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Brewers look for good 'citizens' when adding to roster

Todd D. Milewski  —  7/08/2008 7:34 pm

MILWAUKEE -- It may not be an ink-on-paper checklist that Milwaukee Brewers manager Ned Yost and general manager Doug Melvin go through when they're considering players for their roster, but it sounds close.

"We like guys that play with passion and play with energy, that there's no flair or hot-dogness in their game, that they respect the game and that they play as hard as they possibly can," Yost said. "And when the day's over, if we win I want them celebrating and having fun, and if we lose I want it to hurt a little bit."

In other words, the conditions for being handed a Brewers jersey with your name on the back include more than just the coveted five tools or fantastic pitching ability.

The clubhouse atmosphere that Yost said he and Melvin have worked to establish, the same one that's being lauded now with CC Sabathia in the fold, is a large part of the decision-making process for the team.

Sabathia, the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner, made his first start for the Brewers on Tuesday at Miller Park, one day after he was introduced to the team and its fan base. From all reports, the left-hander passed the test with flying colors.

"When we start to look at these deals, that's a big part of it," Yost said of players fitting into the team's relaxed-but-focused clubhouse. "We look at talent, we look at ability, their ability to produce. But we look at makeup, too, and how they fit in and what type of citizen they are, if you will, to see if they would fit into our clubhouse.

"Doug Melvin and I have worked hard to create this atmosphere in this locker room and bring like kinds in there. And when you get somebody in that locker room that doesn't fit in with that, it tends to add friction. That's not something we're looking to do. He fit right in perfectly."

Have there ever been issues? Yost, sitting in the dugout about three hours before Tuesday's game against the Colorado Rockies, pointed to the field. "Not anybody here," he said.

Some of the assessment is done by going to players who have connections to the subject. Sabathia played with Brewers reliever David Riske in Cleveland and he's friends with third baseman Bill Hall.

It's not always a glowing review. Yost said he has been told to avoid one player even if he was offered for free.

And things don't always work out. Catcher Johnny Estrada was considered to be a malcontent last year, his only season with the Brewers. He, however, was only one part of a six-player trade.

"These guys don't live in boxes," Yost said. "You talk to his teammates. You talk to people that know him. They give you a pretty fair assessment of what type of person this guy is."

Ballots pour in

Corey Hart had a small lead at the midway point of the four-day voting for the final player on the National League All-Star team.

Online and mobile voting from a pool of five players in each league left the Brewers right fielder ahead in the NL and Rays third baseman Evan Longoria on top of the AL voting, although each lead was slim.

The league doesn't release preliminary vote totals, but a press release indicated that Hart and two of the others in the NL race have 2 million votes each. David Wright of the Mets, Pat Burrell of the Phillies, Aaron Rowand of the Giants and Carlos Lee of the Astros also are vying for the 32nd spot on the NL roster for next Tuesday's All-Star Game in New York.

Voting continues through 4 p.m. Thursday at mlb.com and through mobile phone ballots.

Yost and others in the Brewers' clubhouse appear to be at least partially responsible for Hart's lead. The manager said he repeatedly submitted votes Tuesday, knowing it was time to stop only when he missed five straight authentication codes -- how the voting system ensures the vote is being cast by a human and not a computer running a repeating script.

"I voted today until I went blind," Yost said. "I just said that's it. I can't do it anymore. ... I'll go back and vote again tonight."

Rotation gets clearer

Yost said he had no reason to believe that right-hander Jeff Suppan will miss any more than one start because of joint irritation in his pitching elbow.

Suppan, who went on the 15-day disabled list on Monday, is eligible to come back July 22 when the Brewers play the second game of a series at St. Louis. Yost's rotation for after the upcoming All-Star break includes Suppan in the start that night, the fifth game after the break.

Sabathia, Ben Sheets and Manny Parra are scheduled to start in the series at San Francisco that follows the four days off. Yost said either Dave Bush or Seth McClung will open the series at St. Louis, but that call may not come until after the break.

"They're both throwing the ball well, and I do not want to take one and just put him in the pen," Yost said. "Because then you lose him because a long guy never pitches, hopefully. And I don't want that."

Todd D. Milewski  —  7/08/2008 7:34 pm