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Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat - 6/3/26

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Ben Clemens

12:36

yeah, I'm into it

12:37

I also like the cutter he throws, it has a ton of funk, it's almost like a swutter (sweeping cutter?)

anyway yes, big fan

formerly matt w

12:37

Colby Rasmus had 18 WAR! Around 8 with the Cards and 10 after the trade. If all my team's prospect busts were like that I would be very happy.

Ben Clemens

12:37

that's kind of amazing

Seuss2004

12:37

If MLB had no player awards and we were coming up with them NOW, I would make two: one for best position player and one for best pitcher (Ohtani is amazingly weird, let's set him aside for this thought exercise). I think that would get rid of most of the anger people get over the meaning of the word 'value', and the sometimes perceived unfairness of a pitcher winning an MVP award when they got their 'own' award 25 years later, after enough time for precedent to set in. This would be so much fairer and more logical. So, please, tell me why this is trash.

Ben Clemens

12:37

oh sure. the reason we don't do this is that we didn't do this ever

12:38

another thing you could do would be to have a best offensive player, best pitcher, and then MVP, like football

with the tacit agreement that you can't vote for the same guy for the top award and their category. Like in football, the second-best qb wins best offensive player, the best wins mvp

but I'm into it

jdankosky

12:38

Not sure if the Parrot costume is too snug for him, but Marcell Ozuna has become a $12mil mascot. Is he done? Is there anything to flip him for?

Ben Clemens

12:38

yeah, it's looking pretty much done

12:39

you never know when someone's run is going to end

but Ozuna's 2026 looks like the end of the road. and while he's had big down stretches like this before, the age argues that this one won't be beatable

InsertWittyNameHere

12:39

Speaking of the heat...going to day games in the summer now feel more exhausting than in the past. What can teams do to mitigate this? More shade in the stands or even breakfast games @ 9 in the morning?

Ben Clemens

12:39

so hot

I dunno. I've always gotten that 'tired sun' feeling at day games

I just try to take it easy afterwards

12:40

more shade in the stands would be great, but it's tough b/c it's a moving target

honestly I don't know how much of it is just heat, even. I get that feeling in SF, and it's usually 60 degrees or whatever. just very sunny

oaktownblues

12:40

What is to be done about Lawrence Butler? Worst qualified player in baseball by WAR. Has been pretty unlucky per xwOBA, but said xwOBA is just .297. Not even starting regularly vs RHP thanks to the emergence of Cortes. Is a AAA stint in order?

Ben Clemens

12:40

like, probably

he's been SO bad

Jasper Francisco

12:40

What happened to Lawrence Butler? Should he be sent to AAA rather than being a short-side platoon who is really miscast as a CF?

Ben Clemens

12:40

yeah

12:41

I feel like this is one where you have to know what's going on with the player, you can't just speculate externally

is he hurt? is he pressing and just in a bad spot mentally? is this just variance? have his skills declined? how much of 2025 was telling you that he was on a downward trajectory

12:42

it's all complicated by the contract too

i dunno the answer, honestly. but I think I'd be talking to him about just getting a clean reset in AAA, with the understanding that he'd come back up as the starter, not as someone who needs to earn the spot

I want to bet on Butler over Cortes long-term, and clearly the A's do too; they gave him that deal, etc.

12:43

but right now, Cortes is on and Butler is not

don't just throw good money after bad, you know?

oaktownblues

12:43

How long is the leash for Brent Rooker? Give him another ~200 PAs to right the ship?

Ben Clemens

12:43

fascinating one

more than that I think

12:45

very similar shape to Butler in wRC+, but I'm more willing to let ROoker see if he can figure out how to strike out a little less while still having power b/c he's done it before

also like.... here, there are fewer good replacement options

I do think it's interesting that he and Butler were both popular 'hey why wasn't that guy ont he trade value list' names last year, and both got consideration for real

and then whoops, melted

their profile (bat-only-ish) is definitely most susceptible to going from star to 'crap do we need to put him in the minors?'

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