OMC: I found it to have an open-air feel, even when the roof is closed.

JP: Fans may go to three different games this season and feel like they were in three different stadiums. You go in one time, say Opening Day, and there's a good chance the roof is going to be closed, though with the Brewers' luck, it will be 85 and sunny. It's going to feel a lot like a domed stadium. But they also have the ability to move those panels in the outfield. So if it's rainy, but the temperature is nice, they can open that up and you can get a different feel for the ballpark. But when you open up the panels and the roof, that's when people will see why it's a lot better than Enron and Bank One Ballpark and Safeco Field. It's really going to feel like an outdoor ballpark.

OMC: Let's talk about the Brewers. This is the best I've seen them play in my four trips to Maryvale.

JP: I think that's a fair statement. In terms of both how they're going to play this year and the next couple of years, I think there's more cause for optimism than there's been in two decades. It's funny, when they signed Sexson, Burnitz and Jenkins to long-term deals, it didn't change the on-field product at all. All those guys were going to be in the lineup. But it changed the whole feel of the franchise. Some of the players have told me privately that until they saw the team start to spend money, they had some degree of skepticism. But all of a sudden those checks got written and those contracts got signed, and I think the players realized that the franchise is committed to winning, and that's really invigorated them.

OMC: I think these moves make us look less like a small-market team.

JP: And you know what, with Miller Park, it's not really a small-market team anymore. It's not the Yankees, but it's a medium-sized market.

OMC: How do you like the Brewers' chances?

JP: I'd be disappointed if they were under .500. I like the sports dynamic that if this game or season was played out 100 times, how would it be most likely to pan out? There are certainly scenarios in which the Brewers have injuries or Burnitz has an unexpectedly bad year.

But on the flip side of that, I can see a lot of scenarios where Jenkins, Sexson and Burnitz combine for 120 plus home runs. Loretta, Fernandez and Belliard are good table setters. Hammonds is solid. We'll see if D'Amico can stay healthy and Jamey Wright can step up. Then you got Sheets, with Neugebauer on the way. The bullpen is deep and strong.

There are a lot of scenarios -- especially with an unbalanced schedule where the Brewers will play a majority of their games against Central Division teams like the Cubs, the Pirates and the soft underbelly of the National League -- where the Brewers can approach 90 wins and be right there in the Wild Card hunt. Hopefully, the Cardinals will have some misfortune heaped upon their narrow shoulders, and the Brewers will be in the thick of things for the division title, as well.

OMC: Every spring I say this, but for the first time, there's a legitimate possibility the Brewers could earn a Wild Card berth.

JP: I think so. Who knows what's going to happen at mid season? The Brewers made a modest increase in their payroll, and they haven't said they can take on more salary as time goes on, but they haven't said they can't, either.

OMC: They may finally be in the position to make a trade for the pennant race.

JP: Wouldn't that be novel in Milwaukee, if the Brewers make a big deal, take on salary at mid season and make a run at the title! It's just a totally different feel around the ball club. And none of this has to do with Miller Park. Dusty Baker said in a recent article that he thinks the new ballpark will make a 10-15 game difference for the Brewers.

OMC: I'd take five!

JP: Absolutely. Five takes you from 83 or 84 wins to 88 or 89 wins. And let's not forget that this team last year in County Stadium, after Sexson was acquired and D'Amico was healthy, was three games over .500. And this is without any subtractions, unless you call Charlie Hayes a subtraction.

OMC: Not so much.

{INSERT_RELATED}

JP: And they made some additions. Jeffrey Hammonds is a clear upgrade from Marquis Grissom. Some have debated Coors Field's inflated numbers and all that. He's gonna be a lot better than Grissom, one of the least productive offensive players in baseball last year.

OMC: So you're happy with centerfield?

JP: I am happy. I haven't seen enough of Hammonds to see how he'll be defensively, but I think he's got a chance to be an above-average offensive centerfielder. Flanked with Jenkins and Sexson, all you have to do is hit sixth in the lineup. Remember, a year ago I'm talking to OnMilwaukee.com about the prospects of José Hernandez batting out of the clean up spot.

OMC: Personally, I'm concerned about third base.

JP: We'd all love to have Jeff Cirillo over there. Unfortunately, the realities of the game are that you have to give up something to get something. I think Tony Fernandez could be a great move by Dean Taylor. There's no down side. It's a minor league contract. All they really need out of the lead off spot is a table setter. There won't be a base stealer out there, we know that. With Jenkins, Sexson, Burnitz and Hammonds in the middle of the lineup, you don't necessarily want someone out there trying to steal 50 bases, anyway.

OMC: We've talked about Milwaukee's great Brewers broadcasters. Your colleague on the TV side, Matt Vasgersian, is doing XFL games. Are you interested in any national work?

JP: Not at this point. I have interest in doing more things down the road, but the only time I could do that stuff would be in the off season, and I have three kids under the age of five. My priorities are a little different from Matt's. He's single, ambitious and talented. He's in a good position to attack that stuff. I love doing baseball and I want to work for one team. I don't necessarily want to be a network guy. I'm going to start pursuing some football play-by-play jobs in the off season. You can work 16 Saturdays or Sundays and then be done.

To read last year's interview with Jim Powell, click here.