Front Office Chat: 11/6/26
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Anthony Franco
3:32
I hope they're done with the Kyle Isbel experience but if he's back, at least get a Tyrone Taylor type to play CF against LHP
Big Red Machine
3:32
If you are the Reds - rebuild or go all-in?
Anthony Franco
3:33
Oof, I think neither right now but if the first half blows up, then trading EDLC and tearing it all down might be inevitable
3:34
It'd be such a tough pill because they have the star talent but the back half of the lineup and essentially all of the non-Burns pitching staff is in horrible shape
3:35
Try a few mid-level FA additions to see if you hit on enough to be competitive but it's a long shot
IsFranklinTheMan
3:35
So there were reports on the Red Sox kicking tires on notable Shortstops at the trade deadline - Neto, Lopez, EDLC.  Has that subsided, given that the immediate moment has passed, Arias continued to tear it up, and we're this much closer to his debut?
Red Sox
3:35
Does Breslow have the cajones to go for it and make an impactful trade? Arias is a great prospect, no doubt, but can they wait for him to realize his potential?
Anthony Franco
3:37
I definitely don't think Arias is getting traded, if that's the implication of the second question. They could still kick the tires on a trade for a star shortstop and break Arias in at 2B -- use Mead as a multi-position guy, move on from Story -- but an OF move or Ketel trade is more direct and not going to cost the prospect capital that any of Neto/Otto/EDLC would
3:38
Neto's the only one of those three I can really see moving this offseason anyway. I know the Lopez rumor is out there but teams are willing to listen on almost everybody
3:39
If the Red Sox wanted to give them Arias for Lopez, alright. Other than that, at some point Miami also has to try to win
Kilometers Straw
3:39
Now that the ridiculous team option has properly been declined, does a 1/3 million or so deal bring me back to Toronto to carry on as 4th OF
Anthony Franco
3:39
Yeah I can see this. The entire Toronto beat reported as soon as they bought him out that they were open to bringing him back, obviously a good clubhouse fit
TheGhostofChristmasPast
3:39
So Bowden says Giants will listen on Webb and Devers, do you see them being moved this offseason? If Posey decides to keep them and go for it with the pitching needs on the team, is there a closer outside of Iglesias that makes sense?
Anthony Franco
3:40
Emilio Pagán's out there. Bryan Abreu's never been a closer but has closing stuff, was pretty good for Houston after a brutal first couple weeks of the season
3:41
They probably should trade Devers, don't expect that they will. On Webb, similar response to the Abrams one earlier -- if you're going to move him, why publicly take him off the market a month before the deadline?
Alan53
3:41
Do you think that other teams will follow the Rangers' lead and NOT make any moves before the lockout? That feels like the kind of quasi-collusive thing the owners would do, thinking that it will worry and subtly pressure the players.
Anthony Franco
3:43
There are teams I expect to wait out the market (Angels, Detroit, maybe Arizona) but not because they think it'll squeeze the players during CBA talks
3:44
More so that they were already dealing with payroll limitations and even in a non-CBA offseason, prices drop later in the winter as the remaining players feel the squeeze
MoTork City
3:44
Who might the Tigers protect from the rule 5 draft outside of Briceño and Anderson? Is Petit still eligible even though he was returned from the Rockies?
Anthony Franco
3:45
Petit be eligible again but I don't expect them to protect him or anyone to draft him. Colorado had to run him through waivers before they returned him to Detroit. If another team wanted to take on the Rule 5 restrictions, they could've claimed him
3:48
I'm not seeing anyone else who jumps out as an obvious protection candidate but that's a better question for the prospect guys at FanGraphs or Baseball America. Would not have occurred to me that they'd protect Jake Miller at this time last year, for instance
Ranger13
3:48
Of Busch, Burleson, Eldridge and Casas, who might be available at a reasonable cost with the most upside for the Rangers?
Anthony Franco
3:50
They could get Casas for basically nothing, can't count on him as anything more than a dice roll though. Bryce Eldridge isn't getting traded. Not really seeing why the Cubs would move Busch either, they'd have to really love Jack Leiter or something
3:52
Burleson for something built around Caden Scarborough might work. Wouldn't want to give up Gio Rojas there though
Carlton
3:53
Who is the best fit for the Pirates to sign to play 3B, with or without Brandon Lowe back with the team in 2027?
Anthony Franco
3:54
I think J.P. Crawford makes sense there if they don't bring Lowe back, just move him between 2B/3B
3:56
If they do re-sign Lowe, I'm fine with Nick Gonzales honestly. Could trade for a Richie Palacios type if you want a better LHH complement than Jacob Gonzalez but I don't think it's a huge need at that point
HitsLikeRays
3:56
Is Ryan Vilade capable of playing 2B every day?  Would he be the Rays' alternative if they non-tender Richie Palacios, or should they just keep Vilade as the right-handed platoon with Jose Mesa Jr.?
Anthony Franco
3:57
Speaking of which
3:59
Don't think Vilade has the defensive chops to cut it on the infield. If Jazz's price falls far enough, there's a point at which I could see them jumping in.

Barring that, could try to blow Texas away on Zeke Duran or add Willi Castro from Colorado for a couple fringe prospects
RoxTalks
3:59
Great job on the Top 50 Free Agents article all around, always look forward to that every offseason! For a fun hypothetical that won't happen, do you think that Skubal would be able to solve the Coors Field issue that no other free agent starting pitching ever could?
Anthony Franco
4:00
He'd dominate on the moon. I do not think he's signing with the Rockies unfortunately
Tony
4:00
Thanks for the chats and all the material! I see the owners keep adjusting their offer to the players.  Have the players countered?  Do we have an idea where the disconnect is?
Anthony Franco
4:00
Disconnect for now is that they're proposing past one another with completely different frameworks
4:01
Every league proposal is conditional on the salary cap; every union proposal is not. Until one of them moves off that, they're not really negotiating
Pete
4:01
Over/Under date for a Skubal signing?
Anthony Franco
4:01
I'll go November 24
Ross Atkins
4:02
Would Santa (or perhaps my owner Edward Rogers Jr) think I would be too greedy asking for Seya Suzuki, Brandon Lowe and Kevin Gausman on Xmas shopping list?
Anthony Franco
4:04
That's four draft picks, $1MM in international bonus pool space, and probably $60-70MM in AAV. That's more than I expect them to do even though all three are perfectly sensible targets in isolation
Buzz Cutter
4:05
Thanks for the chats.  How did Michael Harris II get overlooked for a Silver Slugger nomination?
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