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Jay Jaffe FanGraphs Chat - 8/23/18
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AvatarJay Jaffe
Brian CashGod
1:37
Which top flight starters are on the block this winter? I could see Bumgarner and Paxton getting moved if their FOs read the writing on the outfield walls, and maybe deGrom / Syndergaard *if* the Mets start acting like a competent organization
AvatarJay Jaffe
1:39
I doubt Paxton gets moved but I think the Giants will have to think hard about Bumgarner and I do expect that IF a competent GM comes in from outside the organization that one of the Mets' big two will be traded. Nobody else of that caliber comes to mind as a trade candidate.
Network_Air
1:39
Jay, given your hall of fame knowledge, what does it take for a modern GM to enter the hall? Would Beane or Epstein have any chance on their merit?
AvatarJay Jaffe
1:41
I wrote about this somewhere but I can't recall if it was a chat or an email or an aside in a column. Epstein's a lock already. Beane... his A's are gonna have to win something to get in. At least a pennant, maybe more than one if no championship. Being a Thought Leader isn't gonna be enough, i don't think.
Rickey H
1:42
Was there the same amount of outrage when Cole Hamels obviously drilled Harper when he was a rookie on a hot streak as there was with this Urena - Acuna business? I seem to remember only "Welcome to the Show, rook" kind of comments at the time. Have attitudes changed or does the likability of the players involved still matter more than most things?
AvatarJay Jaffe
1:45
There was definitely some outrage directed against Hamels, but there were also a lot of people predisposed to dislike Harper based upon the hype. I think attitudes towards benaballs are coming into the 21st century along with a more contemporary view of players visibly enjoying themselves on the field.
Lamish Hinklater
1:45
Getting back to Jeff McNeil, because he's really what most people are here to read about: couldn't the better question be, Why wasn't he on any top 30 prospect lists? Is the answer just that later-round draftees who perform solidly but non spectacularly and don't have any sexy-looking tools have trouble getting prospect-list traction? I know guys like deGrom and Matt Carpenter are somewhat exceptional, but they are common enough.
AvatarJay Jaffe
1:48
I can't believe I'm answering another Jeff McNeill question but "not on prospect lists" is a pretty solid shorthand for "no plus tools." Doesn't mean a guy won't have an MLB career, and it doesn't mean players can't develop skills a bit later in the case of injuries — we're probably in a time where hitting talent is more fluid than ever thanks to the launch angle revolution — but if you're assessing risk/reward, those guys aren't the ones to bet on.
bernie
1:48
Any chance the Crew overtakes the Cubs for the division? Or should I just take my blue and gold glasses off?
AvatarJay Jaffe
1:49
Even if the Cubs' rotation can't ever find its form, i don't see the Brewers' rotation doing enough to catch them, not when the Cubs have the superior lineup as well.

OK folks, I've had all of the Jeff McNeill questions and all of the hunching over that I can stand. Thanks for stopping by this week!
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