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Front Office Chat: 3/21/24
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Anthony Franco
3:40
I'll go under but that's where I'd set the line as well
Stanton’s Doctor
3:40
When do you think Cam Smith, Travis Bazzana, Jac Caglionone and Chandler Simpson will be called up this year?  How do you think each will do?
Anthony Franco
3:43
I'd take Smith to break camp at this point. Bazzana and Simpson feel more like the second half. I worry enough about Caglianone's approach that I'd probably put a 2026 ETA there
Most confident in Bazzana having immediate success given the foundational plate discipline but they're obviously all very talented players in different ways
Michael
3:43
How likely is it that we see the Nationals sign one of their young players to an extension sometime this year? Gore/Crews/Wood are Boras guys (though the Nationals did extend Strasburg in his original walk year), but they also have players like CJ Abrams, Luis Garcia, and pre-debut candidates like Brady House. Thoughts?
Anthony Franco
3:44
Touched on this a bit in the context of their offseason in a full post last month
3:46
Boras guys sometimes sign extensions but very rarely do so in their pre-arbitration years. No harm in seeing if they're open to it -- Gore seems the most viable of those three -- but I think it's likelier they'll do a mid-tier SP deal for an Irvin or Parker than get something done with one of the true core pieces
So Cal Craig
3:47
Who is the starting 3B for the Brewers this spring ?? ..... Quite a battle brewing between Dunn, Capra and Durbin....... Ba ba boom............
Anthony Franco
3:48
I think Dunn will get first look but all three of them will have opportunities and they'll mostly ride the hot hand
CardinalRed
3:48
Would Mikolas to the Marlins work? Fish have rotation injuries, Mikolas would spend half the season at home. If Cards paid most of the salary down to get a lottery ticket off the Top 30 Prospects, that would be a win/win/win for all 3 parties.
Anthony Franco
3:50
I don't think the Marlins care enough to do this even if STL paid it down to like $4-5MM. The team they're running out there is horrendous either way and they've spent a total of $8.5MM in free agency over the last two offseasons
Blue Jays Bench
3:51
Assuming Santander is the regular LF, Ernie Clement is more or less the regular 3b and no regular DH what is the Blue Jays bench going to look like breaking camp?  Lots of moving parts.
Anthony Franco
3:53
Depends if Varsho can go to start the season. They'd probably need to carry Straw in that case. Then I'd guess Jimenez, Wagner and Schneider between backup infield and DH with Heineman as backup catcher
Miked
3:53
If you were the white Sox and you had a solid trade offer from Reds ( Arroyo, Tyson Lewis) would you take it or gamble that Luis Robert stays healthy and trade him at deadline for a bigger haul?
Anthony Franco
3:57
I'd hold and hope for a rebound over that deal. Edwin Arroyo's a significant health risk himself after undergoing shoulder surgery that cost him all but the Fall League last year. Lewis is a talented high school draftee with no pro experience. Taking that package is a pretty big gamble too
Frank Feta
3:57
Do you think Birdsong can stick in the rotation all season or are his control issues going to limit his effectiveness?
Anthony Franco
3:58
I think he'll stick and be quite good in a 5-6 inning role. Inefficient maybe but effective
Blue Jays
3:59
Are you surprised they expressed optimism before getting Vladdy to put ink on an extension? Doesn’t seem like it would increase leverage to telegraph the teams intention like that.
Anthony Franco
3:59
I think Vlad's fully aware of the public pressure that Shapiro and Atkins are facing to get that deal done
4:01
I was surprised Shapiro said anything at all, because the typical play would be the "we don't discuss specific players publicly" comment, but even the optimism was couched with the possibility that it might not happen without him hitting free agency first
Cameron Camembert
4:01
What was the first MLB game you attended? Mine was White Sox at Yankees at Shea Stadium in 1975. The Yankees had so many injuries to their outfielders that two catchers, Munson and Dempsey, had to play LF and RF respectively. Luckily they had a third catcher, Ed Herrmann.
Anthony Franco
4:05
Ha nice! I don't have a specific memory on this actually. Earliest one I remember would've been a Cubs/Pirates game at PNC when the Bucs had Jason Bay and Freddy Sanchez, so probably '06?
4:06
I'm sure we did ones earlier than that but they had to be on vacations and were usually centered around the Cubs since my dad's a Cub fan
RoxTalks
4:06
Dollander going to show up in Denver some time this summer? Had a rough spring but showed a lot of Ks and was unreal last year
Anthony Franco
4:07
I think he'll be up by May
4:08
He's too good for Double-A and pitching in Albuquerque sucks
Omar
4:08
If Tyler Anderson has good outings say thru May, could be an early trade asset. If so, to whom?
Anthony Franco
4:10
Disagree with the premise. He's not going to pull much of a return even if he's pitching well because the stuff isn't impressive, and I don't see the Angels punting on the season that early anyways
Arthur Dent
4:10
What’s your take on the Astros pitching staff?  Seems like both the rotation and the pen have some serious question marks.
Anthony Franco
4:13
Middle relief group worries me for sure. I like the five they've got in the rotation for now but the depth is shaky, which put pressure on Garcia (and McCullers, to a lesser extent) to come back midseason
Hits Like Rays
4:13
It looks like the Rays' strategy for offense is to hope that two of Josh Lowe, Jonathan Aranda, Richie Palacios, Junior Caminero, Jonny De Luca, Eloy Jimenez, or Christopher Morel break out into starts this year – and for the rest of the veterans on the roster to have a “normal” year. What do you think of that strategy?
Anthony Franco
4:17
I don't think they'll hit enough, basically. A Caminero breakout is a real possibility, but I don't see much more with the rest of the group.

Lowe's a good player. DeLuca's probably a soft regular because of the glove. Palacios and Aranda are decent role players. I think that's what Morel is as well, but he's probably the one where the Rays can talk themselves into there being a greater ceiling based on the bat speed and athleticism
4:18
They can pitch obviously, and I don't think they're a bad team, but the back of the lineup is soft enough that I'd probably have them at the bottom of the AL East
Coby Mayo
4:18
Wasn’t too happy about being sent down but is struggling to hit breaking balls in the zone. Do you think it was a mistake for BAL to not build a package around him for a guy like Sandy or even a lesser package for Cease?
Anthony Franco
4:19
Wouldn't have given him up for one year of Cease. Could see him as a centerpiece for Alcantara, sure. It won't happen before Opening Day but it's not like the ship has sailed for them on trading for an impact starter this year
4:21
Had no issues with his comments (which he subsequently walked back on X). He's right that he has proven he can hit Triple-A pitching and doesn't have much to show there anymore. It's also true that the Orioles have better players ahead of him and can't afford to let him struggle against MLB pitching right now. Somebody will get hurt eventually and it'll work itself out
Turnbull, Gibson, Lynn
4:22
Seems like more mlb talent has struggled to find jobs the last couple seasons. Is this a sign mlb is ready for expansion?
Anthony Franco
4:24
It's a reflection of teams not valuing serviceable back-of-the-rotation innings to the extent that they used to. I don't think it's related to expansion at all but something that's probably worth correcting with rule tweaks to continue trying to get the value of the starting pitcher back
otispdriftwood
4:25
Who closes for the Marlins, Reds, Pirates?  How do you see the saves category being handled by those clubs?
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