Front Office Chat: 6/12/26
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Anthony Franco
3:02
Hey all, hope you're doing well!
Looking forward to another of these, let's get goin
Going even
Great start
RoxTalks
3:03
What could the Rockies conceivably get back at the deadline if they actually sell at the deadline, rather than sit on their valuable pieces until they aren't valuable anymore or watch them walk for free like they so often do? Could Goodman get a back-end top 100 prospect despite the strikeout issues given the positional/offensive value? Senzatela two mid-range organizational prospects? Is there anyone else that might entice other teams?
Anthony Franco
3:04
Yeah I think Goodman would pull a back-end Top 100 guy. Three and a half years of a serviceable defensive catcher with 25-30 HR upside is pretty valuable even with the approach questions
3:06
Doubt he'd net a top 50 headliner though, and if the Rockies are looking at something like the #85 overall prospect and a couple mid-tier fliers, I assume they'd again hold. That's a tough sell for ownership
With you on Senzatela's value and think he's a lock to move as long as he doesn't get hurt
3:07
There's not much beyond that. There'll be teams that love Halvorsen, doubt the Rox move him. Moniak netting a mid-level prospect as a strong side platoon, sure. Center field market might be bleak enough that the Guardians, Astros or Rays view McCarthy as a low-end regular
Chris
3:08
Any concern about Kyle Tucker?
Anthony Franco
3:09
A little bit. Plate discipline is strong enough that the floor should still be an above-average hitter but the exit velocities were always more good than great and have trended down over the past two years
3:11
I'll take the over on his 12-homer pace but could see him settling in as a low 20s HR guy rather than pushing 30 like he did when healthy in Houston
3:12
And if that's where he ends up, he's probably more like 20-25 points better than average offensively rather than 40, which is what the Dodgers paid him for
Nick
3:12
If Sox take Cholowsky 1/1 and they’re still in serious contention in September does he get called up if he’s bashing in the minors?
Anthony Franco
3:15
Higher chance of it with Cholowsky than if they take Vahn Lackey -- can't see any way they'd throw a catcher in that spot -- but would still guess it's a '27 ETA. The infield's pretty well positioned already and you'd be talking about 35-40 games of minor league experience at the end of the longest season of his career
Fenway Yard Sale
3:16
If  things continue as they have what pieces do the Red Sox trade and what could come back. Any chance they could also get anything for Bello, or Campbell?
Anthony Franco
3:17
Campbell no. Limited defensive value with a 30% strikeout rate in Triple-A this year and owed $60MM for the next eight seasons. This the quickest any of those early-career top prospect extensions have soured
3:19
I half jokingly proposed that they should've put Campbell on waivers last offseason to shed the contract. They were never going to do that obviously -- nor would I have had the stones to do it if I were running baseball ops -- but I'm pretty confident he'd go unclaimed if they waived him now
3:21
I think that's also true of Bello but could see more of an argument for them paying down some money if they just think everyone involved needs a change of scenery. If the Sox pay him down to $8-10M annually, doesn't seem crazy to get a team like Arizona or Washington that has no real long-term starting pitching to roll the dice
My name?
3:21
What are the cards going to do? They came into the year having signed Stanek and May with the obvious hope that they'd prove some value and be valuable trade assets to offload along with Romero and possibly Noot, Burleson, and O'Brien. But now they're like really in contention? Even if they do not buy, they loose considerable opportunity to improve for the future by holding on to those players. And for what? To have guys like Leahy, Libratore, Pallante, and McCheesey starting playoff games against the Braves or Dodgers or Brewers?
Rebuild or no
3:22
With teams like the Cardinals and white Sox finding themselves in contention instead of rebuilding. And contenders like the Mets, tigers and Red Sox possibly selling how does they affect the deadline?
Anthony Franco
3:23
Obviously Tigers, Sox and Mets could impact it a lot at the top end. Skubal, Mize and Peralta would probably be the three best rentals out there. Chapman would be the top reliever
3:24
Not going to happen anytime soon though
3:26
Cardinals and White Sox are in a tricky spot. Think they'll both be soft buyers -- Sox especially given the division -- but probably not at a point where they're going to move any of their top prospects. They should both be in the market for a back-end starter, periphery of the bidding for a higher-end controllable arm who might come available (e.g. Max Meyer)
3:28
Neither of those teams should be in on Skubal or anything, but there's value in making the playoffs even if they'd probably be the worst on-paper postseason team in the respective leagues. It's a learning experience if nothing else and it's not like they couldn't pull an upset in a three or five-game Wild Card or Division Series
3:29
Plus it's just more exciting for the fanbases. The point is ultimately to win games, and if you're a little ahead of schedule, then sacrificing a couple mid-level prospects you might get for Dustin May or JoJo Romero is fine
Bruce Wayne
3:29
Would Henry Bolte get the A's Kris Bubic?
Anthony Franco
3:31
Yeah I think so. Doubt the A's would do it for a rental but could see the case if Bubic comes back from the elbow injury and shoves for 6-8 starts before the deadline
3:34
Pretty skeptical Bolte's going to pan out given the swing-and-miss and strikeouts, but the tools are insane and if he becomes a healthier version of Garrett Mitchell, that's an upgrade over Kyle Isbel
Josh
3:34
I believe you and the other MLBTR guys in the past have said that you don't think there will be a cap / floor and we wont lose games.  What, if any competitive balance measures do you think will be implemented in the new agreement (greater luxury tax / draft penalties for free agents, limits on deferred money, smaller market clubs getting greater compensation for losing FAs, etc.)?
Anthony Franco
3:37
Will be? Not a lot, largely because I don't think either side actually cares much about competitive balance. Maybe they add an extra compensation pick for losing a qualified free agent, make picks tradable. That's mostly stuff at the margins though
3:39
I'd like to see some kind of deferral limit but teams and players have mutual economic incentive to keep those as is, even if it's mostly a tax workaround (actual state income taxes, not the MLB luxury tax)
Blake
3:39
Does Joc Pederson have any trade value?
Anthony Franco
3:41
Still don't think so at $18.5M. If they kicked in a couple million, they could move him but I also don't see why they'd do that. They're in the Wild Card mix and he's finally hitting RHP
M
3:41
Jeff Passan suggested the mariners as a destination for Skubal. This is crazy, right? They'd have to give up so much and they already have a good rotation
Anthony Franco
3:43
They're a legitimate World Series contender with an elite farm system, and Skubal increases your 2026 championship odds more than any other player who has a higher than 1% chance of being traded
3:45
Rotation's not a need obviously but a Skubal-Gilbert pairing at the top is lethal, deepens the playoff bullpen by allowing them to use any of Miller, Hancock, Castillo or Woo (if he continues to struggle) in those spots
3:47
Do I think they need him more than every other contender? No, but I also don't think it's crazy to have the opinion that they should say "screw it" and go into the postseason with the clear best roster in the AL
Loaded at First
3:47
I just added Jonathan Aranda to my fantasy baseball team.  I can't get any real scouting reports on Aranda from his minor league days.  I know he had a really nice year last year (.313/.393/.489) and is having a solid year this year (.270/.376/.452).  My question is what type of hitter should I expect?  Over .300 Average or mid 200's?  15-20 HR power or 30+?
Anthony Franco
3:48
He was a legit prospect. Dude could always rake, couldn't play defense so it took a while for the Rays to give him a real look
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