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Dave Cameron FanGraphs Chat
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Dave Cameron
12:01
Happy Wednesday, everyone. Who else is excited to see the guy with Jerry Blevins fastball start against the Blue Jays today?
Let's chat about the playoffs, or if your team is out of it, the coming offseason.
@outfieldgrass24
12:01
Dave, thanks for the chat and welcome to Oregon! Are you surprised the D-backs were able to pull off the Hazen move? Also, loved your piece yesterday. Which of the two paths you described would you be most inclined to go down?
Dave Cameron
12:03
Not that surprised; as much talk as there was about people not wanting to take that job, there are still only 30 guys in the game who get to make the final call on baseball ops decisions, and people want those jobs. Hazen had no path to that job in Boston, given that Dombrowski isn't going anywhere, and I think the evidence is growing at this point that the guys who stuck around under Dombrowski didn't feel all that welcome. Since DD got to Boston, they've now lost a good chunk of the high ranking guys who initially stuck around.
12:04
In terms of what I think Arizona will do this winter, I think they'll take a conservative path. I imagine he'll try to rebuild the bullpen, improve the defense, and look for depth pieces, but I think they'll push the big "blow it up" decision down the road a year.
Greg
12:04
As a Braves fan, watching Javy Baez break out this season reminded me of multiple Cubs writers reporting that a Baez-for-Shelby Miller swap was close last offseason. Seeing how it played out and the return Atlanta eventually got for him, would you rather have Baez or the haul from Arizona?
Dave Cameron
12:05
The Arizona haul, easily. Inciarte is already a better player than Baez, and Swanson looks like he could be a similar caliber player, even if maybe a little less exciting.
Bret
12:05
The Jays have a lot of similar hitters, and in some ways, Cleveland has exploited that by limiting fastballs to hitters that really love fastballs. When looking ahead, that suggests an area the team could improve this winter is by adding players who succeed better against breaking balls, changeups, etc. Is that right, though? After all, when you look at stringing together hits and stacking a lineup, there's merit to having players with the same skills as well, in the same way you want your best hitters hitting together rather than spreading them out.
Dave Cameron
12:06
You don't want to overload on one type of player, if that type of player is flawed, because that flaw can be exploited on a wide scale. But I don't know that I totally buy that the Jays can't hit off-speed stuff. That would have been figured out before now.
Bob
12:06
Dodgers or Cubs, and why?
Dave Cameron
12:07
Well, easy to take the team up 2-1 at this point, but the Cubs are still a great team, so it wouldn't be surprising at all to see them take 3/4. Slight edge to LA, but I expect a few more good games.
Slew
12:07
Given the health and rest(Kluber) of the Indians' pitching staff, are the Jays favored in every game for the rest of the series?
Dave Cameron
12:08
They're big favorites today, but I can't see how they'd be strong favorites in a game in Cleveland. Maybe 52/48 or something but those games are toss-ups.
The Average Sports Fan
12:08
Bowden wrote that salaries for 3-5 starters are going to be depressed with that salary reallocated to relief aces. Do you agree?
Dave Cameron
12:09
I don't think we'll see a depression of salaries for quality starters -- Lackey, Happ, Estrada all turned out quite well among last winter's crop, after all -- but I do think reliever salaries are going to go up again this winter. Chapman, Jansen, and Melancon are going to get huge deals.
Otis Redding
12:09
Who do you see playing 1B/DH for the Blue Jays next year?
Eric
12:11
Do you sit Addison Russell and move Baez to SS, Zobrist to 2nd, and Contreras to LF to get the Cubs offense going, or is that too much to give up defensively?
Dave Cameron
12:11
I don't overreact to small sample postseason numbers. Best lineup includes Russell.
BK
12:11
Dave, what's the worst sports injury you've ever suffered?
Dave Cameron
12:11
I got knocked out after getting hit between the eyes with a baseball while walking out onto the field between innings in little league.
12:12
Was walking out to third base, taking off my batting gloves, and next thing I know, I was laying on the dugout bench.
Stevil
12:12
How would the trade market change if teams like the White Sox, Rays, and Diamondbacks were to all rebuild? Who would benefit the most, apart from the Yankees? Thanks
Dave Cameron
12:14
Well, that's not happening, but any win-now team would love to see the supply of talent available increase this winter. I think a team like the Astros would be thrilled if prices for high-end players came down, since I expect them to be pretty active this winter.
Paul
12:14
Sullivan said in his podcast that he didn't want the Cubs to win because something would be lost if the Lovable Losers actually won. I haven't yet listened to yours this week, but do you agree? I was pulling for them before, but I think he has a point...
Dave Cameron
12:14
I don't think I want to root for the continued misery of a fanbase in order to continue a narrative about the sport. Go Cubs.
Sirras
12:15
What do scouts and other evaluators mean when they say a player has a short swing or is quick to the ball as opposed to having a long swing?
Dave Cameron
12:16
Long swings are usually uppercut swing paths that lead to lots of whiffs. Short swings are flatter and often produce opposite field contact. Think Russell Branyan vs Derek Jeter.
Zonk
12:16
What direction do you think the White Sox should take this offseason? If you wrote an article about it, would it sound very similar to the one you wrote about the D-Backs?
Dave Cameron
12:17
Yeah, I think they're probably in a similar position. Give yourself one more first half to see if you can contend with an upgraded group of role players, and if not, sell big at the deadline.
Q-Ball
12:17
Do you have any quibble with how Maddon has managed the playoffs? Or, is the result the last couple days just "baseball"?
Dave Cameron
12:17
What was he supposed to do? They didn't score any runs against Kershaw, Jansen, and Rich Hill. Those guys are all great.
Erik
12:18
The last two games demonstrate quite clearly why FanGraphs had the Dodgers as a slight favorite over the Cubs: Kershaw and Hill. Do you think the Cubs will be able to get a win off of either of them to win in 7? With those two throwing as they are, this seems like one of the stronger 2-1 leads, even against the Cubs' offense.
Dave Cameron
12:18
Well keep in mind that Washington hit Hill just fine last series, so it's not like anyone is invincible. And the Cubs are an excellent team.
Q-Ball
12:19
Al Avila says "Changes are Coming" to the Tigers. They are going to spend less, get younger. No way that happens while also getting BETTER, is there? Are they at a point where they have to go backwards before going forwards?
Dave Cameron
12:20
The interesting thing about those comments is I don't really know what they can do, honestly. You would think they're not trading Miggy or Verlander. The Upton/Zimmerman contracts are underwater, so they can't move either without eating money. There's not going to be a big market for Victor Martinez. They could trade J.D. Martinez, I guess, but he's not that expensive, and they don't really have a replacement for him.
Q-Ball
12:20
Dayton Moore said pretty clearly the payroll has to go down in KC. Is this the end of the Royals contention window? Time to rebuild?
Dave Cameron
12:21
They're going to take one more shot next year while they still have Cain/Moustakas/Hosmer. But I do think they trade Wade Davis, and they're probably not going to be good enough to win without getting some huge improvements from other guys.
Zonk
12:21
Should the Cubs fall in the NLCS, do you feel like they are set-up for a long contention window? How long?
Dave Cameron
12:22
Regardless of what happens this series, the Cubs are as well setup as any team in baseball. Barring some catastrophic injuries, they're going to be the class of the NL Central for the next few years at least.
JB
12:22
Why do the Cubs play Russell at SS when Baez is obviously the superior defender?
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