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Jeff Sullivan FanGraphs Chat -- 8/11/17
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Jeff Sullivan
9:42
Seems like he's fine. Maybe even better than that. Everyone pointed to the chance that he could struggle to find his timing, but maybe, instead, Trout has benefited from a month or so of midseason rest
Mike M
9:42
You get to start a franchise with either Jose Ramirez or Lindor, who ya got?
Jeff Sullivan
9:42
Lindor
Mr. Optimism
9:43
I know this is probably unlikely, but how about the Jays trading for Verlander? Obviously it would depend on how much of the salary the Tigers pay and the prospects involved but he's only got two years left meaning he'd be off the payroll at the same time as Russell Martin and a year before Tulo. If the jays wanted to make one more run at it next year it seems to make sense if the Tigers were willing to toss in 30-35mill. Then at 2019 payroll is freed up for the Vlad/Bichette era jays. Thoughts?
Jeff Sullivan
9:43
I feel like, right now, there are teams that would stand to benefit from adding Verlander more than the Jays would
So while I could understand there being some possibility come winter time, other teams could want Verlander today
Tommy John Jay Bruce
9:44
Does anyone want to win the AL?
Jeff Sullivan
9:44
Have you seen the NL?
I wouldn't want to face it
Charlie
9:44
On a scale from 1 to 10, how smart of a baseball move was the Jay Bruce trade from the Mets' perspective?
Jeff Sullivan
9:45
Ordinary baseball move. Neither smart nor dumb. Moved salary within an extremely limited market.
striker
9:45
Odds Rodon get's dealt this offseason? Window of control does not align with window of contention.
Jeff Sullivan
9:45
Timing isn't right, and the future isn't that predictable
Charlie
9:47
What's the deal with Aaron Judge?
Jeff Sullivan
9:48
I haven't recently taken a look at any pitching changes since the All-Star break, but Judge has still posted a well above-average expected wOBA, even during this slump. It was inevitable he was going to cool off, and he's got a little extra swing and miss, but I have faith he's going to pull out of this
9:49
Hell, his second-half slugging percentage improves nearly 50 points just giving him credit for the home run that JBJ miraculously robbed
LegallyEagle
9:50
So many teams are on the cusp of the playoffs in the AL. How does that shape this off-season? Outside of the Royals, are the rest of these teams going to have a "let's buy and get over the last hump" mindset? Seems like a seller's/FA's kind of market.
Jeff Sullivan
9:51
I think it could just mean that these teams won't bite the bullet and sell pieces off. Less about significant buying, and more about not giving up. You could argue the Orioles should blow it up, but they're still hanging around. I've seen arguments the Mariners should blow it up, but they won't do it, etc
Concerned Houston Fan
9:52
Astros just got swept by the Chicago White Sox and are not looking great. Liriano sucks. Should the Astros make a move? Are the Astros in trouble?
Jeff Sullivan
9:53
The Astros have had the best team wRC+ in baseball since the All-Star break, even despite a handful of significant injuries. There are obvious question marks on the pitching side, and they're aware of those, and it wouldn't shock me to see someone acquired. But the whole benefit of having such a massive cushion is that the Astros don't need to feel actual panic. They're plenty good enough to play themselves out of this. Would feel a lot better if Keuchel got in a groove, though
Nick
9:54
Cody Allen has been getting beat up a bit lately, and Dave said on Wednesday that he's been awful for a little while now.  His overall season numbers still look good, what has changed lately?
Jeff Sullivan
9:54
I haven't looked for a few weeks, but I couldn't find anything too alarming. Allen was great in July. I didn't see anything to worry about. Allen is simply a good reliever who isn't an elite reliever
Jake
9:55
I'm not usually one to try and anticipate playoff rotations so far out, but what are the Mariners going to do if they somehow sneak in with Paxton + _____? If Felix is still hurt, is their best bet to have bullpen games on all non-Paxton starts? If Paxton is hurt too though...
Jeff Sullivan
9:55
So on the one hand, yeah, don't bother looking ahead that far. Way too many intermediate hurdles
9:56
On the other hand, remember what the Indians did in 2016? It would look like that, without the Andrew Miller factor
Mr. Machado
9:56
How does it work for teams to (attempt to) block trades in August? If team A puts in a claim on a player from team B, is there an outside party that judges whether or not team A offers a reasonably fair package or if team B has been lowballed? Or does anything go, and someone like Ryan Ryder could either be seen as unfairly low or market value depending on the year?
Jeff Sullivan
9:57
Anything goes. A team can claim a player and, in theory, offer the worst player in the system. This is one of the reasons why August trades are so much less frequent. There's not much in the way of leverage
Larry
9:58
In the hypothetical situation that the Mariners put Cano on waivers *and* a team claimed him, do you think Dipoto would - even given their current playoff chase - let the claiming team assume his contract?
Jeff Sullivan
9:58
No, but in this hypothetical, you could definitely make the argument that he should
sonny
9:58
What are some of the things you look for in late season call ups beyond the box score or any statistical red flags-beyond K%-that indicate a player was(n't) ready?
Jeff Sullivan
9:59
It kind of depends on the player, but I try not to be too harsh with late-season promotions getting their first taste of the bigs. It's the end of a long season and the best competition these players have ever faced.
For pitchers, I love to see strikes. For hitters, I want to see a demonstration of adequate discipline
Larry
10:00
This is a silly question. How do you look up WAR on a per-game basis?
Jeff Sullivan
10:00
You don't!
We don't get defensive data on a per-game basis
JB
10:01
Jim Thome, Scott Rolen, Andruw Jones, Omar Vizquel ... which one(s) are Hall of Famers in your opinion?
Jeff Sullivan
10:01
Thome and Rolen
DaveP
10:01
Is it time for the Phillies to move on from Maikel Franco?
Jeff Sullivan
10:02
He's not really standing in anyone's way, but there's no reason for the Phillies to remain fully committed to him as if he's a long-term member of the core
Zonk
10:02
Do you think the seeming inbalance in how teams value pitching vs. hitting will carry over into the offseason?
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