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Jeff Sullivan FanGraphs Chat -- 6/3/16
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Jeff Sullivan
9:33
Think it's just a slump. He hit lefties fine the last two years, and his overall platoon rate this year is right in line with the recent past. Yankees probably just trying to make sure not to over-work a 32-year-old backstop
Hoops
9:34
Any chance of bouncebacks from Abreu and Freeman?
Jeff Sullivan
9:34
Freeman's fine, though he'll have to deal with the pressure of being the only bat in the lineup. Abreu is too talented to struggle like this but he's having a devil of a time catching up to high or inside heat. So the next adjustment is on him
9:35
Abreu is in a similar kind of place, offensively, as Puig. Getting busted in, then exploited away
Kal
9:35
Whats your outlook for Chris Archer?
Jeff Sullivan
9:35
ERA in the upper 3s
D
9:35
Anybody you could see th dodgers going after in trade season?
Jeff Sullivan
9:35
Every half-decent reliever on the planet
9:36
We'll have to wait a month or so to see how the injured starters are doing, and/or whether Urias adjusts
Curtis
9:36
What is the most effective type of pitch in baseball?
Jeff Sullivan
9:36
Good fastball
Most pitchers would be nothing without one
Q-Ball
9:37
Dexter Fowler has gone from a defensive disaster, to average or even a slight plus. Apparently, it's all due to positioning, moving back a few steps. Is OF positioning a hot thing? Are there other OF that could benefit from shifting positions?
Jeff Sullivan
9:38
I don't think we know that it's all because of positioning. I think that's just a guess, based on correlating defensive improvement with a positioning switch. They could conceivably be almost unrelated -- you don't want to get too hasty. But this will be an increasingly common thing to discuss as we all get more Statcast information. Teams have access to this stuff for the first time, and we've seen, for example, the Cubs and Pirates take the info in different directions
I don't have the data at my fingertips, so I don't know who might benefit from moving in or out
That stuff is kept privately by MLBAM
Gary Guy Yetti
9:39
What can MLB do to ensure the best talent takes the field? As a Phillies fan, I know this is not our year, but playing Ryan Howard at all feels like tanking whether intentional or not. Keeping the fans appeased by keeping him might only be delaying the emergence of the next great slugger...
Jeff Sullivan
9:39
Let's be honest here: if the Phillies had a candidate to play first base, Howard wouldn't be on the roster
They don't, so, here we are
Sean P
9:41
Given how many important current Red Sox players were found by Theo Epstein/Jason McLeod, how impressive of a front office feat would it be if the Red Sox and Cubs faced off in the World Series? The Theo vs. Theo Series
Jeff Sullivan
9:41
and then Ryan Hanigan drives in the winning run for no reason
Ben
9:41
Hi Jeff, Everyone is talking MadBum hitting stats following last night and the numbers are pretty impressive. Think the Giants would ever consider using him as a DH in interleague/WS games?
Jeff Sullivan
9:42
They have used him as a pinch-hitter. There's a little more injury risk having an ace bat three or four times, but if the Giants had enough players on the DL, Bumgarner would probably become the best option
Argo
9:43
Which impending call-up from the minors are you most excited to watch play in the bigs?
Jeff Sullivan
9:43
I suppose Taillon or Hoffman
Bob Dobolina
9:45
Tell me good things about the Yanks?
Jeff Sullivan
9:46
they've outscored the Mets!
We'll settle for good thing
Outta my way, Gyorkass
9:46
Of the teams that are clearly attempting a rebuild, which one has made the most progress towards returning to contention over the past year or so?
Jeff Sullivan
9:46
Gotta think the Phillies
Q-Ball
9:49
What is your take on the Ronald Fowler, Padres owner, rant? Do we now know why Preller made all those seemingly frantic deals after he was hired?
Jeff Sullivan
9:50
My interpretation isn't that Preller was responding to pressure from above -- rather, I'm going to guess Preller sold his bosses on the idea that he could turn the club into a winner, quick. That's an easy thing to sell but a challenging thing to execute, as evidenced by, you know, those miserable failures
9:51
A team chairman should never go public like that with those sentiments but it's not like Fowler was *wrong* and he made sure to credit his front office and coaching staff. He's right about the players -- they aren't good enough. He's right that the performance has been embarrassing. It's some bad PR but everyone is in agreement, and this is why the Padres need to hit the restart button
Zorak
9:53
Should the Mets try to make an aggressive trade for some infield help or try to ride out the storm until closer to the deadline? Think a guy like Solarte would be a good fit?
Jeff Sullivan
9:53
I think they have a couple weeks to test out the depth they have and see how Wright is recovering. If he needs surgery, and/or if the depth pieces in house prove insufficient, then it's time to get a head start on the market
9:54
You wonder if they could get the A's to part with Danny Valencia
Chris
9:54
Is Profar going to become a trade chip with all the bats in the Texas system, and if so what teams do you think would pair up well?
Jeff Sullivan
9:54
The best-looking fit right now is Profar going in a package for Lucroy
JR
9:55
Speaking of the Mariners (I'm sure somebody will have mentioned them by now)...do you see Dipoto making a big deadline move to put them over the top or staying the course with what he's got? I'm sure there will be a bullpen depth move or 2 but an LF upgrade from Aoki or replacing Adam Lind sure would be nice.
Jeff Sullivan
9:55
I definitely don't see a big deadline move. We'll see if anyone gets hurt, but the team doesn't need a splash, nor does it have the pieces to exchange for one
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