Front Office Chat: 8/21/26
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Anthony Franco
3:01
Good afternoon, hope all is well!
3:02
Looking forward to another of these, let's get it rolling
Lockoout vs Strike
3:03
Over/Under 120 game schedule next year.?
Anthony Franco
3:03
Still think we're getting a full 162
Wordan Jalker
3:03
Good afternoon AF. Who wins the NL rookie of the year? Why ?
Anthony Franco
3:04
I think it's Wetherholt because of the defensive advantage over Stewart
Sharky
3:05
is it too early to say that Lombard and friends gave the yanks a bit of a spark?
Anthony Franco
3:06
Don't think that has anything to do with Trent Grisham mashing again but Lombard has definitely been a big upgrade over what they were previously running out at SS on both sides of the ball
Guarded Indian
3:07
Why do you think we will get 162 games?
Anthony Franco
3:08
Still think there's too much at stake for the league with the post-2028 TV plans and getting the ball rolling on expansion to hold firm to the cap push this time around. Would make more sense to do it in 2031 IMO
NL ROY
3:08
Why no consideration for a Benge run at it?
Anthony Franco
3:10
He's got an outside shot but the overall offensive numbers are still weighed down a little by the bad start and he's neither as impressive defensively as Wetherholt nor hitting for as much power as Stewart
3:11
Would need to have a huge September but he was my preseason pick so hey, wouldn't complain if he pulls it off
mocha or java?
3:11
Rush to pickup Joe Musgrove?
Anthony Franco
3:13
Depends on how deep your league is and how desperately you need pitching. The velocity's back, which is encouraging, but he's probably not going beyond five innings very often and you're hoping for about league average rate stats
Sandy at 90
3:13
What do you think the chances are that Skubal signs with LAD before a lock out?
Anthony Franco
3:15
20%? Would make sense for him to sign pre-lockout if they've got any concern about a cap, and he's going to be top priority for most of the big spenders
3:16
I'd take the field over any individual team but Dodgers are probably the favorites, obviously in the top three
Pete
3:16
The Mets had PCA and traded him away. How much does that sting? Isn’t that the counter-argument to the anti-prospect huggers? Pads traded Kluber…and the list goes on and on…
Anthony Franco
3:19
Well that's going down as one of the worst trades in MLB history (not any fault of Báez, who was very good for the Mets down the stretch)
3:20
Uniquely bad circumstances for them: PCA was injured most of that year. Zack Scott was interim GM for that deadline, his only one running baseball ops. He wasn't part of the front office when the Mets drafted him, clearly whiffed on his evaluation of the player
3:21
You can cherry pick examples of ones where the team would like the trade back but the overall track record of traded prospects is really bad
3:23
Teams are actually pretty good at identifying which of their prospects aren't going to work and should be expendable
3:24
They're much worse at identifying which ones will actually be good, since the odds are stacked against most of these guys being more than role players
Captain Dunsel
3:24
Given the popularity and enjoyability of the recent Field of Dreams game played in a much more traditional setting, do you think MLB would consider "classic baseball nights" on a regular, perhaps monthly, basis? No constant loud music, no walk-up songs, just the announcer with occasional organ music (e.g.--"charge!), simplified billboards, and the beauty of a baseball game. Fans talking to each other and sharing the experience? I have a hunch that they would be among the most popular and well-attended games.
Anthony Franco
3:26
They're doing more of the theme games (Field of Dreams, Williamsport) to play into the old-school baseball feel, so yeah, I could see more of these. Once a month feels like it'd lose its luster pretty quickly though
3:27
Have to be careful not to overplay that kind of thing and then they just don't feel unique. The NHL did this with their outdoor games and they were great when it was one per year and then they pushed to 3-4 and they no longer seemed like events to anyone who wasn't actually in attendance
Braves fan since 1968
3:27
Do you think the braves will go after Abrams for shortstop
Anthony Franco
3:28
They can try but I don't see why Washington would trade him within the division unless Atlanta just blew away every other offer
3:29
Nats should have such a lofty ask on Abrams that he's pretty close to untouchable over the offseason. They should expect to compete in 2027. If it doesn't happen, open yourselves up at the deadline
Chris
3:29
Likeliest to bounce back in 2027: Vlad Jr., Raleigh, or Kyle Tucker?
Anthony Franco
3:30
I expect all of them to be better but I can't see a scenario where Vlad Jr. is a league average hitter in two straight years
3:32
I know some of his in-game power plays down because he doesn't pull the ball in the air the way you'd expect from most sluggers, but that guy should be a lock for 20-25+ homers every season with his combination of bat speed and contact
Tigers' Lover
3:33
Kenley Jansen sure looks done. I'm seeing this stat that the Tigers have blown 28 saves this year, and if they had just held half of those, their record would be 75–52. Yikes!

What about putting one of the flamethrowers like Jackson Jobe or Troy Melton at the back end of the bullpen? Right now, those guys are some of our best starters, but we've got to have a closer! Thoughts?

Thanks!
Anthony Franco
3:34
They've blown 27 as a team, second-most behind the Nationals. Obviously most of those aren't Jansen. Every lead given up by a reliever is a blown save because technically they could finish the game
3:35
But to your general point, Jansen looks bad and I don't have a great solution. Finnegan's been even worse, losing Will Vest was a killer
3:37
Melton's too good to take out of the rotation. I could see the argument for Jobe but I assume they want him getting as many innings as possible to lay a foundation for '27
3:38
Could give River Ryan a look if he's back by the end of the month. Maybe throw Drew Anderson in there once Flaherty comes back? Clearly needs to be addressed again in the offseason
Gavin
3:38
So the Pads call up Salas this year?   He’s raking in AAA
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