Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 6/2/26
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Steve Adams
2:29
Valdez had an 8.5% walk rate in 2025 and has an 8.5% walk rate in 2026.
2:32
Grounders are down, as are the strikeouts. I haven't taken a deep dive into him or anything, but his pitch selection and velo are right in line with prior seasons. He's been mostly fine outside two awful starts, but fair to say the Tigers were obviously hoping for more than this.

Certainly doesn't help his cause that Detroit has been one of the two or three worst defensive clubs in baseball, but that doesn't explain the dip in whiffs
Guest
2:33
does Robbie Ray get traded by the deadline ?  Do the Giants have to include a prospect to make such a deal ?
Steve Adams
2:35
I do think he'll be traded. Can't imagine they'll attach a prospect of note. He's a FA at season's end anyhow. If no one will take him, even with some cash paid down, they can just keep him.

How much cash -- if any -- they need to include will hinge on how he pitches for the next two months. I'm not extremely bullish, so I'll say they trade him for a marginal return and eat half the money he's still owed
Mike
2:35
Yoshida and $10mm for Bryan Abreu & Yainer Diaz?
Steve Adams
2:35
Broken record time: Yoshida does not have trade value, and adding $10MM isn't enough to change that.
2:36
I wouldn't trade Abreu+Diaz for Yoshida if the Red Sox ate his entire contract.
CBA
2:36
So the Marlins etc get about $15M+ a year from competitive balance tax and yet still only have $80M payroll so you're telling me they only make enough money to pay $65M on their own? That seems suspect
Steve Adams
2:37
They get more than that from revenue sharing. And as of 2022, every team was getting $65MM apiece from national broadcast and streaming deals. Those contracts increase incrementally every year.

The Marlins just aren't spending the revenue sharing money they get
Zach
2:38
Could Will Venable win manager of the year?
Steve Adams
2:38
Manager of the Year is basically just "manager of the team that exceeded preseason expectations the most," so sure. He's probably the front-runner in the AL right now
AA
2:39
Should I be looking to trade Kim for either LF or RP help. Then let Dubon and Mateo take over SS.
Steve Adams
2:39
Kim's not bringing back major league help right now with the way he's playing.

He also still can't be traded without his consent for another 13 days, but that's beside the point.
RedsFan
2:40
So Steve, you love this sport. Without a cap, what is a reasonable solution for the millions of us that are sick of the dodgers/Mets/yanks spending gazillions and th brewers and reds spending 25 cents?
Steve Adams
2:42
Drastically more significant penalties for exceeding the luxury tax -- draft picks, much steeper percentages of taxation, probably.

I don't even inherently hate the idea of a cap. If it comes, fine, but I don't think the players will ever concede to it, and on the snowball's chance they actually cave, I think it'd take about 1-2 years before everyone realized, "Hey the Brewers, Reds, Marlins, etc. still aren't spending on free agents, they're just absorbing the final year of the Dodgers' and Mets' unwanted contracts to buy a prospect and hit the salary floor"

While the owners all toast to their substantially greater franchise values.
2:43
I don't think there is ever going to be a way to get a crappy owner to spend money at the levels most of said team's fans would prefer.
B-Wild
2:43
What kind of value does Sandy Alcantara have? He's been a horse, but not an ace horse. The return to form hasn't quite happened.
Steve Adams
2:45
Yeah, better than last year but not to where the Marlins hoped. I still imagine there are some teams that think they could get him back to form and would pay a nice price for it. And even if he's "just" the current version of himself, that still has value.

At this point, I don't see how they're getting multiple 50-FV (i.e top-100) types for him. If you can get one 50 as a headliner with 2-3 other lesser young pieces, that's probably a decent framework.
Bobby Cox
2:46
Ozzie is a free agent at year's end. Do the Braves make him an offer with Southesine waiting in the wings?
Steve Adams
2:49
He's not a free agent. They have a $7MM club option that they'll exercise. It's a bargain for Albies.

Could always look to trade him, but Tate Southisene is 19 years old and still playing in A-ball. He's not going to be an Opening Day consideration next year anyhow. Picking up Albies' option works pretty well with Southisene's timeline, really. He could be a major league option by '28 ... maybe late '27 if he's a quick mover, but '28 or even '29 seems more realistic.
Coppy’s Ghost
2:49
What would a trade for Jo Adell from the Angels or Noelvi Marte from the Reds look like from the Braves perspective and would either player be a beneficial platoon partner in left field for Mike  Yastrzemski?
Steve Adams
2:53
Adell is a monster against LHP. Would be a great fit in that role. I don't know why the Reds aren't giving Marte another look, but I'd just start him over Yaz if they got him. In a platoon setting, I don't love that fit, since Marte's career numbers are much better in right-on-right matchups. Not sure that continues to be the case long term, but I also just think Marte can hit and he should be given a chance to on a regular basis.

Marte has far more control and would (or should ... but again, the Reds seem nonplused with him for whatever reason) cost substantially more.

Adell shouldn't cost much in the way of prospects. Even last year when he hit 37 homers, he did it with a .290ish OBP and poor defense. He's pretty one-dimensional. I don't mind the idea of tossing a couple guys ranked between 15th and 30th in the system to the Angels for him.
Benton man
2:54
Do you see Nolan Gorman getting  traded this summer ?
Steve Adams
2:54
I don't think he'd fetch anything of note, but it wouldn't surprise me, no. He's trending toward a non-tender, so if another club wants to give up even a modicum of value to try to fix him, the Cards would probably shrug and say sure.
T Robertson
2:55
When Cabrera and Boyd comes back, do the Cubs go to a 6-man rotation, or do they send Taillon or Rea back to Triple A/Bullpen?
Steve Adams
2:55
Can't send either of those guys to AAA
2:56
You're assuming everyone is healthy at the same time, which feels optimistic for any team -- but especially the Cubs, given how this season's going.
2:57
If they did somehow get everyone healthy, it'd be Rea back to a swing role in the 'pen. Boyd, Shota, Taillon, Cabrera, Brown in the rotation probably, then play it by ear whenever Steele's back. Could always 'pen Brown again. He's been great, but you can't option any of the more veteran guys
Marlins Fan
2:58
Why do the Marlins keep Morel when they can just bring Ramirez back up
Steve Adams
2:58
Never understood the Morel signing, and don't understand the leash they've given him.
Cincy Fan
2:59
So you don't see Ohtani winning CY?
Steve Adams
3:00
He's 25ish innings behind Sanchez right now, and he's not missing bats like Miz or limiting walks like Sanchez. He's great, obviously, but not sure he'll have the innings and don't think he (or anyone) can sustain the sub-1.00 ERA.
Mile High
3:00
Are you surprised with how Mickey Moniak has performed this season & should the Rockies absolutely be moving him this deadline?
Steve Adams
3:02
Yeah. I've been down on Moniak forever. When Angels fans got excited about his half season there, I was the debbie downer pointing to his .400 BABIP and 35 K%. Even last year in Colorado, I didn't think he had much value because of the poor OBP and defense.

This year he's just exploded. Walking a bit more, keeping the K's manageable, hitting for way more power. Bat speed's up a touch. More contact both in the zone and off the plate.

He still swings WAY too much -- take a walk, Mickey! -- and can't hit lefties, but he looks like a really nice guy to plug into the big half of a corner/DH platoon at an affordable salary. Rockies should absolutely trade him.
Arraez-A-Roni
3:03
Since Arraez is producing better than *checks notes* ANYONE thought at 2B, who would be a good trade fit at the deadline? Yankees? the Surprising A’s? Pirates?  And would he net SFG a prospect in the teams 5-10 range plus another in the 10-15 range?
Steve Adams
3:06
Rays? Haven't gotten much from 2B this year and Lux isn't coming back anytime soon.

Red Sox, Phillies, Royals and Reds have gotten little to nothing from 2B this year, but it's not clear they'll all be buyers. Royals sure seem like they're headed the other direction.

Any team with ABs available at 2B, 1B or DH makes sense though. I'm generally of the "Arraez is fairly overrated as a one-dimensional/one-trick guy", but that one trick is working a lot better than it has in awhile and he's played a solid 2B while walking a slight bit more (although his overall swing rate is actually up, so that probably won't last)
Davis Martin
3:07
Where an I right now in the AL CYA voting?
Steve Adams
3:11
Probably behind Schlittler but near the top. And kudos to Martin. I waved him off early on as an April fluke because he wasn't really missing bats or doing much different in the past -- and since I kind of shrugged off his start he's struck out 31% of his opponents over a stretch of 36 innings. He's had two starts against the Angels in there, and I'm pretty sure there are people in this chat who could pick up five strikeouts in a start against the Halos, but still, he's missing bats against everyone now.

He's throwing his slider and curve more often and throwing both pitches harder. Swinging-strike rate is up to 13.1%, which is quite good, and the command has always been pretty good (though it's even better now).

He increasingly looks like a genuine breakout -- which would be a huge success story for the Sox' player development. Martin looked like a garden variety fifth starter from 2023-25.
Bouncy
3:11
Why do we get ao many players who are DFAd, choose free agency, then wind up siging a minor-league contract with the same organization teh y just left?  Why not just accept the outright assignment in teh first place?
Steve Adams
3:12
Renegotiating a new minor league deal lets you negotiate new opt-out dates or upward mobility clauses that weren't in the original deal. Can also angle for slight increases in minor league and/or major league salary.
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