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Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat - 3/13/23

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Ben Clemens

3:02

Yep

if you step off three times and don't get an out, it's a balk

3:03

One thing I'm not sure about: what if you step off and the runner successfully steals second anyway

I assume they wouldn't also be awarded third but I hvaen' seen it happen

Chip

3:03

As an angry Yankee fan who's upset that a bunch of his new toys are broken already, is it fair to be critical of the front office for the constant deluge of injuries, or is it 'just baseball'?

Ben Clemens

3:03

Just baseball, for me

Maybe you can question their pre-acquisition screening, I thought Montas was hurt when they traded for him

3:04

But pitchers getting hurt, what can you say

Guest

3:04

Re: the knuckleball question, the pitch in question that was being looked at (and why I asked) was Yacksel Rios’ splitter, particularly since his spin rates on the pitch are hilariously low. Of course splitters are naturally low-spin to begin with, but he kills it to such a degree that the only pitches with even lower average spin rates have been knuckleballs, and even R.A. Dickey and Steven Wright’s knucklers had higher average spin rates on Statcast. (Might be a fun article topic if you’re interested.)

Ben Clemens

3:04

Whether it's a knuckler or not, that's very cool

Yeah, spin rates on knuckleballs don't strike me as reliable

The way the technology works, I don't think it's supposed to measure knuckleballs?

3:05

But pitches that act like knuckleballs are fun, and there should be more of them imo

A Boy Named Yu

3:05

Lots of extensions, but none for the Cubs. Not now. Not with the old core. Do they, umm, know about extensions?

Ben Clemens

3:05

Hey, that's David Bote slander

3:06

I think that the Cubs should offer more extensions than they do. I assume what's happening is that they're just lowballing everyone too much and thus not getting anything done

But I don't have any confirmation of that, just a guess

Johnny5Alive

3:07

I am a mets fan, and is it completely out of line to think they are just as likely to miss the playoffs as they are to win the division? Lots of volatility and injury risk in the rotation, the bullpen outside of Diaz is meh and the bats showed last year that they couldn't rely on lucky contact forever - they have no protection for Alonso still. I know what they did last year, but having been a Mets fan for 40 years, I also know what usually happens. They have only made the playoffs in back to back seasons twice before

Ben Clemens

3:07

The bats... made a lot of good contact and scored a lot of runs, and probably will again this year

I think that's a pretty harsh take on the offense

I agree the pitching is risky from an injury standpoint, but htye got some depth. I think that they are far more likely than not to make the playoffs

3:08

The offense scored the sixth-most runs in baseball in an extreme pitcher's park

I dunno what more you want

omar moreno

3:08

and what of Ben Joyce? impact reliever this year for angels?

Ben Clemens

3:08

Yeah, maybe I'm just getting tricked by the pitching ninja highlights but he looks legit to me

3:09

and the team fit doesn't hurt

Sanford

3:11

how was your vacation ben

Ben Clemens

3:11

It was excellent

The skiing in Europe was not great, but the vibes were a home run

HIghly recommend Zermatt for your ski vibe needs

WBC

3:12

You can watch me for free, legally, on foxsports dot com, even if you don't have a TV provider! The preview period is one hour long and you can do as many of them as you want if each one is done in a new incognito window

Ben Clemens

3:12

Ah, sure, the easiest technological fix in the world

Like, look, I have been able to watch the games I've wanted to

3:13

but the fact that it's all these dumb workarounds and hacks is embarrassing imo

Lorenzo

3:14

Which stadiums are you planning on seeing games at this season?

Ben Clemens

3:14

Wrigley, Miller, Oracle, Coliseum, Nats Park (maybe), and I dunno whatever else comes pu

tortycraig

3:15

thanks for QT'ing the thread of that founder earlier; threw up in my mouth a little at the 'played with my kids, the rest is an externality' mark zuckerberg cosplay part lol

Ben Clemens

3:16

Lol good description

Sanford

3:16

How would you handle the Mets 3B situation? Turn the keys over to Baty to start the year, platoon him with Escobar (who has better splits from the right side anyway), or keep him warm in the minors for a little bit longer?

Ben Clemens

3:16

I think I'd platoon him with Escobar with Escobar also serving as a backup 2b and backup outfielder via moving McNeil to the outfield as appropriate

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