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MLBTR Chat With Mark Polishuk
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Mark P
10:14
Yes, but if you're the Yankees, Gleyber is just about the last player you'd want to trade
King Kelly
10:15
When will MLBTR be publishing your annual free agent predictions (contracts, teams)?
Mark P
10:15
You can expect to see the predictions coming after the postseason is complete
Tony
10:16
Do you think Ross would accept a bench coach role with the Cubs if they decided to go with Espada? The lack of any coaching experience is concerning with Rossy.
Mark P
10:17
This would be an interesting idea, sort of a best-of-both-worlds situation for the Cubs.  Not sure if Espada or Ross would be into it....a manager (even a first-timer) might prefer to find his own bench coach, especially if the team is asking that their choice is the runner-up for the job.
Jed
10:18
All of the Cubs talk this season has been a foregone conclusion that Zobrist is gone? You think theres still a decent chance he comes back?
Mark P
10:18
I'd say the odds of him leaving are much larger than the odds he stays.  In fact, this is just a guess on my part, but I suspect Zobrist might end up in Anaheim next year to join Maddon
Mark
10:19
Do the Dodgers trade Barnes and Peterson this off season?
Mark P
10:20
Barnes seems like the odd man out, unless they keep him as Smith's backup.  Might make more sense for LAD to bring in a veteran (or re-sign Martin) and then deal Barnes
10:22
As for Peterson, he's a good defender in the corners and he hits RHP well, but his increasing price tag is getting a bit steep for a platoon player
(MLBTR's arb projections have Joc at $8.5MM for 2020)

I'd be tempted to try and move Pederson if I was the Dodgers, who are flush with other OF options
Blue Jay
10:23
How many years until we are back on top in the division?
Mark P
10:24
Jays need some of their young arms to develop into legit MLB pitchers, and they need their young position player core to hit as advertised.

The AL East is so tough that even with all of this happening, the Jays still face a real battle going up against NYY, the Red Sox, Tampa, eventually a revived Orioles every year.
Astros Fan
10:25
Sure the Astros won the trade deadline with Greinke, but don't you think not signing Morton was a colossal screw up? It forced them to trade the farm for a lesser pitcher.
Mark P
10:26
My guess is if that the Astros could do it all over again, they'd make a bigger push to re-sign Morton.  It wouldn't have taken too much more money than $30MM to beat the Rays in a bidding war, as much as Morton was interested in playing close to his home.
Kirk Gibson
10:27
Rendon to the Dodgers? Turner moves to...2b?
Mark P
10:27
The idea would be Turner plays some 1B, or maybe he or Muncy play 2B if Lux isn't quite ready to be an everyday player yet
10:28
But honestly, if you have a chance to get Rendon on your team, I say do it and figure out the positions later
Winter Meeting
10:29
Which team do you think will go into the winter meetings to hit a home run?  Who will win best offseason?
Mark P
10:30
I mean, every team looks to "hit a home run" in the offseason, but honestly, the "best offseason" winner in April is rarely the World Series winner in October
Angels
10:31
Any chance we explore a trade involving Adell for a pitcher since Marsh is tearing up the Fall League and had a great 2019
Mark P
10:32
Highly doubtful.  Marsh is a very good prospect, but Adell is a top 5, top 10 prospect in all the rankings
If anything, I'd say there's more of a chance Marsh is traded
Crubs
10:32
How much of a raise does Juan Soto get?
Mark P
10:34
Soto isn't even eligible for arbitration until after 2020, so he's still a massive capital-B Bargain.

Different teams handle the resigning/renewal process for pre-arb players in different ways, but if I'm Washington, this seems like an opportunity for a big raise up to $1MM or something as a thank-you, and as a way of setting a good tone for extension talks
10:35
Just noticed I referred to Pederson as 'Peterson' earlier, which is very likely my most common MLBTR typo.  Darn it!
ballpark of the Palm Beaches
10:35
Should we jsut put out the sign saying "SPRING TRAINING HOME OF THE WORLD CHAMPIONS" now?
Mark P
10:36
For those unaware, the Nationals and Astros actually share the same spring training site.  It's a funny little coincidence
Dayton Moore
10:36
Am I somehow unaware that my manager retired? Other teams are in second rounds of interviews, and the Royals have yet to sit down with anyone.
Mark P
10:36
The Royals have said that they won't get into the meat of their managerial search until the team is officially sold, so the new owner can weigh in
10:37
So it might not be until late November/early December
Just a comment
10:37
The best moves last off season weren't the colossal deals, but the lesser ones: DJ Lemahieu, Michael Brantley, Charlie Morton, Lance Lynn. All had a higher WAR than 300+m Bryce Harper.
Mark P
10:37
In general, this is always the case.  But then again, it's not like some big-ticket deals don't also lead to great success (Corbin, JDM last year, etc.)
A-ha
10:37
Encarnacion to Tampa Bay for 2/20?
Mark P
10:38
That type of deal makes a lot of sense to me, and Tampa is an excellent fit
Luxury Tax Salary Cap
10:38
Why don't you realize that big market teams like the Yankees do think spending $200 million is a big deal because they clearly want to stay under the luxury tax? I bet you won't answer this question.
Mark P
10:40
Technically, spending $200MM is still under the tax threshold, which is $208MM next year.  But I see your point.

My larger issue with the luxury tax is that all these big-market teams are wary to exceed it, when the actual extra money spend on the tax is pretty negligible.  I can understand wanting to be as efficient as possible with your spending, but if you're not willing to sign a big free agent since it'll slightly put you over the tax and cost something like a $1MM penalty, that's pretty weak
Dbacks Fan
10:41
How do you forsee the offseasons going for the Dbacks? Frugal and sign players around the edges, or spend a but more than usual to get on the dodgers regular season level?
Mark P
10:43
I'm not sure the D'Backs can challenge the Dodgers next year unless a lot of things break right, which is more a comment on how good LA is.

But that said, "spend a bit more than usual" sounds about right.  Nothing splashy, but just get a solid veteran or two into the mix.  I've been a big fan of what Hazen has done in Arizona so far, so I'm curious to see what's next now that a lot of the big salaries (Greinke, Goldschmidt) have been moved
Dave L.
10:44
Which teams are going to be looking to trim payroll this offseason to make it below the CBT? Does a one-time drop below the cap reset the percentage penalties?
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