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Klawchat 2/15/18
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Keith Law
1:01
Klawchat. You can forget all future plans.
addoeh
1:01
"Thoughts & Prayers" isn't working.  Maybe we should try something else.
Keith Law
1:01
They're a renewable resource, though.
Dr. Bob
1:01
As Spring Training opens, I expect you to be in the best shape of your life.
Keith Law
1:01
I have a cold and I've been to the gym twice since New Year's. So I might be in the worst shape of my life.
Matt
1:01
You noted in the draft prospects article its a deep draft, but not top heavy. In your opinion, did the Phillies make a mistake in signing Carlos Santana which caused them to lose their high 2nd rd pick?
Keith Law
1:02
I don't think it was a mistake, but I think it was a cost to consider in the signing.
Davey Boy
1:02
Is this a do or die season for Blake Swihart? Can he be a utility type guy at the major league level?
Keith Law
1:03
I don't generally care for the idea of a do-or-die or make-or-break season, and I don't think it applies to Swihart. If he's healthy, he will have value. He was a decent infielder in HS - I saw him play third - and I think he'd be able to handle second or third in the majors. Maybe he's Austin Barnes.
Dan
1:03
If you could make a player have one 80 and the rest of his tools 40-50. Which one would you make 80?
Keith Law
1:03
If you're an 80 hitter, nothing else really matters.
Jon
1:04
Thoughts on Mike Ford?  Does he have a chance to stick with the Mariners all year?
Keith Law
1:04
Non prospect. Maybe the final guy on a bench.
Joe
1:04
Keith, I feel like Tyler Wade is getting completly overlooked with the Yankees.  Would you be confident having him start the season as the starter at second?
Keith Law
1:05
He's getting overlooked? I feel like I'm asked about him constantly - and yes, I think he's someone's regular, if perhaps not the Yankees' because of Andujar and Gleyber.
Doddy King
1:05
Texas and Anaheim are both indicating that they are looking at going with six man rotations, with Texas apparently also considering two reliever-to-starter candidates (Bush and Minor) as part of their move.  Do you think this is a one- (or two-) off thing, or will more teams explore a six man rotation going forward?
Keith Law
1:05
I'm not sure that we know at all if that'll help reduce pitching injuries, although I'm open to any kind of experiments like this. I do think both of those guys are enormous injury risks as starters, though, and would have kept them in the bullpen.
Dana
1:05
Goose Gossage is a jerk, but he seems to have a good point that he was more valuable than most of today's relievers b/c he pitched multiple innings, right?
Keith Law
1:06
Yeah, but he's right for the wrong reasons. He was more valuable because he threw more innings. He thinks he was more valuable because he did it.
Andy
1:07
Why does the government never get anywhere on gun control?  If the democrats win Presidency and take control of Congress will something get done?
Keith Law
1:09
Money. Why can't Flint, Michigan get clean drinking water? Money. Why are we still using so much coal despite the pollution it causes? Money. Why doesn't any government agency do anything to crack down on overprescriptions of opioids? Money. Something like 2/3 of Americans support an assault weapons ban, but the power of money in our system trumps that of the popular vote.
Carlos
1:09
Julio Pablo Martinez seems likely to sign with a team at some point. I've read he has a good blend of power and speed. Is he a guy to watch? Would he have ranked on your top 100 list if eligible? What are your overall thoughts on him?
Keith Law
1:09
Not a top 100 guy. Maxed out, smaller & less athletic than Robert (they played together).
Patrick
1:09
My only quibble about these chats, Keith...not knowing the lyric that will lead them off when the queue is posted!
My question--what's the furthest/most remote you have traveled to see a prospect (HS, Minors, not counting Sidd Finch?)
Keith Law
1:10
Jarrod Parker: flew to Chicago, drove 3 hours to Kendallville IN. Braxton Garrett was close: flew to Nashville, drove 2+ to Auburn, AL, then drove 3+ to Atlanta that night (very bad idea).
Tom Hendry
1:10
Why do you think so much negative coverage is directed at the free agent player's camp?
Keith Law
1:12
Fans bizarrely support billionaire owners over players, arguing that the latter are "greedy." (Not too dissimilar from people outside the top tax bracket who argue that the top 1% of income earners should get to keep more of their income, even though it doesn't help them and may be worse for long-term economic growth.) And the media don't help by carrying more water for front offices (where they have more sources) than for players/agents.
AJ
1:12
Hi Keith.  On the whole, I was pretty happy with what Hahn did as far as rebuilding the farm system.  The one knock that I did see was that he almost completely gambled on upside and didn't hedge his bet with any "higher floor" guys.  What is your opinion?  Also, how soon can you see the ChiSox being a playoff contender?  Is 2019 too soon?  Thanks.
Keith Law
1:12
I think 2020 is more realistic, but if a few of the pitchers come on this year, that would accelerate it. We'll get a full season of Giolito in the rotation, probably full seasons of Lopez and Fulmer somewhere on the roster (I still think both are more likely relievers), the debut of Kopech, maybe a late late callup for Hansen ... that will all go a long way to telling us how far away they are.
Tom Hendry
1:13
The Orioles are piling up high with fringe MLB ready catchers. Do they have a growing concern that Chance Sisco cannot catch?
Keith Law
1:13
Or maybe Buck has decided he doesn't like Sisco for some unknown reason? I can think of 20 other teams that would love to take him off Baltimore's hands.
Dan.
1:13
Caden Lemons and Blayne Enlow both look like high upside projection arms from the recent draft. Are they similarly projectable or different in a significant way?  If so, how?
Keith Law
1:14
Not similar at all; Enlow's more athletic, better put together, more likely to stay healthy. Lemons had some medical questions post-draft and has more present velocity with less of a breaking ball.
Bored Lawyer, Esq.
1:14
Any college series you have your eye on this weekend?  Vandy-Duke should be a fun one
Keith Law
1:14
Vandy doesn't have anyone major for this year's draft, so not that one; I'm hoping to go to the Coastal Carolina tournament but I've been sick all week.
DR
1:14
As a guy who does a lot to raise the public consciousness on data driven baseball analysis, are there any traits among the recently “woken” smart fans that grate you a bit?  For me, rote invocation of WAR as the be all/end all stat gets immediately annoying. Such trait is rather prevalent, I feel.
Keith Law
1:16
I think that's a weak generalization ... I see more people complaining that others use WAR as a be-all and end-all than I see actual people using it as such. I'm more bothered by new-stat cherrypicking - hey, we have a new toy, let's use it to the exclusion of other things we've learned or ignore the lack of data telling us how meaningful such a stat is. My favorite was the Mets fan arguing with me that Michael Cuddyer was a good signing because of his exit velocity. That didn't work out so well.
Rob
1:16
It seems obvious to me that public opinion is with ownership over the players on issues of baseball economics. Do you think this is true? How important is it? What kind of PR campaign would it take to equalize matters? I'm not just talking about the slow offseason but about how fans in a number of markets seemed condition to accept what seem to me to be artificial limits on payroll. Sorry for the long question; thanks for the chat.
Keith Law
1:16
I'd talk up how rich owners are.
A dude
1:16
Can Trammell eventually be a 20 HR guy at the big league level? His ceiling seems a bit unknown, was wondering if that's because it's actually that high or due to him having less exposure to the sport than others.
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