Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 5/12/26
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Steve Adams
1:00
Good afternoon! We'll get going in a couple minutes but feel free to start sending in questions now.
A fella
1:02
do the pirates start looking at help bullpen help soon? It’s kinda frustrating seeing the bullpen blow leads
Steve Adams
1:06
They can start looking, but there aren't going to be many (any) impactful arms on the market this time of year. Bullpen hasn't been that bad on the whole -- middle of the pack -- though obviously the past few weeks have been rough.

I imagine if any of their arms who are in AAA but already on the 40-man were performing well, you'd see some of those in-house changes, but it's been rough across the board.

I wouldn't expect to see anything notable, trade-wise, until late June or early July though -- especially with what a cluster the AL is at present.
Deuce
1:06
What do you see Clay Hoyles or Robbie Ray costing the Cubs?
Steve Adams
1:07
Doesn't need to be one of those two, specifically. Ray, Holmes, Joe Ryan, Freddy Peralta, Kris Bubic ... lots of names that could hit the market. I do think the Cubs will end up bringing in at least one starter.
1:08
Of the two you mentioned I don't think either has an exorbitant asking price, good as they've been pitching.
1:10
Holmes has a player option for 2027 which really tanks his trade value. Not saying the Mets can't get anything for him, but any acquiring teams knows he's either pitching well and bolting for FA or pitching poorly/getting hurt and then saddling them with an unwanted $12MM salary for the upcoming season.

Ray is making $25MM and hasn't been nearly as good as his ERA would indicate. He's been fine, but he's not going to keep stranding 93% of his baserunners and maintain a .220 BABIP.

Neither should cost the Cubs one of their top four to five prospects or anything.
Cooper Ingle
1:11
”Mr. Antonetti…trade me now!”  Seriously?   What more do I need to do for a look?   Why won’t Cleveland add a hitter?   Couldn’t they run away with the division?
Steve Adams
1:14
The Guardians' fascination with all-glove catchers is next level. Ingle spent a couple weeks on the IL down in AAA, but he started hitting again as soon as he was reinstated last week.

I think the long-term vision has to be Ingle+Bailey for the next several years, but the Bailey addition does at least open up the Guards to more seriously entertain the notion of trading Ingle if another team offers a compelling MLB-ready bat with a few years of control remaining.

I don't think Cleveland's pitching is good enough to run away with the division, but to your broader point, I have no idea why they're so reluctant to add any semblance of offensive help. I've harped on it repeatedly in these chats, on our podcast, in their offseason review, etc. It is confounding.
Sandy
1:15
Fix and flip for Thomas and the Dodgers? Also congrats on breaking it
Steve Adams
1:16
I think they just see a good defender/runner with an option remaining and some decent underlying indicators with the bat. Thomas has never hit much, but his contact rate is better than his strikeout rate would indicate, and he has decent exit velo, hard-hit rate, barrel rate, etc. -- all while hitting the ball in the air a decent amount. No harm in seeing if they can unlock something.
Jake
1:17
How do you think the A's outfield will shake out now that the are calling up Bolte?
Steve Adams
1:20
Soderstrom-Bolte-Butler in the short term, with Gelof playing more infield again following the Wilson/Muncy injuries.

If I'm guessing the longer-term alignment ... Soderstrom-Bolte-Butler with Clarke as a fourth OF. I'm not convinced Clarke or Bolte will hit, but Bolte has the better chance.

Soderstrom and Butler have struggled to varying extents, but both are still hitting the ball hard and walking a ton. Soderstrom's the better player for me, but I think Butler can be a fine everyday RF with a power-over-hit approach
Guard
1:21
Does Bo Naylor have any trade value at all
Steve Adams
1:22
Feels like an eventual non-tender candidate. I don't see anyone giving up anything for him in his current state, but he's still relatively young, has minor league options left, plenty of club control. If he's hitting in AAA, sure, but it's not going to be anything very notable.
ROTY
1:22
Early ROTY picks?
Steve Adams
1:23
I picked DeLauter and Griffin pre-season and am now henceforth bound to those for all eternity.
Junior Caminero Jr.
1:23
Do you see Buxton getting dealt by the deadline, and what would it cost the Rays to put him in center?
Steve Adams
1:23
I do not. And it would cost a ton.
Ellis
1:24
Seems like no one's really trying to win the AL Central, as is the case every year, but who's legit and who'll be out of it come August?
Steve Adams
1:25
Still the Tigers for me. Guardians in second. Rest of the teams just aren't that good to me. Twins have one of the worst bullpens I've ever seen. White Sox' pitching won't sustain its pace to date. Royals' offense just isn't good enough, and the bullpen is rough there too (albeit not to the extent as in MN)
Dinger
1:26
Who on the Rockies are valuable trade chips at the deadline?
Steve Adams
1:30
I still don't think Mickey Moniak makes enough contact to keep this up, but I am slowly being dragged (kicking and screaming) into the "Ok, maybe he's a decent power-over-hit corner OF" camp. I'm sure once I decide I'm there, he'll crater. But he's an obvious option.

If any of Freeland, Sugano, Quintana or Lorenzen is pitching half decently, they'll be in there -- though as of right now, that's not looking likely. Sugano'ss ERA is decent but he's not missing any bats and is still the most homer-prone pitcher in baseball. Lots of solo HRs thus far but that's going to catch up with him.

A sentence I never thought I would write: Antonio Senzatela is ... awesome now?
And he's a FA at season's end. Someone will give up a real prospect for him if he's healthy and the wheels haven't totally come off
Mrs Devers
1:30
Am I really going to have to move again?  Where most likely?
Steve Adams
1:31
No one is touching that contract right now. You can close your Zillow app.
Jake
1:31
No love for Carlos Cortes?
Steve Adams
1:33
Genuinely have no idea what to make of him. I don't think he's this generation's Jose Bautista, breaking out from nowhere at 28-29 years old. He's had 200 awesome MLB plate appearances, but a good chunk of it is BABIP-related. Love the contact skills, skeptical of the power and defense.

Nice out-of-the-blue development for the A's, though, and I should've included him in my prior bit on their OF -- but I'm less sold on him than some of his teammates, impressive as he's been.
Ludwig’s Free Pass
1:33
With Sean Murphy out with a fractured finger and Jonah Heim traded away, does Baldwin go full time at catcher? If so, who can DH effectively?
Steve Adams
1:36
Dom Smith's opportunities just keep piling up!

I imagine lots of Smith against RHP and pick your preferred option against LHP. Maybe they'll finally remember Kyle Farmer is on the roster. I don't understand how it's May 12, he hasn't been on the IL all season, and he has 14 PAs. The Braves are so weird. I'm blanking on who it was now -- help me out ATL fans -- but they rostered someone for like 4-6 weeks a few years back and gave them under 10 PAs. No other team does this, haha.
Sandy Leon, maybe? I'd have to check.
Jacob D
1:37
Is TJ Friedl a guy who could get DFAd?
Steve Adams
1:38
I'd be very surprised. He still has two minor league option years left. They can just send him to AAA to try to get right. This is really the only truly "bad" stretch he's had in his career, and it's 135 PAs. He was a 3 WAR guy last year and 4 in 2023. Can't imagine they'd just designate him.
Saul Goodman
1:39
As usual, most of the top teams need bullpen help.  Who will be the most sought after names?
Steve Adams
1:42
Antonio Senzatela, Bryan Abreu (still assuming he's too talented not to get back on track, unless he's injured), Victor Vodnik, Juan Mejia, Brooks Raley, Aroldis Chapman perhaps (depending how the Sox play), Matt Strahm, A.J. Minter (if he's healthy), Kirby Yates (if healthy) ... plenty more I'm sure. I'm just spitting off the cuff here.
Spud
1:43
Even with the return of Jackson Cherio, Andrew Vaughn, and Christian Yelich, the Brewers still have a black hole on the left side of their infield. What is the reason that most teams wait for the trade deadline to address potential fatal flaws in the team's lineup?
Steve Adams
1:43
Because most teams don't concede to sell valuable pieces who could plug those holes until closer to the deadline.
Guest
1:44
Can the Jays get anything for Lauer or will they simply release?
Steve Adams
1:45
Last year's resurgence was kind of outta the blue, and he now looks like the same struggling version of himself (circa 2023) that wound up going to South Korea and scuffling over there as well in 2024. I don't think they're going to find much interest. Release seems likeliest to me, but someone will pick him up once he's available for the prorated league minimum.
ATL
1:46
Charlie Culberson was on the Braves 2023 active roster for several months and got exactly one (1) plate appearance during that time. He singled in that at bat and his 2023 OPS+ was 447, leading the team! That was his final major league at bat in his career.
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