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Front Office Chat: 1/9/26
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Anthony Franco
6:14
There aren't a ton of rebuilding teams, so it becomes more difficult to make trades between hopeful contenders when they can't replace whoever they're giving up in free agency
But a team like the Nationals has no reason to cut off conversations on MacKenzie Gore at any point between now and the trade deadline
Ms fan
6:15
Is Yoan Moncada actually being viewed as a legitimate option for teams needing a 3B? Seems like a reclamation project more than a real option no?
Anthony Franco
6:16
One year for $5M or so where he opens the season as the starter but you're aware that it's likely to be something you need to address at the deadline
6:17
More because there's little reason to believe he'll stay healthy as performance. If you guaranteed 550 PAs of Moncada, he'd be a fine low-end regular
Frustrated Cub fan
6:17
Since the Cubs are against deferrals for any free agents they may sign, I assume this is the same case when it comes to avoiding trading for players that have deferrals as well. So a player like Ketel Marte would not have been a legit trade target for the Cubs since his $41 million in deferrals would have transferred to the Cubs. Is that accurate that deferrals transfer to a team a player is traded to?
Anthony Franco
6:18
That is the case but I can't imagine this was a hangup for them on Marte. His contract would be below market even if it didn't have deferrals
Common sense
6:19
Quick question... Are the Yankees better off signing Bo Bichette or Cody Bellinger?  Assuming they are going to command a $30 million a season pay day, Bichette for 10 years or Bellinger for (lets say) 6.  As a Yankee fan, I love the idea of having Bellinger roaming the outfield again but think Bichette is what Yankees need more.  He's right handed, can hit leadoff and is a really good "pure" hitter.  The other thing that is somewhat forgotten is that Jazz can play the outfield so Bichette splitting time at 2nd & SS this season works and Chisolm splitting time between 2nd & OF (or 3rd if McMahon flops).  Next Year 2nd base is all Bichette's.  Who do you think is more valuable to the team?
Anthony Franco
6:20
I wouldn't like the value at $30M over six for Belli or 10 for Bo, but setting that aside, I think I'd rather have Bellinger on this roster in the short term
6:21
Totally get the argument for Bichette, though Bellinger's also a very good pure hitter at this point and I think would be a perfectly good leadoff hitter if they wanted to use him there
6:22
Bellinger's swing plays there. Bichette's presumably a longer commitment and probably at second base for all but the first season of the deal, hopefully with Lombard up by '27
Guest
6:22
When looking at a player’s “regression” potential, what are some metrics that show “this guy isn’t going to be as good as last year”?
Anthony Franco
6:25
For a hitter, average on balls in play (BABIP) is the obvious one. I think it makes more intuitive sense when you reframe it less as "punishing" the player for getting hits at a high rate -- they're all trying to do that -- and view it more as "can he continue to hit for X average while striking out as often as he did?"
6:28
Then there are certain numbers -- how often did he chase off the plate, swing through stuff within the strike zone, how hard did he hit the ball -- that can be red flags. The Statcast "expected" numbers summarize that stuff into an overall data point, but I think it's more useful to look at the actual process metrics
6:30
It's kind of the inverse for pitchers but generally it's very difficult for all but a handful of pitchers to succeed if they're running below-average strikeout rates. They need some other standout skill -- usually a ton of ground-balls -- but even that leaves them subject to variance on balls in play
80 game Max
6:30
Will I ever play in the majors again?
Anthony Franco
6:32
Feels like it depends on whether Kepler's willing to take a minor league deal first. I assume he'd make it back if wants to but probably has to take some time in Triple-A as a tuneup
Greg
6:32
Do you think the return for Mackenzie Gore would be better or worse than return for Edwin Cabrera?
Anthony Franco
6:34
Better. I think Cabrera's the better pitcher but the durability with him was a real question. History of shoulder issues and missed most of September with an elbow sprain that initially seemed like it might require surgery
Bill Caudill
6:34
Could the Marlins take Jose Berrios + minor leaguer to bump up their salary and limit union grievances?
Anthony Franco
6:35
Don't think the Marlins care at all about the grievance. They weren't anywhere near the $115M mark last year
6:37
They've been grieved before. It stays in limbo for years and might get resolved as a throwaway piece of the next CBA. The A's are the only team for which this really motivated their behavior, and that came after they'd previously been phased out of the revenue sharing system and are in the middle of a relocation process
MattStats5
6:37
Oh and THANK ALL OF YOU for all the chats!  I rarely get to participate live cause of work and grandkids, but they're invaluable for me as a baseball addict.
Anthony Franco
6:38
Thanks to all of you! Enjoy doing these every week and obviously very grateful that you continue to support the site
I've pushed this one as far as I can unfortunately, have a couple minor league deals to get on the site
6:39
As always, sorry for the stuff I didn't get to. Feel free to throw it at me on X @affranco10
Steve will be back on Monday and we'll do this again next Friday. Have a great weekend!
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