Brewers don't see a hole in middle of their lineup

The Brewers are not burying their heads in the sand. They realize it will be impossible to replace slugger Prince Fielder, the newly minted Detroit Tiger. And, should Ryan Braun be suspended for 50 games for a reported positive drug test, the void in the middle of the lineup will be greater.

But the Brewers made it clear during their winter fan festival in Milwaukee that nobody is saying "woe is us."

"Don't panic," outfielder Nyjer Morgan advised fans. "Everything is going to be OK. We're all professionals. There's no panic."

With their pitching returning mostly intact and slugger Aramis Ramirez brought in to fill third base as well as some of the production loss with Fielder's exodus, the Brewers still feel they will contend in the NL Central.

"Our team is really solid," right-hander Zack Greinke said. "I'm looking forward to our team doing great still.

"(Ramirez) was one of the best right-handed hitters I faced last year. He's really a solid hitter. He's not Prince Fielder but he's very good. So, our team shouldn't miss too much.

The Brewers are counting on prospect Mat Gamel to take over at first base after two big years at the Triple-A level. If Gamel is even semi-productive, in addition to what Ramirez and new shortstop Alex Gonzalez might contribute, the Brewers believe they can score enough runs to win.

"I don't think we lost much," right fielder Corey Hart said. "You lose Prince but we gain Aramis. With Aramis and Gamel, I don't think you're going to lose anything with what we did at third base last year, with Prince.

"I think we'll be just as good. Obviously, we have our pitching back."

Asked if the Brewers could survive the loss of Fielder for good and Braun for 50 games, if it comes to that, Morgan said: "We're going to have to. We still have a great team here and have a great chance of doing what we have to do."

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