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Updated May 12, 2009 3:30 PM ET
     
 
The questions were plentiful and varied, and so were the answers when the Journal Sentinel's Tom Haudricourt took part in an online chat with Brewers fans Monday at JSOnline. Some highlights: Q. Does Aramis Ramirez's injury bring the Cubs back down to the pack where they are no longer considered strong favorites to win the NL Central? A. The Cubs have several injured players, including Carlos Zambrano and Derrek Lee. And their bullpen has been a mess. So, they have to get their act together. But it's a long season. The Cardinals obviously have a good team and Cincy has really good pitching. Q. First quarter of the season is over. Who would do you feel would win the first-quarter awards for most improved, biggest surprise, biggest disappointment and MVP? A. Most improved could go to Bill Hall or Rickie Weeks. Both are deserving. Weeks would also go in the pleasant surprise, as could Hall. Biggest disappointment? Not his fault, but David Riske is hurt again and unable to fulfill his contract. MVP at this point is looking like Braun, I would think. Q. Is Ryan Braun dating anyone? Married? I must know and I figured you were the one to ask. A. I do believe he has a steady girlfriend. I've met her in the past and she's quite charming. Ryan seems to do quite well in life in just about everything. Q. Do you think Ryan Braun is hated by the players in MLB for some of his home run antics? A. I think Braun has irritated some pitchers and teams with his antics after hitting home runs. I think "hate" is a strong word, however. Q. Jason Kendall, who is a career .300 hitter, has lost any sort of pop that he once possessed in his bat. If you are a starting major-league position player, you need to do more than hit .200 and need at least some ability to drive the ball when you get a pitch to hit. Your thoughts? A. Look, Kendall is not on the team for offense. The pitching has been better than advertised and a lot of that has to do with Kendall's work behind the plate. The Brewers have plenty of offense in their lineup. They can afford to have a defensive-minded catcher. And Kendall has hit well over .300 in his last 11 games, so it's not like he's an automatic out. Q. Do you see Manny Parra making progress in his control? How good do you think he could be? A. Parra has great stuff. He just has to harness it. It all starts with his fastball command. When he has that, he's pretty good. He was much better over his last three starts than his first three starts. Let's see if he continues to progress. Copyright 2009, Journal Sentinel Inc. All rights reserved. (Note: This notice does not apply to those news items already copyrighted and received through wire services or other media.)
Tagged: Brewers, Rickie Weeks, Bill Hall, Cubs, Manny Parra, Jason Kendall, Ryan Braun

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