Milwaukee Brewers 2003 Finish: 68-94, 6th NL Central	Select Team Angels Astros Athletics Blue Jays Braves Brewers Cardinals Cubs Devil Rays Diamondbacks Dodgers Expos Giants Indians Mariners Marlins Mets Orioles Padres Phillies Pirates Rangers Red Sox Reds Rockies Royals Tigers Twins White Sox Yankees

Ben Sheets Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Batting Order
SS	Craig Counsell Will Milwaukee native's winning ways rub off on Brew Crew?
CF	Scott Podsednik Offensive catalyst ranked second in NL in steals.
LF	Geoff Jenkins Big power numbers a must for Brewers to compete.
3B	Wes Helms Brewers' most powerful right-handed bat.
1B	Lyle Overbay Faces tough task of replacing crowd-favorite Richie Sexson.
2B	Junior Spivey When healthy, a proven offensive spark.
C	Chad Moeller Most important job is to handle unproven staff.
RF	Ben Grieve Former Rookie of Year looks to regain form.
Rotation
RHP	Ben Sheets Ace brings consistency to unproven staff.
LHP	Wayne Franklin Lefty allowed 36 HRs in 2003, tops in NL.
LHP	Doug Davis Won 11 games as starter for Rangers in 2001.
RHP	Matt Kinney 4-6, 5.93 after All-Star Break in 2003.
RHP	Wes Obermueller Won last two starts after losing first five Brewer decisions.
Bullpen
RHP	Dan Kolb Brilliant after becoming closer, saving 21-of-23 opportunities.
RHP	Leo Estrella Won seven games out of the bullpen in '03.
RHP	Luis Vizcaino Has led Brewer relievers in appearances last two years.
RHP	Mike Crudale Former Cardinal prospect has big potential.
RHP	Brooks Kieschnick Only walked 13 batters in 53 IP.
Prospects
2B	Rickie Weeks No. 2 overall pick in 2003 draft on fast track to bigs.
1B	Prince Fielder It's nearly Miller (Park) Time for Cecil's son.
SS	J.J. Hardy Might have started Opening Day if not for offseason trades.

Forget, for a moment, the woes of their ballpark, the sausage incident and the ever-shrinking payroll. Forget the 11 straight losing seasons, the team president's resignation and the departure of the club's most popular player. Forget all that, and focus on the team the Brewers will put on the field this year. Hmm ... How about those crazy sausages?!

If you limit your knowledge of major league pitchers to those hurlers with career winning percentages above .500, let us introduce you to the Milwaukee Brewers' starting rotation: Ben Sheets, Doug Davis, Matt Kinney, Wayne Franklin, and Wes Obermueller. The quintet boasts a combined career record of 89-111, with Davis the closest to .500 at 28-29. Sheets, 25, is the ace of the staff. The right-hander has notched 11 victories in each of his three big league seasons, and the former Olympian has the stuff to win 20 games on a good team. Barring four straight rainouts following Sheets' starts, the Brewers will have to send other starters to the mound. Davis, Kinney, and Franklin all enjoyed stretches of success in 2003, and second-year manager Ned Yost is counting on at least one of them to emerge as a legitimate No. 2 starter. The left-handed Franklin is the most likely candidate, having tied for the team lead in starts (34) with Sheets a year ago. Two young Brewers to keep an eye on are lefties Jorge De La Rosa and Chris Capuano, both acquired in the Richie Sexson trade with Arizona.

Milwaukee's bullpen may not be the best in the big leagues, or even close, but it does include one of baseball's most interesting players, burly veteran Brooks Kieschnick. Cubs fans may remember him as just another can't-miss prospect who never panned out. In Milwaukee he more closely resembles the Texas amateur phenom who would strike you out in the top of the inning and go deep off you in the bottom. The best example of Kieschnick's versatility came in the infamous sausage game, when he came out of the pen to earn his first career victory and also collected a key base hit. When closer Mike DeJean struggled last year, the resourceful Yost turned to big Dan Kolb, a hard-throwing right-hander who enters the spring as the Brewers' incumbent closer. Mike Crudale (obtained from St. Louis for DeJean), rubber-armed Luis Vizcaino (151 appearances in two seasons in Milwaukee), and Leo Estrella join Kieschnick as set-up men.

For a complete breakdown on the Milwaukee Brewers' middle infielders, see last year's entry under "Arizona Diamondbacks." Prior to the Richie Sexson trade, Brewer fans expected 2004 to be the year when they saw what unproven infielders such as Keith Ginter, Bill Hall, and J.J. Hardy had to offer. Now those youngsters will have a little more time to mature as veterans Junior Spivey and Craig Counsell form the new Brewer double-play combination. Coming off an injury-plagued 2003, Spivey has the offensive tools to become Milwaukee's catalyst, while Counsell, 33 and a Milwaukee native, should be a steadying influence on a young team. With Ginter and Hall itching for playing time and phenom Rickie Weeks waiting in the wings, there's a chance Spivey could see time in the outfield or be used as trade bait.

Also obtained in the Sexson trade was Lyle Overbay, who inherits Sexson's job at first base. A powerful left-handed bat, Overbay will have to succeed early in order to win over the Milwaukee faithful. Regardless, the duration of Overbay's stay at first depends largely (pardon the pun) on the progress of Prince Fielder, son of Cecil, who will begin the season in the minor leagues but appears to be on the fast track to the bigs (oops) after earning Minor League Player of the Year honors from USA Today in 2003. At third base, Wes Helms returns for his second season in Milwaukee. The former Brave held up well in his debut as an everyday player, overcoming a slow start to notch career-highs in homers and RBI.

The Brewers' strength lies in the outfield, namely in All-Star left fielder and Brett Favre-lookalike Geoff Jenkins and center fielder Scott Podsednik, considered by most to be 2003's most impressive rookie position player. Jenkins remains the most powerful bat in the Brewer lineup in what could be his final season in Milwaukee, while the speedy Podsednik will try to avoid the sophomore jinx in his 11th professional season (nine of them spent in the minors). Right field is the question mark; it is expected to come down to a spring battle between underappreciated Brady Clark and former AL Rookie of the Year Ben Grieve, picked up from Tampa Bay in the offseason.

Chad Moeller, acquired from Arizona, struggled for playing time in the desert but is the frontrunner for the Brewers' starting nod. Competing for the job is Gary Bennett, 31, a free agent signee from San Diego, where he played in a career-high 96 games in 2003.

Considering that Milwaukee's starting lineup won't exactly scare too many National League pitchers, the bench is surprisingly deep. Kieschnick presents Yost with the unusual dilemma of pitching him or pinch-hitting him. Ginter and Hall add versatility to the infield, Clark is no slouch in the outfield, and either Moeller or Bennett will provide veteran relief at catcher. And with a slew of young prospects on the way, the Brewer bench will only get better.

Here's a contrast, all under one (retractable) roof. Think of Brewers ownership and executive management, and you'd have to consider them one of the most mismanaged teams in professional sports. In general manager Doug Melvin and assistant Gord Ash, however, Milwaukee has two respected baseball men who seem to be on the right track toward building a respectable franchise. Yost earned kudos for restoring some pride in the organization last year, and the former Brewer catcher is popular with diehard Brew Crew fans. We'll just have to check back in a few years to see how Brewers bigwigs screw this one up.

Say what you will about the Sexson trade, but there's no disputing that it has given Yost a deeper, more proven lineup. If Sheets stays healthy and any of the other starters emerge, this could be a team on the rise. With a number of sparkling prospects on the way, there could be hope for a winning season in Milwaukee in the not-too-distant future. Of course, supposing those young players succeed, the question already looms: Will the team be able to afford to keep any of them?

• Click here for a complete list of 2004 Team Previews

To Purchase the 2004 Baseball Preview from Athlon Sports, click here.