Brewers retire Kawasaki's uniform number; Greenstein new Denver Bench Coach
The probable Hall of Fame starting pitcher Sadahige Kawasaki, who spent 10 of his 12 WPK seasons as a member of the Denver Brewers, winning 2 Harris/Lee awards while wearing Brewers purple and gold, having concluded his farewell tour in 1986, is having his uniform number 36 retired by the Brewers. He becomes the third player in Brewers history to be so honored, joining Hall of Fame starting pitcher Cheol-han Lee and likely soon-to-be Hall of Fame outfielder Ryan Rodgers.
Kawasaki pitched for the El Paso Dawgs in his final season this year, going 12-14 with a respectable 4.35 ERA but also led the league in walks allowed with 140. He finishes his WPK career, having come over from Japan at age 27, with a record of 162-94, a 2.99 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 3.21 FIP and 77 FIP-, 62.2 WAR and 68.5 rWAR. In addition to the aforementioned 2 Harris/Lee awards, he was a 7-time All-Star and has 2 championship rings.
In other Brewers news, bench coach Jimmy Nochese, who prior to taking over in that role in 1983 had a long and highly successful career as the manager of the Brewers AAA farm club, the Chester Big Stick, from 1965 through 1982, announced his retirement at the age of 65. Nochese was an 8-time Manager of the Year in the King Bedlecom League (AAA) and was at the helm the team for 5 championships as well as leading the team to the playoffs in 3 other seasons.
With Nochese leaving the game, the Brewers hired former Denver farm-hand and recent Davenport River Rats (Iowa Baseball Confederacy, independent league) pitching coach, Eric Greenstein as their new bench coach. Greenstein, who was renowned for his leadership abilities (Captain) as a player, was drafted by Denver in the WPK inaugural draft and played in the Denver farm system as a center fielder for 7 seasons and then for several more seasons in the Charlotte and Milwaukee organizations. Greenstein never made it the big leagues as a player but now has as a 40-year old bench coach.
As is his custom, Denver manager Barry Allen is thought likely to turn over a good deal of the in-game management decision making to young Mr. Greenstein and the evidence suggests that Greenstein's strategic philosophy emphasizes balance and moderation, with a more conservative approach towards base stealing and base running aggressiveness (somewhat counter-balanced by second-year third base coach Yebrir Kodwo's more aggressive instincts), but a more active use of infield shifts defensively. Greenstein as a pitching coach was considered pretty average but he is thought to have very strong skills when it comes to teaching mechanics and defensive skills (particularly for catchers and outfielders), is thought to be a positive influence on player development, and is generally well regarded in terms of his instructional skills. There is also a perception that he might have a somewhat calming influence on a coaching staff that doesn't often work well together.