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Front Office Chat: 1/2/26
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Anthony Franco
4:00
Good afternoon, hope you've all had a good holiday season!
Lots in the queue today, let's get rolling
Natitude Dude
4:00
Is M Gore getting dealt this off-season? If so, what kind of return can be expected after the Baz deal?
Anthony Franco
4:02
I still think he'll get moved this offseason. Would expect a better headliner than Tampa Bay got in the Baz trade and a slightly stronger package overall. Think Gore's more valuable despite Baz have the extra year of arbitration control
KerryFam4
4:02
We’ve now had two Japanese players sign short term deals with opt-outs at lower than expected rates.  Do you think that will impact the remaining unsigned Japanese player(s)?  Should we read anything from that into the markets for Tucker, Bichette, Bregman, Valdez, etc?
Anthony Franco
4:03
Not reading a whole lot into it. Seems more that MLB teams didn't think Murakami or Imai are particularly good
4:04
If all the top free agents are still unsigned two or three weeks from now, I'd come more around to the idea that of shorter-term contracts with outs for them
gavin
4:04
should the padres trade pivetta to the cubs/mets/yankees for prospects and sign basset or giolito?
Anthony Franco
4:06
I think it's too cute. Pivetta's just much better than those guys and the rotation is pretty weak beyond the top three. I understand the concern about potentially losing Pivetta and King next offseason, but the Padres are almost always operating in some kind of chaos like that because they overpaid Bogaerts, Darvish and Cronenworth
Guest
4:06
In your opinion, which outlet is the best for prospect coverage? Is there one you guys typically use?
Anthony Franco
4:08
Baseball America's the gold standard for me, but there's obviously a lot of good work out there and value in getting different outlets' opinions on players. We'll reference BA, FanGraphs, Kiley McDaniel's work at ESPN, Keith Law at The Athletic and MLB Pipeline
Arise, Sir Loin of Beef
4:08
Are there any upper tier OFs available in a trade this year?
Anthony Franco
4:09
It's not great, especially if Boston holds everybody. Donovan could kind of fit that description even though he's more impactful at second base and/or bouncing around the infield. We've seen that kind of ceiling from Robert and Nootbaar before but not recently
4:11
I think it's more likely to come available at the deadline. Red Sox are pretty well positioned on the pitching staff now but injuries could change that by the summer. If Cleveland struggles, Kwan should go in July. Maybe Minnesota reevaluates on Buxton and their top starters at that point if their half-in hope of competing this year blows up
A's or Marlins?
4:11
Between the A's and Marlins, which team do you believe is in a stronger position to compete for a wild card spot this season?
Anthony Franco
4:13
I'd take Miami's roster right now but that probably flips if the A's add a mid-rotation caliber starter. Still think they're both long shots but more realistic dark horses than they've been entering any of the past couple seasons
Confused
4:13
Why is Brendan Donovan so highly-sought after? Minimal power and he doesn’t have the .300 batting average to offset that?
Anthony Franco
4:15
Almost no one hits .300 anymore. There were seven qualified hitters who have done that in each of the past two seasons. Donovan's a reliable bet to hit .280 with an OBP above .350. Not huge power but enough for double-digit homers and 30 doubles
4:16
It's really tough to find players who do that while playing up the middle. The league average second baseman last year hit .243/.310/.371
Chris
4:16
Who is one player you think could possibly be traded this offseason who has not been speculated in trade discussions?
Anthony Franco
4:17
Still think the Giants should trade Robbie Ray to clear $25M next year for a move at second base or in right field
Giacomo Puccini
4:18
Who’s the best active player not to win an MVP?
Anthony Franco
4:19
Soto and José Ramírez were the two who immediately jump to mind. I'll go with Soto
4:20
You could make an argument for Skubal or Skenes too but I'm separating pitchers since they're dramatically less likely to win an MVP
Wandering Chief
4:20
Bassitt or Giolito for your fifth starter on a contender?
Anthony Franco
4:20
I'd rather have Bassitt
Elliott D.
4:20
Best bat match for the Reds?
Anthony Franco
4:23
Ketel is the answer for most teams but probably not moving, tough to see Cincy taking the contract and paying the controllable SP return. There's probably a price at which the Rays would consider moving Yandy Díaz, who'd allow them to kick Steer back into left field
4:24
Among players more likely to move, Nootbaar works there
Trout Phishin'
4:24
Every move the rest of this offseason will cost double due to luxury tax.  Are the Phillies big moves coming next offseason?
Anthony Franco
4:25
Still have a hard time seeing them not getting something done with JTR. If he walks, they'll have to do something behind the plate (Heim, Caratini). Don't think there's anything big beyond catcher though
4:26
Would also like to see them add a swing man in the Jakob Junis mold given the uncertainty with Wheeler and Painter early in the year
Perry Minasian
4:27
Anthony Rendon is (thankfully) not returning to Anaheim. With the extra couple million dollars in savings, do we do anything this offseason of significance?
Anthony Franco
4:28
Yeah they definitely can't be done. Lot of ways they could go still given all the needs they have (Gallen, Ranger Suárez, Eugenio Suárez)
Casey
4:28
Are the Giants really just betting that Vitello will be the difference this next season? At this point, the lineup, bullpen and rotation all seem to be equal to last year at best.
Anthony Franco
4:29
It's been underwhelming so far. There's still a lot out there but Mahle/Houser and completely sitting out the relief market isn't super encouraging
4:30
If ownership is really keeping the budget that tight because of the Snell deferrals and the managerial expenditure, they should be actively trying to move Ray. Can't go into the season with this bullpen and nothing in right field and expect to compete
CF
4:31
Can you think of any outfielders who switched from one of the outfield corners to center, and actually got better defensively? Jasson Dominguez is regarded as a poor defender in LF with -9 OAA, but he has elite speed (84th percentile) and is the fastest player in the Yank's outfield. He's not the best corner outfielder, but could he be an average center fielder?
Anthony Franco
4:32
I doubt it, that's pretty rare. Feels like more of a reads/first step issue with him, and that's not any easier in center
4:34
Wyatt Langford pulled this off last year, but he was already a good left fielder who'd only moved to a corner in college because Florida had a couple elite defenders up the middle
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