Sunday, September 13

MILWAUKEE -- What strikes Christian Yelich most about the harrowing, horrible past week in wildfire-scorched Southern California is how quickly it all happened.

“So many people lost everything in such a short time,” Yelich said during a telephone conversation on Tuesday. “It started off as a windy morning, and 12 hours later, it’s a completely different story.

“Growing up out here for my entire life, obviously I’ve seen bad fires. But truthfully, I’ve never seen anything like this. I don’t even know how to describe it, other than to say I’m still processing it. Entire cities are gone. Just, like, gone.”

More than six years after Yelich, Ryan Braun and friends partnered with the YMCA to form “California Strong” in response to wildfires and a mass shooting in Southern California in 2018, the group is back to work trying to help their neighbors in need. 

You can help, too -- even if you’re a Brewers fan 2,000 miles away from the fires that have torn through greater Los Angeles over the past week. 

With Mike Attanasio, the Brewers’ vice president of fan engagement (and the son of Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio) in a leading role as well, California Strong is organizing a fire relief event for families and first responders on Saturday in Westlake Village, Calif., where Yelich grew up. Organizations will come together from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. PT that day to provide such necessities as clothing, food, toys, toiletries, IV treatments and more, as well as the sorts of human resources that can be just as critical following a disaster. Real estate and insurance specialists, lawyers and mental health professionals all will be on hand at Proactive Sports Performance, a facility where Yelich once worked out, going all the way back to high school.

“For people who lost everything, we just want to make it easier for them to start to rebuild their lives,” Mike Attanasio said. “This is such a huge undertaking, and I think we can be a small piece. It’s going to take a really, really long time to recover.” 

To contribute goods, or if you are in the area and wish to volunteer, email support@californiastrong.org. The group is also accepting financial donations, 100 percent of which will go to families affected by the fires. 

To make a donation, visit californiastrong.org. 

To ensure that all of the goods donated to Saturday’s event make it into the hands of families and first responders, the group is asking those in need to pre-register on the California Strong website. The organization’s longtime partners at the Southeast Ventura County YMCA, which has served the community for more than 60 years, have the resources to quickly vet individuals and groups seeking help, and to root out attempts at fraud. 

The YMCA also handles the distribution of funds raised through California Strong’s efforts. And plans are already in the works for future events, such as concerts and other community gatherings, as well as a partnership with some of MLB’s most recognizable manufacturing partners to donate equipment to baseball and softball players who lost their gear in the fires.

“We’ve actually found that just the act of bringing people together who have experienced such trauma can be really impactful,” Mike Attanasio said. “The last time we did a check distribution event, it was with people whose whole neighborhood burned down, and they hadn’t seen each other. They stayed for hours reconnecting with each other. Those human connections, I think, play a really big role in recovery.”

Braun, Yelich and the Attanasios have been juggling their charitable aims with keeping their own families safe. The task ahead is a daunting one.

“We’re all safe,” Braun said in a text message, “but … absolutely heartbreaking devastation all around us.”

“We actually talked about that amongst our group, because the scale is just so beyond anything we have experienced,” Mike Attanasio said. “It’s going to be such a long recovery process, and it’s going to take so many communities coming together. It’s going to be years -- many years. So yes, it is daunting, and we are a small organization. But we feel like any little bit helps.”

Yelich sounded a familiar tune to anyone who has heard him talk about baseball: One day at a time.

“That’s what it’s going to take,” he said. “We’re going to do our best with California Strong, and it’s not going to be near enough for what everybody needs. But if you can do something for someone, if you can help one family, you want to do it. It’s going to take the whole community.”

A month from today, American Family Fields of Phoenix will be alive with the sounds of pitchers and catchers and early-arriving position players. Spring Training will be underway. 

So, with four weeks to go until the Brewers’ report date, here are three things to think about: 

1. We still don’t know who will play shortstop. 

And maybe we won’t for a long time. It’s the most important position on the infield aside from the catcher, and manager Pat Murphy suggested that he wants to get it right. The candidates are Joey Ortiz, which would leave a vacancy at third base, or Brice Turang, which would leave a vacancy at second -- this, after Turang won the NL Gold Glove Award at that position on top of the Platinum Glove Award as the NL’s top defender, regardless of position.

There are multiple ways to look at this. One camp says don’t mess with Turang, because he’s arguably the sport’s best defensive second baseman, and second base is really important in today’s era of restricted infield shifts. Another camp says that your best defender belongs at shortstop, and that might be Turang. In that scenario, you’re left with a hole at second base that is theoretically easier to fill than a hole at third. 

2. There are still some players who can help.

There are still some big names on MLB’s free-agent market, and some relatively underrated players as well, as a group of MLB.com writers noted in this piece. Do any of them interest you for the Brewers? 

How about infielder Jorge Polanco, who was flagged by my colleague Jason Catania? 

Last season did not go to plan for Polanco or the Mariners, who acquired him from the Twins almost exactly a year ago with the hope that he’d fill their longtime hole at second base. After starting slowly and suffering a right hamstring strain that kept him out from late May to late June, Polanco finished with a slash line of .213/.296/.355 (93 OPS+), his worst in a non-shorted season since 2017, which was his first full season in the Majors. It wasn’t surprising then when the Mariners cut bait, choosing to buy him out instead of picking up a $12 million option for 2025.

That said, with the switch-hitter entering his age-31 campaign, Polanco’s still young enough for a bounce-back season, and he showed signs of being a capable bat as last year progressed. In the second half, he posted a more credible .740 OPS and hit 11 of his 16 total homers.

Another consideration in Polanco’s favor here? T-Mobile Park is a notorious pitcher’s paradise, with a rolling three-year park factor of 91 that is far and away the lowest in MLB. Polanco’s splits (.606 OPS at home; .694 on the road) offer another example of how that stadium can drag down a hitter’s production. (Remember Teoscar Hernández’s 2023?)

Even with Polanco’s difficult ’24 and his struggles in the shortened 2020 season, he has registered a 113 OPS+ since his breakout All-Star showing in 2019. That seems like an attainable mark if he lands in the right situation. Considering the slim remaining free-agent options at second base, Polanco provides more upside than most. 

3. Garrett Mitchell is an X factor. 

Barring any big moves, one significant storyline for the Brewers will be replacing Willy Adames’ team-leading 32 home runs. Garrett Mitchell might not hit 30, but he could hit some, and this had me thinking about this Murphy quote from the Winter Meetings as Mitchell heads into his final season before arbitration: 

“He hasn't been healthy,” Murphy said. “He's been behind the eight ball, but that kid's been facing that his whole life. I'm really excited about what's next. If he can stay healthy and get off to a type of healthy start, the sky's the limit. That kid can be really special.”

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