View Full Version : Ben Grieve
<b><font size=4>Grieve no stranger to Rocket</font></b>
HOUSTON -- Unlike most hitters, Ben Grieve could think back on his at-bats against future Hall of Famer Roger Clemens and remember some success.
They squared off again on Sunday, Grieve as the Milwaukee Brewers' right fielder and Clemens in his third start for the Houston Astros. Grieve entered the game with a .273 average against Clemens (15-for-55) with three doubles, a home run, seven RBIs, nine walks and 18 strikeouts.
"I remember one game where I drove in a bunch of runs against him, but other than that I just have a bunch of singles," Grieve said. "He struck me out a bunch of times."
His most memorable at-bat against The Rocket may have come in the seventh inning on May 2, 1998. Grieve's opposite-field single broke was Oakland's only hit in a 7-0 win for Clemens and the Toronto Blue Jays.
Grieve batted seventh on Sunday, and he and other Brewers hitters planned to spend the early innings scouting Clemens' stuff and home plate umpire Rick Reed's strike zone. Clemens thrives when he can command both sides of the plate, and Brewers hitters were hoping that Reed did not provide any help by calling trikes just off the corner.
"Especially the outside, because if they give him that he'll live out there all day," Grieve said.
Where does Clemens rank among Grieve's toughest opponents?
"He ranks at the top," said Grieve, whose 2,976 career at-bats entering Sunday's game was tops among Brewers hitters. "But in terms of who I would rather face, I have a harder time against guys who change speeds more and nibble all over. With Roger, I kind of like the challenge. He's going to come after you."
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?t=37523 target=_blank><font color=red>Ben Grieve left groin injury Thread</font></a>
<b><font size=4>View from the top</font></b>
For the third game in a row and the third time this season, rightfielder Ben Grieve hit third in the Brewers' batting order Saturday night.
Yost, who has been resisting temptation to tinker with his lineup in the past, made the switch in an effort to jump-start a sluggish offense.
Grieve had reached base safely in 17 of his previous 22 games and led the team with 21 walks. His on-base percentage of .398 ranked second to first baseman Lyle Overbay.
"He has a real big on-base percentage, a real big slugging percentage, and Lyle was knocking in all the runs, so he didn't have any opportunities to get RBIs," Yost said, referring to Grieve, who entered the night with a .256 average, four homers and 12 RBI.
"Now, all of a sudden we have the chance to get a guy on base for Jenks (Geoff Jenkins) and for Lyle. You get a higher on-base percentage guy in front of those run producers."
Grieve struck out in all three of his at-bats Saturday.
<b><font size=4>Grieve continues to produce</font></b>
MILWAUKEE -- Saturday's contest marked the third straight game Brewers manager Ned Yost elected to stack the starting lineup with several consecutive lefties, with the first five batters all swinging from the left side of the plate.
Right in the middle of the mix has been right fielder Ben Grieve, who started in the three slot again after socking a two-run homer Friday night to give the Brewers a lead against San Diego.
"He has a real big on-base percentage, a real big slugging percentage, and Lyle [Overbay] was knocking in all the runs so he didn't have any opportunities to get RBIs," Yost said of Grieve's performance throughout the year. "Now all of a sudden we have the chance to get a guy on base for Jenks [Geoff Jenkins] and for Lyle. You get a higher on-base percentage guy in front of those run producers."
Yost said the strategy especially takes advantage of teams without any left-handers in the bullpen, including San Diego, a team without a southpaw on its active roster.
Grieve, who has reached base safely in 17 of his last 22 games, entered Saturday's game leading the team with 21 walks and second among the team's everyday players with a .398 on base percentage and .851 OPS (on-base plus slugging), trailing only Overbay in both departments. Grieve has hit .256 with four home runs and 12 RBIs since coming to Milwaukee as a non-guaranteed free agent after three injury-riddled seasons in Tampa Bay.
"I'm having fun here, I'll say that," Grieve said. "There were times in the last few years when I would come to the park not really feeling excited about where I was at. Here, I'm coming to the park happy."
Health, once a fleeting commodity for the 1998 American League Rookie of the Year, appears to be aiding Grieve's cause.
"I try not to talk about it," he said. "Every time I get a few hits the last few years people would ask, 'Are you finally feeling better?' I would rather do it for a whole year and then talk about it."
"He grades out as one of our better hitters," Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said. "He just hasn't been up a lot with men on base because Lyle was so hot. But you combine his on base and slugging, he's over .800. A lot of people use .800 as being a productive player. He's a pretty unassuming guy."
The laid-back Grieve had a much-publicized feud with Devil Rays manager Lou Piniella last June 26. Piniella didn't like Grieve's response after a called third strike to end a game against Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, and confronted Grieve in the dugout and in the tunnel on the way to the clubhouse.
Grieve said playing for the upbeat Yost has helped to make his job more enjoyable.
"But I enjoyed playing for Art Howe, too, and for Lou ... until that one day."
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=278806#post278806 target=_blank>Ben there, done that</a>
<b><font size=4>Last call</font></b>
Before Ben Grieve's RBI single Tuesday night, the Brewers were hitless in their last 23 at-bats with runners in scoring position. ... The Dodgers hosted the likes of Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg and Jennifer Love Hewitt on Tuesday, but the Brewers had some "high profile" fans in the house on Wednesday: Earl Thomas, the ever-smiling 74-year-old who guards the home clubhouse at Miller Park, and everybody's favorite next-door neighbor and avowed Brewers fan Kato Kaelin.
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=282392#post282392 target=_blank>Nicknames</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=285082#post285082 target=_blank>Manager's decision</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=286530#post286530 target=_blank>Two of a different kind</a>
<b><font size=4>Grieve's patience pays off</font>
Walks are helping right fielder's hitting streak</b>
MINNEAPOLIS -- Ben Grieve, on the rebound after three admittedly bad seasons in Tampa Bay, is walking and hitting his way through a hot streak.
The Brewers' right fielder reached in all four plate appearances during Saturday's 7-2 Brewers win, going 2-for-2 with two walks and two runs scored.
He went 3-for-6 in the first two games of this weekend's series in Minnesota after going 7-for-19 (.368) with five RBIs in limited duty during the Brewers' last homestand.
For the season, Grieve is batting .275 with four home runs and 18 RBIs. He has only 138 at-bats this season, but has walked 29 times, by far the best ratio on the team.
"I don't think anybody goes to the plate looking to take," Grieve said. "You have to go up there ready to swing, no matter who the pitcher is."
But the Brewers will take it. In recent seasons the team has been free-swinging at best, setting a Major League record with 1,399 strikeouts in 2001. The team improved in that category in 2002 and again in 2003.
Grieve is from an organization -- Oakland -- that considers plate patience gospel. He was the American League's Rookie of the Year in 1998 when he batted .288 with 18 home runs and 89 RBIs while walking 85 times.
"They made it clear how you were going to get to the big leagues," Grieve said. "If you weren't drawing walks, then they really didn't want you up there."
Does he take pride is taking walks?
"Yeah," Grieve said. "When I draw a walk I consider it a good at-bat. That's one way to score runs. I'm sure that the teams with the most walks are pretty high up there in runs scored, too. Usually it goes hand in hand."
<b><font size=4>Grieve finds comfort zone</font>
Hot bat keeps outfielder in lineup</b>
A few weeks ago, Ben Grieve was playing sparingly for the Milwaukee Brewers, contributing little and wondering where he fit into the grand scheme.
Slowly but surely, Grieve began getting on base more. And, not surprisingly, his playing time in right field has increased.
Manager Ned Yost, who doesn't pay much attention to statistics, figured that Grieve's numbers had been climbing.
"I know they're up there," Yost said. "That's why he's playing so much."
Entering the finale of the Chicago Cubs series Wednesday night, Grieve was batting .290, an increase of 49 points from June 8. And his on-base percentage was up to .409, by far the best mark on the club.
With four home runs and 20 RBI, Grieve has not been much of a run producer. But he hasn't had a wealth of chances, either, batting .278 (10 for 36) with runners in scoring position.
"A lot of people say it's tough to feel good if you're not playing every day," Grieve said. "I've played every day my whole career (until this year).
"This is the first time I haven't played every day. The toughest thing is when you're not playing and trying to stay ready to pinch-hit. That's the hardest thing."
Grieve has contributed as pinch hitter, however, going 6 for 18 (.333) with a home run and three RBI.
Grieve has received criticism at times for being too passive at the plate but he defended his approach, which resulted in 34 walks in 198 plate appearances before Wednesday.
"I've always been a hitter who takes walks," Grieve said. "I think it's harder to be patient when you're pinch-hitting. I've been feeling pretty good at the plate. I can't say I feel great but it's been OK."
Normally removed in the late innings for defensive purposes, Grieve stayed in the game Tuesday and made a nice, running catch of an eighth-inning drive to the corner by Sammy Sosa.
"That was close," Grieve said. "I had a bead on it.
"You always want to be a part of it but it's fun because we're winning, whether you play or not."
<b><font size=4>Grieve's OBP impressing</font>
Right fielder finds himself among elite company</b>
MILWAUKEE -- Barry Bonds. Lance Berkman. Bob Abreu. JD Drew.
Ben Grieve?
The Brewers right fielder finds himself in impressive company when considering on-base percentage among regular National League outfielders with at least 150 at-bats. He is slotted fifth behind some of the game's more impressive names with his .411 clip entering Thursday.
"I'd like to have their power numbers too," Grieve said with a laugh. "On-base percentage is important obviously, if you get on base you can score runs easily. They have more at-bats than I do. They're doing a lot more stuff than getting on base."
But so has Grieve, who now carries a .291 batting average, mere percentage points shy of his highest all season. He's hit .394 (13-for-33) in the team's last four series, including key RBI singles on both Tuesday and Wednesday against the Cubs.
"I wouldn't say I'm hot, I'm just getting decent pitches to hit and swinging the bat," Grieve said. "I've just been swinging at the right pitches lately."
The laid-back lefty saw his playing time almost disappear completely in favor of hot bat Brady Clark near the end of Milwaukee's last homestand, but Grieve saw his name penciled in the lineup on Thursday for the fifth time in six games.
"Ben's been great, we knew it was just a matter of time before he got acclimated to the National League," manager Ned Yost said. "He's done a great job, he really has. He puts good at-bats together on a pretty consistent basis."
"I'm being selective and patient, and when I do that, I'll get my share of hits and I'll get my share of walks," Grieve said.
<b><font size=4>Taking a seat</font></b>
Brewers rightfielder Ben Grieve did not start Thursday despite carrying a .538 lifetime average (7 for 13) against Braves starter Jaret Wright. Yost said Grieve had been bothered by swelling near his calf, a problem caused by Baker's cysts, which cause a fluid buildup in the knee.
"Ben could play if we needed him," Yost said. "We're just keeping him available to pinch-hit right now. We don't want to make it worse."
Yost said Wes Helms had suffered from a similar problem.
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