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Front Office Chat: 12/19/25
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Anthony Franco
1:55
Hey everyone, hope you've had a good week!
1:56
Will need to keep this one right around an hour because Steve's not feeling well and this afternoon has been crazy. Let's get rolling
Bucs fan
1:56
Please evaluate the trade from the Pirates perspective
Ben Cherrington
1:57
WAIT!  WAS THAT REALLY ME?
Anthony Franco
1:57
Might as well start with thoughts on the trades since they're top of mind
1:58
I really like the three-team deal for everyone involved. Probably most favorable for it on Pittsburgh's end though. Lowe's a massive offensive upgrade and I'm still very much in on Montgomery even though this year was a disappointment
1:59
There's probably only a 20% chance that Montgomery throws enough strikes to click to his full potential, but if he does, it's top 10 reliever in MLB type stuff. As a developmental second piece, absolutely in on that
2:00
Mangum's a fine extra outfielder. Never really been in on him as a prospect but he's already carved out a better pro career than I assumed he'd have based on the limited physical tools
2:01
I like Burrows quite a bit but they needed to trade a starter for offense and he was always the one who offered the best blend of real trade value without the huge ceiling of Ashcraft, Jones, Chandler etc.
2:03
The Astros needed a cheap mid-rotation arm and got it without giving up Meyers or Cam Smith. I'm lowest on it from the Rays perspective relatively speaking, but they'll be able to get an immediate look at Melton and must love Brito, since he reportedly came up when they were kicking around Baz with Houston. I think it works for all involved
MattStats5
2:03
Orioles need arms, and Baz is a solid pick up. Seems like an overpay to me, though. Your thoughts?
Anthony Franco
2:05
Yeah, this one I just prefer from Tampa Bay's end. I get the appeal with three years of control over Baz but the inconsistency, middling command, and injury history give me enough pause that I would not have gone as far as Baltimore did
2:06
Baltimore needed a starter who has upper mid-rotation ceiling and Baz provides that. I don't know what the ask would have been with Miami on Cabrera or if Gore was feasible given the organizational history, but I'd rather have either of those pitchers than Baz
Mariners
2:07
Do you think this happened because Pittsburgh was told they were out on either Marte or Donovan?
Anthony Franco
2:07
They could still make either of those guys work by using Lowe at DH or kicking Donovan around the diamond, but I never felt like Pittsburgh was the top landing spot for either one
2:08
You've got the intra-division complications with STL. I still remain skeptical that the D-Backs are trading Marte despite all the smoke and even if they do, that's a pretty big contract by Pirates standards to take on while giving up a ton of young pitching talent
Philly A's
2:09
The Phillies trading Strahm is confusing, $7.5m isnt really that much of a salary dump.
Anthony Franco
2:09
Agreed. Felt like they were determined to trade one of the lefty reliever (ideally him) for reasons that were never entirely clear to me
2:11
The velocity has trended down so maybe they just think he's cooked, but like you mentioned, the $7.5M salary is fine. Bowlan was pretty good this year and maybe they build him back into a swing role?
Al
2:12
How likely is it that Jordan Walker will be traded?
Anthony Franco
2:12
I don't see the point of doing it this winter, value is way down. I'd give him one more shot
Bob T.
2:13
It appears that the Angels are following the same script as the last ten plus years. They are still in the same boat as before the Winter Meetings. They still need a CF, 2B, 3B another starter or more and a closer.
will Arte loosen the purse strings or is this the team he intends to field. I can see 100 losses this season. Thoughts?
Anthony Franco
2:14
They've got enough payroll space even relative to last season that I think they'll at least come away with a third baseman and another leverage reliever
2:15
That's still not enough but I'll say that within those restrictions, I'm a little more bullish on the Rodriguez, Manoah and Grissom dice rolls than I have been on their buy-low candidates of the previous few years
Bill
2:15
All of the Braves projected needs seem  to have been addressed except for a starter, whom do you think is likely in the remaining group?
Anthony Franco
2:16
I've found their offseason pretty puzzling unless ownership is willing to go to the third tax tier. Adding a mid-rotation starter like Suárez or Gallen would have been higher priority than adding two relievers and Kim on top of Dubón
2:18
If they've still got $20-25M in payroll space to sign Suárez or Chris Bassitt, I'll come around on it. If the plan now is just to wait out the market and end up with Zach Eflin or something, that's not enough
Philly A's
2:18
Thanks for the chat Anthony.   Murakami's window is closing, would it make sense that he take a shorter deal or with an opt out?  A's would be a good fit for that.
Anthony Franco
2:19
I assumed he'd be able to get six to eight years with an opt-out after three or four. Obviously that'd be preferable to taking three with an out after two or whatever
2:20
They've been super quiet about the market, though, and Will Sammon at The Athletic floated the short-term/opt-out possibility yesterday. Possible we underrated how concerned teams would be about the swing-and-miss and he doesn't have a choice but to take a prove-it deal
Which could bring in some of the less traditional spenders, though the A's still feel like a stretch unless they're higher on his glove at third base than most people
Yesavage's right arm
2:21
Does the Blue Jays acquisition of Dylan Cease and particularly Cody Ponce mean they are planning to protect my still youthful arm by having me pitch a third or half of the season out of the bullpen in '26?
Anthony Franco
2:22
Haven't seen anything to suggest that's the case. I know he fell a few spots in the draft because some teams had medical concerns, but they pushed him pretty aggressively in '25 and he might already be their best starter
2:24
Ponce feels like general injury protection, and it's fine to open the season with a six-man rotation if they all get out of Spring Training healthy. The whole staff was worked hard last season and there's some question about Bieber's forearm thing. They'll need a volume approach as injuries pop up
Ned Coletti’s Toupee
2:24
As the calendar nears 2026, are the chances Tucker, Bichette and Bregman getting a long term deal dimming?  History seems to indicate few long term deals after New Years Day
Anthony Franco
2:24
Not there yet but if they're still unsigned a month from now, I'll come around on it
2:26
Most of the top non-reliever free agents are still out there. They're not all going short term but there should be a lot of movement over the next couple weeks. Possible they're waiting out Imai, Murakami and Okamoto who have fixed deadlines approaching
Guarded Indian
2:26
What kind of contract can Bader expect?  He makes so much sense in Cleveland, can the afford him?
Anthony Franco
2:27
I think he's around 2/25. Steve was most bullish on our staff about him having a shot to get three years and north of $30M
Hits Like Rays
2:28
Just letting you know that the various links on the right side of the site page do not seem to work.  I have tried on three different computers with different ethernet and wifi combinations, and can only get a few of the links (Rumors by Team, etc) to work.
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