Brewers manager Ned Yost, fired?????

The Associated Press is reporting that the Milwaukee Brewers have fired manager Ned Yost after the Brew Crew lost 11 of their first 14 games in September.

Right now, the Brewers are 83-67, which puts them in second place in the NL Central. They are 7.5 GB behind the Cubs but tied for the wild card lead with the Phillies and two games ahead of the surging Astros. Three games ago, the Brewers were 4.5 GB out of first place, but three Cubs wins and three Brewers losses have widened the gap.

But keep something in mind. This is September 15th. There are two weeks and 12 games remaining in the regular season. And just because your team goes into a slump, which is natural in baseball (the Cubs had slumps too earlier in the season), you fire your manager while his team is 16 games above .500?

The Brewers had a similar breakdown last year, but still finished with a winning record. Right now the team's payroll is around $75 million, including 10 million to Eric Gagne. Four teams in the NL Central have payrolls of at least $74 million, and Yost has competed with his team extremely well considering the circumstances.

The Brewers GM Doug Melvin told the Associated Press that "This was a very difficult move to make, and we appreciate all of the work that Ned has done to develop this team into a contender."

What do the Brewers expect? A magical change like the Mets had? They handled their problems during mid-season. Do they honestly expect things to change this late in the season? Maybe the Brewers should have gotten more offensive help instead of just relying on the Sabathia trade, as good as that has turned out. Ned Yost led the Brewers to their first winning season last year since 1992 and they are assured another one this year, and they thank Ned Yost by firing him.

I wonder how Brewers fans feel about this? The manager that brings them three non-losing seasons out of the last four gets fired? Especially since they had no winning seasons since 1992 before Yost's arrival. The Orioles would love a guy like Yost. Orioles fans would be outraged if a winning manager got fired like that.

If the Brewers fail to make the playoffs, then Ned Yost deserves a long apology from the Brewers ownership and management. Preferably in the form of Doug Melvin's resignation.

(Photo credit: MLB)