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Klawchat 1/28/21
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Keith Law
1:41
Probably could but no reason for him to be in the majors now or for the Rays to rush him.
If we have the minors, let him go smash AA/AAA pitching for a month to make sure he's good to go.
Jeremy
1:41
It seems like everyone agrees we should keep the DH in 2021 and beyond. Are the owners really willing to hurt their own game just for the extra leverage? (rhetorical)
Keith Law
1:42
The owners have limited points of leverage and this is one of them. I hate it, but thinking of it as if I were a lawyer on their side of the table, I'd say this is the right negotiating strategy.
Jay
1:42
How to you balance injury risk, development path, and speed to majors with two way prospects?  I ask because it seems like guys like McKay, Greene, and even Ohtani, could've contributed more WAR to their team by skipping the pitching development part entirely and focusing on the position part.
Keith Law
1:42
Disagree on Greene - he was way behind as a hitter vs as a pitcher - and not even clear that's true of McKay, who at least needed more time as a hitter.
Jay
1:42
Of the recently collected prospects by PIT, who's the most likely to become a star? Or did they just get a bunch of future regulars for a 78 win team 4 years down the road to repeat the process all over again?
Keith Law
1:43
Hudson Head, who just missed my top 100.
Kevin
1:43
Happy with Biden 2 weeks in (I am ecstatic)?
Keith Law
1:44
Yes. Could always ask for more, but this is a good start. He's going to spend way more time unraveling the mess he inherited than a lot of people want to accept.
BenL
1:46
Thanks for all the hard work on the top 100.  Much appreciated, as always.  I know comps for prospects are crappy to do, but I'll ask one anyways because you hate my team... or something... Am I wrong to hope that Dylan Carlson ends up being Miami-Christian Yelich? Can play all 3 spots, CF while younger and will age into a corner, doubles high OBP guy.
Keith Law
1:46
who could come into power in his mid- to late 20s? Sure, I'm in.
Robert
1:46
I just re-listened to a White Sox podcast you were on when they signed Luis Robert.  You took some criticism at the time for being low on him.  At the time you indicated that you heard concerns on the swing, but that he had elite foot speed and bat speed and that if everything "clicked" the White Sox could have a superstar.  That projection seems to have held up pretty well.
Keith Law
1:47
Thank you. There was some talk about Robert being the best prospect in the world when he signed, but you should automatically be skeptical when you hear hype like that on a player who's never played pro ball and has only been scouted in workouts. Robert is a hell of an athlete but you saw last year that he has real vulnerabilities at the plate he has to address.
Marc (DC)
1:48
What do you think about the future of the sport where there are 200+ FAs and less than a month before pitchers and catchers report? Also, without telling teams if there will be a universal DH, again, with less than a month to go?
Keith Law
1:48
We're heading for labor strife. I hope it's not an actual work stoppage, but this CBA negotiation will be the most acrimonious in 20 years.
Mntwins21
1:48
How close was Larnach to being in your top 100?
Keith Law
1:48
Not very.
Marc (DC)
1:49
How many more wins do you think Bauer would mean for a team?
Keith Law
1:51
I'd say about 4. BTW, I know there was some contention about the article Ken Rosenthal wrote about Bauer's free agency and his behavior on social media. I thought Bauer did not come off particularly well in there; he gave a statement that he's "not a bully," but Rosenthal gave direct evidence of Bauer bullying a college student on Twitter, and there are many other such stories out there in the open, which all says to me that Bauer isn't taking responsibility for his own actions. The easiest thing in the world for him would have been to say he was sorry, and seeks to learn from his experiences so he doesn't repeat them. Instead he's acting like they never happened.
Frank
1:51
Oneil Cruz dropped out of your rankings- is any of that due to his unknown legal status or merely because there were more deserving players?
Keith Law
1:51
More deserving players. As far as I know his legal status is clear.
JeremyK
1:51
How does age factor into your prospect rankings? Is it basically a depreciation on your projected upside?
Keith Law
1:52
Yes. Arozarena being in the top 50 despite being age 26 is a reflection of just how good he was in a tiny sample, and the possibility that he hits for ++ power on a regular basis now.
Carrett Grochet
1:52
Assuming no Crochet on your rankings is because you see him as a reliever (so do I), but were you as surprised as I was to see him pumping 102 and looking super sharp in MLB last year?
Keith Law
1:52
No, not surprised - he'd hit 100 in college, at least, and the White Sox used him very gently. He hasn't shown us an above-average secondary pitch yet and has some health issues in his history.
Tom
1:52
Is it fair to say that if anyone is withholding a vote for Schilling for a non-baseball reason is due to "character" and not "politics" - as if some belief in trickle-down economics is what the voters detest?
Keith Law
1:53
When someone says Schilling is being punished for his "political views" or for voting for Trump, don't even engage. It's a bad faith argument.
Appa Yip Yip
1:53
If a player struggles to catch up to velocity, is that something they can work on or is it an immutable characteristic?
Keith Law
1:53
If it's a slow bat, it's probably not fixable. If it's bad timing, or a noisy approach, that you might be able to fix.
Andy
1:54
How do you think teams will approach workloads for pitching prospects this year (assuming we have a relatively complete MILB season)?
Keith Law
1:54
It'll depend on how much those guys were able to throw at alt sites/instructs. Some guys did log 50+ innings that won't show up on Fangraphs, but do count in terms of building up arm strength.
addoeh
1:54
I know teams are claiming the loss of gate revenues last year is impacting teams payroll this year.  But there could be something else going on.  Teams could be hoarding cash because there may not be a '22 season.  It doesn't fill me with a lot of hope.
Keith Law
1:54
That's a perfectly reasonable concern.
Michael
1:54
When working with Schilling did you realize he's this batshit crazy? It's one thing to be "conservative" but to support an insurrection, openly racist, etc???
Keith Law
1:56
I never had any issues with Schilling while we worked together. In his last year at ESPN he began sharing offensive content on his Facebook page, including the Islamophobic and transphobic memes that led to his dismissal, but he never brought that into the office, so to speak. If he always held those views, he kept them to himself.
Chris
1:56
How would you describe the difference between linear and rotational hitting? Is there a player that comes to mind for each type?
Keith Law
1:57
There may be exceptions but pretty much any guy who hits for power has a rotational swing - rotating his hips, using his lower half, getting loft in the swing finish (for an optimal launch angle). Linear hitters often make a lot of contact but not much hard contact. Any guy you think of as a slap hitter is probably 'linear,' hitting mostly with his hands and not using his hips or legs.
Andy
1:58
I see Detroit, Boston, and the White Sox all trying their 1B prospects at 3B. Given there’s a very low chance any of the three stick, is this worthwhile? What about preparing for 3B defensively translates into improved 1B defense?
Keith Law
1:59
I don't see any harm in trying it. I might even argue it would encourage those players to work on their conditioning so they stay more agile for workouts at third, even if that's not their ultimate position.
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