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Jay Jaffe FanGraphs Chat - 8/11/20
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Scott
2:33
What do you think about the report about installing a humidor at Fenway Park?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:34
Probably much ado about nothing because it's close to sea level, but I support the effort to bring some uniformity to the storage of balls.
Big Joey
2:35
Ketel Marte is still showing off his elite contact skills, but will the power return? xSLG is .508, but exit velocity is down
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:37
the EV is down by nearly 3 clicks but the xwOBA isn't off by so much. He's hitting a lot more fly balls and a lot fewer grounders; if that's a conscious effort due to a change in approach or swing, i'm not sure that's the right call given his speed. But I'd give it a bit of time before being too concerned
Start times
2:37
The Red Sox are starting games at 730 this year opposed to the usual 710. They do not have to wait for fans to arrive from work. The 6th inning started after 10 pm last nights, it’s kind of pathetic.
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:37
Yeah, don't see the point of pushing later; 6:30 makes more sense than 7:30 if everybody is at home already.
bighen
2:38
When do I sell all my Amed Rosario stock?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:40
wasn't it like 10 minutes ago that he put it all together? .319/.351/.453 , 114 wRC+ after the All-Star break last year.
The next Met that Jay writes about should be
Amed Rosario (26.2% | 11 votes)
 
Pete Alonso (31% | 13 votes)
 
Another damn starting pitcher (42.9% | 18 votes)
 
Total Votes: 42
Nonbinding poll
Guest
2:41
Miggy has put up decent numbers so far this season. What do you think?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:41
He's on the list of guys I'm keeping an eye upon as I've been following his descent for awhile.
Derek
2:42
Has any team been more disappointing (non-covid-impacted division) this season than the Diamondbacks? Ketel at least looks fine, though still not quite what he was last year thus far, but other than that bright spots are few and far between. (also I have given up trying to figure out what they are doing with Varsho but that is probably another topic entirely)
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:43
Bumgarner has been terrible but maybe the back issue explains it. Robbie Ray and Luke Weaver have been dreadful as well, not sure what's up there, but with the Padres and Rockies both on the rise, it may not be Arizona's year.
Derek
2:44
How old was future HOF-er (kidding, mostly) Mike Yastrzemski when he debuted?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:45
28 years, 275 days. And while he's unlikely to be a Hall of Famer, it is SO F'ING COOL that he's put it together given his bloodlines and the tragedy in his family. I wrote about that last September... wait, I have something for this
Tommy
2:46
Is Plesac's success this year sustainable?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:46
24/2 K/BB rate is damn impressive but holy hell WTF were he and Clevinger doing breaking protocol. Those guys both deserve to be hit with a sack of doorknobs by their teammates
Chris
2:47
Kyle Lewis is awesome!!
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:47
Another very cool breakout story. Jake Mailhot wrote about him recently, if anyone missed https://blogs.fangraphs.com/kyle-lewis-is-proving-it/
2:48
I imagine that you could read by the glow of Meg Rowley's smile when it comes to Lewis.
Laffey Tuffy
2:49
What kind of contract do you think MLB teams will give Mel Rojas Jr after the 2020 season? More or less than Merrill Kelly got after the 2018 season?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:52
Rojas will be heading into his age-31 season, so I'm not sure that there will be teams lining up around the block to sign him, and I don't have a great sense of how he's succeeding in the KBO. Under normal circumstances, Kelly's 2/$5.5M deal represents a pretty low-risk move, but in the wake of the short season and limited revenue, teams are going to find every excuse not to spend money. I'd guess that if he comes back to the States, he more or less matches that (2/$6M maybe).
A-Rod Apologist
2:53
It seems like Mitch Haniger will not play this year. Does he have a future at all or should the Mariners move on and find someone else to complement Lewis and Kelenic next year?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:54
I think it's too early to give up on Haniger, particularly as he'll still be inexpensive. The fact that he's missing a whole season says a good deal about the length of the season and timing of his surgery
Dan
2:54
Do you expect Verlander to return this season?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:55
Color me skeptical.
Aceman
2:55
Whats the odds of Jose Abreu making HOF if he played whole career in MLB?
AvatarJay Jaffe
2:58
I'm skeptical given that his game is so one-dimensional — he's in the red both defensively and as a baserunner.
2:59
Abreu had 20.9 bWAR from ages 27-32. That's higher than just 6 of 20 HOF first basemen, and two of the guys below him only wind up there because of WWII service.
3:00
I mean, "modern day Orlando Cepeda" isn't the worst thing to be but I'm not sold on the Hall credentials https://stathead.com/sharing/LODsA
Cube Jockey
3:01
Is anyone is the HOF because of padded stats from playing through the WW2 years?
AvatarJay Jaffe
3:04
I think the case can be made against Hal Newhouser, AL MVP in 1944 and '45, and Lou Boudreau. They led their respective classifications (pitcher/hitter) in WAR (24.x) during WWII and might not stand out so much if the competition were stronger, though both had good years outside that window.
Sonni
3:04
Over/Under on how many games the St. Louis Cardinals play in the 2020 regular season?
AvatarJay Jaffe
3:05
51.5
Inaccessible Rail
3:05
Yeah, why was a humidor installed at Citi? Alonso's 53? I thought that place was famously hard to drive the ball.
AvatarJay Jaffe
3:05
honestly not sure unless adding them around the league is just a gradual thing, or something that's driven by teams requesting it. I only learned of it a couple hours ago and haven't really read up on it.
Nick
3:06
How long until we all admit that, current claims to the contrary notwithstanding, the best player in baseball is still Mike Trout, not Fernando Tatis, Jr.?
AvatarJay Jaffe
3:06
I'm not making that claim. Tatis might be the more exciting player based on the swagger he brings but nobody is in a class with Trout for the sheer consistency of his excellence.
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