JotCast | Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat

Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat - 2/13/23

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Ben Clemens

2:01

Hey everybody, welcome to the chat. I'm going to keep it short today, as I have some important dog-related business (it's a walk) to get to in about 45 minutes, but I'll try to answer as much as I can in that time

Greg

2:02

Is there any possible reason Ozzie Albies continues to switch hit? He's a great hitter from the right side and not good from the left side with plenty of sample size at this point. Why continue to do this? Player comfort, teams not wanting to push for him to give it up?

Ben Clemens

2:02

Player comfort is my guess

I'm totally with you, I think he'd be better served as a righty if he's capable of reasonable AB's against righties

2:03

If you were the Padres looking to find another starter before the season began, what type of trades/players would you be exploring? Possibly moving Kim in return?

Ben Clemens

2:03

I'd try to sign Michael Wacha

I don't think it makes a lot of sense to trade from depth when one of the really appealing things about the Padres lineup is depth

Todd Bonzalez

2:03

Does expansion make it more difficult for teams to hold cities/regions hostage for stadiums/ development/funding?

Ben Clemens

2:05

I think it does, and I think there's a reason that MLB has held off on moving teams

Ben

2:05

If a veteran player such as Robinson Cano, Yoenis Cespedes, or Andrelton Simmons has an impressive showing at the World Baseball Classic, do you think they could turn that into another MLB opportunity?

Ben Clemens

2:06

Yeah, I completely think so

2:07

I don't think it's an accident that they're timing it the way they did

Chip

2:08

Now that the 'ghost runner' rule is now permanent, I would like to point out that it irrationally annoys me that people call it a 'ghost runner'. Ghost runners are when you have an imaginary person on base because you don't have enough players to play. The person put on second in extra innings is, in fact, very real and not imaginary at all. Therefore that person is not actually a 'ghost' in any meaningful sense of the word.

Sirras

2:08

Any major impact on game strategy that you expect form today's competition committee rule changes? For anybody who missed this minor item:runner on 2nd in extras has been made permanent (often called the ghost runner, the Manfred man, or, if you're Ben Lindberg, the zombie runner) and position players pitching is limited to situations where you are 10 runs ahead or 8 runs behind.

Ben Clemens

2:08

Ben Lindbergh would love to hear you say this

2:09

I agree, not a ghost but a zombie

Tom

2:09

Hi Ben. I've really enjoyed your work testing the accuracy of EV percentiles as a predictor of performance/breakouts. Is there anywhere you can access this granular EV data for minor leaguers, aside from their avg and max EVs? I've wondered it is even more significant for prospects, given their typically lower avg EV, and presumably wider variance given their relative lack of physical strength and in-the-box immaturity regarding zone/chase/etc. Thanks.

Ben Clemens

2:09

Not publicly, no

The way to do it is to find some people on a team and ask them for it

Which is a frustrating answer, I'm aware

Who's Fabio

2:09

Hi Ben - you mentioned skiing in Revelstoke last week. If you go there definitely make your way to Golden's Kicking Horse as well. Those are the most aggressive resorts in BC.

Ben Clemens

2:09

Good to know. I don't know when we'll do this trip but I really do want to do it

Tstats

2:10

Ben, what do you think about guys who throw slider that move on average more arm than glove side? Cory Abbott, Familia, Tim Mayza, all have this type of slider. I can't pinpoint the cause

Ben Clemens

2:10

I think what this basically means is that they throw a gyroball

I think gyro sliders are perfectly good pitches, though they work for different reasons than regular sliders

Yaki

2:11

If Vaughn Grissom improves enough defensively to handle SS, is there really much difference between him and Wander Franco?

Ben Clemens

2:11

Yes

Talfred

2:11

Do you believe there is a "change of scenery" effect, or is it just a dumb thing we say when we don't know why a player isn't producing as expected? Are you aware of any research that suggests underperforming players are more likely to improve if they change teams?

Ben Clemens

2:11

While I have not seen any evidence to that effect, it makes perfect sense to me

not that a change of scenery magically cures them

2:14

but that it feels like a better bet that something will click when new coaches get involved, and they can live in a new place, deal with different people, etc

Sharp

2:14

I was watching a game from 1988 on the MLB Great Games channel on Pluto TV and the announcers were bemoaning how guys were "unable to put the ball in play" when a particular player struck out with a runner on 3rd and less than two outs. Some topics are evergreen lol

Dave

2:14

Pardon my ignorance, Ben, but what's the difference between ZiPS and ZiPS DC? (and please don't tell me the latter are done when Dan's at a Starbucks in the nation's capitol). Thanks!

Ben Clemens

2:14

ZiPS DC uses Dan's rate statistic projections but Depth Charts playing time projections

2:15

Essentially, I'd consider Depth Charts to be 'if everything goes as well as we expect' and ZiPS raw playing time projections to bake in a lot of injury

2:15

Lots of chatter about a Kyle Tucker extension. Do you think it gets done? IMO this is the last chance for it to happen before he hits FA in few years

Ben Clemens

2:15

I do, I think it fits with Houston's MO and they should be able to offer Tucker a pile of money that will set him up for life while giving them at least some discount

David

2:15

Excellent article about the Yu Darvish extension. Any idea why some pitchers seem almost ageless and others decline rapidly in their 30s? Can teams come up with a way to predict this better?

Ben Clemens

2:15

If I knew, I'd be selling that information to teams for some ungodly sum

Scott

2:16

Between the stadium situation, the ownership crying poor, the lack of any exciting Major League talent, the thin farm system, and being in a division with a juggernaut, two teams on the rise, & whatever the Angels are... Do the present day A's have the bleakest outlook of any franchise in recent memory? I can't remember another team having, truly, not a single thing going for them.

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