Afternoon State Sport Briefs - Milwaukee Brewers open three game series tonight against Colorado Rockies

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MILWAUKEE - The Milwaukee Brewers will try to get back to .500 tonight, when they open a three game weekend series against the Colorado Rockies at Miller Park.

Milwaukee took two of three from the LA Dodgers this week at home but the Crew dropped a 4-3 loss yesterday. Right hander Shaun Marcum goes for Milwaukee this evening against Rockies’ right hander Jhoulys Chacin. Marcum is 1-1 with an ERA of just under 3 1/2. He gave up just two runs and three hits in seven innings last Saturday but he took the loss in a 2-1 defeat at Atlanta. Marcum is 2-1 in three career starts against Colorado. Chacin is 0-1 with a 5.63 ERA. He gave up one run in four innings last Saturday against Arizona but Chacin did not return after a two hour rain delay. He’s only had one start against Milwaukee, a no decision last July after he gave up five runs in six and a third innings.

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The Major League All Star Game is almost three months away. But fans can start voting for their favorites online today. And the Brewers will start handing out ballots at the ballpark on Monday night. Milwaukee fans elected at least one starter to the National League team for the Mid-Summer Classic since at least 2007. And they voted in three a year ago, Ryan Braun, Rickie Weeks, and Prince Fielder. Braun led all NL players with just under six million votes. Besides Braun and Weeks, this year’s All Star ballot includes Nyjer Morgan, Aramis Ramirez, Alex Gonzalez, Mat Gamel, and Jonathan Lucroy. The Brewers are also offering prizes and ticket discounts for voting. The All Star teams will be unveiled on July first. This year’s All Star Game will be played at Kansas City on July 10th.

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It appears that the Washington Nationals are starting preliminary talks on a contract extension for central Wisconsin native Jordan Zimmermann. The former UW-Stevens Point right hander from Auburndale has not been officially approached by the Nats. But reports say the team would be open to negotiations. Zimmermann went 8-11 a year ago, but his ERA was a respectable 3.18. In three starts this season, the fourth year big leaguer is 0-1 with a 1.29 ERA. Considering deals that similar pitchers have signed, Zimmermann could be in line for a three year contract worth a total of $22 to $25 million dollars.

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Wisconsin’s “Mister Basketball” is one of 26 players invited to try out for Team USA in the Under 18 tournament of the Americas to be held in Brazil in mid June. Sam Dekker of Sheboygan Lutheran scored 40 points in the state Division Five title game last month and he hit the game winning three pointer. Dekker will play for Wisconsin this fall. But first, he’ll be part of Team USA’s training camp in early June in Colorado Springs. The top 12 from that group will be on the squad for the FIBA Americas tournament June 16th through 20th.

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The University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team has added two more players for this fall. Jorie Walters of Grinnell Iowa and Erika Sowchuk of British Columbia in Canada have signed National Letters of Intent to join the Badgers. Sowchuk is Wisconsin’s only Canadian in its Class of 2012. She led the Edge School team in Calgary with 12 goals and 34 points last season. Sowchuk has also played in junior hockey and limited international competition. Walters, a goal-tender, is Wisconsin’s first women’s hockey recruit from Iowa. She went to high school at Shattuck-Saint Mary’s in Fairbault, Minnesota, and was on a pair of youth national championship teams. There are now six recruits in coach Mark Johnson’s class for this fall.

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