#144 September to Remember

As September comes to a close once again, I think that we should pause for a moment to honor Brewers manager Craig Counsell, the sovereign of September, the emperor of the expanded roster, the king of the closing stretch. For the second straight year, my beloved Milwaukee Brewers caught fire in the last month of the series, launching an epic run into the postseason.

Last year the Brewers went 19-7 in September (and 22-7 after August 28). They went from 6 games back in the NL Central on August 28 to tied for the divison lead on September 30 and then won the tiebreaker game in Chicago. Counting the tiebreaker game, the Brew Crew ended the season with 8 straight victories. (I blogged about the 2018 Brewers after that tiebreaker game in a post titled "Game 163.")

This year the Brewers went 20-7 in September (and 21-7 after August 30). On September 5 the Brewers were 5 games back in the race for the 2nd wild card, and on September 29 they finished the season 2 games ahead. And even that's selling things short. They clinched that playoff spot on September 25 and then won again the next day to cap off a 20-4 stretch that saw them win 18 of 20 games with two separate 7-game winning streaks. Now sadly a mini-collapse in Colorado in the last series of the season doomed the Brewers' hopes of a second-straight division title. But even with 3 straight loses to close the year, those September numbers are insane.

Let's dig a little deeper. 19-7 (winning percentage: .731) and 20-7 (.741) are bonkers months. Last year's Brewers were legitimately good, going 95-67 (.587) in the scheduled season and 96-67 (.589) with the tiebreaker game. But based on stats, the Brewers would've been expected to go 91-72 (.558), so they outperformed expectations by 5 games. This year's Brewers are not nearly as good. The Crew has maybe 1.5 real starting pitchers. Last year we had three main relievers: Josh Hader, Corey Knebel, and Jeremy Jeffress. Knebel never pitched this year due to an injury. Jeffress was designated for assignment just before September after a disappointing season. Christian Yelich, the reigning NL MVP and serious MVP candidate again this year, went down for the season on September 10. (Counting that day, the Crew went 14-5 [.737] without Yeli.) The Brewers finished the year 89-73 (.549), scoring just 3 more runs than they allowed. The Crew would've been expected to finish 81-81 (.500), so they outperformed expectations by 8 games.

A lot of the credit for these amzing finishes obviously goes to the players. But as I said at the beginning, I want to recognize Craig Counsell. Currently teams are allowed to have 40-man rosters in September. The last couple years, Counsell has been a master of using extra pitchers out of the bullpen to win game after game even though the Brewers' pitching staff is not nearly as talented as a lot of other organizations' staffs, especially when it comes to starting pitchers. Last year's run seemed like magic, the kind of stretch you get to see maybe once in a lifetime. This year the Brewers basically did it again. For a while there pretty much every pitcher change and double switch seemed to work. Counsell is apparently a winning wizard, a master manager. It's rare that I feel fortunate to be a Brewers fan, but the way Counsell has had the boys playing the last two Septembers, I definitely feel fortunate now. Next year teams will only get to have 28-man rosters during September, so maybe this is the end of Brewers magic. With the way our roster is banged up after this incredible push, I don't know what will happen when the Brewers go to Washington for the wild card game tomorrow. But we'll always have #Craigtember. Thanks, Craig.

Grace and peace,
BMH

#143 Juice Bars

A couple months ago Tess and I introduced Lanie to the delicious frozen treat pictured above. In our house we call those things juice bars. (You might call them freezies or something like that, but I don't care. I'm sticking with juice bar. It's way cooler.) Lanie loves them because, as I've already said, they are delicious. Everyday she asks to "share" one with me. While that's a nice thought, it's not really accurate. We started out sharing them. Lanie would eat maybe half of the frozen bar, then ask me to eat the rest so she could drink the melted juice pooled at the bottom. That was a good system. But as Lanie has gotten more skilled at navigating the flavored ice, she's stopped needing my help. So now I'm stuck helping her eat the juice bar and getting none of the sugary goodness myself. It's a hard life.

[Looks around, makes sure Lanie isn't nearby.]

Thankfully there are still tasty solidified delicacies in the freezer after she goes to bed.

Grace and peace,

BMH

#142 Ten Years Ago...

Ten years ago this month I met Tess. It's hard for me to wrap my mind around that fact, but it definitely makes sense. We've now been married six years after four years together in college. Time flies. So in honor of Tess and me having had some sort of relationship for ten years, I thought it'd be fun to revisit the story of our first meeting. Sorry, dear reader, if you've heard this one before:

It was the very end of freshmen orientation at Trinity Christian College in the fall of 2009. To be exact, it was the night before classes started. Looking for something to do that evening, I wandered downstairs to the basement of my dorm, West Hall. A small group of fellow freshmen was relaxing around the table in the downstairs lobby, playing Apples to Apples. The guy at the head of the table was someone I'd briefly crossed paths with earlier in the week. I didn't recognize anyone else, but I caught the first guy's eye, and he remembered me and invited me to join the game. So I sat down with my back to the stairs. Across the table from me was a girl with dark wavy hair, who told me her name was Tessa. I grabbed a handful of cards, and the magic started to happen. Normally I'm not particularly good at Apples to Apples. I'll win a card here and there, but I'm not an expert at reading people. That night, however, I was dynamite, taking cards left and right. Before too long I only needed one card to win, and it was Tessa's turn to judge. The rest of the group told her not to pick my card, but she really had no way of knowing which was mine, so sure enough, she gave me the victory, earning herself a fair share of grief.

That was that. I'd like to tell you that the rest was history, that it was love at first sight or something like that. Things didn't happen quite that quickly, but it didn't take too long for Tess and me to become a couple. Over the next couple of weeks we bumped into each other for games a few more times. We ended up with a few common friends, exchanged phone numbers, and pretty soon we started getting to know each other over long late-night conversations. It only took about six weeks for us to become something more than just friends, but I think that's a story for another week….

Before I go, allow me to switch gears for a moment. Earlier this year I blogged about my love for Ryan Braun and listed my eight favorite Braun memories. That list may need some revising. Yesterday afternoon Braun came up to bat in the top of the 9th with the bases loaded, two outs, and the Brewers trailing the hated—and I mean HATED—Cardinals by one run. Braunie worked a full count before launching a grand slam into left field. Listening on the radio as I drove home, I went absolutely nuts, screaming and whooping and pounding the ceiling of my van in celebration. I think I scared Lanie half to death (again). Someday she'll understand. Anyway, the Brewers hung on to win their ninth game in ten days. Thanks, Ryan!

Grace and peace,

BMH

#141 Molly

I didn't blog the last two Mondays, and it's my sister's fault. Two weeks ago we went home to Wisconsin for Molly's wedding, and last Monday we returned to Iowa. (I'm not good at blogging when I'm traveling.) But in honor of my little sister getting married (Congrats, Molly and Drew!) I thought it would be a good idea to dedicate this blog to her.

Molly is five years younger than I am, and we were never very close growing up. The age difference definitely played into that, but mostly I think it was my fault. I just didn't know what to do with a sister. I'd spent years without any siblings, and then here comes this girl. What's a boy supposed to do with that? So I picked on her and argued with her and did my best to make her life miserable. (Though, to be fair, Molly can give as good as she gets.)

But then I grew up and left for college. I'd come home for a weekend or Christmas break or the summer expecting to find my annoying little punk sister. But more and more I discovered that Molly was turning into somebody I truly enjoyed hanging around. She had great taste in music and a really solid sense of humor. She was witty and sarcastic. She was smart; she was fun. And to be totally honest, she was much cooler than I ever was. (And now I'm a dad, so let's face it, I'm never getting any cooler.)

I don't know that I can say that Molly and I are extremely close, but we're a lot closer than we used to be. I'm really proud to be her brother. Molly is very mature in her faith in Christ Jesus, she cares deeply about other people, and she's passionate about her teaching career. Molly's a lot of fun, and she also thinks carefully and deeply. I'm very impressed by (and sometimes jealous of) her skill and creativity in writing. She's dependable and hard-working, a good friend and a great sister. Love you, Molls!

Grace and peace,
BMH