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Front Office Chat: 5/19/23
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Anthony Franco
4:02
That's a fine backup catcher, which is all they can expect out of a player they signed to a minor league contract after he opted out of a previous minor league deal
Arise, Sir Loin of Beef
4:02
I love me some Daniel Vogelbach, but how much longer until the Mets cut bait? He's an easy guy to root for, but he's not a productive DH.
Anthony Franco
4:04
He's reaching base at a .404 clip against right-handed pitching. Feels like he's doing exactly what they would've hoped for
4:06
There are other players in the lineup (Pham and Marte especially) I'd be more concerned with than Vogelbach. Obviously not much to be done with Marte besides hoping for better but Pham could be more borderline if he hits another slump like he had in April
Drew
4:06
Is Matt Liberatore for real?  Any idea if he fixed his tunneling issues?
Anthony Franco
4:08
Triple-A numbers look good. I think the concern you raised about the lower-spin fastball not pairing ideally with the curveball (since there's not the kind of movement separation you'd see with a high-spin fastball/downhill curve) are always going to be there. He just doesn't have great feel for spinning the fastball
But he's throwing a couple miles per hour harder than he did last year, which certainly helps. The command has always been good. I don't think he's an ace but I buy him as a 3/4 starter if he can sustain this velocity
RAGBRAI
4:08
Is the only way the Brewers trade a pitcher is if they are completely out of it? If they are any where close they can’t trade anyone right? The Hader trade had to teach them something.
Anthony Franco
4:10
I think so. Stearns isn't running baseball ops anymore but I imagine he was speaking for the entire front office when he talked about underestimating the impact the Hader trade had on the clubhouse. Mentioned this earlier but it also feels like this is the best chance they'll have in the next few years to take the division, don't want to waste that
Around the Horn
4:10
What do you see from James Paxton, Dean Kramer, and Gavin Stone the rest of the year. Points league, 5x5 - how would you rank and why?
Anthony Franco
4:11
Stone, Kremer, Paxton
4:12
Durability/innings concerns with Paxton. Kremer doesn't miss too bats in the strike zone, more of a pitch-to-contact guy in the league's toughest division. Stone's risky since he has just one MLB start but the changeup's an out pitch and the minor league performance has been great
Drew
4:12
Follow up question... is Brendan Donovan valuable enough to get the Cardinals some SP help?
Anthony Franco
4:14
I could see him as a headlining piece for a controllable starter, yeah. Multi-positional versatility with elite contact skills and plus strike zone awareness, five seasons of team control. There'd be a lot of interest if they decided they were content with Edman, DeJong and Gorman for the short-term middle infield with Winn behind them
Randy roundtripper
4:14
Do you feel the Cardinals erred with Jordan Walker? As a baseball fan who wants teams to play the best players, his phenomenal spring warranted a shot, but sending him down when he wasn't exactly flailing seems to have wrecked his confidence since he can't get untracked in AAA. (I understand the defensive concerns and high ground-ball rate, but they knew this going into their decision!). Thank you for your insight! (Reds fan whose team did not break camp with Christian Encarnacion-Strand despite his great spring, because they wanted him to work on his approach).
Anthony Franco
4:16
It’s a fair question but I don’t know that I’d have done anything differently. Carrying him on the MLB club with no Triple-A experience was bold but understandable. The early major league results were ok but the defense and plate discipline were problematic in ways that made it likely he was going to hit a slump against big league arms soon regardless. Were they too aggressive in promoting him? Maybe, but I don’t have a problem with sending him back down.
Still think he’ll figure it out in Memphis. Slumps happen.
thebeatlesshow
4:16
Hey, Anthony.  thanks again.  Always look forward to these.  Myy question:   Does the taxi squad still exist?  If it does, I'm sure the players have to be part of the 40 Man, but what are they paid?  Major league minimum?  Split contract minimum as if they were on the 26 Man?  Thanks again.
Anthony Franco
4:17
Taxi squad does still exist. Players don’t have to be on the 40-man to be on the taxi squad. Many are – you can’t officially get added to the MLB roster until you’re on the 40 – but teams can carry non-roster players on the taxi squad if they think there’s a chance they might select them in the next few days. Dodgers did it with Dylan Covey earlier this week. Taxi squad on Tuesday, contract selection on Wednesday and (unfortunately for him) DFA on Thursday
RAGBRAI
4:17
While the Padres looked good on paper preseason, results so far have been unimpressive. Will we see a correction in production or is it already a lost season?
Anthony Franco
4:17
Answered a similar question earlier but I'm still in on them
Dan-O
4:17
Hi Anthony! What kind of projection/expectations do you have for Aroldis Chapman and Liam Hendricks? Closer is such a fickle position and I wonder if a trade may be imminent for the former, and a rough patch coming back from cancer (Congrats for kicking its butt Liam!) treatment may be in store for the latter. thanks!
Anthony Franco
4:17
Chapman looks good. Velocity is back up after falling last season, getting a ton of whiffs again. He’s not peak Chapman but I think he’s back to being a top 25 reliever again.
4:18
I have no idea on Hendriks. Obviously I’m hopeful he returns right to peak form but no one could fault him if he’s lost some velocity or the command isn’t there right out of the gate. Certainly not putting it past him to be a top five reliever again -- it’s incredible he fought back to where he is as quickly as he has -- but it’s impossible to know his form until we see him against big league hitters again
Alright, that's all we've got this week
Thanks for all the questions and for supporting the site as always! Really enjoy doing these
4:19
I'm off next week but I believe one of Steve or Darragh will step in for this. Talk to you two Fridays from now. Enjoy your weekend!
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