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Jeff Sullivan FanGraphs Chat -- 12/1/17
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Jeff Sullivan
9:04
Hello friends
Welcome to Friday baseball chat
We either have very much or very little to discuss. I don't know
The Average Sports Fan
9:04
Are the Phillies in a position to make a couple small-medium adds and be a wildcard contender?
Jeff Sullivan
9:05
I don't think so, not yet. I see how the core could be forming, but they'd need huge seasons from, say, Hoskins, Crawford, and Altherr or something. And they'd need more than just Nola in the rotation
I think that 80 wins would be a greatly successful season. Sights set on 2019
Xolo
9:06
What if Ohtani came out and said that he'd only sign with a team if they also signed his favorite player, Eric Hosmer? Do you step on that landmind to get Ohtani?
Jeff Sullivan
9:06
If a team were given a guarantee, then yes, overpaying Hosmer would be worth it
Ohtani should be *so* *valuable* and Hosmer might get overpaid by, what, like $25 million or something?
Desperate, confused Marlins fan
9:07
Executives meeting with Stantons peeps, does this finalize the "I want to go to the west coast" thing for him?
Jeff Sullivan
9:07
Seems pretty clear he wants to go west. The one thing we don't know is whether he'd be open about other options if no team out west that he finds suitable offers up
It would appear that the Giants are offering up, so right now they're the very clear favorite
Forrest
9:08
Very unrealistic, but how cool would it be if the MLB allowed the AL to use the DH for *any* position instead of just pitcher? Make a team decide before each game what position will be subbed out. Imagine Ohtani being able to hit out of the pitcher's position for an AL team, but maybe have a "designated catcher" that doesn't hit that day. Honestly seems fair to me. Not sure what the big hang-up would be, just benefits teams that have pitchers that can hit.
Jeff Sullivan
9:09
Maybe I'm not thinking this all the way through, because I haven't ever given it a lot of thought, but I don't know why the rule is such that the DH can only be for the pitcher
Obviously, under regular circumstances, teams would always just DH for the pitcher anyway, but they should at least have the option, don't you think?
Xolo
9:09
If a rebuilding team that's not really close somehow signs Ohtani, should they go into a win now (or at least win sooner) mode?
Jeff Sullivan
9:10
Yes, Ohtani would project to be that significant. Now if you're, say, the Tigers, I don't know what you'd...do...but if Ohtani went to the Padres or something, that inarguably moves their window forward. Would suddenly make more sense to pursue other short-term help
Xolo
9:10
Is there a precedent for the way Jeter's taking a blow torch to his reputation?
Jeff Sullivan
9:10
Jeffrey Loria!
9:11
I know it's mostly all just optics right now and the ends might justify the means, but to this point the ownership takeover has been a PR catastrophe
stever20
9:11
why don't NL teams focus more on their pitchers hitting.  I would think with how bulpenning is going, having pitchers able to hit even decently would allow them to save pinch hitters later in the game, which would be a bigger help with the way bullpenning is going.
Jeff Sullivan
9:12
Some teams have made an extra effort. The Cardinals, for example, have probably spent more time on pitcher-hitting than other teams in the NL. And it is possible to get some separation. But even with all the work, pitchers will mostly be very bad hitters. And they need to mostly focus on being able to pitch. And getting rest, etc.
9:13
I don't know how much room there is to jam in extra pitcher-hitting work. I'd like to see it, but if the trends suggest anything, it's that teams are doing the opposite
mthood
9:14
Who has more trade value: Giancarlo Stanton (and his entire contract with an opt-out) or two years of Jose Abreu with a projected 2018 salary of $17.9 million?
Jeff Sullivan
9:16
I know this is going to sound nuts but I'm pretty sure the answer is Abreu
As people have already said, inside and outside of the game, Stanton's remaining contract is essentially what he'd get right now as a free agent. So his surplus value beyond that is something like $0
9:17
Abreu doesn't have that much of his own surplus value but it's just a two-year commitment. Or, really, a one-year commitment with a second-year club option, if you want to think of it like that. Abreu could be traded for something without the White Sox adding money
The Panik/Beede/Shaw rumor is only so because the Marlins would be eating something like $50 million
tommyfastball
9:18
Why do we assume Otani will only sign for ~$3.5m.  Can't he tell the Rangers/Yankees "trade for another $4m, and I'll sign with you."  No matter what his prefered team is, shouldn't he ask them to trade for more money?
Jeff Sullivan
9:18
Zero indication that money is a motivating factor for Ohtani at all
9:19
Beyond that, I don't know the specifics for each team, but every team has a maximum amount of international money they can acquire. And teams that still have significant international money to move are probably unwilling to move it, since they want to use it on Ohtani or some of the jettisoned Braves prospects
John Beasley
9:21
In 2016 you saw potential in Dario Alvarez. Then 2017 happened. Tough to understand why the Cubs gave him a guaranteed deal. Thoughts?
Jeff Sullivan
9:22
Alvarez had an elbow problem earlier last year. When he returned, he pitched awfully well in Triple-A. Threw strikes and missed bats. You can't really know if the elbow thing is fully behind him, but a strikeout lefty reliever can always find a job
georgehermanski
9:25
If a player has a no trade clause in his contract and waives it to allow a trade, does he have a no trade clause in the contract with the new team? Thanks
Jeff Sullivan
9:25
I've just had trouble Googling for confirmation, but I can't think of a good reason why the answer would be no
I can at least tell you that the no-trade clause carries over to the new team in the NBA!
9:26
I'd assume it's the same in the MLB. The no-trade clause is a part of the contract. It's permanent. It can be temporarily waived
9:27
In fact, hey, yes!
Brandon Phillips had to waive his no-trade clause to go to the Braves, then he had to waive his no-trade clause to go to the Angels
Whew
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