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Chat With MLBTR's Steve Adams: 4/2/18
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Nosy
3:52
Wow, not a bad start for Junis today! What do you expect from him this year?
Steve Adams
3:54
Useful mid-rotation arm -- ERA in the low 4.00s over 170 innings or so with decent K/BB rates but probably some susceptibility to homers.
jh00k
3:54
Have any first-year compensatory picks been traded since they started allowing that a few years ago? Would allowing all picks to be traded make this happen a lot more frequently or not really?
Steve Adams
3:55
Competitive Balance picks from rounds A and B can be traded, and have been on several occasions. The Braves and Dodgers have made a habit of acquiring them, whereas the Orioles and Marlins seem content to trade them away for fringe pieces with regularity. Baltimore has twice traded Comp Balance picks just to get another team to eat the modest salary of a middle reliever (Brian Matusz to the Braves, Ryan Webb to the Dodgers) -- which just seems baffling to me.
cole
3:56
Can you briefly explain Why the cardinals gave up a pick because they signed holland? I don't understand
Steve Adams
3:56
He rejected a one-year qualifying offer from the Rockies at the start of the offseason. Any free agent who receives a qualifying offer -- a one-year deal worth the average salary of the 125 highest-paid players in the league ($17.4MM this year) -- comes with draft pick compensation,
3:57
Under the 2017-21 CBA, players can only receive one QO in their career, so they won't be able to make a QO to Holland next winter and get another pick in exchange.
toomanyhatz
3:57
Chargois is the real thing. Morrow? Perhaps not. But he's an MLB setup man.
Steve Adams
3:58
Chargois has thrown like 100 innings since being drafted due to persistent elbow and shoulder troubles. The stuff there is huge, but it struck me as telling that he made it all the way to the last team in terms of waiver priority without getting claimed.
If anyone believed he could stay healthy, they'd have claimed him. (Or the Twins just wouldn't have put him on waivers in the first place)
Timmy
3:58
Why would Tommy Joseph accept a AA assignment? Wouldn't he be better off in Asia?
Steve Adams
3:59
Those opportunities he had to go to Asia this offseason probably aren't there anymore. He can always go again next offseason. There'll still be interest, I'm sure.
QO Next Year
3:59
With a lot of FAs not being paid well this offseason, do we see a drop in the QO next year, since it's the top 125 salaries averaged? Or have not enough big salaries come off the table
Steve Adams
4:00
It only went up $200K from 2016 to 2017, so it's possible it dips a bit. I'd need to do some research, and I think incentives are factored into the final number (which is why it isn't released until around August/Sept. each year), but we could probably get a rough estimate and see if it's even in the realm of possibility
4:01
There are also natural increases to consider as well; guys getting huge arb raises (e.g. Josh Donaldson) and guys whose contracts call for huge yearly jumps (e.g. Jordan Zimmermann going from $18MM to $24MM this year)
James
4:02
Do you think the Harper/ Trout comparison is close?
Steve Adams
4:03
Trout's better. That's not a knock on Harper, who is awesome, Trout is just a historically good player and would have a legitimate Hall of Fame case if he retired tomorrow.
Sumdewdiknew
4:03
Why do fans overreact this early in the season?
Steve Adams
4:04
I don't know. Something about seeing a guy hitting .085 or something I guess. But players go through these types of slumps all the time midseason and it's just not as evident because they already have such a large base of PAs or IP.
I've gotten like 10 questions asking if Evan Longoria's career is over because he's hitless through like 10 at-bats. Shrug.
O's fan
4:05
Am I crazy in thinking Machado won't have as robust a market as some people predict? Seems like the only fit financially is NYY and they have good in-house options
Steve Adams
4:06
Yes that's crazy. Teams will move players to make room for him, and the Yankees, Red Sox, Phillies, White Sox, Braves and more will be falling over themselves to get him.
Giants
4:07
Is Evan Longoria's career over because he's hitless through like 10 at-bats?
Steve Adams
4:07
IT IS. RIP Longo's career.
Rich
4:07
Does Trea batting at #6 behind Kendrick make any sense to you? Do you expect that to change as the season progresses?
Steve Adams
4:07
It doesn't, but I haven't given it much thought. Generally speaking, I'd want Turner higher in the order just because I want him getting more PAs than most other Nats -- especially Howie Kendrick.
Rocco Rox
4:08
do we have any holes that are problems except inconsistent starters?
Steve Adams
4:10
Catcher could become a problem, and I don't love Desmond as the first baseman but not much you can do there with the contract he's on. I'm also not a big Trevor Story fan, as I don't think he'll ever make enough contact to post a solid OBP on an annual basis.

But it's still a nice roster, and the depth of young pitchers is legitimately interesting. Still not sure why they re-signed CarGo.
Bob
4:10
Why don't professional hitters go the other way when the defense puts on the shift?
Steve Adams
4:11
Because taking the ball the other way at will isn't as easy as it was in today's game when half the pitchers you face can throw 97+ and they're all using higher levels of advanced scouting than there was 30 years ago in order to limit the possibility of that happening.
Clay
4:11
Is Alex Cobb hurt? I couldn't find anything online and he's yet to start
Steve Adams
4:12
The O's optioned him to AA to start the season because he signed late in camp. He'll make a couple of minor league starts before joining the big league team just to finish building up arm strength.
COL-ARZ
4:12
Tomas for Desmond straight up?
Steve Adams
4:12
Woof. I'm not THAT down on Desmond.
Ben
4:12
If Odor continues to suck, is Willie Calhoun an option at second base?
Steve Adams
4:13
Pretty sure the Rangers view him as a LF/DH.
Johnny Bravo
4:13
Acuna show start April 16th or later?
Steve Adams
4:14
I don't have the exact service time calculation in front of me, but I think they'll need to call him up later than that to delay his free agency a year
Not much later -- another week or so maybe,
Mike Hazen
4:14
I'd take Desmond for Tomas straight up
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