager’ Price said it all: “Good ‘-anaging,” Price deadpanned, “is having great pitchers.” The Reds had that in Cueto on Saturday night along the Ohio River.
Although this was only the third game in the ‘-onth’ of ‘-ay’, it was the Crew’s second loss and third in the last four. It was set up when in St. Louis, Rodriguez, Segura and Braun were out of the lineup. Then Henderson went on the DL. In ‘-ilwaukee’, ‘-ay’ isn’t a good thing. Last season, was futility in action. 6-22 in ‘-ay ‘-atched the worst ‘-onth in club history dating back to the 1969 Seattle Pilots. In 1994, they went 7-21. In 1987, they had a .250 record with 6-18. It’s in the water. Even the famed ‘-ilwaukee Chicks who won the 1944 All-American Girls Professional Baseball League Championship, had a bad ‘-ay’. But it goes back further than that. The original founding ‘-embers, 1901 Brewers, of the American League had a bad one, even worse than the Cleveland Bluebirds. And you don’t think it is the water?
The Ho-chunk Nation who lived on this land near where the stadium stands today, may be a clue to this situation. Their name has been variously translated as, “people of the stinking water”.
It’s time to rename this period in time. It is not officially ‘-ay’ which comes after April and before June. It’s time to rename it. Thus, January, February, ‘-arch’, April, ‘Ho-chunk’, June, July, August, September, October, November and December are the official calendar names.
Play Ball!
overtheshouldermlb 