JotCast | Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat

Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat - 12/16/24

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Ben Clemens

2:59

I actually wrote about this a few years ago

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/open-market-musings/

Bullock's

2:59

Giants somehow only at $167M for next year. They gotta get Burnes and get back in the playoffs, no?

Ben Clemens

2:59

I think that they should absolutely be trying to make the playoffs

3:00

I think that signing Burnes makes a lot of sense, too

and not just selfishly b/c I want to watch him, though also that

3:00

Ginny Searle had a pretty good take at BP about the Seiya situation. If Bellinger's moved, between Tucker backing up CF on off days for PCA, Tucker and Happ DHing once in a while, and inevitable injuries, Seiya can probably get 600ish innings in the OF even as a primary DH. It just depends on how many innings he needs to be happy.

Ben Clemens

3:00

Ginny's stuff is great, and I suppose that makes sense if they can trade Bellinger

3:01

in theory, Bellinger's market is probably not huge

given that he chose to stay on a player option

but maybe they can pay some down (hahahahha Cubs fans, fun joke about your team being cost-insensitive) or just let him go for nothing?

Guest

3:01

Also $/war seems different for hitters and pitchers. Having one number doesn't reflect that imo.

Ben Clemens

3:02

I've done some checking of this in the past, and the real divide is relievers vs. other

starting pitchers and hitters actually come in pretty close in the years I've checked

Dan Sanchez

3:03

On the topic of replicating the Burnes trade, could the O’s get Cease or Valdez with a package like Kjerstad, Suarez and a draft pick or 45 FV prospect? Obviously Suarez isn’t as attractive as DL Hall but he’s cheap rotation depth for a team giving up a starter and Kjerstad feels like the right level of headliner for a good rental?

Ben Clemens

3:03

I think they could, that sounds like a reasonable return

I think the Padres would probably do that if they like Kjerstad

Bobby Peru

3:03

Is Verdugo washed already? Where does he go from here?

Ben Clemens

3:03

yeah, washed imo

SeattleMarinersFan

3:04

Your thoughts on Julio Rodriguez? He's only 23 yrs old but doesn't seem to be a stud OF. Still room for improvement?

Ben Clemens

3:04

I think we are seeing different things looking at the same guy

He looks like a stud OF to me

Statcast

3:04

Will EV90 ever be added to FG?

Ben Clemens

3:05

it's on our list of stuff, we de-prioritized it to focus more on getting the various stuff metrics onto the site in useful ways but I'll bring it up again at some point b/c I really like it as a stat

Guest

3:05

If I'm making a trip to AZ for Spring Training, are there certain ballparks I should prioritize visiting?

Ben Clemens

3:05

I'm not the most knowledgeable, Eric is better, but: I love Salt River FIelds

FIeld?

I saw Acuna hit a homer in AFL there once, it was awesome

saw Nicky Lopez hit a homer too, it was a much less impressive homer

Colin

3:06

Do you think $/WAR equals out between Def WAR and Off WAR because maybe I am wrong but I would definitely pay more for Off WAR then Def WAR

Ben Clemens

3:06

Yeah, this I agree with

I think that the market, pretty reasonably, feels offensive war is more stable

Songbird’s Hay Den of Iniquity

3:06

What’s your take on Hayden Birdsong? Giants folks seem to think he’s got another gear. Prospect hounds don’t seem so sanguine. What would you expect from the kid over the next couple years?

Ben Clemens

3:06

storytime!

3:07

I got some free tickets to a Giants game last year through a friend and who was sitting in front of us? Birdsong's entire family, all wearing Birdsong jerseys

either that or just a ton of fans who all went REALLY out of their way to get a custom jersey of a rookie making his first start

3:09

I think that I'd be willing to speculate on him having another gear, it's far from a given and I understand why he wasn't a huge, can't miss prospect but he feels to me like one of those guys that would suddenly be much better if they could just add a little command

it's no given that it'll happen, but I like several of his pitches and his aggression. I just think the ball doesn't go where he wants often enough for it all to work yet

Jim Bob Cooter

3:09

Is it safe to assume that the Cubs aren't even half way through their big moves?

Ben Clemens

3:09

in terms of number of trades, maybe

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