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Klawchat 11/21/19
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Keith Law
1:43
No, not really. The rule 5 draft is a huge waste of time.
Heater
1:43
Byron Buxton is now 25 yrs old.  Has his prospect of becoming a star faded and he is what he is?  Or will there be more?
Keith Law
1:44
He's been very good when healthy - worth about 3 WAR in half a season last year. I'm not sure why so many fans want to give up on him given how good he's been when he can take the field. The concern is that he's on the IL too often, not about his ability.
Aaron C.
1:44
2020 A's rotation is high on potential, but light innings/dependability past Fiers, I guess. What's the best way to address this?
Keith Law
1:45
They should fish in the lower end of the starter market ... I see a few good innings-eater types out there this year. And of course they know to target guys who fit that ballpark.
JRussell
1:45
Hey Keith, I See the Mets left Shervyen Newton unprotected in the Rule 5 and he has been on at least one top 10 list for them?  Any chance he is selected and was leaving him unprotected a mistake?
Keith Law
1:45
He struck out (32.8% of his PA) more often than he got on base (28.3%) in low-A last year.
1:46
I don't even see the issue. If someone wants to burn a 25-man spot most of the year and a 40-man spot all year on a player who has roughly a 0.0% chance to hit, go for it. It's not even clear if he's much of a prospect at this point.
Aaron C.
1:46
Been to enough new spots to possibly update your pizza rankings in the near future? Can I interest you in creating a new food ranking list like "best desserts" or something?
Keith Law
1:47
I have a list of dish projects for the offseason and that's on it, but first I have to complete the first round of edits on The Inside Game and do some of the regular year-end posts (cookbooks, music). The top 100 board games post went up this week: https://klaw.me/2CQ0vGT
DEAN M
1:47
There's alot of helium on Alek Thomas in the prospect circles recently of him becoming a 5 too all-star.  Buy in?  Too early to tell?
Keith Law
1:47
If someone talks about him as a 5-tool All-Star you shouldn't listen to anything else they say, because they are clearly bullshitting. And I like Thomas a lot, had him on my midseason top 50.
Jason
1:48
Any interesting names that were not protected in the Rule 5 draft?  I know the extra year has eliminated much of the value in it, but last year pundits were at least talking about Richie Martin
Keith Law
1:48
And then Martin was worth -0.6 WAR with a .260 OBP. The rule 5 draft is really bad. MLB ruined it to exert further control over players, and because those players were minor leaguers, the MLBPA didn't stop it.
Moe Mentum
1:48
Lance Berkman finished in the top 20 for league MVP voting 7 different times in his career, but didn’t even get enough Hall of Fame votes to stay on the ballot after his first year of eligibility. Surprised? Bad news for Adrian Gonzalez (8 times) and Matt Holliday (7 times)?
Keith Law
1:49
He's not a HoFer in any sense, and I don't think the other guys are too. Top 20 in the voting is hardly an achievement with 10 spots on the ballot.
Aaron C.
1:49
Been listening to the "Slow Burn" podcast and wondering where you stand on the most divisive question of our time: Biggie or Tupac?
Keith Law
1:49
Tupac.
Nate
1:49
Why do you think cherington said yes to the pirates but not others?
Keith Law
1:49
Good opportunity for a player development guy to enact his own system without the win-now pressure of a Boston.
That's my guess. I haven't asked him.
Rob
1:50
What are your thoughts on the Jose De Leon trade by the Reds and Rays?  Can he fill the fifth rotation spot or is he more of a middle reliever at this point?
Keith Law
1:52
I like De Leon as a back-end starter but he seems like a dubious fit for Cincinnati's home park.
Frank
1:52
I read your piece on Mookie.  To me the real question for any team interested is do your really want to give up top pieces in your farm system for undoubtedly a great player but one who is going to make 25-30M from arbitration and have no guarantee you can keep him next year.  So it’s one year, a lot of money and a couple of high level prospects to get him. When teams trade for players of that caliber at least 1 of those 3 criteria should be in the acquiring teams favor.  None are here.  Seems like way too much of a risk for me and in turn Boston shouldn’t trade him unless they get that kind of return.  I don’t see how a deal gets done.
Keith Law
1:52
Sure, all deals like that are unlikely unless the selling team has decided they just can't (won't) pay the player, which is clearly not true here. I just wanted to point out that there is a valid baseball reason for the Sox to trade him, beyond just treating the luxury tax like a hard cap.
John
1:53
No question but thanks for recommending Homegrown by Alex Speier, I’ve been tearing through it!
Keith Law
1:53
Great! Alex is a longtime friend and a fantastic writer.
JR
1:53
Torkelson the clear shot pick for the Tigers?
Keith Law
1:53
No.
Alan
1:53
Next move for the White Sox is?
Keith Law
1:53
It should be a starting pitcher.
Kip
1:53
Are the Braves still active in the international market with sanctions finally gone in the '21-'22 class?  I don't really read them being "in" on any player and they've had lots of turnover in their scouting department.
Keith Law
1:54
They have to be involved now, since those guys agree to terms 2-3 years out, but it might be quiet because they're trying not to get in trouble.
Todd Boss
1:54
Are you ready for another Hall of Fame season?  I write this mostly tongue-in-cheek, but there seems like a real chance to get some backlog cleared out with just one sure-fire new candidate on the ballot this year.
Keith Law
1:54
I have contemplated my ballot and there's a good chance I won't vote for ten players. I think there are ~8 clearly worthy guys, then maybe 4 bubble guys, players I wouldn't say *don't* belong in but about whom you could have a good argument.
Ryan
1:54
How do you interpret Atlanta's offseason so far? I would've put 3B/cOF/SP/C all ahead of RP as needs.
Keith Law
1:55
Signing RP first doesn't mean the front office thought it was the biggest need.
Mike
1:55
How long will the MLB lockout of 2022 go on for?
Keith Law
1:55
With as much revenue as there is, I wonder if the owners would shoot themselves in the foot like that for an extended period ... the goose still lays golden eggs, and I'm sorry if they're not all 24 karats.
Mark
1:56
can you give a a few thoughts about the Giants GM and manager hirings? I know you like Kapler, any thoughts on Harris?
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