Failure is inherent in the game of baseball.

Success is measured in terms of failure, as being unsuccessful seven out of 10 times earns hitters All-Star recognition. A hitter hasn't been good enough to average failure a mere six of 10 times over the course of a season in more than 65 years.

Some of the game's most iconic moments center around failure, as well. Bill Buckner failing to field a ground ball was the culmination of the Red Sox failing to close out a World Series championship. Barry Bonds failed to realize fans would simply not believe that it is natural to become the approximate size of a rhinoceros at age 40.

Somehow, two of the most popular teams in the game — the Red Sox and the Cubs — gained their notoriety not because of their successes, but through historic, well-documented failures.

Everywhere you look, it's fail, fail, fail.

But sometimes all that failure can get out of hand. After 25 years of failure, it can get downright old. Basically, what I'm saying is it's tough being a Milwaukee Brewers fan.

Every season for the past 25, Brewers fans have gone into the season like a guy goes into a party: They see the prettiest girl in there and think, "Maybe, with a few breaks, we can get the girl," or the division title, as is the case with a baseball team. For 25 years they have been the guy embarrassingly shot down. Ron Burgundy and Brian Fantana may have not minded going to the same party for 12 years, but as a Brewers fan, I have about had it with going to the same losing party year after year.

For those who may not be familiar with the wildly successful history of the Brewers, the team hasn't made the playoffs since they blew a 3-1 game advantage to the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1982 World Series, and haven't finished with a winning record since 1992.

To put all that failure in some perspective, every NFL team except for three — Cincinnati Bengals (last win in '90), Detroit Lions ('91) and Houston Texans (only in existence since 2002) — have not only made the playoffs, but have won games there since the Brewers were at least better than average. The Marlins have been in existence for 11 years and have already won the World Series twice. At a certain point, it gets ridiculous. No fan base in any of the four major sports has endured more consecutive seasons without a trip to the playoffs.

Another way to look at it is in 1982, Ronald Reagan was in his first term as president, the Soviet Union was still a major threat to the United States, Michael Jackson still resembled a human being and had not yet released "Thriller," ESPN was only three years old, MTV had just been founded and, if you are reading this, odds are you were not yet born.

After you take a second to digest the total scope of that, try to understand why I hate it when George Steinbrenner or anyone else calls a 90-win season a failure.

But it looks like the Brewers may be turning the corner a bit. I tend to be extremely cautious when it comes to getting my hopes up for the team, mostly as a result of not remembering anything good actually happening. That is why, when I initially heard about the Brewers signing Jeff Suppan because he was incredibly durable, I took that to mean he was due for an injury — likely elbow discomfort around June 12 — rather than look at the signing as a sign the team was moving in the right direction, which it undoubtedly is.

If you simply look at the starting lineup, the differences between this year and five years ago are staggering. Instead of quadruple-A players like Matt Stairs, Robert Machado and John Vanderwall serving as everyday mainstays, the team now features a wildly talented and young infield, young talent in the outfield and one of the best starting rotations in the league. In years past, we as fans were kidding ourselves with nobodies; there is talent legitimate enough to make a run to the playoffs on this roster.

With all that in mind, here are a few of my favorite storylines heading into the 2007 season.

— Can Bill Hall — a guy once ripped during a recent fantasy draft by an uninformed soul who writes a Tuesday column in this space for being as boring of a player as his name — successfully handle the move from shortstop to centerfield? Early returns this spring training indicated he was doing just fine in his transition, which is good for the Brewers who will need good seasons with his glove in the middle of the field and his bat in the middle of the lineup if they are to make any move up the standings.

— Will Ben Sheets finally be able to pitch a full season again? After being as durable as anyone for the first few years of his career, Sheets has struggled with an assortment of back and shoulder injuries the past three years. If he stays healthy, Sheets is very capable of winning 16-20 games this season.

— With Corey Koskie likely unable to play this year with post-concussion syndrome, how long will it be before 2005 first-round pick Ryan Braun makes his way to the majors? No one has any worries about Braun offensively, but his defense was shaky enough in the spring to warrant opening the year in Triple-A. I would not be surprised at all to see Braun up and starting for the Crew sometime before the All-Star break.

— Twenty-five years before the Brewers won the American League in 1982, the Milwaukee Braves won the 1957 World Series. Twenty-five years after that 1982 season, will history repeat itself? I predict the Brewers will win the Wild Card with an 88-74 record.

Hey, you never know. Maybe with a few breaks the Brewers could even get the girl who comes with her own jewelry.

Ben is a sophomore majoring in political science. He'll be at Miller Park at least three games over Spring Break cheering on the Brew Crew. E-mail him your Brewers predictions at [email protected]