The first quarter of 2010 has come and gone.  You know what that means: the Boys in Blue are back on the diamond.

To start the year off right, I’ve decided to take a stab at the second annual predictions article for the upcoming season, or as it’s more commonly known, the “Turd in the BrewCrew 365 punch bowl”.  For last season’s predictions I regrettably voiced the opinions “Look for Corey Hart to regain his all-star swing in 2009”, “I think Prince Fielder will regress at the plate this year”, and my personal favorite “Hoffman won’t save 15 games all year”.  Let’s just say it wasn’t pretty.  Anyway, let’s see if I can paint a better picture for the 2010 season.  Here we go…

LF Ryan Braun: Money in the bank.  A perennial 40 HR, 120 RBI, .310 BA guy who can patrol left field as good as anybody in the league.  The only ‘if’ for Ryan is whether his nagging back stiffness goes away or becomes more of a problem.  The reports already this young season of lingering pain are enough to give any Brewer fan a mild stroke.  Even if he goes down for the season he’s got a budding clothing career waiting for him.  Remetee for life! (A)

CF Carlos Gomez: A step up defensively from an already exceptional Mike Cameron.  My buddy, a die-hard twins fan, describes him like this, “He’s going to make you want to put a gun in your mouth one night, and send him a gift basket the next.  Huge upside outweighed by impatience at the plate, bad decision making, and a sketchy attitude.  The juice is definitely not worth the squeeze.”  Well, fantastic.  Sign me up for the GoGoGomez bandwagon right now.  That being said, if we can turn him around at the plate like we did Weeks, we’re in good shape. ( B )

RF Corey Hart: We had him dealt to Washington, only to have the rug pulled out from under us.  It was like having Christmas taken away.  The guy hit something like .127 this spring.  That, coupled with the fact that he won his arbitration this off-season brings my hate for him to new heights.  Look for Corey to continue to disappoint. (D+)

RF/CF Jim Edmonds: A good pick up for the Crew.  He’s a low risk guy with more experience than Ron Jeremy which should pay off come crunch time.  Hopefully Macha comes to his senses sooner than later and makes him the everyday starter over Corey Hart. (B+)

1B Prince Fielder: I have a feeling Prince will spark more than a couple MVP chants this season at Miller Park.  His improvement at the plate each year is great, but I’m more excited about that fact that this is a contract year for him.  He’s headed for 50+ HR, .300+ BA, and 150+ RBI.  The only downside is that Milwaukee has about the same chance of holding on to him after this season as I do of winning an ESPY for sportswriter of the year.  Isn’t that right Mr. Attanasio? (A+)

2B Dick Weeks: He’s looked pretty sharp so far this spring.  To be honest, there’s nobody I like to rag on more than Weeks.  I’m willing to put that aside for the time being as long as he can show a little bit of consistency.  Everybody knows about the hot start he had last season before the wrist injury.  I could care less about that.  Show me you can do it for an entire season and then we can be friends.  I don’t think he can do it but hopefully he surprises me. (C+)

SS Alcides Escobar: This kid is going to make or break our team this year.  Nobody is questioning his ability in the field; there aren’t many in the league who are better.  What I want to know is whether he can produce at the plate against major league pitchers day in and day out.  Since JJ has been my favorite Brewer for the past half-decade I’m having a tough time warming up to this kid.  I still think we let JJ go too soon and that we’ll regret sending him across state lines to play for the Twinks.  That being said, Escobar has a high ceiling and I’m rooting for him.  He’s got the talent, let’s see if he can transfer it into a successful career. ( B )

3B Casey McGehee: Another up-and-comer who should help us out this year.  I like the way he plays although he could use some work at the hot corner.  He can hit for power and doesn’t seem to wilt away in the spotlight.  With Gamel on IR we’ll need him to step up.  I think he’s going to take his game to the next level this season. (B+)

2B/SS/3B Craig Counsell: Our very own Jack of all trades.  He can start at three positions and his bat is good enough to keep him in the lineup even though he has about as much power as Ann Frank.  Whenever he hits a homerun I feel like I’ve just seen a solar eclipse.  I like everything about his game.  By the way, I’m putting the over/under at 1.5 for the number of times you see him crack a smile this year and taking the under. (B+)

C Greg Zaun: Not sure what to say about this guy.  It seems to me he’s a little better at the plate than Kendall and a little worse defensively than Kendall.  Considering his age (drafted in 1989) I’m looking forward to seeing a little playing time for Angel Salome towards the end of the season.  I doubt ole’ Greg will contribute much this year. (C-)

P Yovani Gallardo: The workhorse of our pitching rotation.  Last year was a learning experience for him.  Look for him to make the leap to superstar this season.  Is asking a relatively unproven 24 year old kid to carry a major league ball club on his shoulders expecting too much?  Yeah, probably.  But we don’t have many other options.  I think he’s good for about 15 wins and a handful of complete games, shutouts, 2-hitters, etc. (A-)

P Randy Wolf: I like what this guy brings to the table despite his rampant gingerhood.  He eats up a ton of innings and he has a winning pedigree.  He’s going to be an upgrade at second in the rotation and should take some of the load off Gallardo.  Hopefully he can bring some stability to one of the shakiest rotations in the league. (B+)

P Doug Davis: I didn’t like him during his first stint with the Brewers and I don’t like him now. (C-)

P Dave Bush: I’m enjoying the Dave Bush era.  He doesn’t blow anybody away but he’s been one of the most consistent pitchers we’ve had over the previous couple years.  I know; that’s like being the fastest kid with a back brace.  It’s really not much of an accomplishment.  Regardless, I’ll stand by him this year… as long as he doesn’t grow his beard out Charles Manson style again. ( B )

P Jeff Suppan/Chris Narveson/Manny Parra: If I had my choice, I’d give Narveson a chance to anchor the starting rotation simply by process of elimination.  Parra has shown he has the mental stability of Kanye West and Suppan’s pitching ability, as well as his contract, is about as appealing as a school shooting.  I won’t be confident with any of these three taking the mound but Narveson is the lesser of the evils.  Don’t expect much.  (C-)

Bullpen: Much improved from last season’s smorgasbord of failure.  The addition of Hawkins, in addition to retaining solid relievers Todd Coffey, Villanueva, and Mitch Stetter should provide some much needed support to a shaky starting rotation.  With the exceptions of Dave Riske and Claudio Vargas who still suck, this group should solid.  (A-)

P Trevor Hoffman: Last year I thought age would catch up to him.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  The guy is timeless.  I’m thinking he’s going to give us exactly what he gave us last season which should be good enough to keep us in the playoff hunt.  I’m done doubting this guy.  (A)

Bob Uecker: The reason we all follow the Brewers. (A+)

As a team, I really don’t know what to expect.  I wouldn’t be surprised if they win 95 games or 65 games.  If you put a gun to my head I’d guess they’ll win 85 to 90 games and sneak in as the wild card.  There you have it.  You can carve it in stone.  They might as well not even play the games because I’m feeling good about these predictions.