JotCast | Front Office Chat: 2/2/24

Front Office Chat: 2/2/24

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Anthony Franco

3:22

Only three but they’ll probably just have to make do with some uninspiring in-house options at one of the positions you mentioned. Could do a CJ Cron or Dom Smith NRI to add a veteran possibility at DH, I guess.

dodgers1866@gmail.com

3:22

Do you think the Dodgers could be interested in Adames or Snell if he took a shorter contract on years with a higher Aav. I think Snell prefers the west coas

Anthony Franco

3:23

I don’t see the appeal of the short-term contract for Snell. What kind of a better platform showing could he have in the future than winning the Cy Young with a 1.23 ERA over his final four months? Even if he wants to be on the West Coast, he should be able to get the Angels or Giants to go six or seven years and max out

CardinalRed

3:23

Would Edman and Burleson be anywhere in the ballpark for a return of Hancock and Kowar from Seattle? Cards could use some future pitching after these recent signings get injured or are just shown to be ineffective by June.

Anthony Franco

3:25

I think that's reasonable but I'm probably higher on Edman than most and maybe a little lower on Hancock

This assumes there's nothing wrong with Hancock's shoulder. Ending the season on the injured list with a shoulder strain could be alarming

John B

3:26

Can't imagine they would trade Stripling without another move already done. Snell?

3:26

The Giants just traded Ross Stripling, who is the only other veteran starting pitcher on their staff. I hope something is in the works, like to hazard a guess?

BudT707

3:26

The Giants just sent Stripling to the A's leaving Logan Webb as the only veteran starter. What's going on in S.F.?

Anthony Franco

3:27

Yeah it has to be a precursor to something else. Getting out from under $9MM they owed him only matters if they're going to reinvest it, not like they were near their expected payroll ceiling before that

Dave

3:27

After Bournes trade, is it more likely that Adames and Williams will be dealt by trade deadline?

Adames and Williams

3:27

Are we headed out the door this winter/spring now too?

Matt

3:27

Would you say the Brewers are more or less likely to trade Adames after dealing Burnes? I can see both sides

Dallas

3:28

Do you think adding Ortiz leads to an Adames trade? Moving pieces around that ultimately retools the roster

Anthony Franco

3:28

Understandably got a bunch of questions on this

3:29

I still don’t think they’re trading Willy. Ortiz could step in there, I guess, but then they’d be back to relying on Monasterio at third base. Ken Rosenthal and Mark Feinsand both suggested they’ll listen on Williams and I think that's more likely than an Adames trade, but I’d bet on him staying as well.

3:30

They shouldn't be under pressure to keep slashing payroll. It's not a rebuild. (If it were, they wouldn’t have signed Rhys Hoskins to a deal that lets him opt out next winter.) It's the typical Milwaukee operating procedure of being open to anything to try to keep the talent pipeline strong

mmddyyyy

3:30

If there were a salary floor (impossible, I know), how would it be calculated?

Anthony Franco

3:30

Probably the same way they calculate the CBT. AAV's plus player benefits, contributions to the pre-arb bonus pool, etc.

Spirited

3:31

Who plays 1b for the Twins on opening day?

Anthony Franco

3:32

I'll stick with Kirilloff as the primary starter but I think they'll add a RHH to mix in there as well. Maybe Garrett Cooper

Ryan

3:32

I've been hoping I wake up to a "Reds have signed Michael A Taylor" headline but it still hasn't happened yet. They have a need for a good fielding outfielder with some pop that hits lefties well. They also don't have a legit back-up Centerfielder. He would check all these boxes. After recently watching some highlights of last year's wins its obvious to me that Benson and Steer are below average outfielders (defensively, not to say that they haven't improved over the off-season) The Reds could use a late game defensive replacement for one of those 2. Taylor fits all of this. Is there anyone else that fits this role? A reunion with Duvall? Pillar? Or do you think they will just roll with Barrero (who has played centerfield and is out of options) and Stuart Fairchild? I suppose there is also a chance that Blake Dunn makes the team out of Spring Training. He had a ridiculous year in the minors last year (312/425/522 23 HR and 53 Steals) What are your thoughts?

Anthony Franco

3:33

Agree that the Reds could use a RHH outfielder but I expect Taylor to find a starting CF job.

AirYordan

3:34

What is happening to the ALC... could we expect to see a team other then the Twins win the divison?

Anthony Franco

3:34

Detroit’s a legitimate threat there for me

Chapman Contract

3:34

How far would you be comfortable going on a Matt Chapman contract if you were GM of the Cubs or Giants? Not what you think he gets, but how far would you personally go?

Anthony Franco

3:35

For a relatively high-payroll franchise that wants to compete and needs third base help – Cubs probably more so than the Giants – I’d be ok with something in the $125MM range over five or six. Wouldn’t really want to go beyond that.

Joey

3:35

AL West Order for 2024?

Anthony Franco

3:36

Boring answer but I'd have it the same way it finished last season: Houston, Texas, Seattle, Los Angeles, Oakland

Pantsless Clark Cub

3:37

Aside from the Cubs staring contest with Bellinger, what other moves are they likely to make? Seems like the division is wide open with the trade of Burnes

Cubs Fan

3:37

The Cubs are expected to make at least another move before spring training… Is there something else beside the signing off Bellinger or Chapman out there that hasn’t been discussed much via trade the Cubs could make?

Kevin

3:37

Do the Cubs sign Bellinger or Chapman? Do they go after more bullpen help before spring training?

Anthony Franco

3:38

Chapman would be a fine fallback to Bellinger. Beyond waiting out the Boras guys, I think the heavy lifting is probably done. Another lefty reliever would be nice, but otherwise, they’ve shored up most of the roster. Still lacking the high-end talent you’d want from a contender, but there aren’t a ton of glaring weaknesses either.

Ryan

3:38

If not Taylor for the Reds, than who?

Anthony Franco

3:40

Don't have a great answer as far as CF goes specifically. (Don't believe we can reveal specifics yet but one of the players you asked about is going to a different team.) If they're ok with Benson logging some CF reps, could mix Robbie Grossman in there as a corner guy

Kevin

3:40

Hey Anthony, thanks for the chat today! Are you surprised that the big name free agents have not signed yet with spring training right around the corner?

Anthony Franco

3:42

I wouldn't have guessed that we'd have this many guys still unsigned in February, so in that sense, yeah. Not surprised that the Boras Corp. has taken a bunch of its players deeper into the offseason than basically every other agency though

Scott Boras

3:42

If you were me would you let Bellinger sign for under 200M?

Anthony Franco

3:42

If no one's offering 200, then you're going to have to

3:43

If there aren't any $200MM+ offers on the table, I think Bellinger should go short-term with an opt-out after next season though

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