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Front Office Chat: 4/10/26
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Anthony Franco
3:00
Good evening, hope you're all doing well!
3:01
Looking forward to another of these, let's get it rolling
Guest
3:01
Despite his low EVs and 1st percentile bat speed, Jacob Wilson's elite bat-to-ball skills helped him to compete for a batting title his rookie season. But so far in 2026 his hacktastic 'swing at everything' ways have gotten him a .196/.196/.255 slash line that has not been the result of bad luck. Given what he did in 2025 and what he is doing (in a 12 game sample) in 2026, what do you see for him as a hitter moving forward?
Anthony Franco
3:03
Whiffs are up, relatively speaking, because he's really taking the 'swing at everything' approach to heart but it's a tiny sample and they're pressing up and down the lineup right now. Not worried about it and still think he's a true talent .300 hitter
3:04
13 homers again seems optimistic but 8-10 with 25 doubles is reasonable
Kevin Cash
3:04
Is my job safe beyond 2026 if I can't right the ship for a 3rd straight year?
Anthony Franco
3:05
They're the worst team in the AL East on paper and it's not like they've been disastrous over the past couple years. Unless new ownership just wants to shake things up, can't see why they wouldn't remain committed to Cash moving forward
Jordan
3:05
I'm pleasantly surprised by the Braves start and if they're able to remain in the mix until the deadline who would be some realistic targets for them to go after that Profar money?
Anthony Franco
3:08
If the back of the rotation holds up, they're in pretty good shape. Would like to see a bit more juice off the bench but that could indirectly come if Kim finally stays healthy and Dubón plays a super-sub role
3:09
(Still not convinced Kim actually is better than Dubón, but that's a different story)
3:10
If they're taking a swing at the deadline, it's probably for a mid-rotation arm. We'll see how the standings shake out but a Bubic or Michael King would be an excellent fit there
Not so rocky road
3:10
Can the Rockies get close to a .500 record this year? Pitching seems bound to regress but the hitting has been pretty legit
RoxTalks
3:10
This team actually looks....OK?! Obviously it's only been 13 games, but here they are with the 13th best staff SIERA, 8th best bullpen SIERA (was 4th before last night's typical Rockies implosion). Again, only 13 games, but it took them until May 1st last season to reach their sixth win. I complain a lot about this franchise, but I'm glad to see that they've gotten out to such a good start (relatively speaking) and trying to put last year behind them.
Anthony Franco
3:11
I can buy this being a half-decent bullpen but that's about it. Still clearly one of the two worst teams in the NL with the Nationals for me
3:13
The rotation's really bad, defense everywhere other than SS and CF is rough. Rumfield's pretty clearly better than Toglia, so that's upgrading them by a few wins, but not seeing much else to make me buy them as a sub-100 loss team yet
3:14
To their credit, they have made Antonio Senzatela interesting, which I did not think was possible coming into the season
CrosbyBaseball
3:15
On the Braves note, what would the ballpark or a comp of a Mauricio Dubón extension look like?
Anthony Franco
3:16
Two years in the $15-18M range? Can't see anyone going three years on him at age 32 and even $10M annually feels rich
3:17
He's been viewed as a high-end utility guy throughout his career, including by the Braves. Astros got essentially nothing back for him in trade at a $6.1M arb salary. Willi Castro/Isiah Kiner-Falefa bucket
The Knuder
3:18
I am not understanding the difference between the three and five-year service time thresholds for refusing DFA assignments to the minor leagues from the rule book. Can you help me? Here is the rule.

"If the player clears outright waivers, he may be assigned outright to the Minor Leagues. However, players with more than five years of Major League service time can reject an assignment to the Minor Leagues, and players with more than three years of Major League service time, or who have been previously outrighted, may reject the outright assignment in favor of free agency in lieu of the assignment. If the player clears unconditional release waivers, he is unconditionally released."
Anthony Franco
3:21
It's worded a little differently in the CBA, basically structured so those who elect FA as 3-year or previous outright guys aren't entitled to termination pay
3:22
Whereas the five year guys can refuse any minor league assignment, so they get placed on release waivers instead and keep the money unless their contract included some kind of advance consent clause
T.J.
3:23
Put aside the "What a great organization" and the "How do they do it" platitudes... who else aside from their fans have a problem with Cleveland's spending. They're the lowest payroll and its not even close and here they are in first again. The PA? Is this just not a battle they're willing to pick. Kind of seems like the PA's job to make sure the CBA is actually followed and there is no way Cleveland is spending ANY revenue sharing money.
Anthony Franco
3:24
They finished 28th in runs scored last season and needed a crazy September run -- paired with a Detroit collapse -- to win the Central. They entered the season with a mostly unproven outfield/DH group and one of the weaker middle infield pairings in MLB
3:26
Maybe they do it again, idk, but this feels like a pretty weak roster and I think it's entirely fair to say they should've done more to address the offense than a minor league deal for Rhys Hoskins and hoping that three or four of DeLauter, Valera, Brito, Bazzana, Manzardo and Kayfus stay healthy and hit
I love LA
3:26
Two weeks into the season and the Dodgers already have the best record. Time to call it and get on to somthing else?
Anthony Franco
3:26
If you were holding out hope that the Dodgers might miss the playoffs, I think you're out of luck
Conrad
3:26
Yankees aren’t dropping Grisham any time soon, but with Dominguez tearing up AAA is his position under threat if he’s still not hitting in 2-3 weeks?
Anthony Franco
3:28
Nah I think the process stuff with Grisham (more walks than strikeouts, 60% hard contact rate, fewer chases and whiffs than ever) are all still super encouraging
3:29
If Domínguez just keeps pummeling Triple-A, could see them deciding he's not getting anything out of that anyway and swapping him in for Grichuk because he's a better overall player -- even if less suited to the short side platoon role
3:30
Still think you're waiting on an injury before he's got a path to everyday playing time though
JT3
3:30
Will I be patrolling LF in LA this summer OR will I be headlining the trade for Skubal ?
Anthony Franco
3:32
We've gone from James Tibbs III being traded for six starts of Dustin May to floating him as a headliner for Skubal within six months haha
3:33
The answer is neither but I could buy him as a secondary piece if the Tigers fall completely flat and have to listen on Skubal. He's not leading the package, though. Good prospect who's destroying Triple-A but might be a DH and has hit tool concerns
cambo
3:34
Very impressed by Jose Fernandez's at bats vs McLean last night. How can ARZ not get him in the line up more? He seems athletic enough to play some OF as well.
Anthony Franco
3:36
He's started five of their last six, so it seems they agree with you. Just doesn't have an everyday position but enough versatility to use in a utility role
JeffyM
3:37
The Tigers and Mariners were both the trendy picks to win their division and maybe the pennant and are tied for worst record in the AL.  Which team should be more concerned?
Anthony Franco
3:38
Not really concerned about either but I guess slightly more alarmed by the Tigers' start because the back of the rotation -- which was somewhat shaky on paper -- has looked bad
3:39
I expect both to be fine though, wouldn't move off either as the likeliest division winner
The Knuder
3:39
What would a realistic extension for Mason Miller look like if the Pads were to try for one right now?
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