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Front Office Chat: 3/24/23
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tigersFan
4:48
Do the tigers go with Ryan Kreidler or Cesar Hernandez on the opening day roster?
Anthony Franco
4:49
I'd go Kreidler. More interesting long-term upside and it's not like César's been world-beating this spring
beat reporting superstars
4:49
You didn't mention the Jays beat which I think is an oversight - former coleague Ben Nicholson-Smith, Shi Davidi, Arden Zwelling, Mike Wilner, Chisolm - I could go on!  Jays have to be up there...
Anthony Franco
4:50
Ha, BNS is a former colleague of Tim and Steve but not myself. He's a really good reporter, though. Toronto's solid, I agree
Dewey
4:50
They can't send O'Hoope down, right?  He's exactly what they need.
Anthony Franco
4:52
Comes down to whether they're willing to lose Matt Thaiss on waivers, since he's out of options. I'd guess O'Hoppe starts in the minors
john
4:52
Should the Red Sox struggle this year as I expect they will, will the blame go to Alex Cora or Chaim Bloom?
Anthony Franco
4:52
Probably Chaim. He doesn't have the World Series title as proof of concept
Frank
4:52
Although not a fan of the WBC, I understand how people/ players can be a excited about it.  My concern, especially as a Red Sox fan, is that several players who really needed I feel to work with team in Spring Training chose the WBC participation instead.  Alex Verdugo, Jaren Duran, and Jorge Alfaro, do have some significant  deficiencies in their defensive play that I feel would have been better to address in training camp , especially for Duran .  Just my thoughts.
Anthony Franco
4:54
I see your point but the teams have to sign off and the players make the decision even understanding that (in the cases of guys like Duran and Alfaro) it could affect their chance of securing a roster spot
If everyone's aware of the trade-offs and willing to accept them, I'm fine with it
WBC=Pro Bowl
4:54
Why can't the WBC be played after the regular season using players on teams not still in the post season? Spring training would remain unaffected and everyone should play no more than players on World Series teams.
Anthony Franco
4:55
Don't think MLB would sign off on this. Having a side tourney during the playoffs diverts attention from the postseason
Show-Ay
4:55
Yankees, Dodgers, Mets, Angels, Rangers we hear all the time... who is the dark horse team that could surprise everyone and pony up the 500Mill?
Anthony Franco
4:56
Giants aren't a dark horse but you didn't mention them. Seattle as a longer shot maybe?
Ga_Braves
4:56
Anthony, Can players under Article XX (B) have discussions with other teams prior to making their opt out decisions?
Anthony Franco
4:58
Don't know what the rule officially looks like -- another reason they need to release the full CBA text -- but generally, yeah, teams will let guys explore the market if they're not going to make the team
4:59
No real harm in it from the club's perspective if they're not promoting them. They deny permission, the player gets annoyed and opts out anyways. Even if there's no immediate MLB opportunity for that player, he's probably not anxious to sign back with the team that wouldn't let him check in the first place
Pumpsie Green
4:59
What's your take on Jorge Alfaro, the Red Sox interim, temporary back-up catcher? Will the Sox release him when Connor Wong returns? Will he get any significant playing time in the interim?
Anthony Franco
5:00
No guarantee he gets the job, since Wong's doing better now. Alfaro's got some power and a cannon for an arm but never made contact consistently
He's played really well this spring though
Cubs bullpen
5:00
Is Fullmer now the likely closer rather than Alzolay, Hughes or Boxberger - or is it still a committee?
Anthony Franco
5:00
Seems like a committee that'll get Fulmer the bulk of the opportunities but not 100%
Fishin'
5:01
When does the inevitable true Mike Trout decline begin?
Anthony Franco
5:02
Defensive decline already has but the plate discipline and power should stick into his mid-late 30s. Guessing the player time eventually starts to diminish as he gets hurt more frequently but don't think we'll see much drop-off in his rate stats for a while
Slanidrac
5:02
  1. Will MLB utilize a Covid-19 list this year?
  2. If there is no live broadcast of a major league game, how are there still highlights available to MLB?
  3. With the new bases, how do the ballparks go from 15" bases to 18" bases, as far as the pegs in the ground go. For instance, last week at Chase Field, 15" bases for the WBC and back to 18" for the regular season. Mostly curious how they secure the 2 different sizes of bases on the same infield?
Anthony Franco
5:05
1) Haven't heard any indication the COVID list isn't returning. I imagine it's here for good to just cover any time a player gets sick
2) League has cameras set up for every game
3) No idea but I'm impressed by the creativity of the question. I've never seen this mentioned anywhere
Alright that's all I have time for, have to finish writing about Keston Hiura
5:06
Thanks for all the questions and supporting the site. I'm on Twitter if you want to ask me anything else. Couldn't get to everything here but I'll make sure to get back to you on there
Talk to you all again next Friday! Enjoy your weekends and eventually Opening Day!
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