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MLBTR Chat: 3/15/23
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Anthony Franco
6:30
I don't think there are impactful players who'll get moved right now but sure, a right-handed hitting outfielder would fit here midseason. I still think the fifth rotation spot is the biggest question mark on the roster, but they can obviously do both
Skipjack
6:31
The Phillies did well in the PO last year but they didn't even win 90 games in the regular season. Do you think teams that don't win 90 games should even be in the PO?
Anthony Franco
6:31
I prefer an 8-10 team postseason to 12 but we're never going back
Vinnie
6:32
Why play the WBC before the regular season, while there’s always the possibility of an injury that can affect a team dramatically ? Why don’t they have it after the season, where if there is an injury, the off-season can hopefully help?
Anthony Franco
6:33
I haven't seen an answer on this, but I'd guess there just wouldn't be the same appetite among players (at least MLB-caliber ones) for the tournament at the end of the season
6:34
You're also in a weird spot with pitchers in particular. If they schedule it in like mid-November to make sure it's after the World Series, you've got some pitchers who have worked right through the playoffs and probably topped 200-220 innings overall. Others will have been eliminated by early October and presumably shut down from throwing for six weeks. Ramping back up for the WBC then shutting back down for another month and a half before prepping for the next season feels rough for arm health
Jordan Alvarez
6:35
No love for me in the bottom of the 9th with runners in scoring position?
Anthony Franco
6:35
Sure, Yordan's a good call as well
Free Agent
6:35
Which free agency period do you prefer, MLB or NFL?
Anthony Franco
6:36
I selfishly prefer the MLB style where it's dragged out over multiple months. Content generation throughout an offseason where everything's resolved within one week would be really tough
I could see how the MLB one would be more bland from a fan perspective though
Oriole Bird
6:36
Do O's win more games than last yr
Anthony Franco
6:37
I'd take the under on 83 wins for Baltimore. Full season from Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson obviously helps, but I'd take the over on a 3.97 team ERA
6:39
They had a lot of back-end starters pitch above previous levels last year. Bullpen performance is pretty volatile season over season, it'll be tough to be a top 5-10 group again. I like the position players a lot but think the pitching staff keeps them below .500
Kevin
6:39
Elly De La Cruz and Christian Encarnacion-Strand, when do you see them in Cincy?
Anthony Franco
6:40
Could see both this year at some point. Encarnacion-Strand is a little ahead, feels like a guy who'd be in the majors by mid-May if he mashes for a month in Louisville
Tony Two Chains
6:40
Tony, er, Anthony...who would you rather have and why - Willy Adames or Damsby Swanson?
Anthony Franco
6:42
This is a tough one, pretty similar players. Lean Dansby based on the durability track record
Longterm Injury Concerns
6:42
The DBacks are counting on rebounds from injuries from the likes of Ahmed, C. Kelly, Lewis, and Marte (and to lesser extents for Gurriel Jr. and Moreno regarding hand injuries); granted that it's early, but most of those guys have looked healthier than they have in recent seasons. Is an anticipated rebound already baked into projections for those guys, or can we reasonably expect overperformance to some degree?
Anthony Franco
6:44
If you specifically mean statistical projections, there's some amount of a bounceback accounted for based on a player's production in previous seasons. ZiPS projects Marte to hit .283/.352/.470 this year after a .240/.321/.407 showing, for instance
6:45
But I do think you're right in pointing out that the D-Backs have a wider range of plausible outcomes than a lot of teams. That's both because of some of the injury guys you mentioned (Marte and Lewis, especially) and because there's less certainty in projecting the performances of younger, less established players
6:46
So a team that's counting on the likes of Gabriel Moreno, Corbin Carroll, Jake McCarthy and one or more of Ryne Nelson, Drey Jameson and Brandon Pfaadt can go in a bunch of different directions
Lou Reed
6:47
Any chance Baty breaks camp as the Mets starting 3b?
Anthony Franco
6:48
Sure, I don't think that's out of the question. Escobar could handle a utility role
Guest
6:48
Will the padres extend Juan Soto and Josh Hader, or will it be one or the other?
Anthony Franco
6:49
I'd be really surprised if Soto doesn't end up testing free agency. A Hader deal seems plausible, particularly if they can work it in a way that reduces this year's luxury tax number by stretching it out and/or including an opt-out
Adam
6:50
Do the Nats turn down an offer of, say, two low level prospects for Joey Meneses? He’s having a good spring, but come on, he’s a 30 year-old journeyman rookie.
Anthony Franco
6:51
Depends on how they feel about the prospects obviously but I agree he should absolutely be on the table. If they can get two guys below full-season ball their scouts think have a shot to be regulars four years from now, they should jump
Calvin Lampey
6:52
Would you trade, say, two high-end hitters for a top-of-the-rotation starting pitcher if you're Baltimore? Say Mullins and Mountcastle if it got them a 16-20 game winner and maybe a spare outfielder/relief pitcher?
Anthony Franco
6:54
Mullins would basically be off the table for me. Never say never, I guess, but even if you're talking three years of control of an upper mid-rotation starter, I'd rather have Mullins. Tough to find plus center fielders with that kind of offensive upside
6:55
Moving Mountcastle for a solid but not elite pitcher, sure. He's not going to headline a deal for a high-end starter who's controllable for multiple seasons given the defensive limitation and on-base numbers though
Youkilyptus
6:55
what’s the most probable path for the bosox to make the post season?
Anthony Franco
6:57
Masataka Yoshida's as good a hitter as they anticipate. Garrett Whitlock continues to pitch at the level he has over a full starting workload. Brayan Bello is a mid-rotation caliber starter. Triston Casas is immediately an above-average first baseman
6:58
It's not impossible. They have a bunch of high-end talent. They just have a lot of risk in the rotation and a few mediocre positions toward the bottom of the lineup
Kyle Harrison vs MadBum
6:58
Who has more career success when its all said and done?
Anthony Franco
6:59
Harrison's a really good prospect but there's no pitcher I'd project to have a better career than Bumgarner before their MLB debuts
7:00
He was a top ten Cy Young finisher four times and basically dragged the 2014 team to a championship. He was so good
SF Giants
7:00
Over or Under on 87 wins?
Anthony Franco
7:00
A little under
Chris H
7:01
For the Angels, it seems to me that keeping Matt Thaiss as Stassi's back up, and having O'Hoppe getting regular reps in AAA, makes more sense.  What do you think?
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