February 4
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Minutes before a scheduled arbitration hearing Friday afternoon in St. Petersburg, Fla., the Milwaukee Brewers and right-hander Shaun Marcum reached agreement on a one-year deal for $7,725,000 - the midpoint of figures filed in mid-January. So, why didn't the sides settle at the midpoint without going all the way to Florida? "Sometimes there are things out of your control," said Teddy Werner, the Brewers' vice president for business operations. "Sometimes the process has to play out." In other words, the arbitration process is all about comparables when working out a contract figure. The best comparables in terms of service time and production for Marcum were Chicago Cubs right-hander Matt"
January 17
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Brewers general manager Doug Melvin just said he is "close" to a deal with Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki. The sides have until 4 p.m. to do a deal or the club loses negotiating rights. Melvin made the comment at the end of the press conference introducing Craig Counsell as a new member of the front office. He would not say if the negotiations involve a one-year deal or more. "I don't want to say until something is done," he said."
January 15
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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The Milwaukee Brewers have exchanged contract proposals with Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki, but general manager Doug Melvin said Saturday it was too early to tell if a deal could be worked out before the Tuesday deadline. "We've made an offer to him and he gave us a proposal back," said Melvin, who has been negotiating with Nez Balelo, the agent for Aoki. "That's where it's at. We're evaluating it. We're going to look at this vs. the other options out there with outfielders. We're still negotiating and exploring other options." The Brewers have until 4 p.m. Tuesday to sign Aoki or lose negotiating rights to him. They won those rights by posting a winning bid of $2.5 million in"
January 10
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com is reporting that the Brewers and centerfielder Carlos Gomez have avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal for "approximately $2 million." Gomez, 26, who made $1.5 million last year, began the season as the No. 1 centerfielder but again underachieved offensively and the left-handed-hitting Nyjer Morgan eventually began starting against all right-hander pitchers."
January 8
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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The Milwaukee Brewers will know before the start of spring training whether all-star leftfielder Ryan Braun will be in their lineup on opening day. People familiar with the history of the Major League Baseball drug testing program and arbitration process indicate the Brewers and Braun will not be kept guessing about his status until the team opens its spring camp Feb. 18 in Phoenix. An arbitration hearing will take place this month to give Braun an opportunity to overturn a reported positive drug test in October for a banned substance that could result in a 50-game suspension. Delaying the verdict beyond a reasonable period would not be fair to either Braun or the Brewers, under the"
January 5
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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The Milwaukee Brewers will work out Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki this weekend in Phoenix to determine whether they will pursue signing him for 2012. General manager Doug Melvin on Wednesday confirmed the workout but didn't disclose the exact day or time it will be held at the team's training facility because it will be closed to media and fans. "It's going to be a private workout," said Melvin. "We want to take a look at him and visit with him." The Brewers won the right to negotiate with Aoki, 29, by posting the winning bid of $2.5 million to his team, the Yakult Swallows, in December. A left-handed hitter known for making contact as a leadoff type, Aoki has won three batting crowns"
January 4
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Brewers general manager Doug Melvin told me this morning that he expects the workout of Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki to take place sometime this weekend in Phoenix. Melvin didn't want to specify the exact day and time of the workout at the team's Maryvale Baseball Park facility because it will be closed to media and fans. "It's going to be a private workout," said Melvin. "We want to take a look at him and visit with him." The Brewers won the right to negotiate with Aoki, 29, by posting the winning bid of $2.5 million to his team, the Yakult Swallows of Tokyo. A left-handed hitter known for making contact as a leadoff-type hitter, Aoki has won three batting crowns in Japan. Last"
January 2
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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An MLB official told me over the weekend that word is spreading in the industry that the Washington Nationals have emerged as a favorite to sign free-agent first baseman Prince Fielder. The market was slow to develop for Fielder, even after Albert Pujols signed a 10-year, $254 million deal with the Angels during the winter meetings in December. But now that the calendar has turned to 2012, you have to assume Fielder and agent Scott Boras will try to get a deal done soon. For public record, the Nationals have played down any interest they might have in Fielder. General manager Mike Rizzo said recently that "unless something extraordinary and out of the ordinary" happened, he was planning to"
December 19
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Apparently seeking to add depth in the outfield with Ryan Braun facing a 50-game suspension to open next season, the Milwaukee Brewers have entered into the bidding for Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki. The posting for Aoki, a two-time Central League batting champion with the Yakult Swallows, is a blind process that ends on Thursday, at which time the winning team will be informed of its high bid by the commissioner's office. If the Brewers wind up getting the high bid, they would have a 30-day window in which they would seek to negotiate a contract with the left-handed-hitting Aoki. If a deal can't be worked out between the Brewers and Aoki, the amount Milwaukee bid for his exclusive"
December 19
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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After doing a little more digging today, I was able to determine that the Milwaukee Brewers have not yet officially been awarded the negotiating rights to Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki. That doesn't mean it's not going to happen. It sounds as though the Brewers are in good shape to win his rights, in fact. But until the posting process officially concludes and the involved teams are informed of the outcome by the commissioner's office on Thursday, nothing is for certain. Reports over the weekend, beginning with one out of Japan, suggested that the Brewers were the winner with a $2.5 million bid on the Yakult Swallows outfielder. But the process is a blind one, and since it's not yet"
December 18
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Multiple sources are reporting tonight that the Milwaukee Brewers have submitted a winning $2.5 million bid to negotiate with Norichika Aoki, a three-time Japanese batting champion who plays for the Yakult Swallows of the Central League. The news was originally broken in Japan by Yasuko Yanagita of Hochi Shimbun. Here's what I could find on that -- excuse the translation, which was provided by Google. I put a call in to Brewers general manager Doug Melvin on this earlier this evening, but have yet to hear back. I'll update on here, of course, if and when I do. The Brewers have made no announcements on Aoki to this point. By posting the winning bid, Milwaukee now has 30 days to negotiate a"
December 12
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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No matter how convincingly Ryan Braun's representatives argue his case after a reported positive drug test, the Milwaukee Brewers' star leftfielder faces tremendously long odds in his attempt to avoid a 50-game suspension in 2012. A Major League Baseball source confirmed Sunday that no player has successfully overturned a positive test since the current drug program began in 2004. Beginning with Rafael Palmeiro in '05, 12 cases have gone before an arbitration panel and each time the player was ordered to serve his suspension. Braun has protested his innocence since an ESPN report surfaced Saturday indicating he tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug. A first offense in the MLB"
December 11
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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I just talked to someone familiar with Ryan Braun's positive drug test and he insisted that the Brewers' star left fielder will be cleared on the appeal process and that this information never should have come out. The ESPN report said Braun tested positive for an abnormally high level of testosterone in his system. No player ever has had a positive drug test overturned in appeal. If Braun's suspension is upheld, it would start at the beginning of the 2012 regular season. Brewers spokesman Tyler Barnes said the club had not been informed by the commissioner's office that Braun tested positive for a banned substance and faced a suspension."
December 11
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Did Ryan Braun cheat to become the 2011 National League most valuable player or is he the innocent victim of a premature report? That was the question being asked across the baseball world Saturday with the stunning news that the Milwaukee Brewers' star leftfielder tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug and faced a 50-game suspension, according to a report by ESPN's "Outside the Lines." No one associated with Braun, Major League Baseball or the Brewers would comment publicly on the report because the positive test is being appealed through an arbitration process that is ongoing. It was unknown how long that process could take. In a late-night text message, Braun said he wanted to"
December 10
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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I just spoke with agent Paul Kinzer, who represents free-agent third baseman Aramis Ramirez. He said he and Ramirez are taking "a break" this weekend with their families at Disney World and doesn't expect to talk to Brewers GM Doug Melvin. That's probably fine with Melvin, too, because he said Thursday he planned to return from the winter meetings in Dallas and "look at things and see where we are." Whether he has the financial leeway to continue to pursue Ramirez remains to be seen but both sides agree he would be a good fit in Milwaukee."
December 9
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Before leaving baseball's winter meetings at the Hilton Anatole Hotel on Thursday afternoon, Milwaukee Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said he expected to sign a shortstop soon. He wasn't kidding. Melvin barely had gotten to the airport when news leaked that he had reached agreement with veteran free-agent shortstop Alex Gonzalez on a one-year deal with a vesting option for 2013. Gonzalez will be 35 in February. Because Gonzalez must pass a physical exam to make the deal official, the Brewers did not confirm it. He is traveling from Venezuela for the physical, so it probably won't be announced before Monday. "We're not there yet, but it's a good possibility," Melvin said."
December 8
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports is reporting that the Brewers have reached agreement with free-agent shortstop Alex Gonzalez on a one-year deal with a vesting option. Brewers GM Doug Melvin said today at the winter meetings that he expected to have a shortstop soon and he apparently wasn't kidding. With Jimmy Rollins headed back to Philadelphia, the three remaining shortstops on the market were Gonzalez, Rafael Furcal and Yuniesky Betancourt, who started for the Brewers last season. Gonzalez, who will be 35 in February, played in 149 games for Atlanta last year and batted .241 with 15 homers and 56 RBI. He walked only 22 times, struck out 126 times and had a .270 OBP."
December 8
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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The Milwaukee Brewers' strange dance this off-season with free agent Prince Fielder appears to be winding down. "I think we're at a point now where we have to consider moving on," general manager Doug Melvin said Wednesday. Some wondered if the Brewers might be ready to make a bid to keep Fielder when word spread that owner Mark Attanasio participated late Tuesday night in a meeting with Fielder's agent, Scott Boras. But Melvin said that session was not planned and resulted in no new developments. Melvin said he was at dinner with Attanasio, who made his usual one-day visit to the winter meetings to check in on personnel discussions involving the Brewers. Boras placed a telephone call to"
December 8
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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The Milwaukee Brewers' first "acquisition" of the off-season is a rather pricey setup man. Free-agent reliever Francisco Rodriguez accepted the Brewers' offer of salary arbitration Wednesday night, in essence becoming a signed player for 2012 with a salary to be determined. Because he had a $13.5 million salary in 2011, "K-Rod" could be the most expensive player on the team's roster next season. The other free agent offered arbitration by the Brewers, first baseman Prince Fielder, declined as expected. Fielder has much bigger things in mind on the free-agent market. Free agents offered arbitration by their former clubs had until 11 p.m. to accept or decline. Accepting signaled a"
December 7
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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The Brewers are hearing that free-agent shortstop Jimmy Rollins is nearing an agreement to return to Philadelphia, so it sounds like he's out as a possible option at shortstop. Rollins was the top shortstop remaining on the market, so it was natural that the Brewers would have interest in him. But they expected all along that it would be difficult to pry him away from the Phillies. FoxSports' Ken Rosenthal is reporting that no deal is imminent between the Phillies and Rollins, but the Brewers certainly have the impression that they're going to work something out."
December 6
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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I just spoke with Paul Kinzer, the agent for third baseman Aramis Ramirez, who told me he considers the Brewers "a favorite" to sign his free-agent client. Kinzer, who has met with the Brewers at the winter meetings, said three teams are showing "serious" interest in signing Ramirez. Kinzer didn't say who the other two teams were but all indications are they are the Phillies and Angels. Ramirez visited with the Angels last week. Kinzer indicated he is looking for a three-year deal for Ramirez and said the third baseman has reciprocal interest in the Brewers. "He likes that team," said Kinzer. "He wants to go to a team that has pitching and gives him a chance to win a ring. He thinks the"