Reck Family Christmas Letter 2011

My Mom sends out the annual Christmas letter to her family and friends and normally I don't share it with the world. But this year I wrote it and naturally it is mostly about Timmy. Since we can't mail a copy to everyone I decided that it was easiest to put it on here and share it with everyone on Facebook. So here you go. I have decided to quote a couple of songs in this year's Christmas letter. Click below to play them.

 I am thankful for you friends for giving me all that I have. I am thankful for everything, and everything you gave me. – “Friend” by Tim Reck, from his album 42 Days (2002)
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As you can all imagine, 2011 was a very difficult and life changing year for our family. Tim’s sudden death in April left us all with a huge hole in our hearts and a lot of unanswerable questions. This last year has been spent mostly dealing with the physical, psychological and emotional loss of the youngest member of our family. But the holiday season is once again upon us, which is the traditional time of year to send out our annual Reck Family Christmas Letter. While it would be far easier (trust me) to skip writing the letter this year, we decided to remain true to our traditions. Timmy was the keeper of traditions in this family, but it wouldn’t be right to stop the Reck Family traditions that I know you have come to look forward to. So without further ado, my name is Scott Reck and this is the Christmas Letter. 
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Losing a family member is a very sad thing and I could go on for hours about how much our lives have changed. How much time do you have? But seriously I don’t want to dwell on the negatives because we have seen so many positives this past year that deserve mention. In this season of giving thanks, we want to say a huge thank you to you – our family and friends who have helped us through this tragedy. Whether it was a hug, a phone call, a small gift out of nowhere, money to help with the funeral costs, letters of love and encouragement or a free meal; we have appreciated everything you have done for us. Our support system is the only reason we are able to start healing and continue on through this journey we call life. So thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. We can’t say it enough. But this process will be ongoing for the rest of our lives, so keep those hugs and free eats coming, ok?

Right now Kris is happy to be done with another semester of school at UWM. Only a few more years until she graduates with a degree in Educational Studies with an emphasis on Early Childhood. And she is also looking forward to Christmas break and some time off from the kids at Sherman Park Preschool. Don’t get me wrong, she loves her job as evident by the fact that she has been there for 28 years, but when you deal with 3 year olds and the messes they create on a daily basis, you’d need a vacation too. Kris still lives in Milwaukee with her dog Gracie and graciously opens up her home (and refrigerator) to all of her children, even the ones who technically don’t belong to her. Aside from teaching, going to school, studying, writing papers, helping those less fortunate, singing at St. Catherine’s and being the greatest Mother in the world, she still finds time for everyone who needs it. I don’t know how she does it. Her strength throughout this past year is inspiring. She’s incredible, and I know I speak for everyone when I say we are all lucky to have her in our lives.

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James and his wife Melissa have been living in Columbia, South Carolina for almost 3 years. This past May they celebrated their 1 year wedding anniversary. This summer they bought a beautiful house in Columbia. I have been there personally and have inspected it inside and out, and I am proud to say that it is a wonderful place to raise their dogs. Yep, that plural was intentional. They have a 2 year old female Weimaraner named Baya and in October they adopted a 4 year old male Weimaraner which they named Tucker. James still works for Home Depot as a Contractor Services Manager and Melissa works for the Columbia Police Department and at several schools teaching the D.A.R.E. program. They enjoy taking the dogs to the dog park hoping to burn off some of the boundless energy the dogs have (but it doesn’t work) and going to the local pub Schooner’s to watch the Green Bay Packers games. They love living in South Carolina where the average winter temperature is 46 degrees, but they still look forward to coming back home to Wisconsin every chance they get.

Remember when I said Kris opened her house to everyone? I meant it in a big way. I took a few years off of writing this letter to “find myself” through meditation (I am an artist) but now I’m back. Things kind of got turned upside down when I lost my best friend and June’s Blanket band member, so I moved back home so I could sort it all out. My Roommate accepted me and my cat Coach Gordon Bombay with open arms, and although she probably regrets it now, we’ve had some good times living together. I still work at Mark Travel Corporation, so keep me employed by booking your next trip through Funjet Vacations. This past summer was my 10th year at Miller Park and what a year it was. Thankfully the NL Central Division Champion Milwaukee Brewers were able to provide a fun and exciting distraction, but they fell a little bit short of reaching the World Series. Oh well, there’s always next year. I promised Timmy that I’d get better at guitar, and jamming with friends has become my new hobby when I’m not tirelessly working on my websites Pookon.com, TimReck.com or adding all sorts of Tim’s music, pictures and videos to The Reck Room page on Facebook. There’s always something going on in my life and I’d like to personally thank all of my friends and family who have helped to keep me busy.

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Jenny is still living on Milwaukee’s Eastside with her cat Higgins. Up until recently she had been working at a Life Insurance firm but she has since been laid off. The economy sometimes hits pretty hard at home, so if you know anyone looking for a dedicated, hard working and intelligent person please let her know. She is ready and willing to fill out an application and interview. Jenny continues to follow her favorite band Umphrey’s McGee and goes to their concerts every time they are around, be it in Milwaukee, Madison, Chicago, Minneapolis and even Denver, Colorado. Music is a very important part of Jenny’s life, and it is something that has and will continue to bond her with Timmy. Her diligence to share his talent and legacy with others is admirable. Jenny has been instrumental in the healing process because she possesses many of the qualities that I loved most about Timmy, and she has become the person I go to when I need someone. She’s the Garth to my Wayne.

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I’d like to think that there is a heaven and that Timmy is up there with God and all the Angels jamming in the Heavenly Band. Timmy loved music and history. Think of all the cool people he gets to meet. One day he could be talking about the Civil War with Abraham Lincoln and the next day he could be trading solos with Jimi Hendrix. Plus he gets to finally meet one of his idols and musical inspirations - Harry Chapin. Timmy is missed by friends and family alike and we will never forget about his inability to take a “nice” picture without a goofy look on his face, watching him play guitar and drums and marveling at his talent and falling for his engaging personality. There are so many things in life that will continue to remind us of him, and I hope you carry some of those things with you. That way he’s always with us. Things will never be the same, but the memories and the impact he had on our lives will never go away. If you have yet to get a copy of any of his 6 CDs please contact us or head over to TimReck.com to listen online. We are thankful that he left behind his music for us to listen to so we can always hear his voice.
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In this holiday season please remember those less fortunate and give whatever you can. I am pleased to report that Timmy was an organ donor, and we recently received word from the Wisconsin Donor Network that the people who now have his heart, lungs, kidneys and liver are all doing well and thanks to Timmy, they are able to spend this Christmas Season with their families. There’s comfort in knowing some good was able to come out of this tragic loss. We have also seen the kindness and generosity of others and it is nothing short of amazing. God bless you all, and thank you from the bottom of my heart. From my family to yours – Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

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The Reck Family

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It seems like I've been here before, I can't remember when. But I have this funny feeling that we'll all be together again. No straight lines make up my life, and all my roads have bends. There's no clear-cut beginnings, and so far no dead-ends.- “Circle” by Harry Chapin, from his album Sniper and Other Love Songs (1972)
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- pookon -
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www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com

The Rapture

For 6 long months I have been awaiting the Rapture. Now to be quite honest with you I wasn't aware of the last Rapture that didn't happen on May 21st because I was too busy being sad and trying to put my fucking life back together. See since April 24th my life has not been the same. Well that's putting it lightly. To be quite honest with you it's been a personal hell. I lost my best friend and the person I cared most about in the entire world and there is no sign that anything is ever going to get better. I can't get a new best friend. It's not like I can open up a fucking drawer in the locker room and shout out, "Hey bitch wake up! You're my new best friend!" It doesn't work that way. Despite my knowledge of everything in this world coming from shit I learned in the movies, it just doesn't work that way. I spent 24 years of my life forming a bond that could only end in death and that's what it took to tear us apart. It's bullshit. Things weren't supposed to be that way. It's not fair. And it doesn't make an ounce of sense. So bring on the Rapture.

In Theology the Rapture is defined as the experience, anticipated by some fundamentalist Christians, of meeting Christ midway in the air upon his return to Earth. The actual definition is ecstatic joy or delight. Most people know it as the End of Days and the 2nd coming of Christ, in which he promised to return to Earth and take all of his children to heaven and raise the dead from their graves. The World as we know it shall cease to exist and those that are among the chosen shall live forever in Heaven with God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost for all of eternity. 

"But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. And then, shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory."

"And then shall He send His angels, and shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven." Mark 13: 24-27 

Life has it's moments and we should definitely celebrate all of them, but nothing is as great as the moment where Jesus calls us back home. Who doesn't want to return to the maker? Even though we choose our own paths during life, it was He who gave us the tools. the talent and the know-how to use all of that for the greater good. We owe everything that we are to God and therefore we must do what he asks of us. I have long since said that I am an Instrument of God. But I never really have known exactly what that means. It is when God uses a person to achieve a result. I don't know what I am supposed to be doing here and I don't know why I am doing it, but not all instruments are played the same way. In what limited time I have left on this Earth I will do what He asks of me, no matter how much I don't understand it. 

I've made a lot of mistakes in my life and I may not have lived my life according to God's word and scripture, but I am a good person. I can't promise to be that way on a daily basis but deep down inside I am a pure soul. Kind and generous, slow to anger, rich in spirit and eager to help the needy. Every act I do I do with his blessing behind me, which is why I don't stop to think before carrying on with my day to day activities. Not all of this makes sense, and I am just doing what I am told. In the end it will all come together in some glorious epiphany that will bring about real change and Revolution in this world, and not just the bullshit one that we raise our fist in the air because Uncle Greg told us to. I'm here for real and I'm here for a reason.

“I can tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not rise to meet him ahead of those who are in their graves. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with him forever. So comfort and encourage each other with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18

I do hope that the Rapture is real. Well it is real, it just isn't happening on October 21st as Harold Camping predicted. Because that old fucker doesn't know shit. He's like 90 years old or something so he might as well be some senile bastard. Truth be told he doesn't know when it is just like none of us know when it will happen. That's because God doesn't want us to know about the date of the Rapture. If we knew when Jesus would come back to Earth to take our souls to Heaven we would live our lives according to God's Plan. The whole reason we don't know the date is so that we spend every day of our lives as if it was our last and we be Christ-like in our actions on a daily basis. Any day he is going to be here to bring us back home and we need to be ready for it, whether it be in 2011 or 2111. Hell it might not even happen in our lifetime, even though for the majority of the year I wish it would have been. 

The whole reason that I wanted the Rapture to happen on October 21, 2011 because I want to die, but not by my own accord. I can't die by my own hand because that's no way to go. If an otherworldly force (like Jesus Christ coming to take the souls of the chosen) washes upon us then we have no choice. There is nothing humanity can do to stop the end of the world so we might as well just accept it. I'm on that train of thinking so don't get all worried like I'm going to kill myself or some stupid shit like that. I do want to die but for one reason and one reason only - I want to see my brother again. I miss him so much more every day since he has been gone and these last 6 months have been the worst of my life. I may never understand why he left us so soon but I hope by the time Jesus really calls my name I will understand why I'm still here and he isn't. There has to be a reason for all of this because if there isn't then life is just fucking bullshit. The only reason that I still believe in God is because there is no way he would leave me here to go through all of this pain and suffering if there wasn't some grand reward waiting for me in the end.

October 21st isn't the Rapture, despite what some old dude says. The Rapture may happen but it also might not. But I will spend the rest of my life believing that someday I will be reunited with Timmy who was and always will be my inspiration for all that I do. A lot of things have changed since he has gone, but I am doing my best to hang on to all of the good times we had in 24 short years. June's Blanket, Godsplash, Movie Night, our inside jokes and laughs, watching you play guitar and drums and thousands of "Yeah Timmy!" moments and how much I wish that I could be you. And you always wished that you could be me. I never got the chance to teach you to love and be happy with the person that you are and never try to be someone else. The reason you were the greatest is because there was only one of you and there will always only be one of you in this world. And even though physically you have moved on to be with God and be at peace, the rest of us are left here dealing with the pain of living without you. 

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10

God is my rock. He stands true and just even when I can not. And although I may not go to church more than 2 times a year or say my nightly prayers, he listens to me even when I'm not speaking. He reads my thoughts and always reassures me that everything is going to be OK. And I know that he is jamming out to a live version of The Cosmic Dance. Because everyone can play a tune (God too), it's just part of the cosmic dance.And who better to lead the dance than the craziest dancer of them all - Timmy the Kid.

Timmy and I once dropped our pants in front of a sign that "Heaven is real, so is Hell. Jesus is the answer, time will tell." Read into that all you want but take away this one thing - time is the only thing that can heal all wounds. In time I will be reunited with the greatest person I have ever known. Someday June's Blanket will make more beautiful music. Someday I will proudly shout "Yeah Timmy!" Someday I will cry no more tears. Someday I will understand the meaning of this life. But that time is not now. Right now this Rapture thing is bullshit and life is what you make of it. And I'm going to make mine amazing. That's what Timmy would have wanted me to do. He always wanted me to be amazing. And although I may fall a little short, I will never stop trying. In the end I don't really have to be doubly great for the both of us. You were plenty great on your own. But I will promise to be great for myself. Hopefully even doubly great. And I will. I promise that to you brother.

 - pookon -

www.pookon.com

email: pookondotcom@gmail.com

Harry Caray and Greg Proops

- pookon -

www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com

Milwaukee Brewers 2011 - Series 1 + 2 - Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves

March 31 - April 3, Milwaukee Brewers vs. Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ballpark. The 2011 season started where the 2010 season ended. The Reds won the NL Central in 2010 and are viewed upon many to repeat this year, and they proved those people right by starting out 3-0 by sweeping the Milwaukee Brewers right out of town. Despite 2 games that were very winnable the Brewers struggled with closing the door in Game 1 and scoring runs in Game 2. As for Game 3? Well we don't talk about Game 3 and the comical stinker that Randy Wolf called pitching. The Reds totally owned us last year (when they won like 11 of 14 games) and are up on us 3-0 this year. In order to win the division we need to beat the other teams in our division, and the opening series of the year didn't prove that we could. But it was only 3 games and there are still 159 to go, so anyone that was jumping off the bandwagon or joining the Sportsradio 1250 "Done Club" is an idiot. Did it suck? Hell yeah. Was I crushed? You bet. Was I so fucking angry that I thought I was going to turn into the Incredible Hulk? You bet. Did I get over it? Of course. And the series against the Atlanta Braves definitely helped me to do that. Milwaukee Brewers record: 0-3.

April 4 - 7, Milwaukee Brewers vs. Atlanta Braves at Miller Park. Call me an stupid, alone in my principles or unwilling to buy into the hype (but don't call me late for dinner yuk yuk yuk) but the Atlanta Braves are my pick to win the NL East. Yep, that's right I pick them to finish the season with a better record than the Philadelphia Phillies. I think they have a real wild card of a team filled with unpredictable young players that have more potential to win games versus the proven veteran Phillies. Pitching was the story in this series. On the Home Opener Chris Narveson went 6 scoreless but Takashi Saito gave up 2 solo homeruns in the 8th inning and the Brewers lost 2-1 to start the season 0-4. Yovani Gallardo then tossed a complete game, 2 hit shutout gem in a must win game to stop the losing streak and get the Brewers win #1 on the season. #5 starter (for now) Marco Estrada needed the offense to back him up, and they finally showed up in Wednesday's game and the Brewers won 5-4. On Thursday Shaun Marcum rebounded from his 5 walk performance at Cincinnati and earned his 1st win as a Brewer and the team won the series 3 games to 1 against the Braves and things were starting to look up after that 0-4 start. And now the casual fans are backing away from the ledge and jumping back on the bandwagon. Us real fans knew that an 0-4 start wasn't the end of the world when there were still 158 FUCKING GAMES LEFT IN THE SEASON! But the Brewers showed some life and the ability to forget the past and move on. Milwaukee Brewers record: 3-4.



There was a lot of emotion from me in the 1st week as I went from excited to depressed, angry to disappointed, relief to happiness and nervous to balls to the walls joy. I'm such a fan that I sometimes do take the games too seriously and ride an emotional rollercoaster with every pitch, at bat, inning and game. While it is a lot of stress to constantly change the way I feel I can't help it because aside from my family and friends, there isn't anything I love more than the Milwaukee Brewers. With all the hype going into 2011 (and seriously, this team really is that good) and the possibility of winning the NL Central and going to the World Series, I really wanted to see them get off to a good start. And although I know that it is a long season, in the end every game is going to matter because the other teams in our division (well, mostly Cincinnati) should be in the race in September and we need to make sure we have more wins than they do. Simple idea right? But it becomes painful if something so easy gets so complicated towards the end of the year and we miss the playoffs by a few games thanks to these early losses. But there is no reason to dwell on that now, because there is so much baseball left to play and the weather is just starting to turn around for the better.

I want to hand out awards at the end of each of these wrap ups. And although several players got off to a hot start in Cincinnati, Rickie Weeks is the MVB (most valuable Brewer) of the series as he led of the series and the season with a homerun and returned to Milwaukee with 2 homeruns, 4 RBIs and a .308 batting average. If Weeks puts up numbers close to last year's, it's going to be one hell of a year for the Milwaukee Brewers offense.

I really wanted to give the MVB to Nyjer Morgan for his outstanding defense, plate discipline and baserunning as well as showing us what Carlos Gomez could be like, but the award has to go to pitcher Yovani Gallardo for pitching a complete game, 2 hit shutout when the team was desperate for a win to end the losing streak. He also got the 1st base hit of the game and scored the only run in a 1-0 win. I predicted that in 2011 the Brewers would not lose more than 5 games in a row, and they were dangerously close to doing that in the first week of the season. Pitching wins games, and in this series that couldn't have been more evident as every game was decided by 2 or fewers runs.

Next up the hated Chicago Cubs and their asshole fans head North to Miller Park for a weekend series. The Cubs are probably going to be shitty this year but they will probably be a thorn in the Brewers' side because if there's anything I learned over the years is that there is no way to predict the outcome of a Brewers/Cubs game. Anything can happen, and it usually does.

- pookon -

www.pookon.com
pookondotcom@gmail.com

Milwaukee Brewers 2011 - 25 in 25 - John Axford (25 of 25)

You are now looking at the final article of 2011's "25 Brewers in 25 Days" and it features none other than Brewers closer John Axford. After a week of teasing, I bet you never thought you'd see this shit. Well peep this article bitches! This is the grand daddy of them all. I've been hyping it up for a week and like me in bed, I know that it won't perform up to expectations. I can't believe that people have expectations of me. I'm a terrible lover, are you kidding me? Why just the other day I caught a peeping Tom booing me. But you didn't come here to read about me, you've done way too much of that in these past 25 days. Oh no, and since you've been patiently waiting, here he is, the Mustache himself, the Ax-man - I present to you Mr. John Axford!

John Axford is eerily similar to former Brewers closer Derrick Turnbow. And it's a little too eerie for comfort. I mean it. This shit will make you shiver more than when you read a Goosebumps book in the dark under your covers with a flashlight when you were 9 years old. Let's make a list of their similarities. Both are hard throwing righties with a fastball that hits the high 90's who have control problems. Both of them were toiling around in the minor leagues before the Brewers brought them on board. Both have a signature look - Axford with the mustache and Turnbow with the shaggy hair. Both broke into the big leagues in their late 20's. Both were huge fan favorites in their rookie years. And speaking of rookie years check this shit out -

Axford: 8-2 record, 2.48 ERA, 24 for 27 saves, 76 strikeouts and 27 walks.

Turnbow: 7-1 record, 1.74 ERA, 39 for 43 saves, 64 strikeouts and 24 walks.

Haunting, isn't it? And I haven't even gotten to the spooky part yet - THEY EVEN WEAR THE SAME FUCKING NUMBER - 59!! What the hell Axford?!? Do you really want to turn out just like Turnbow? Make sure you consider that after his brilliant rookie season he slipped to a 4-9 record, 6.87 ERA and 24 of 32 saves in his 2nd season. After that he became a set up man then totally fell off the map. Last I heard Turnbow was trying to catch on with the Marlins in Spring of 2010 and was cut during Spring Training. Shortly thereafter he announced his retirement from baseball. Do you see the treacherous path that you are walking John? Of course all of this could change and right now he could take a different path than Turnbow did in his second season. I suppose when 2011 is all said and done I will evaluate this season and the Axford to Turnbow comparison will be revisited. Until then let's pray for the best and that the closer won't kill our team like it did in 2010.

I hate to talk shit about Trevor Hoffman because he has had such a storied Hall of Fame worthy career and from what I read and hear about him, he is perhaps one of the nicest, hardworking and professional guys in baseball. But let's face facts - he just didn't have it in 2010. After he blew 5 out of his first 10 saves and his ERA skyrocketed to around a 15.00, something had to be done. It pained me to watch Hoffman crumble before my eyes as I watched every one of those blown saves with tears streaming down my face. The Brewers had just come off of a 9 game losing streak then lost 2 of the first 3 to the Minnesota Twins. I was there at Target Field in Minneapolis when Axford recorded his 1st save of 2010 and it was the beginning of one of the only bright spots of the 2010 season, the emergence of The Ax Man.

Not to dwell on Hoffman too long, but it's amazing that he was a closer for 18 seasons and racked up 601 career saves. That's mighty impressive considering how closers come and go in baseball these days. I've been working at Miller Park for 10 years now, and here is this list of closers that the Brewers have had since 2001 - Curtis Leskanic (old #00), Mike DeJean, the 2004 All-Star Dan Kolb, Derrick Turnbow, Francisco Cordero, Eric Gagne (the $10 million dollar man), Salomon Torres, Trevor Hoffman and now John Axford. That's 9 closers in 10 years. That's more turnaround than when I worked at The Mayfair Mall movie theater back when it was General Cinema. Just goes to show you that I'm old because that shit has been AMC for years now and that a closer isn't hard to come by. But I do hope that John Axford isn't like Derrick Turnbow or the multitude of other closers we've had in the last decade because I really like this guy. And I know that you like him too. How could you not love a mustache like that? If I could grow a mustache I would totally model it after his for the duration of the baseball season.





One of the initial reasons why I pushed this article back a couple of times was because I wanted Brodey to be a part of it. Yes, the Brodey of Brodey's Brewers Funday Extravaganza and the Godfather of Milwaukee's CHBPL. He's also my mentor and a hell of a human being. And there's also the fact that he resembles John Axford. Or is it that John Axford resembles Brodey? They both are tall, skinny and are professional athletes. And they both can grow some wicked awesome facial hair. Hmmm... You know I always wondered why you never saw Brett Favre and Geoff Jenkins in the same place at the same time. It was always a mystery to me and I struggled to solve it. I even hired Scooby Doo and the Mystery Inc. Gang but even their combined brains couldn't come to a conclusion worth publishing. Then I realized when the Brewers signed Randy Wolf - they are all the same person and they just can't stay away from Wisconsin sports.

How fast can Brodey throw a fastball? In the high 90's. What is John Axford's career shooting percentage in CHBPL official beer pong games? 47.93%. I think that there's a pretty good reason why you never heard about Axford before he became the Brewers closer last year. That's because he never pitched anywhere else. They cobbled together some minor league stats to form a paper trail, and coincidentally Brodey quit working as a bartender and now has a day job at a bank. Clever move Brodey, but I see right through you. Like Batman posing as Bruce Wayne in the daylight, you too have chosen to keep your identity a secret as not to be mobbed by the fans. That actually makes him more like Hannah Montana posing as Miley Stewart. And like Miley, Brodey gets the best of both worlds. He's a lucky man.

I'm not so lucky, because the person I resemble is not attractive, nor is he phphysically fit. That would impossible to look like. But Jonah Hill is hilarious, rich and well liked by the movie going public. He's a rising star in the comedy genre and has a signature style of comedy and delivery of lines. When the trailer for the Last Cup beer pong documentary came out, people commenting on YouTube wondered if this was a "mockumentary" staring Jonah Hill. I had never made the connection before that, but apparently everyone else did. I used to Google search the movie and see what people were saying about it and about me, and there were numerous Jonah Hill comments. When the documentary first came out we did a little "who would play who if this were turned into a real movie." Raphael from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would play the villain Tone and John Heder (of Napoleon Dynamite fame) would play Hummel. John Heder does looks more like Brodey than Hummel, but he would probably want a bigger role in the movie than Brodey plays. Despite being the Godfather, Brodey takes a background role in the film. But then I started to wonder, who would play me?

My initial wish was that John Candy would play me. Sadly John Candy died in 1994 and would not be able to portray Iceman with the comic timing and down home Midwestern goodness that the role calls for. So my next pick was Chris Farley. Even though the role didn't have a lot of physical comedy, he (born and raised in Wisconsin) had the comedy and general likability to be the heart of the film. But sadly he died in 1997 and didn't live to play this dream role. My next pick was Louie Anderson, and I even took a picture next to one of his advertisements in Las Vegas to prove my point, but then I realized that TJ wasn't in this movie and he didn't quite fit the part. Plus he also sadly died a few years ago. Wait... what? You mean that Louie Anderson is still alive? Then where the hell has he been the last few years? Comedian and impressionist Frank Caliendo was my next choice because he's also a fat short funny guy, and if he can nail John Madden's voice and mannerisms, then I'm sure that he can do mine. Plus he grew up in Waukesha and I bet he would like to play a person who is passionate about their state, city and local sports team. I'm no youngin', but all of them (considering that Candy, Farley and Anderson were still alive today) would be too old to play me, which is why Jonah Hill is perfecting casting if I've ever seen it. This is never going to happen, as most people have pretty much forgotten that I starred in a movie (which you can buy at Amazon.com or rent from Netflix) and I haven't received a dime for my participation. So don't buy that shit. I don't get any of the profits from it. I'll burn you a copy of it if you really want to see it.

Aside from getting a couple hundred extra Facebook friends (I doubt I know 779 people in real life, and I know I'm not friends with all of them) and getting recognized in public as "that guy from the Beer Pong Movie" I haven't benefited from the movie. So I'm no Jonah Hill. But Brodey is John Axford, and when I asked him if he could put up stats similar to his phenomenal rookie season. But then I figured it was good ol' drunk Brodey talking again. And even though I'd like to believe him, I just have that horrible feeling in my gut that he can't repeat last year. Though that might just be the guacamole I ate last night around midnight after stumbling home from the bar. Axford won't quite fall from grace like Turnbow did, but he will come back to Earth this year and put up numbers like this:

4-3 record, 3.74 ERA, 34 saves in 40 chances, 62 innings pitched, 79 strikeouts and owner of the sweetest Mustache in all of Milwaukee. Wait screw that, he will have the sweetest mustache in all of the WORLD!!

So that's it. 25 Brewers articles in 25 Days. I went a little above and beyond last year's "25 in 25" and you can find those in the archives on the right side of the page. So did you enjoy that shit? Even though it was a whole lot of work, I really enjoyed doing this shit. A huge thank you goes out to all the people who helped me with these videos - Kevin, Timmy, Colleen, Aaron, Lee, Brodey, Brian, Mike Bates and Mike Wilhelm. And thanks also to the countless people who check this shit out. I enjoy writing and talking Brewers, but there is no reason to post it on here if people aren't going to read it. I haven't heard a lot of feedback from people, but Google Analytics tells me that enough of you checked out this blog on a daily basis. This won't be the end of the Brewers talk on this blog, but I'm going to take a couple of days off to enjoy the first couple games of the season. That's right people! The season begins tomorrow March 31st in Cincinati! Now it's for real and the 2011 Championship season can begin. I've literally got a lot of money riding on the Brewers winning it all this season, but that my friends, is a topic that will be covered some day. Roll out the Barrel! We'll have a Barrel of Fun!

Follow John Axford on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/JohnAxford and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JohnAxford

Follow Brodey on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/Brodwieser and Facebook http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=636449012

Follow Jonah Hill on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/JonahHill

And of course, follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/pookondotcom and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MilwaukeeIceman

I've ended these articles with a tease, so why should this be any different? I have a great idea for another series of articles called "10 in 10" that should be very enjoyable to both me and you. I plan on starting this in about a week, so stay tuned. I won't reveal exactly what I'm doing yet because I still need to work some things out in planning, but it should be an adventure for my personally and for you following along on this blog. Thanks again everyone, and have a nice day.

- pookon -

www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com

Milwaukee Brewers 2011 - 25 in 25 - Final Bullpen Pitchers - Green, Kintzler + Mitre (24 of 25)

Yeah I was just fucking with you when I said that I'd have the John Axford article today. C'mon, man! Did you really think that after a week of teasing you with it that I would actually post it? You're smarter than that. But it will be here tomorrow because that is the final day before the season begins, and John Axford is the 25th man on the 25 man roster. I wanted to go out with a bang because these last few posts have been a little underwhelming. But at least I'm talking about the bullpen, right? I mean at least Green, Kintzler and Mitre will hang out with Axford in the bullpen, right? So by osmosis I'm really talking about Axford today. And yes, that is a picture of the Bullpen at good ol' Milwaukee County Stadium. I could have put a picture of the one at Miller Park but I was reminiscing a little bit. Plus I'm watching Major League as I type this, so it seems fitting to go old school. This year's bullpen will be anything but, as it looks like it will be filled with mostly younger guys. If it weren't for injuries to Zack Greinke, LaTroy Hawkins and Manny Parra that will have them start the season on the DL, these 3 pitchers probably wouldn't even have been on the Opening Day roster. But they are, so I have to talk about them.

Sean Green is a decent reliever that brings 5 years of major league experience and is mostly a groundball pitcher. He missed almost all of last year with a dreaded intercostal strain (like the one that keeps nagging Braun like a rude guest at his restaurant) but from 2007-2009 with the Seattle Mariners and New York Mets he averaged a 4.34 ERA with 72 innings pitched, which isn't too bad for a middle of the road bullpen pitcher. You need someone out there to eat some innings when a starter leaves early or a game goes into extras, so it helps to have a guy that's durable to pitch back to back days. Every bullpen in the Majors has a guy like Sean Green. Not everybody out there is going to be a hard throwing shut 'em down reliever because that's impossible. All you need some times is a guy to cover innings. There's 9 in a game, and you can't end it until you've played all 9. All this seems like a waste of space, but it takes one to write about it. I haven't done shit in my life, and if I made it to the big leagues like Sean Green has done, then I wouldn't consider my life the disappointment that it is today. As you saw last year, the bullpen rarely has the same players at the end of the season as it did on Opening Day, so it will be interesting to see who goes when Parra and Hawkins return. I hope that Doug Melvin has to make a tough decision when that happens, because that means everyone in the bullpen is doing their job.

Every year you're going to see a couple of guys like Brandon Kintzler in the bullpen. Signed as a minor league free agent 2 years ago, he's young enough (26) where he's still cheap (major league minimum salary), has minor league options remaining and also doesn't have a lot of experience which he could use to his advantage. When there isn't a lot of scouting on a pitcher, the batter doesn't know what to expect. That's one of the reasons why you see rookie pitchers have great success then get knocked around real bad their second year. And if they do, you can send them down to the minors to work on their command without affecting the Brewers record. That's why you'll see someone like Kintzler or Mike McClendon bounce up and down throughout the season. That's one of the reasons the bullpen door has to be a revolving one because it's always in use and the pitchers out there are constantly changing. If every bullpen was filled with high priced veterans, you'd have no more money left for the rest of the team. So look for Kintzler to be the first one optioned to Nashville when LaTroy Hawkins comes off of the DL. But if you're a fan of his (and who isn't?) don't worry - you're sure to see him back in the bullpen by the end of the season. At the very least he'll be back as a September call-up.

Of these 3 guys, Sergio Mitre is the most likely to hang around for the entire season. Taking the role of spot starter / long reliever vacated by Manny Parra's injury, he plays a very important part in the bullpen. Every team needs one of these guys too because there will be a time when a starter just gets lit up in the 1st inning and the manager has no choice but to take him out. And suddenly you have 6 innings to cover that you thought were previously alright, which is where this guy steps in. His career stats aren't very impressive but that's not what we're asking him to be. His main goal is to chew up innings and keep us in the game. He's going to give up a few runs but at the end of the day he will play an important role. The best thing about him is that he's giving himself a Wet Willy in this picture. Anyone who would do something that looney in ok in my book. Plus we basically got him for nothing. Sure Chris Dickerson's Mom might get upset I called her son nothing, but he basically was nothing to this team. But you have to admit trading him a few days ago for Mitre which opened up a spot to trade for Nyjer Morgan. The additions of Mitre and Nyjer made us a better team, so I'm all for it. Manny Parra is out of minor league options, so it will be interesting to see what happens when he's healthy and ready to join the team. Since the Brewers will start the season with 4 starters and 8 relievers, it will also be interesting to see what happens on April 6th when they need a 5th starter. Do they go with Mitre? Or do they call up Marco Estrada? And if they do who gets sent down? Since I'm sick and tired of speculating about shit like this, I'll just sit back and let it all play out.

When Spring Training started there was really only 1 bullpen spot available, but as you can see 3 players now occupy this "last spot." Injuries are one of the hardest things to predict in any sport, and when they happen it completely changes the roster. Since I didn't know which pitchers would round out the bullpen, my buddy Lee and I didn't talk about them. Instead we chose to talk about a different pitcher entirely. Lee has been following along with this "25 in 25" series and took me up on the offer to appear in the video, and I let him choose the topic. And like almost all the videos in this series, it contains randomness and swearing, so proceed with caution.

These 3 players are on the Opening Day roster by default. Do they deserve it? Kind of, but would they have made it had there not been those injuries? Who knows. But I don't expect any of them to have a full season of stats. But I feel like Manny Parra's injury is going to last longer then they are letting on seeing as he has only throw 1/3 of an inning so far this Spring. Which means Mitre has the best chance of sticking around long enough to put up stats that can accurately describe his performance, so I'm only going to throw out a prediction for him. I could be wrong about Green and Kintzler, because there always has to be those guys coming out of nowhere having an amazing season which elevates the team from good to great. But I just don't see them being those guys. I've watched the team long enough to be able to see that kind of shit. But who the hell knows anymore. I've been wrong before and I will be wrong again. Hell, I might even be wrong about Mitre's stats in 2011:

2-4 record, 4.85 ERA, 54 innings and by the end of the year, like Carlos Villanueva in 2010, you won't remember him nor will you remember that he pitched that much.

There is only 1 more day until Opening Day, and there is only 1 more player left to be talked about in "25 Brewers in 25 Days." That would be closer John Axford. And this time I really really mean it. At this point, who the hell else could I talk about? And who the hell else would I want to talk about? Sorry for making you wait a week for this shit, but I really wanted to end it right. And although this article is massive both in length and in speculation, it's worth a read. But I'm going to let you make that decision because tomorrow I present to you the long awaited John Axford article. I'd tease more about him, but I feel like I've done enough teasing around here. But there is information on how you too can grow a sweet mustache just like Axford. I know that you've always wanted one, and I have the secret. I'd tell you now, but that my friends, is a topic that will be covered tomorrow. Roll out the Barrel! We'll have a Barrel of Fun!

- pookon -

www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com

Milwaukee Brewers 2011 - 25 in 25 - Backup Outfielder - Jeremy Reed + Nyjer Morgan (23 of 25)

You don't want to read a John Axford article. That's not the one you were looking for. You can go about your business. Move along. Now that I laid that Jedi Mind Trick on you you can get over the fact that I was crying wolf. Deal with it. But I'm running out of days before the season begins so it for sure will be here Tuesday or Wednesday. I know that you asked for it and hold tight, because eventually you will get it. But if you would have asked me 1 week ago who the backup outfielders would be on this team I would have answered Chris Dickerson and Brandon Boggs. Despite Dickerson signing Kevin's sombrero and Boggs being a young athletic switch hitter, both missed out on Opening Day by last minute trades or replacements. That's the beauty of Spring Training because you really can't predict these roster changes. Since every team invites close to 50 players to Spring Training (some on the 40 man roster, some from their minor league system and some players battling to make the club) the team needs to cut it down to 25 by the season opener. Sometimes a player is cut that another team thinks they could use, and a trade is worked out. That's what happened with the Brewers in the last few days.

Dickerson seemed to have the edge on the backup spot because he was on the team last year, he bats left handed (the Brewers still have a right heavy lineup) and he can play all 3 outfield spots. Then he was unexpectedly traded to the New York Yankees for reliever Sergio Mitre, who I will talk about tomorrow when I cover the final bullpen spots. They might have planned on opening the season with Dickerson, but you have to give up a strength (in this case offensive outfielders) to get a need which for the Brewers is always pitching. No offense but I won't miss Dickerson. But I am glad that we are finally realizing that pitching wins games, no matter how much Bill Hall likes to say that he does.

Boggs was signed as a free agent over the winter to provide some depth, which he still will be doing at AAA Nashville. He didn't have a very good Spring, but I viewed him as a player with a lot of upside. But it makes sense that he is going to AAA instead of hanging out with the big league club because he doesn't have a lot of experience, so sitting him on the bench is not going to benefit him. He needs to go and play every day and be ready in case a starter goes down (and I pray to God we leave the injuries down in Phoenix when we head back North) and he can fill in any of the 3 outfield spots. His versatility in the field and as a switch hitter may bring him back later in the season, but for now he's looking for an apartment in Nashville. I hear Mat Gamel needs a roommate.

Jeremy Reed will be one of the the backup outfielders for the Brewers when the season begins. I didn't start writing this article until I woke up this morning, so I don't have time to finish it before I head off to work in like 15 minutes. But when I get home I will finish it. But I wanted to throw something up here for the time being so you don't think that I quit on you guys. I think the Brewers decided to go with Reed because he has played in the majors for the last 7 years (mostly as a backup) and is well suited for the role of pinch hitter / spot starter. How long he will last is the real question. Someone has to go once Corey Hart is activated from the disabled list, and I doubt it will be Mark Kotsay or the newly acquired Nyjer Morgan. So enjoy the first few weeks of the season Mr. Reed, and I wish you well on your way out the door. With all due respect, the only reason that you made the team was because Hart is on the DL and you had a decent Spring Training. But it should have been because you were born in San Dimas, California. That's where Bill S. Preston, Esquire and Ted "Theodore" Logan are from and where my family lived. That kind of street cred should have easily earned you a roster spot, but apparently Doug Melvin and the Brewers brass don't appreciate things like that. Even though he's not a Nyjer like the other backup outfielder on the roster, I'll still cheer for him. But in 2 weeks when he's gone it'll be a different story.

I really want to talk about Nyjer Morgan because he of all players has the ability to get me kicked out of a game because of his first name. Let's just say when you shout it out loud and you are drunk, you have the chance of saying another word that isn't acceptable to use. Plus even when I am sober and yell out, "that guy has to be the fastest Nyjer on the field!" I will get warned by stadium security and the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Department. Even though I am cautious about saying his name in public, I really like the trade for Morgan. Sure he has some character issues and has started more than his share of fights, but from everything I've read in the last day or so suggests that he's a good guy with raw emotions who could do with a change of scenery. If you remember Prince Fielder has some anger issues and gets fired up sometimes, but you love him anyway. But somebody on that team keeps Prince Fielder in line. Now that Mike Cameron isn't here anymore, I don't know who that team leader and glue guy in the clubhouse is. Hopefully someone can keep that Nyjer in line because he has too much talent to go to waste.

I have faith that Carlos Gomez is going to stay in the starting lineup all year, but if you can get a plan B for a minor leaguer (Cutter Dykstra, son of Lenny) who probably wasn't going to make it to the majors, then why the hell not do it? Morgan probably won't get a hell of a lot of playing time, but he's a plus defender that could give Gomez and Weeks a run for their money as the fastest player on the team. He fits well into Manager Ron Roenicke's plan to be more aggressive on the bases and is a fantastic replacement in the outfield if a starter needs to miss a few days. In fact, I would go so far to say that with Braun, Gomez, Hart, Kotsay and Morgan we have the best outfield I've seen in recent years. If this Nyjer learns to control his temper than I think he'll fit right in. I've heard he is very passionate about winning (something that frustrated him while playing with Washington and Pittsburgh) and likes to let loose and have fun, which should put him right in line with the crazy antics this ballclub will get into if Roenicke let's them be themselves. Either way it's going to be a hell of year and it just got a whole lot more interesting now that this crazy Nyjer was added to the mix.

And speaking of crazy, Brian, Kevin and I filmed this video last Thursday after a night of raging. Since we didn't know who the backup outfielders would be, we just talked about anything for 10 minutes. It's pretty random and not safe for work / children's ears, so take caution when playing it. I bet you can't make it through the entire video.



Since I don't expect Reed to be around for long, I'm not going to bother doing a stat prediction on him. And even though Braun, Gomez and Hart should each play around 150 games (or at least we hope they do) Nyjer Morgan will find a way to get himself into the lineup because he's just too good of a talent to let him rot on the bench. I hate to see him get in the game at the expense of one of our regular outfielders, but something tells me that Nyjer will find a way into the game. And it wouldn't surprise me if he put up a stat line like this:

.285 AVG, .345 OBP, 2 HRs, 29 RBIs, 24 stolen bases and be the fastest Nyjer on the team.

There are only 2 more days to go until Opening Day, and 2 more roster spots to identify. So that means there is a 50/50 chance that tomorrow's article will be about John Axford. I know that I've been teasing it for about a week, but I tomorrow could be the day it's finally here because I'm running out of players to talk about. Plus that article is already written, and I don't feel like writing any more, so I might as well just post that one. But I may just be teasing you again, much like I got teased for being the little fat kid in 2nd grade. Am I telling the truth finally? Or am I bullshitting you once again. You'll have to wait and see, but that my friends, is a topic that will be covered tomorrow. Roll out the Barrel! We'll have a Barrel of Fun!

- pookon -

www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com

Milwaukee Brewers 2011 - 25 in 25 - Backup Infielder - Erick Almonte (22 of 25)

Now that utility man Erick Almonte has been officially named the 2nd backup infielder, I can now write an article about him. That's fantastic. I'm beside myself with joy. Hooray for Hollywood. Except for the fact that I don't feel like writing about him. I did feel like writing about John Axford, but I can't figure out the best way to present that information, so I'm going to put that one off for yet another day. If you're very upset about that then you can punch me in the stomach the next time that you see me. If any of you take this shit that seriously then we are no longer Facebook friends. I'm defriending your ass the second after I regain breathing after doubling over on the sidewalk and wheezing for air. Oh I'd be laying on the ground while I do it on my Android powered phone, but I wouldn't look nearly as sexy as Almonte does in this picture. Wait? Did I say sexy? I meant salatorious. I don't know too much about Almonte except what I can gather from his Spring Training and Minor League stats. Except for a cup of tea with the New York Yankees in 2001 and 2003 for a total of 39 games, I got nothing to go on. He certainly impressed someone in the Brewers organization enough for them to give him a shot, but it's anyone's guess how long he will last on the team.

I do use Google to find out everything I need to know about some of these new players, but if I only used Google Images to formulate my opinion, I would speculate that Erick Almonte spends a lot of time on the ground. Better than spending a lot of time on his knees though, right? But these were some of the only pictures I could find of him with the Brewers, and one of them is in a AAA Nashville Sounds' (Brewers minor league team) jersey. The minor leagues are a whole lot different than the majors because players are down there for a reason. Either they're young and inexperienced and working their way to the majors or they simply aren't good enough to play at the top level. Sorry to say but Almonte is the latter of those two. Nothing against him, but there's a good reason why this guy is 33 years old and was playing at AAA. The best he'll ever do is be a backup / pinch hitter, and I'm hoping that he makes the most of it. Given a resonable amount of games and at bats, Almonte has a career minor league batting average .274 with a .349 on base percentage. But this year he won't get a reasonable amount of games or at bats. The thing to watch will be to see how he adjusts to limited playing time. He's not much of a power guy but all he'll be asked to do (like Counsell) will be to get on base in the late innings, except he'll be doing it from the right side. Will he find success in this role or will he find his way out of town by mid-May? At this point it's anyone's guess, and we'll see how this will play out in the coming months.

All that I could think about when I was looking up information on Almonte was Del Monte, one of the country's largest producer, distributor and marketer or branded food products. When I first thought about Del Monte I was like where do I recognize that from? Then I remembered that it is the sticker on bananas that is not Chiquita. Del Monte makes all sorts of products from canned corn and green beans, fruit cups and fruit cocktail, raisins and fruit snacks and such pet food products like Kibbles 'n Bits, Meow Mix and my personal favorite - Snausages. If you can bag it or can it, then Del Monte probably already does. And if you can't then Del Monte will figure out a way to do it damn it! Their newest slogan and branding on their website is "Let's Start a Revolution." Seriously folks, I'm not making this up. You know how I feel about the Revolution and Starting one, and even though Uncle Greg is in charge of making decisions in our Revolution, I'm going to go ahead and proclaim Del Monte as the official canned food of the Revolution. In their canned foods they want to lock in the vitamins and nutrients of fresh foods, which is why the canned foods have "no preservatives, no artificial colors and no unnatural flavors. Just the great taste and simple nourishing goodness of nature." If that is not worthy of putting your fist in the air with pride and promise, I don't know what is.



It's really hard to predict what Almonte will do this year. It would probably be easier to predict what Del Monte will do in new sales because they are constantly generating over $3 Billion dollars per fiscal year. If all goes according to plan (knock on wood) Almonte will not get a lot of at bats and will not see a heck of a lot of playing time. I hope he had fun playing in like every Spring Training game because he'll be riding a lot of pine in the big leagues. But I still think he will do all right as a pinch hitter and spot starter, but I can't see him doing too much better than this:

.262 AVG, 3 HRs, 17 RBIs, 91 games payed (mostly as a pinch hitter, look for him to start less than 20 games) and not nearly as vital to the US citizens as Del Monte is in providing them with quality food products.

The last couple of spots are always the hardest to predict because guys like Erick Almonte just come out of nowhere and earn a spot on the Opening Day roster, much like Joe Inglett did last year. That is the reason why I save these entries for the final days before the season begins. But John Axford had his spot locked up from his performance so much to the point that no competition was brought in to challenge him for the role. He was basically handed it, which must have felt good for a guy who has fought and clawed for a roster spot on every team he's ever been on. And I for sure will have Axford up tomorrow because I spent all weekend touching it up. I wanted to make this one a good one and not half-ass it like I did all of the other ones. And I certainly am not crying wolf, which I'm sure that I am being accused of at this time. It will be up tomorrow or else villagers will be storming down the door of my castle with pitchforks and torches, but that my friends is a topic that will be covered tomorrow. Roll out the Barrel! We'll have a Barrel of Fun!

- pookon -

www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com