JotCast | Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat

Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat - 12/16/24

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Ben Clemens

2:13

for me, the first

demonstrate the second before I'm willing to believe it, you know?

Justin

2:14

Best christmas song?

Ben Clemens

2:14

I have a few contenders, I'll give my wife credit for these because I wasn't a big Christmas song person as a kid

2:15

Christmas Wrapping by the Waitresses, Merry Christmas by Elton John and Ed Sheeran, Fairytale of New York by the Pogues, and the entire Sia Christmas album are my go tos

Ryan

2:15

Red Sox don't have a shortstop. Dbacks have two. Dbacks also need a first baseman. Who says no to a Geraldo Perdomo for Tristian Casas trade?

Ben Clemens

2:15

The Red Sox

by like, a lot

2:16

I think Casas is just better in addition to having an extra year of control

Guest

2:16

Post Kyle Tucker trade: The Cubs outfield is LOADED. Do you think Bellinger/Suzuki are most likely to be moved?

Ben Clemens

2:17

Yes I do. Last week, Seiya's agent mentioned that he was not interested in being a full-time DH, and that he'd specifically looked to avoid that when he signed his free agency contract

I think that puts them in a huge bind, tbh

2:18

there's just nowhere for him to play. I think that they're going to end up trading him, probably for not that much because it's an awkward market for corner OF bats with some good free agents available for contending teams still

I'd make a move to get Kyle Tucker every time still, but they definitely need to make some more moves given current roster construction

drhotdog

2:19

as an angels fan ive been dreading a nolan areando trade. is there a trade you think could be win-win? cuz i only see disaster brewing

Ben Clemens

2:19

no. Arenado to the Angels only makes sense because he's from there

2:20

I love that he talked about how much he wanted to win, then gave a list of teams that had a bunch of teams that eclipsed .500 and have legit WS aspirations

and then the Angels

like, you can just say you like where you're from, that's okay too

Justin

2:20

We all know the Pirates aren't gonna offer enough dollars for teoscar/santander, the main cleanup style corner OFs in FA. Aav probably 20-30. Assuming they could afford a AAV closer to 10-20, who are some trade targets who make sense?

Ben Clemens

2:20

what about Seiya???

Justin

2:20

What are your thoughts on the Horwitz deal from the pirates POV? Solid enough leadoff hitter at 1b for a few years?

Ben Clemens

2:20

I mean, no

2:21

this is the kind of trade you make when you know you're not going to spend any real money in FA, in my opinion

he's a perfectly reasonable blah bat, if he ends up as a rotational player that's fine

if you're counting on him as one of your best hitters, you did something wrong

Yeah Well Hiura Towel

2:21

Even with Soto, the Mets still need pitching. They've got Senga and a bunch of question marks. Is this team really a contender without further additions?

Ben Clemens

2:21

I mean.... why would we expect no further additions

2:22

It's December 16 and 17 of the top 50 free agents have signed

'is this team really a contender' yeah the team that just made the NLCS, signed Juan Soto, and still has a payroll nearly 100 million lower than last year's is a contender

RetireNutting

2:23

WRT your O's Adley window response...aren't the Pirates in a similar spot with Skenes' window just a few years earlier? Couldn't the two teams match up nicely on say a (one of) Jared Jones/Mitch Keller for Coby Mayo sort of deal including other pieces to make it work?

Ben Clemens

2:23

I don't really understand why the Pirates would do this

I mean, unless the O's just bowled them over with value. But the O's don't do that. they specifically try to win every trade

Thank you for the chat!

2:23

In the case of Bellinger, can cash be conditionally added to the deal based on opt in years?

Ben Clemens

2:24

It can. The Arenado-to-the-Cards deal had the Rockies kicking in a different amount of cash based on whether he exercised his opt out. Similarly, the Mets had some conditional cash on Verlander's trade to the Astros

Hot Stove Please

2:24

What was the most impactful trade of 2024?

Ben Clemens

2:24

The preseason Soto trade

not only did it spearhead the Yankees, but it gave the Padres a head start on rebuilding their rotation, and the two combined had huge impacts in both leagues

Sirras

2:25

What was the most surprising moment of 2024 for you? Most surprising storyline?

Ben Clemens

2:25

Shohei going 50/50 shocked me. I didn't even consider him a contender for it

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