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Mark P
11:26
"Stand pat" has been the Cubs' default mode for the last couple of years, apart from the Darvish trade.  This is what has made things so frustrating for Cubs fans --- the front office constantly said that changes were necessary, but then nothing was actually done, save for the managerial switch.
11:27
If the Cubs are in the race by the deadline, you're right, it's very possible Chicago won't do much of anything
Dave Stieb
11:28
The Blue Jays called me back in '98 when they ran out of arms in the bullpen after being retired for five years.  Should I be waiting for the phone to ring again?  How many relievers would have to go down in Toronto?
Mark P
11:28
Who's to say Stieb would be in the bullpen?  At the rate everyone is throwing no-hitters these days, Stieb can finally get another no-no!
Baseball Team Fan
11:30
In your opinion, why do you think the Tribe hasn’t called up guys like Miller, Johnson, of Bradley? They’re playing well in the minors, and have the chance to be drastic improvements over what they’re throwing out their now. It seems like they’d rather just hope their pitchers give up no runs than try to score runs
Mark P
11:31
Bradley actually isn't playing great, but I agree with your overall point.  I have to imagine Miller and/or Johnson would be called up by the end of the month, I'm not sure what Cleveland is waiting for
Sciosface
11:31
Will Ohtani be an All-Star this year? Does he get voted in as a position player?
Mark P
11:32
I fully expect Ohtani to both hit and pitch in the All-Star Game.
Nate
11:33
Why does there seem to be no talk of lowering the mound as opposed to moving it back?
Mark P
11:35
Lowering the mound would seem like a more obvious move.  It's at ten inches right now...would a drop to eight inches help things for batters?
I guess then you get into the gray area of how high does a mound have to be before it's really a "mound," but really, what is baseball without esoteric arguments?
Pete
11:36
Why didn't Marlins get a catcher in the spring?They certainly have the young talent!
Mark P
11:37
There were some rumblings about the Marlins looking into the catching market during the offseason, but that could have been due diligence, or maybe just looking for a platoon partner for Alfaro rather than an outright replacement.
11:38
It wasn't that long ago that Alfaro was a rather prized prospect, so I can understand Miami not wanting to give up on him.  The current returns, however, aren't great.
Devers
11:38
Why isn’t there more national coverage of Raffy Devers. He’s one of the best pure hitters in MLB
Mark P
11:39
He's maybe been a bit overshadowed by the other Red Sox stars, but if he keeps hitting like this, there will be plenty of focus on Devers going forward
Bob
11:41
i feel like the rays could have gotten a little more for adames- two bullpen arms who havent really been good until this year seems a bit light
Mark P
11:42
Maybe a sign of the times, as having a bullpen arm (or two) who is hot right now and can fill valuable high-leverage innings is right up Tampa's alley.  

It also might speak to how other teams viewed Adames, not because he was untalented, but because it was known that the Rays were shopping him and wanted to make room.  That being said, why a shortstop-desperate team like the Reds didn't make more of a push for Adames is beyond me.
Angel fan
11:43
With Trout out for 6-8 weeks are the Angels going to white flag this year and not trade for pitching we drastically need?
Mark P
11:44
Realistically, the Angels should sell.  Their chances of making the postseason were already minute even with Trout.
David
11:44
Yusmeiro Petit is 5-0 with a 2.45 ERA. Any chance he gets the “lifetime achievement” nod for an All Star spot. In the grand scheme of things it doesn’t matter - but for a 36 year old pitcher with a Bic lighter competing against guys with military grade flame throwers he deserves some recognition.
Mark P
11:46
The A's have a few guys who are very deserving of All-Star selection, so it'll be tough for Petit to manage a spot if Oakland already has two or three players on the team.

Besides, there will be dozens of relievers with All-Star caliber numbers this year.  With so many pitchers posting big seasons, there will be a lot of unavoidable snubs
Arbitration & IBB
11:46
Many relievers are being asked to intentionally walk 1-2 batters in extra inning appearances due to the runner starting on second. Do you believe that for this rule to come into play, the teams aren’t allowed to use those walks against their own guys in arbitration?
Mark P
11:47
International walks surely aren't counted against a pitcher in an arb hearing.  I'd like to think the arbiter would laugh that argument out of the room.
Tanned Tom
11:49
Before Trout who was the last great player who almost never went to the playoffs? Williams?
Mark P
11:50
Ernie Banks never played a postseason game in his career.  Granted, it was harder back then since the "postseason" was literally just the World Series, so there were plenty of greats beyond just Banks who never saw the postseason.
Boston made the Series once during Williams' career.
The Fonz
11:51
Speaking of the Reds, what the hell is wrong with Suarez?
Mark P
11:53
He's another guy who clearly seemed to be affected by a position change, but it's not like Suarez's bat suddenly came to life after moving back to third base.  Suarez also didn't hit particularly well in 2020 when he was a full-time 3B, though that could maybe be explained by the vagaries of the weird season.

Regardless, it's definitely not what the Reds want from one of their cornerstone guys.
The Fonz
11:55
Griffey Jr. only played in 18 postseason games over 22 years, for whatever that's worth to you.
Mark P
11:56
"ONLY 18 games?!" --- Mike Trout
Chris
11:57
Does it make sense for the Yankees to just wait for Deshields to opt out of his contract, or just trade cash or a ptbl now?
Mark P
11:57
If they're really keen on DeShields, they'd want to obtain him before Texas could trade him elsewhere.  And it's not like there's going to be some massive bidding war over DeShields or anything.
Overbearing Padre
11:58
What would it take for SD to get Winker?
Mark P
11:59
Quite a bit.  Winker is, understandably, one of the absolute last guys the Reds would be willing to trade
grover
12:01
What does Oakland need more, a MI upgrade or a top tier RP? And where/when can they get either one?
Mark P
12:02
If I'm in Oakland's front office, I would also like to be played by Brad Pitt I'm on the phone with the Pirates constantly asking about Frazier and Rodriguez.
Those types of relatively inexpensive, solid players seem like good fits for Oakland
markoallen
12:03
All this talk about super two status. What does that mean?
Mark P
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