Front Office Chat: 10/30/26
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Anthony Franco
4:02
I do think they'll probably be a little worse, mostly at first base, but they're so good already that it doesn't really matter. Bring Woodruff back on an incentive-laden deal, maybe add a stable innings type at the back end in case Priester/Harrison don't have it
4:04
But even if they run it back with none of Bauers, Vaughn, or Megill, that's a really good roster. Probably getting a better regular season out of Frelick, still think Chourio has an extra gear where he plays like a top five MVP finisher
Red Sox lineup
4:04
What’s the best spot for Boston to upgrade its lineup?  Not a lot of openings on paper if Mead can really play second base, and it seems silly to pay for an outfielder.
Anthony Franco
4:06
Enough supply at 2B (Lowe, Ketel trade) that they can move Mead around and mix in DH work for him with Anthony in LF. Move on from Duran, ideally be able to bench or release Story when Arias comes up
They can make it work and should shoehorn a bat in somewhere with how poorly they hit down the stretch, but I agree that it's generally a good roster top to bottom
Brewer Fan
4:06
Don't forget Made!
Anthony Franco
4:07
Ha yes, not an external acquisition but having the best prospect in baseball up in the 2nd half will help as well
Cat_Herder
4:07
Any predictions on what Detroit does with Jenson and Anderson?  They're going to need to open a couple of spots so any other speculation on who might be released to get down to 40?
Anthony Franco
4:09
No on Kenley, yes on Anderson. Guys they could drop to cut to 40: Julks, Hanifee, Vierling, Brieske
4:10
Yilber Díaz too
HitsLikeRays
4:10
The Rays will need more starting pitchers next year.  Why would a team that trades for Drew Rasmussen be willing to give up another pitcher?  Just because the pitcher is younger?  Or will this problem create the need for a three-team trade?
Anthony Franco
4:14
Rasmussen's a top 10-15 pitcher in baseball. Atlanta's a team with a bunch of reasonably talented young arms (Owen Murphy, JR Ritchie, AJ Smith-Shawver) and a couple bland mid-rotation types (Bryce Elder, Grant Holmes) but no true #2 starter behind Chris Sale
4:15
Braves could reasonably give up someone from both groups to lock Rasmussen in there for a win-now year. Rays backfill the rotation spot with someone worse but get a younger development type and hopefully restart the whole process
Guest
4:15
What team makes the first move next week either sign or trade
Anthony Franco
4:16
Hmm, give me Philly
Sandy at 90
4:16
Luis Arraez to LAD for 2 years $40 million for 2nd base? Thought s
Anthony Franco
4:16
Not enough of an upgrade over Edman/Freeland for me
PNC
4:17
The Pirates need some pop from the right side.Is there info out there on how many projected home runs a RH hitting free agent or trade piece might hit at PNC park? Seems like historical home run data like distance or location could be used to predict something like this.
Anthony Franco
4:18
Yeah you can find this on a player's Statcast page. It's not perfect -- I think it basically just maps a hitter's exit velocity, launch angle, and batted ball direction on park distance -- but it's a useful proxy
4:19
My guess is teams have proprietary versions of this that are more comprehensive
But here's Isaac Paredes, everyone's favorite "RHH with average raw power who pulls everything"
4:20
Actually hit 25, would've had around 33 if every game were in Houston, 16 at PNC
Baked McBride
4:20
Where do the Phillies look to find someone to take a bit of the load off Realmuto behind the plate, knowing that they will probably have to duct-tape him to the bench on his days off. Would Crooks be a good fit? Will there be riots if Dombrowski brings back Marchan?
Anthony Franco
4:21
I know they have a bunch of needs and can't fix everything but they can't just run it back with Realmuto and Marchán. Should be hard after Carson Kelly in my view
4:22
Could make an on-paper case for Jeffers honestly, but I can't imagine they want to devote that many resources to the position and make Realmuto a $15MM per year backup
Brewer Fan
4:22
Speaking of next year, is this the year the prognosticators finally have us over 90 wins for the o/u? Lol
Anthony Franco
4:22
64-98
4:23
Alright, already went longer on this one than I intended. Going to wrap up here and check in with Darragh to see where we're at on news
4:24
Sorry if I didn't get to your question. As always, happy to take it over on X @affranco10 over the weekend
Thanks to all of you for the questions each week and for your continued support of the site! Really enjoyed this as always
4:25
Exciting times for us coming up. Big day on Monday with free agency really opening, we'll have an offseason preview podcast next week as well
Have a great weekend!
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