Enough is Enough

With the Brewers tied at two with the New York Mets after five innings Sunday, Brewers fans had reason to be excited. The Brewers had won five of six and were hoping to sweep and finish the homestand 5-1.

And then, with one phone call, those hopes diminished.

Jeff Suppan was called on to pitch the sixth inning. I've wrote about my disappointment on how Jeff Suppan was still on the roster, but then using him in a tie game? There was no justification for this. Sure the bullpen was used heavily after Saturday, but there were still options.

Nevertheless, maybe Suppan could salvage a scoreless frame. He wasn't exactly facing murderers row. The Mets were scheduled to send Angel Pagan, Jeff Francouer and Henry Blanco. Maybe there was some hope. Well, maybe not.

Here's how the inning went.

Angel Pagan bunted to Casey McGehee for the first out
Jeff Francouer singled
Henry Blanco singled
RA Dickey sacraficed Blanco to second
Jose Reyes was intentionally walked
Luis Castillo singled (Francouer and Blanco scored)
Jason Bay struck out

The Brewers found themselves down 4-2, but they were still in striking range. After a scoreless bottom of the sixth, my jaw literally dropped watching Jeff Suppan run out to the mound again to start the 7th. So how did that go?

Ike Davis struck out
David Wright hit a ground rule double
Angel Pagan homered (Wright scored)
Henry Blanco walked
RA Dickey sacraficed Blanco to second

Jeff Suppan was then pulled. His final line: 1.2 IP, six hits, four runs (all earned), two walks, two strikeouts. Three of Suppan's five outs were via bunt outs. The Brewers found themselves down 6-2 and missing an opportunity to inch closer to the .500 mark.

After his awful outing Sunday, Suppan's numbers are as follows:

13 Games (2 starts)
28.2 IP
44 Hits
24 Runs (23 ER)
4 Home Runs Allowed
11 Walks
17 Strikeouts

And they say $13.5 million can't buy you anything anymore.

I ask Doug Melvin this... Why is his still on the team? What does he provide that can't be found elsewhere?

Sure Melvin will say what the do with Suppan is not financially motivated, but how can't it be? The only thing keeping him on the team is his salary. Isn't it bad enough he is making that kind of money? Why compound matters by allowing to pitch (and pitch in meaningful situations at that)? My hope is just that when the Brewers decide to drop this 14 man pitching staff down, Suppan's is the head that rolls.