The Sports Nut

There’s a small, but growing contingent of Brewers Nation that believes trading Prince Fielder this season is a good idea. Smarter than Tony “Iron Man” Stark, in fact. Even a newspaper or two is stirring the pot. So are they thinking out of the box or out of their minds?

Here’s what’s fueling the sentiment. Fielder’s eligible for arbitration next season, meaning his salary should jump from $670,000 to more than $6 million, perhaps as much as $10 million. Moreover, Fielder and agent/vampire Scott Boras have shown no inclination or interest in a long-term deal.

They reportedly turned down a five-year, $60 million extension prior to this season, leading most to believe that Prince is certain to leave town after 2011, when he becomes a free agent. It looks selfish and greedy when compared with Ryan Braun’s signing of an eight-year, $45 million extension.

Fielder’s slow start this season – though he’s caught fire lately – didn’t help matters. Nor did last week’s revelation of an old $400,000-plus tax lien. Or his defensive deficiencies at first base. And there are hot young prospects in the minors – specifically Mat Gamel and Matt LaPorta – who many believe could seamlessly slide into Fielder’s spot at first.

Throw it all together and you’ve got a plausible recipe to ship Fielder out of town. Trade him for a pitcher, say the detractors, and the team will instantly be better.

How quickly we forget.

Just last year, his 50 homers and 119 RBIs put him third in the MVP race and the Brewers three wins from a playoff spot. It was production of historic proportions. Nobody so young had hit so many homers. And people think you can just plug in a talented minor leaguer to replace that?

Funny thing about historical production. It only happens a few times in history.

Want to replace Prince’s numbers? You don’t need Gamel or LaPorta. You need Willie Mays, because that’s whose youthful record Prince broke. And I hear Willie’s lost some bat speed.

After Sunday’s two-bomb outing, Prince was batting .292 with 16 dingers and 42 RBIs. That’s below last year’s pace, but well in reach of 40 homers and 110 RBIs. And he’ll almost certainly be better in the season’s second half. If the Brewers want to rally for the N.L. Central title or a Wildcard playoff berth, they’ll need Prince along for the ride.

Eventually, it will be right to trade Prince. He’s not going to finish his career here because the Brewers can’t pay him Yankees money. The Evil Empire wins again.

But we’re at least a year or two away from that moment in time. So enjoy him while he’s here.

 

Other stuff…

RIP, George Carlin.

 

Boo Birds

I have a buddy who’s a Baltimore Orioles fan (yes, a small few remain), and he flew in

for the weekend series against the Brewers. So I caught all three games as a pure fan in Miller Park’s stands and a couple things struck me.

First, I wondered how much capacity we’d have lost by adding an inch or two of width to Miller Park’s seats. And I began wondering fervently as Friday night got warmer and a largish neighbor got closer, concerned as much for his comfort as mine. Beyond that, it remains the best ballpark I’ve been in, and my friend ranked it behind only Camden Yards (that homer).

Second, Brewers fans might want to wait until the home players screw up before they start booing them. Otherwise, they look silly and sound like a drunk Stuart Scott when the boo target du jour – Bill Hall – crushes a home run. BoooooooYaaahhhhhh!

 

Feeling a Draft

I have neither the time nor the expertise to do an NBA mock draft, but apparently I’m in the minority.

ESPN.com’s Chad Forde is on his fifth version. Brett Boyer at thebrawurst.com is on his fourth. Sports Illustrated’s Ian Thomsen trails the pack of pickers and is only on his third (slacker).

But they’ve all got something in common. They expect Milwaukee to draft West Virginia small forward Joe Alexander.

 

No Sunday Drive

I’m a NASCAR expert like the Planters peanuts girl is a sex symbol.

I know the cars usually turn left. I know the sponsors are important, and not just because they tell us so every two minutes. I know the drivers are ridiculously skilled. And finally, I know how fast they think 110 mph is.

“Very slow,” says Brad Coleman, the 20-year-old racer who placed 25th in Saturday’s Camping World RV Rental 250 at the Milwaukee Mile.

That’s what he said Friday after letting me and a few of his Kimberly-Clark sponsors ride along for some laps at Kaukauna’s Wisconsin International Raceway. We got up to 110 – breathtaking for me, simply snoozeville for him.

So you can only imagine how passé driving on a mere interstate highway is for him.

“The most I go is five over the speed limit,” Coleman says.

“But I do get to the speed limit as quickly as I can.”

 

And finally…

The kid’s name is Eddie Richardson, and his knowledge about baseball will make you feel like the 8-year-old.

Richardson, from Smyrna, Ga., can name every single big-league player. Cnn.com has the video to prove it.

My advice to Eddie: Start a fantasy baseball Web site tomorrow and make a fortune. Because I shudder to think what college will cost a decade from now.

 

Tune in every Tuesday morning during the 6 o'clock hour. when I join Doug Russell and Mike Wickett on SportsRadio 1250 AM. And don’t forget to check out our Bar Time column.