JotCast | Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat

Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat - 3/30/20

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Ben Clemens

2:27

Wainwright just because he's an icon and also way too old.

To count on, that is, not too old to pitch.

But I'd like to see Kim get a spot even if Mikolas is fully recovered by the time the season starts. I was really encouraged by his velocity and ability to miss bats in the few looks I got of him in ST.

2:28

Jeff Zimmerman had similar thoughts about him:

https://fantasy.fangraphs.com/spring-training-quick-looks-kim-lindblom...

2:29

So long story short, yeah I think Kim should get a rotation spot, but I'm really unsure how anything is going to work this year so I wouldn't hold my breath.

Also I have him on my fantasy team, so I'm hoping for it in that way too.

Kiermaier's Piercing Green Eyes

2:29

Easiest way to upgrade your sandwich game is homemade bread. Anyone with flour, yeast, salt, and a Dutch oven or other oven-safe vessel (e.g. cast iron skillet and some aluminum foil for a lid) can have a rustic loaf for tomorrow. Recommend tripling the salt.
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/11376-no-knead-bread
Had today for some cheddar jalapeno grilled cheese, last night toasted in bacon grease to serve soft scrambled eggs.

Ben Clemens

2:29

Whoa... I had always considered bread-baking to be really unapproachable.

Time to give this a read, because like nearly everyone who is married, we got a Dutch oven as a wedding gift.

2:30

It's very shiny! And we almost never use it.

Derek

2:30

Playing OOTP a few minutes at a time has been an excellent way to force myself to take mini-breaks while working from home

(I have like 37 screens on my desk)

Ben Clemens

2:30

Jealous. I had four screens at work for the longest time and got really used to it, but my dinky desk at home is a two-screener maximum.

2:31

I can't recommend multiple monitors enough; it's been a life-changing productivity hack.

Not just having OOTP up on one (though hey I'm cool with that too!), but if you want to look at data with one and transcribe with the other, or have a reference article you want to keep popping over to... the possibilities are endless.

And these days, monitors are cheap enough that it's no huge outlay.

2:32

So I guess this is just a long-winded way of saying yeah, this makes sense.

Speaking of OOTP, I haven't broken the news to our brain trust yet, but Josh Lindblom suffered a serious injury over the weekend.

He's out 3-4 months with "shoulder inflammation."

2:33

Which I can only assume is going to lead to him missing the season.

So our Hader trades are now going to focus on pitching. Eric Lauer is a nice backup to have but it's not really enough to keep the whole operation humming.

2-D

2:34

Off the top of your head, how far back can you go naming past World Series' winners in order?

Ben Clemens

2:34

Hm, I'll try this, and you chat people can laugh at me when I inevitably get one wrong.

Nats, Red Sox, Astros, Cubs, Royals, Giants, Red Sox, Giants, Cardinals, Giants.

That gets us to 2010, and now I'll have to think slightly harder since I can't just spam Giants as much.

2:35

Uh... crap, I always mix the next two up.

Yankees, Phillies?

I think that's right

Then Red Sox, Cardinals, White Sox, Red Sox, Marlins, Angels, DBacks, Yankees.

2:36

Yankees, Marlins, Yankees, Braves.... I think I lost it here.

Yep

Goofed one up there

Anyway, not too bad!

Kevin

2:37

Article today suggests MLB expansion could be happening sooner than later if season is cancelled and team owners want money now. Article is hypothetical but since expansion looms on ten year horizon, is it possible now?

Ben Clemens

2:37

Yeah, I think that's reasonable to assume at this point. I don't think it'd be a next-year thing even if they decided today they wanted to do it, but I imagine that owners will be looking to get money any way they can given the current situation.

2:38

Craig wrote an article today about TV deals that I think bears watching:

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/mlb-isnt-losing-tv-revenues-yet/

If some of these RSN contracts start getting invalidated by cable companies, things could change very fast.

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