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Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 6/27/23
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John
1:41
Giolito and Goldy too much to ask for the Orioles to acquire?
Steve Adams
1:42
In general, pinning your hopes on your team acquiring the top bat and top rental arm on the market seems like a good way to set yourself up for disappointment. The O's have the farm system to make it happen if they want, but Mike Elias has never made a move even 10% as aggressive as either of those since becoming the GM there.
Torin Jones
1:43
How do we know we’re chatting with a human?
Steve Adams
1:44
I'm not as smart as ChatGPT
Kingpin
1:44
Do think it's likely the Mariners trade Kirby or Gilbert for a hitter (or hitters)?
Steve Adams
1:44
No I think they'll continue to build around both.
John Mozeliak
1:44
How safe is my job? Have I made the mistake of “playing to not lose” instead of “playing to win” with my pitcher roster decisions over the past decade, and has it finally bit me?
Steve Adams
1:44
Ken Rosenthal wrote this morning that ownership has no intention of moving on
ForReal
1:45
Drew's question has my thinking...is there anyone one player on the Nats current big league roster that they wouldn't part with, if the trading club said "We'll take Corbin and his whole contract, but you have to give us ____" also ?
Steve Adams
1:46
I doubt they'd be willing to give up Gray and especially Gore in that fashion. Ditto Abrams and Ruiz, struggles notwithstanding. But generally speaking, yeah, there's not a lot they wouldn't part with if it meant escaping Corbin.
Tim
1:47
Angels making moves early. Do you see them get any other help perhaps bullpen or SP?
Steve Adams
1:49
Talked about this on the podcast episode that'll go up tomorrow (cheap plug!), but the moves they made don't prevent them from doing anything else. They got some cheap veterans to see if they can help bridge the gap while they deal with a bunch of injuries. If either Moustakas or Escobar isn't working out, they can just move on at minimal cost and look elsewhere on the trade market.

I do think they'll go after another SP. Anderson hasn't performed as hoped. Canning has been good but has barely pitched for a few years, so they'll  be watching his innings. Sandoval hasn't been as good as hoped. Suarez was a mess before he hit the IL with a shoulder problem.
John
1:50
Santander is a free agent after 2024, Mullins and Hays after 2025. Who will the Orioles extend?
Steve Adams
1:51
Mullins seems like the only one of the bunch they'd take a shot at, to me. Then again, it hasn't happened yet and he's now only two years from the market.
Joshua!
1:51
Will the guardians make any notable moves? Any chance the uh r
Steve Adams
1:52
I actually think there's a real chance they'll move Bieber, though the return will be disappointing to most fans. That's not to say they'll be pure sellers; I'd imagine MLB-ready OF help and MLB-ready bats in general are going to be asked for with any controllable arms the Guards put on the market.
Safeco
1:53
Who will sign Flexen? Anyone?
Steve Adams
1:55
Going to look into this after the chat, but I believe he basically has to accept an outright assignment. He doesn't have five years of service yet, so rejecting an outright assignment should mean he has to forfeit the remainder of his salary.

Flexen's contract is a bit atypical, though, since he signed as a free agent coming back from the KBO. So, for instance, even though he won't have six years of service time after the season, his contract stipulates that he'll become a free agent.

I'm not sure if specific language regarding his salary and a potential outright was negotiated in, but that would be the first time I've heard of such a clause. As it looks to me at first glance, he'll have to accept the Mariners' AAA assignment in order to keep his salary, which he surely will do.
redsfan
1:56
So, let's be honest Steve. Some of us Reds fans saw this year as a possible .500 season and could see the vision for what Krall did. You thought he was stupid and in for a long re-build having just gone through one. Right?
Steve Adams
1:57
I didn't think he was stupid. I thought he was acting under the guidelines (i.e. cut payroll) given to him by ownership. And I thought it sucked for Reds fans to come out of a yearslong rebuild, contend for one shortened season, and then immediately spend two years cutting payroll.

Krall and his group deserve plenty of credit for some of the returns they've gotten. I definitely didn't think they'd be anywhere close to the front of the division this time of the year.
Johnny U
1:58
Does Wil Myers get another shot at the majors this year?
Steve Adams
1:58
Yeah, I imagine someone will take what's basically a free look at him.
Pittsburgh Pirates
1:59
Are we taking Crews at #1?
Steve Adams
1:59
The Pirates themselves don't know the answer to that question yet.
Mike Ford
1:59
Have the M's found there answer at DH with Mike Ford?
Steve Adams
2:00
I know he's hit a bunch of home runs, but .200/.226/.560 and a 34% strikeout rate doesn't scream "long-term option" to me.
Guest
2:00
Reds; Elly getting all the press but Fraley, Friedl and steer doing the heavy lifting IMHO.
Steve Adams
2:00
Yeah, and Fraley and Freidl are doing it very, very quietly. Really underrated contributors for them this year.
Chris Flexen
2:01
Will I get traded now?
Steve Adams
2:01
Mariners would need to eat a good portion of the salary to make it happen. Certainly possible, though. Mets just did as much with Escobar, for instance.
Juliooooo
2:02
Will Julio Rodriguez start hitting at some point this year? He's been a letdown so far
Steve Adams
2:02
He's hitting .283/.343/.458 over his past 180 PAs
Guest
2:03
Ex Guardians Will Benson and Nolan Jones seem to have found their stroke. Does Cleveland have trouble coaching major league hitters? Seems like they are collectively underperforming compared to last year. How much of this is on Valaika?
Steve Adams
2:05
Jones has a .450 BABIP and a 32% strikeout rate. I don't think he can keep this up. Benson's output looks less fluky, but it's also only 97 PAs, he's been shielded from lefties almost entirely (just 5 PAs), and he's not making much hard contact.

I don't think their small-sample success elsewhere is an indictment on the Guardians' development system, but I do think it's fair to ask some larger-scale organizational questions given the manner in which nearly all of their hitters have regressed this season.
Cubs
2:06
Do you think with the cubs only being 1 game under .500 and only 3GB will they sell or buy?
Steve Adams
2:07
If they were in that exact same spot a month from now, they'd consider themselves buyers. Their owner, Tom Ricketts, said as much this weekend. But their record and the context of the division will have changed by then. I know it's boring for fans to repeatedly hear "wait and see," but that's the approach more than three quarters of the league is taking right now.
StroShow
2:07
Does Marcus Stroman opt out even if the Cubs don't trade him?
Steve Adams
2:07
If he's healthy, he'll opt out.
Corner Market
2:08
What do you think Candelario end up costing a team? Would two 40+ FV type prospects get it done?
Steve Adams
2:09
I think something in that general range would be close, but we'll see what the demand is like. There aren't a lot of quality bats looking like they'll hit the market right now, which could drive up the price a little bit.
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