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Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 8/22/23
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Steve Adams
1:35
It's Arcia's job to lose -- no reason to bet against him right now
Tim
1:36
Any thought on who receives a qualifying offer this winter? Is Teoscar Hernandez a candidate?
Steve Adams
1:36
Candidate, sure, but he'd have to give a lot of thought to accepting after the pedestrian year he's had at the plate.
1:37
How he hits in the final five weeks is going to be particularly telling
Mariners
1:38
The more the angels lose.,,, does that increase our chances fit Ohtani?
Steve Adams
1:39
He wants to win, and it's not happening in Anaheim despite a valiant effort  at the deadline. My expectation all along has been that he'll sign elsewhere. Mariners make sense, as do plenty of others. I don't think there's any true "favorite" right now, despite all the Dodgers speculation.
Positively Half St.
1:39
Are there enough quality FA pitchers available this off-season that one might join the Nats and give them a chance for a Wild Card?
Steve Adams
1:40
I don't think the Nationals are one pitcher away from being a Wild Card contender.
BelliBomb
1:40
Am I in line for over $200M this winter?
Steve Adams
1:41
I imagine that'll be the target for him and Boras. They managed to get Bryant $182MM in a market where the Rockies were bidding against themselves to at least some extent. Hard to imagine demand for Bellinger won't be larger.
Ed mathews
1:41
The Rockies need help, what are the chances of David Stearns signing with Colorado as GM?
Steve Adams
1:43
Slim to none. Stearns' likeliest destination would be the Mets, and even if he were to decide that's not the right fit, there's been no indication the Rockies would go outside the organization. Dick Monfort is fiercely loyal (very arguably to a fault/to his own detriment), and I have to imagine they'd just promote from within before bringing in an outside voice.
Time for a good old fashioned "baseball" trade
1:44
Gilbert for Holliday. Who says no?
Steve Adams
1:44
Love Gilbert but not sure the O's would part with Holliday for just about anyone. George Kirby (extra year of control) would be a more fun "dare you to take it" scenario, but I still think Holliday's all but off limits in Baltimore.
Big Red Machine
1:45
Let's assume the Reds choose to buy out Vottos option year at $7 mil.  Let's also assume he wants to keep playing in 2024.  Do you think both sides would be okay with a veterans minimum deal?
Steve Adams
1:46
There's no "veteran's minimum." There's just the league minimum, and there's no reason to think Votto would take that. It'd probably just be perceived as a slap in the face, unless Votto himself suggested it as a means to allow the Reds to spend more money elsewhere (not that anyone should expect him to do that)
Dave
1:47
Are you surprised the Nationals extended Davey Martinez?
Steve Adams
1:48
Not especially. He's well liked and well respected, and you can't really blame him for the team's record these past few years while they've been rebuilding. By all accounts, Martinez has been great in the clubhouse, is beloved by his players. And hey, the Nats are probably playing a bit better this year than most would've expected, and that always seems to bode well for the dugout staff.
Slava Ukraini
1:49
What contract will Montas get this winter? Is he a one yr deal guy?
Steve Adams
1:51
Boras Corp has increasingly been able to find two-year deals with the second season being a player option (or at least a conditional player option). Not sure there's as strong a case with Montas as there was with Conforto, Rodon, etc., however. And they did a straight one-year for Bellinger.

It'll be one or two years, and if there's a second year I think it'll be a player option or have the ability to convert into a player option at X innings (100, 110, whatever).

I still lean toward a one-year deal with a good base salary and plenty of incentives.
CoalDigger
1:51
Would the rangers aim high and sign ohtani? Solves their DH issue plus adds to the rotation till Degrom recovers. Or will they have to reel in on the spending?
Steve Adams
1:52
Yeah I love the Rangers as a fit. Why not? They followed up their half-billion dollar offseason with another quarter billion last winter. Can't put it past them to just go nuts on Ohtani, too.
Sad Reds Fan
1:52
Hunter Greene’s disaster of a start is really just salt in the wound for a fan base left holding the bag at the deadline
Steve Adams
1:54
I'm sure I've said this in past chats, but I was stunned the Reds didn't add a starter. It sucks for their fans. Rotation help was such an obvious need, even if you assumed healthy returns for Greene and Lodolo, and there's of course the risk that one or both has a setback or just struggles upon returning -- as Greene did. Really tough deadline for Cincinnati fans.
Tigers
1:55
Tigers look like they have a true 2-4 punch with Greene, tork, and carpenter. Vierling looks like he’s better then advertised on the infield. Got some prospects knocking on the door is it unrealistic to see them win the central next year?
Steve Adams
1:57
It's a solid trio of hitters, and as I mentioned earlier, I remain particularly bullish on Torkelson. I don't think the pitching is in a position to compete for a division title next year, but I guess we'll see what happens with E-Rod's opt out and how Casey Mize looks coming back from Tommy John surgery.
Slava Ukraini
1:58
Does Montas get a QO?
Steve Adams
1:58
Nope
Tom Kelly's blues
1:58
Has Max Kepler possibly shown enough offensively to pick up his option for 24?
Steve Adams
2:00
The way he's been hitting since early June, yeah I think it's likely. Wrote last week for our Front Office subscribers about how the Twins seem likely to pick up Kepler/Polanco but how those option decisions and all the young position players they have should push them to be open-minded and creative on the trade market early in the offseason.

Kepler is up to a 111 wRC+ on the season and is hitting .285/.340/.564 over nearly 200 plate appearances now.
Ed
2:00
How good are the Braves?
Steve Adams
2:01
Very!

#Analysis
Braves fan
2:02
I’m curious what lindors trade value would be. Not to say the Mets want to move him, but given his contract and the production he’s had since signing it, would there be much of a market for him? Thanks, love the chats
Steve Adams
2:03
He has nine years and $288MM remaining on his contract after this season. The Mets paid up market value for him at the time of signing, and the best couple years of the overall investment may well have passed.

I don't think other teams would view Lindor's remaining $288MM as a contract containing surplus value, so I don't think there'd be much of a market. If the Mets were willing to ear a substantial amount of money, that's another story, but that doesn't seem to be what you're asking.
Breck68
2:03
Does SF Giants keep Farhan Zaidi after this season?
Steve Adams
2:04
Their ownership has publicly voiced confidence in Zaiid multiple times this offseason despite being under no obligation to do so
So yeah, I think he'll stay
2:05
Alright, I've got to wrap up for the week. I'm on Twitter / X / whatever the heck we're calling it these days @Adams_Steve and on Threads @stephenjadams (not using that much yet).

Sorry for all the questions I couldn't get to, as always. You can consider signing up for our Trade Rumors Front Office subscription, which grants access to a weekly subscriber-only chat where your chances are obviously quite a bit higher. You'll also get weekly email analysis pieces from Anthony and me in your inbox, ad-free viewing, and other perks like autograph giveaways, book giveaways, etc. It starts at $2.99/month. You can learn more and sign up here:
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/membership?ref=chat-8-22-23

Thanks everyone, and have a good week!
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