The so-called 'contact play' has been around the game as long as the spitball. The problem with the spitball is that it was outlawed decades ago - and the contact play wasn't.

The "contact play" is when a runner is on third base and breaks for the plate as soon as contact is made on the ball. The thought being that most teams will either concede the run or make a forced error at the plate. Either way, the run scores. Right?

WRONG.

All too often the Brewers have employed the contact play as a means to try to manufacture a run. Tonight in the 6th, they attempted it again. What the Brewers haven't apparently learned is that major league players can make easy throws to the plate and turn a promising inning into another frustrating exercise in futility.

Here's the scenario: With the Cardinals leading 3-2, Ryan Braun leads off with a single to center. He moves to 3rd on a Prince Fielder single to right. No outs - runners at the corners for Corey Hart. Hart hits a hot shot to Cesar Izturis at shortstop, Braun bolts for the plate, and is thrown out by 40 feet. If this were an isolated incident, fine. But it isn't. I lost track of how many outs the Brewers have run into because of the "contact play".

After Braun made the first out between 3rd and home, Bill Hall grounds into a 4-6-3 double play, ending the inning.

There was no guarantee that Braun would have scored from 3rd had he held on the contact play...but for a team to be struggling to hit the ball as much as the Brewers are, it's simply infuriating to watch this team just give away outs in critical situations.


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The Brewers were dealt a huge blow with the news that Yovanni Gallardo will miss the entire season with a torn ACL. The groans of "here we go again" have been heard from Ashland to Pleasant Prairie…from LaCrosse to Manitowoc.

Does it hurt the Brewers chances in the National League Central? Of course. But the Brewers are more than just one pitcher. At times like these we find out what the intestinal fortitude of athletes is.

Offensively, Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun have to continue to come up with the big hits. Newcomers Mike Cameron and Jason Kendall have to assert themselves as the veteran leaders we all know they are. On the mound, Ben Sheets has to stay healthy and lead a group of pitchers that (other than Jeff Suppan) have no idea what October baseball is all about.

From the dugout, Ned Yost will be tested. Tested on when to pull his pitcher…tested on when to manufacture a run…and tested to keep this team motivated despite losing what many of us thought might have been the final cog in the machine.

But it’s not time to panic. It’s not over, Brewers fans. Not this early.

If you’re a fan of NBA great Karl Malone, you might change your mind when you start reading this column.

If you never heard of Buffalo Bills rookie offensive tackle Demetrius Bell, you’ll be rooting for him when I tell you his story.

Bell was a seventh-round draft pick and two-year starter at Northwestern State, the same Louisiana school that produced cornerback Terrence McGee.

Bell is the son of Malone, but the Mailman had no role in Bell’s success except passing along athletic genes.

The two have had very little contact during Bell’s life. His mother, Gloria Bell, reportedly was only 13 years old and Malone a college sophomore at Louisiana Tech when Demetrius was born. Malone might have served jail time had her family asked the district attorney to file criminal charges.

Bell didn’t even know Malone was his father until after graduating from high school. When they finally met, Malone told the 18-year-old Bell it was too late to be his father, and that Bell would have to “earn his money on his own.”

In a 1998 story in the Salt Lake (Utah) Tribune, Gloria Bell said, “Demetrius is ashamed that his dad doesn’t claim him. But I’ve told him it is not his fault.”

Malone also fathered twins while in high school. One of them is WNBA star Cheryl Ford. It took years to claim the twins, and now he and his wife, Kay, fully accept them as part of their family.

But what about Demetrius? Doesn’t he deserve the same measure of love and recognition?

I can certainly relate to Bell’s experience. I didn’t meet my father until after my 40th birthday. Our separation was under different circumstances, but I can imagine how difficult it must have been for Bell not having a connection with the man partly responsible for his existence. At least my father and I have a relationship now.

As a first-time father, I can’t understand how any man could turn his back on his own blood. There’s a word for that, and it’s appropriate: Deadbeat.

Fortunately for Bell, he’s doing just fine without Malone. Bell has clearly moved on with his life.

“All of that’s behind me right now,” Bell said during a conference call Sunday. “I feel good I made it this far. Nothing against him, but I feel good at this time. If he would’ve been there, yeah, it would’ve been good. But if not, it’s even better. Everything is a plus right now.”

Bell has come a long way as a football player in a short time. His high school didn’t have a football team, so he focused on basketball and was good enough to earn a scholarship to Northwestern State. He played in 88 games, with six starts, and was one of four Division I athletes to play basketball and football last season.

Bell didn’t play offensive tackle until three weeks before the 2006 season opener at Kansas. That was the first of his 22 consecutive starts over the last two years.

Whether Bell will stick with the Bills remains to be seen. Seventh-round picks are the long shots on a preseason roster. But a player of his athletic ability deserves a good look.

“I’ve still got room for everything,” Bell said. “I think my strongest part is pass blocking. But I’m getting stronger by the moment. That’s a plus on my stopping the bull rush. Run-blocking is always getting better when I’m adding bulk and getting stronger. And technique- wise, it’s all about the coach teaching me his technique or what technique he wants. I think it’s all on the upside.”

Here’s hoping Bell has a long and prosperous NFL career. He might never be as great in his sport as Malone was in his, but Bell has already surpassed his father as a man.