You are viewing the chat in desktop mode. Click here to switch to mobile view.
X
Kevin Goldstein FanGraphs Chat - 9/13/2021
powered byJotCast
Prev Page View Full Chat Next Page
Kevin Goldstein
12:12
Everything went bad at the same time. The offense was always one that revolved around big stars but lacked depth in a huge way. The rotation got banged up and the pen has been up and down.
It's the recipe for a streaky team, basically.
Erik
12:12
Gabe Kapler thriving in San Francisco immediately after bombing in Philadelphia continues to confuse me. Did he suddenly become a far better manager, or was he always a great manager and the support system is so bad in Philly that he still failed?
Kevin Goldstein
12:13
Not really. SO many managers looked bad in their first go-around and used the lessons learned to become really good managers. See Joe Torre with the Mets or AJ Hinch with Arizona.
Dansby SwanSong
12:13
Is there any indication that fatigue is more prevalent this season than usual, especially among pitchers, because of the shortened season last year?
Kevin Goldstein
12:13
Teams say yes and I think you'll start to see some workload management for the teams with big leads.
Sum
12:15
have errors decreased commensurately with the increase in strikeouts? and if yes, have they decreased by such an amount that today's fielders might appear better than fielders of yore, or are sample sizes large enough that fielding percentage takes care of any of that era-to-era noise?
Kevin Goldstein
12:16
It's not something I've looked at, but errors and fielding percentage are not good metrics to use in evaluating fielding metrics. Also, defense today is better than it's ever been. So is hitting and so is pitching.
Jefferson
12:16
It's going to be a shame that one of LAD/SFG has to deal with a single elimination wild card game. If you are running those teams, are you pushing 110% for the division until the very last day? Or maybe hedge your bets a bit and lineup a well-rested starter for a WC game?
Kevin Goldstein
12:17
Division all the way. Compared to winning the division, earning a wild card spot basically cuts your World Series probability in half.
Adam
12:18
Aside from trading Fernando Tatís Jr, the White Sox have done basically everything else right with their rebuild. Any other legitimate complaints for the fan base? Drafting, maybe?
Kevin Goldstein
12:18
I mean, they have a 12 game lead in the AL Central and they're going to win the division. Why would anyone look for something to complain about?
Jefferson
12:18
Also, thank you for the chats. They are very enjoyable. Right up there with szymbrowskis
Kevin Goldstein
12:18
Thanks. We have fun doing these.
Jefferson
12:19
I think I misspelled Szymborski in that last message. PLEASE DON'T TELL DAN
Kevin Goldstein
12:19
Reported.
Guest
12:19
Padres fan here. The mediocrity and then collapse. % blame for GM, manager or luck. From Vegas O/U of 95.5 wins to worst team in baseball for a month and maybe end up under .500, seems dramatic. What gives?
Kevin Goldstein
12:19
I mean, most of it can be explained away by injuries, especially on the pitching side.
Magic Kingdome
12:19
What is the Mariners' most pressing offseason need?
Kevin Goldstein
12:20
They rank 14th of 15 American League teams in both OBP and SLG. There's your answer.
Tigers Fan
12:20
Thoughts on Riley Greene?  All star potential if he reaches his ceiling?
Kevin Goldstein
12:20
Yes. That said, there are many prospects with All-Star potential and the overwhelming number of them will not reach it.
zurzles
12:20
When it comes to prospect evaluation (and maybe even development?), how much do teams value seeing their minor leaguers in spring training? I was just thinking about how a lockout would mean the minor league season could start before spring training, meaning no minor leaguers in ST
Kevin Goldstein
12:21
Interesting thing to think about....it's important in a lot of ways. Good way to get in front of the big league staff for the first time. Good way to get in front of execs focused on the big leagues for the first time, etc.
Guest
12:21
The Mariners dropped 2 out of 3 against the goddawful Diamondbacks. They need to sweep Boston to have any shot at a wild card spot at this point, right?
Kevin Goldstein
12:22
Even when they were hot it was still an extreme long shot.
Roger
12:22
As pitching development has become more scientific with the introduction of technology in the past decade, how are teams trying to innovate science and technology for hitting development to catch up?
Kevin Goldstein
12:22
Blast Motion, K-vests, 3D modeling, etc. Nothing has been an panacea like pitch data, but they've all helped.
Erik
12:23
Purely from a standpoint of creating the most entertaining, fair tournament and ignoring financial incentives, how many teams make the playoffs in your ideal world?
Kevin Goldstein
12:23
Eight.
Roger
12:23
Will the AFL happen this year? Seems like I usually see rosters by now.
Kevin Goldstein
12:23
It's happening. We should see them soon.
DJ
12:23
Are there any specific organizations you look at currently and think they are likely onto something ahead of the rest of the industry?
Kevin Goldstein
12:24
Plenty. Giants, Dodgers, Rays, Yankees, Brewers come to mind, but there are more.
Sammy So-so
12:24
I know Khalil Lee has gaudy numbers at Syracuse, but does his most likely outcome remain a goof fourth outfielder?
Kevin Goldstein
12:25
He's a weird one. I worry he'll never hit for average.
Sammy So-so
12:26
No team will hand Javier Baez a ten-year deal because of 125 ABs of MVP hitting since joining the NYM, but do you think a club will bite on a three- or four-year contract? Do you think a team should do that? Thank you, Kevin.
Kevin Goldstein
12:26
I think his Mets showing has definitely got him into multi-year deal territory. He's still exceptionally risky.
Guest
12:26
please rank: ET, Close Encounters, Captain Marvel, Alien, Contact, Gremlins 2
Kevin Goldstein
12:27
Close Encounters and Gremlins 2 the real standouts here. ET is not good, Contact is ok, I haven't seen Captain Marvel or any comic book movie.
Connecting…