2009 Milwaukee Brewers season

2009 Milwaukee Brewers
Division	Central Division
Ballpark	Miller Park
City	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Owners	Mark Attanasio
Managers	Ken Macha
Television	WMLW FSN Wisconsin
Radio	620 WTMJ
Stats	ESPN.com BB-reference
Seasons

The Milwaukee Brewers' 2009 season is the 30th season for the franchise in Milwaukee and 31st overall. Ken Macha is in his first season as manager of the team. The Brewers will look to improve on their 90-72 record and clinch their second consecutive playoff berth (and fourth overall) after winning the National League wild card in 2008.

Offseason moves

Pitchers

Starting pitchers CC Sabathia, who was acquired from the Cleveland Indians in a mid-season trade in 2008, and Ben Sheets both rejected arbitration and became free agents following the end of the 2008 season. Numerous teams showed interest in Sabathia, considered one of the best free agent pitchers available after compiling an 11-2 record and an ERA of only 1.62 in 17 starts for the Brewers in 2008. The Brewers made an 5 year, $100 million contract offer to Sabathia, but he elected to sign with the New York Yankees on December 9, receiving a 7 year, $161 million contract that was the largest received by a pitcher at the time. No serious attempt was made to resign Sheets, who had been the Brewers' ace before the acquisition of Sabathia but struggled with numerous injuries throughout his career.

In the bullpen, closer Salomón Torres elected to retire from baseball despite believing that it would have been "a given" that the Brewers would exercise their 2009 contract option on him. After a disappointing 2008 season, former closer Éric Gagné was not offered arbitration. Left-handed specialist Brian Shouse was offered arbitration, but instead chose to sign with the Tampa Bay Rays. No attempt was made to resign Guillermo Mota, who eventually signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Needing to acquire at least one starter to fill the hole in the rotation left by Sabathia and Sheets, the Brewers signed free agent Braden Looper, formerly of the St. Louis Cardinals, to a one year, $4.5 million contract for 2009. To replace the retired Torres, the Brewers turned to all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman, who became available after contentious contract negotiations caused the San Diego Padres, Hoffman's home for 16 years, to pull back their 2009 contract offer. Hoffman was signed to a one year, $6 million contract for the Brewers. Relievers Todd Coffey, who was signed to a one year contract avoiding arbitration after being claimed off waivers in September, and free agent Jorge Julio rounded out the offseason bullpen acquisitions.

Position players

Outfielder Gabe Kapler, second baseman Ray Durham, and third baseman Russell Branyan all became free agents following the end of the 2008 season; Kapler and Branyan signed one-year contracts with the Tampa Bay Rays and the Seattle Mariners respectively, while Durham remains unsigned as of May 19, 2009. Center fielder Mike Cameron's $10 million contract option for 2009 was exercised by the Brewers. Utility infielder Craig Counsell's $3.4 million contract option was declined by the Brewers, making him a free agent, but the team later agreed to terms on a new one-year, $1 million contract in late January.

Coaching staff

Having made the unprecedented move of firing manager Ned Yost with only 12 games remaining in the 2008 season, an early priority for the Brewers was the hiring of a permanent replacement for Yost. Candidates considered included interim manager Dale Sveum, former Oakland Athletics manager Ken Macha, former New York Mets manager Willie Randolph, and broadcaster and former Arizona Diamondbacks manager Bob Brenly. On October 30, 2008, the Brewers announced the hiring of Macha, who received a two-year contract to manage the club. In an unusual move, Macha proceeded to hire two of his competitors for his coaching staff, naming Randolph the bench coach and Sveum the hitting coach. Although the Brewers offered pitching coach Mike Maddux a new contract, they were unable to match the offer made by the Texas Rangers. Bullpen coach Bill Castro was promoted to pitching coach, while Nashville Sounds pitching coach Stan Kyles was promoted to fill the vacated bullpen coach position. Brad Fischer was hired as third base coach to round out Macha's new staff.

Spring training

The Brewers opened spring training camp on February 13, with the first game played on February 25. Home games were played at Maryvale Baseball Park in Phoenix, Arizona. The Brewers compiled a 22-10-3 record in spring training games, the best record of any National League team and the second-best record (behind the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) in the Cactus League.

The 2009 spring training season was affected by the 2009 World Baseball Classic, which was held in March. Six players in the Brewers system played in the Classic and missed time during spring training: left fielder Ryan Braun (Team USA), relief pitcher Mark DiFelice (Team Italy), and minor league players Vinny Rottino (Team Italy), Adam Stern (Team Canada), Brett Lawrie (Team Canada), and David Welch (Team Australia). Additionally, the Brewers played an exhibition game against Team Australia, winning by the score of 10 to 5.

With the lineup and starting rotation largely set, the main position battles entering camp were for spots in the bullpen and on the bench. Ultimately, the available bench spots were claimed by infielder Casey McGehee, who had been claimed off waivers from the Chicago Cubs during the offseason, center fielder Chris Duffy, who was invited to camp as a non-roster invitee, and outfielder Brad Nelson, the Brewers' fourth-round draft pick in 2001. Mike Lamb, who had been expected to make the club before McGehee's strong spring, was released by the team on April 1; he was eventually signed to a minor league deal by the New York Mets. Closer Trevor Hoffman suffered an oblique strain in mid-March and was forced to begin the regular season on the disabled list.

Regular season

April

The Brewers opened the regular season on the road on April 7 with a loss against the San Francisco Giants; Jeff Suppan made his first Opening Day start for the Brewers and fourth overall. The Brewers won their home opener three days later with a ninth inning rally over the rival Chicago Cubs. Overall, however, the team struggled during the first few weeks of the season, losing four consecutive series against the Giants, the Cubs, the Cincinnati Reds, and the New York Mets. The Brewers' pitching staff struggled early, compiling a 5.19 ERA during the first four series. Manny Parra, the number three starter in the rotation, particularly struggled and finished the month with an 0-4 record with a 6.52 ERA, and Suppan went 1-2 with a 5.88 ERA. The team's fortunes improved considerably after an 11-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on April 21, however, as the Brewers won series against the Phillies and the Houston Astros before returning home and sweeping the Pittsburgh Pirates to close the month, rallying to a 12-10 overall record in April.

Leading the offense during the month of April was Mike Cameron, who led the team with a .333 batting average and tied for the team lead in home runs with 5. Ryan Braun and Rickie Weeks also hit 5 home runs in April. The month's best starting pitcher was newly-acquired Braden Looper, who went 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA in April. Dave Bush came within five outs of a no-hitter in a 6-1 win over Philadelphia on April 23. Trevor Hoffman returned from the disabled list and made his first Brewers appearance on April 27 in a non-save situation; he recorded his first save with the Brewers (and 555th overall) the following day. Backup catcher Mike Rivera, however, suffered a sprained ankle in the same game and was placed on the disabled list; rookie Carlos Corporan was called up from Nashville to replace him.

May

The Brewers opened May with a split of a four-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks before sweeping the Pirates in a two-game series in Pittsburgh. In sweeping the Pirates, the Brewers extended their winning streak against Pittsburgh to 17 games dating back to May 20, 2008, the longest winning streak by one Major League Baseball team over another since 1970. The Brewers continued their winning ways in the following five series as well, splitting series against the Reds and Cubs, sweeping the Florida Marlins and the St. Louis Cardinals, and winning two out of three games in Houston. In a one month period between April 21 and May 21, the Brewers did not lose a series and went 22-6, the best record in baseball over that period. The team struggled at the start of interleague play, however, as the Brewers were swept in their last scheduled visit to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome by the rival Minnesota Twins. Returning home, the Brewers won a Memorial Day matinee against the Cardinals in a game where both Yovani Gallardo took a no-hit bid into the sixth inning and Cardinals starter Chris Carpenter had a perfect game into the seventh inning, but lost the next two games, leaving the Cardinals in sole possession of first place in the NL Central. The Brewers finished the month of May with a sweep of Cincinnati, giving the team an 18-10 record for the month.

Injuries and ineffective play by several bench players caused the Brewers to make several roster moves during the month of May. Mike Rivera returned from the disabled list on May 14 as Carlos Corporan was returned to the minors; Corporan appeared in only one game, where he caught the last two innings of a 15-3 blowout of the Cincinnati Reds on May 6 and singled off of regular Cincinnati shortstop Paul Janish in his only at-bat. The team suffered a significant setback on May 18 when starting second baseman Rickie Weeks suffered an injury to his left wrist, ending his 2009 season. For the time being, Craig Counsell and Casey McGehee are expected to replace Weeks in the lineup; Hernán Iribarren was called up from Nashville following the injury, but was returned to Nashville after only one series. Brad Nelson, who went hitless in 21 at-bats, declined a demotion to the minor leagues and became a free agent on May 15; top third base prospect Mat Gamel was called up to replace Nelson on the roster. On May 21, the Brewers traded Triple-A outfielder Tony Gwynn, Jr. to the San Diego Padres in exchange for outfielder Jody Gerut; Chris Duffy was demoted to Nashville to make room on the roster for Gerut. Finally, on May 21 the team called up outfielder Frank Catalanotto, who had been signed to a minor league contract by the team earlier in the month.

June

The Brewers opened June on a sour note, dropping three out of four games to the Florida Marlins at LandShark Stadium, but rebounded in the next series and won two out of three against the Atlanta Braves. The Brewers returned to Miller Park on June 9 but suffered a dismal 1-5 homestand in which the team was swept by Colorado and lost two out of three against the Chicago White Sox. In the third game of the series against the White Sox, Trevor Hoffman finally gave up his first run of the season in what was then a tie game; Hoffman had pitched 18+2⁄3 innings in 2009 without giving up a run. The Brewers proceeded to Cleveland, where they swept the Cleveland Indians in a high-scoring series that included an six-run rally in the eighth inning on June 15, capped by Prince Fielder's first career grand slam, and an 11 inning win on June 17 that mooted a four-run comeback by the Indians in the ninth inning, giving Hoffman his first blown save of the season.

Following a poor outing on June 1 in which he failed to retire any of the six batters he faced, Jorge Julio was released; Mike Burns was called up to take Julio's spot in the bullpen. In 15 appearances for the Brewers, Julio went 1-1 with a 7.79 ERA in 17+1⁄3 innings.

Season standings

NL Central	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
St. Louis Cardinals	91	71	0.562	—	46–35	45–36
Chicago Cubs	83	78	0.516	7½	46–34	37–44
Milwaukee Brewers	80	82	0.494	11	40–41	40–41
Cincinnati Reds	78	84	0.481	13	40–41	38–43
Houston Astros	74	88	0.457	17	44–37	30–51
Pittsburgh Pirates	62	99	0.385	28½	40–41	22–58

Record vs. opponents

2009 National League record Source: MLB Standings Grid – 2009
Team	AZ	ATL	CHC	CIN	COL	FLA	HOU	LAD	MIL	NYM	PHI	PIT	SD	SF	STL	WSH	AL
Arizona	–	3–4	4-2	1–5	7-11	5–3	5–4	7-11	2–5	5–2	1–5	6–1	11-7	5-13	2–4	1–5	5–10
Atlanta	4–3	–	4–2	3–6	4–4	8-10	3-3	4–3	3–3	13–5	10-8	3–4	3–3	3–4	4–2	10-8	7–8
Chicago	2-4	2–4	–	10-5	2–4	4–3	11–6	3–5	10-7	3-3	1–5	10-4	4–5	4-2	6-10	5–2	6–9
Cincinnati	5-1	6-3	5-10	–	0-7	3-3	12-4	1-5	8-7	2-4	2-5	13-5	1-6	3-3	8-8	3-4	6-9
Colorado	11-7	4-4	4-2	7-0	–	2-4	2-5	4-14	6-0	3-4	2-4	6-3	10-8	8-10	6-1	6-0	11-4
Florida	3-5	10-8	3-4	3-3	4-2	–	4–3	3-3	3-4	11-7	9-9	2-4	4-2	3-4	3-3	12-6	10-8
Houston	4–5	3-3	6-11	4-12	5-2	3-4	–	4–3	5-10	1-5	6-2	10-5	6-1	2-4	6-9	3-3	6-9
Los Angeles	11-7	3-4	5-3	5-1	14-4	3-3	3-4	–	3–3	5-1	4-3	4-3	10-8	11-7	2-5	3-2	9-9
Milwaukee	5-2	3-3	7-10	7-8	0-6	4-3	10-5	3-3	–	3-3	4-3	9-5	2-4	4-5	9-9	5-3	5-10
New York	2-5	5-13	3-3	4-2	4-3	7-11	5-1	1-5	3-3	–	6-12	4-3	2-5	5-3	4-5	10-8	5–10
Philadelphia	5-1	8-10	5-1	5-2	4-2	9-9	2-6	3-4	3-4	12-6	–	4-2	5-2	3-4	4-1	15-3	6-12
Pittsburgh	1-6	4-3	4-10	5-13	3-6	4-2	5-10	3-4	5-9	3-4	2-4	–	3-4	2-4	5-10	5-3	8–7
San Diego	7-11	3-3	5-4	6-1	8-10	2-4	1-6	8-10	4-2	5-2	2-5	4-3	–	10-8	1-6	4-2	5–10
San Francisco	13-5	4–3	2–4	3–3	10-8	4–3	4–2	7-11	5-4	3–5	4–3	4–2	8-10	–	4–3	4–2	9–6
St. Louis	4-2	2-4	10-6	8-8	1-6	3-3	9-6	5-2	9-9	5-4	1-4	10-5	6-1	3-4	–	6–1	9–6
Washington	5-1	8-10	2-5	4-3	0-6	6-12	3-3	2-3	3-5	8-10	3-15	3-5	2-4	2-4	1-6	–	7–11

Game log

Source:

Current roster

Milwaukee Brewers roster
Active roster				Inactive roster		Coaches/Other
Pitchers Starting rotation 54 Robert Gasser 51 Freddy Peralta 48 Colin Rea 46 Bryse Wilson Bullpen 52 Bryan Hudson 47 Jared Koenig 55 Hoby Milner 36 Tobias Myers -- Enoli Paredes 31 Joel Payamps 59 Elvis Peguero 58 Mitch White Closer(s) 29 Trevor Megill		Catchers 24 William Contreras 99 Gary Sánchez Infielders 27 Willy Adames  9 Jake Bauers  6 Owen Miller 14 Andruw Monasterio  3 Joey Ortiz  2 Brice Turang Outfielders 11 Jackson Chourio 10 Sal Frelick 16 Blake Perkins 28 Joey Wiemer 22 Christian Yelich		Pitchers 26 Aaron Ashby 25 Bradley Blalock 32 Taylor Clarke 37 DL Hall 57 Kevin Herget 56 Janson Junk 41 Joe Ross 45 Abner Uribe Catchers 76 Jeferson Quero Infielders  7 Tyler Black 64 Vinny Capra 15 Oliver Dunn 12 Rhys Hoskins Outfielders 18 Chris Roller		Manager 21 Pat Murphy Coaches 33 Quintin Berry (first base) 97 Christian Correa (bullpen catcher) 65 Néstor Corredor (field coordinator) 70 Connor Dawson (hitting) 95 Daniel de Mondesert (assistant) 61 Jim Henderson (assistant pitching) 84 Chris Hook (pitching) 88 Charlie Greene (bullpen) 40 Jason Lane (third base) 60 Walker McKinven (run prevention) 43 Ozzie Timmons (hitting) 23 Rickie Weeks Jr. (associate manager) 62 Adam Weisenburger (bullpen catcher) 60-day injured list 50 J. B. Bukauskas 35 Jakob Junis 20 Wade Miley  5 Garrett Mitchell 38 Devin Williams 53 Brandon Woodruff 26 active, 14 inactive 7-, 10-, or 15-day injured list # Personal leave Roster and coaches updated May 24, 2024 Transactions • Depth chart → All MLB rosters

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
C	Jason Kendall	50	162	35	.216	0	17
1B	Prince Fielder	57	198	59	.298	15	54
2B	Rickie Weeks	37	147	40	.272	9	24
SS	J. J. Hardy	50	184	42	.228	5	24
3B	Bill Hall	50	148	31	.209	4	13
LF	Ryan Braun	55	203	63	.310	12	38
CF	Mike Cameron	53	187	52	.278	12	30
RF	Corey Hart	54	206	50	.243	6	22

Through June 9, 2009

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In

Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
Craig Counsell	43	132	41	.311	1	9
Casey McGehee	24	49	13	.265	0	6
Mat Gamel	20	46	11	.239	1	9
Chris Duffy	19	32	4	.125	0	3
Mike Rivera	13	33	10	.303	0	2
Brad Nelson	19	21	0	.000	0	0
Jody Gerut	12	17	2	.118	0	0
Frank Catalanotto	7	13	3	.231	0	2
Hernan Iribarren	1	2	0	.000	0	0
Carlos Corporan	1	1	1	1.000	0	0
Yovani Gallardo	11	26	4	.154	2	4
David Bush	11	20	3	.150	0	0
Jeff Suppan	12	17	2	.118	0	1
Braden Looper	10	16	1	.063	0	2
Manny Parra	11	18	2	.111	0	2
Seth McClung	20	4	0	.000	0	0
Todd Coffey	26	1	0	.000	0	0
Carlos Villanueva	26	3	1	.333	0	0
Mike Burns	1	1	0	.000	0	0
Jorge Julio	13	1	0	.000	0	0

Through June 9, 2009

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO	WHIP
Yovani Gallardo	11	73.0	6	2	2.84	71	1.082
Dave Bush	11	69.2	3	2	4.52	49	1.220
Jeff Suppan	12	63.2	4	4	4.66	34	1.618
Manny Parra	12	63.0	3	7	6.86	55	1.825
Braden Looper	11	62.0	5	3	4.65	35	1.387

Through June 9, 2009

Relief pitchers

Player	G	W	L	SV	IP	ERA	SO	WHIP
Trevor Hoffman	17	0	0	15	17.0	0.00	15	0.471
Carlos Villanueva	27	2	4	3	28.0	4.18	29	1.071
Todd Coffey	26	1	0	2	27.2	2.28	21	1.193
Mark DiFelice	22	3	0	0	23.1	1.16	23	0.814
Mitch Stetter	28	2	0	0	18.2	3.38	17	1.071
Seth McClung	21	3	1	0	30.2	2.64	23	1.304
Jorge Julio	15	1	1	0	17.1	7.79	13	1.731
Mike Burns	1	0	0	0	4.0	0.00	4	1.500
R.J. Swindle	3	0	0	0	2.2	13.50	4	2.625
David Riske	1	0	0	0	1.0	18.00	0	4.000

Through June 9, 2009

References

External links

• 2009 Milwaukee Brewers season at Baseball Reference
• 2009 Milwaukee Brewers season Official Site