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6 Comments »

1. Jeff writes:

   Well … that is a human interest story in a way. You are right … not exactly what I had in mind.

   Let me try this.

   Do you think the Brewers are cursed?

   Comment 5/11/2007

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2. Ted writes:

   While the Brew Crew have won some games, they have played exactly one team to date that has a current win-loss record over 500. So there is much still to be proved.

   I will say this, considering the top two salaries on the Evil Empire (A-Rod and Rocket) add up to more than the entire team payroll in Milwaukee, that’s darn good bang for the buck. It is unfortunate that small market teams like the Brewers can’t afford to keep their good players once they are eligible for free agency.

   Comment 5/11/2007

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3. Kevin writes:

   Please, please, please God, don’t let them clinch during business hours ….

   Comment 5/11/2007

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4. tgirsch writes:

   Jeff:

   Depends how you mean “cursed,” but in almost every context, no. I think they’ve been haunted by bad decisions, and in some ways harmed by the economics of the game, but I don’t think that there’s some “invisible hand of fate” that drives their futility or anything. So what changed? Primarily, the ownership. We’ve now got a good owner who (A) cares and (B) seems to know what he’s doing. That can make a big difference.

   Milwaukee is a good baseball town, and they’ve been loyal to the team through a lot of bad years; they deserve whatever success the team may bring this year, and more.

   Ted:

   Don’t worry, I’m not printing World Series tickets just yet. Although, to look at the rest of their division, they ought to at least win that, barring major injuries or chokes. And in years past, they would have played roughly .500 ball or worse against those same crummy teams. So for right now, they’re doing what good teams should do — they’re dominating the patty cakes.

   As I write this, they’re trailing 4-0 at the Mets, their first real test since opening weekend, so we’ll see how they do on this road trip. There’s a good chance I might be at their game against Philadelphia this upcoming Wednesday, and it will be my first time seeing this year’s team in person.

   Comment 5/11/2007

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5. Jeff writes:

   T:

   I think they are cursed … not in a voodoo curse sort of way … but in a self-fulfilling prophecy sort of way.

   When you are used to performing at a certain level, you become instantly aware of the fact that you are over performing. You then start to think about it. You tighten up. You get tentative. You have difficulty relaxing. Your mind is distracted. Result … you start under performing and head right back toward the mean.

   In other words, you choke.

   Your readers who golf probably experience this all the time. Whenever you pick up the game, you will too.

   Sports is 90 percent psychology. I think the Brewers expect themselves to be a .500 club … and the city expects them to be a .500 club. Look at all the excitement generated last year when they nearly weren’t a .500 club … only to once again, settle back into what everyone expected them to be …. a .500 club.

   This is a form of a curse … and it is the curse of the Brewers in my opinion.

   Agree?

   Comment 5/12/2007

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6. tgirsch writes:

   Jeff:

   Not really, no. It was the year before last when they finished .500 — last year, they fell well short, despite expectations (from both the team and the city), that they would be improved over the previous year. I don’t discount the effect that psychology has on the game, but that’s what good leadership is about. Their manager had them playing hard even when they weren’t as good a team. I don’t think he’ll let doubt ruin things for them.

   In recent years when they haven’t played well, it generally hasn’t been because of a lack of confidence; it’s been because of a lack of experience and a lack of talent.

   Now if you were talking about the Red Sox rather than the Brewers, then you might be on to something.

   Comment 5/12/2007

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The View From the Sinister Side of Life

     Royalty was like dandelions. No matter how many heads you chopped off, the roots were still there underground, waiting to spring up again.

     It seemed to be a chronic disease. It was as if even the most intelligent person had this little blank spot in their heads where someone had written: "Kings. What a good idea." Whoever had created humanity had left in a major design flaw. It was its tendency to bend at the knees.
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