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Mark P
7:46
After another busy weekend of baseball, let's dive into some reader questions.
mike
7:48
What do the dodgers do at the trade deadline ?
Mark P
7:49
Pitching is the obvious answer, particularly in the bullpen.  The Dodgers are flexible enough that they could potentially address any position on the field if necessary, but I'd guess they'd start with relievers
Fes
7:49
Impressed by the Mets somehow continuing to win while having sixteen guys on the injured list. How long can they continue to do this?
Mark P
7:50
It helps that so many other teams are also being crushed by injuries, but the Mets have a fun underdog vibe going right now.  And, they've managed to tread water long enough that some of their injured notables are coming back off the IL
BelieveLand
7:50
Does Adam Frazier make sense in Cleveland
Mark P
7:51
Hernandez has gotten things somewhat on track at second base, but Frazier would be a big help for the Tribe in in the outfield.
Logan
7:51
Any off chance the Yankees could trade Stanton to assess their problems
Mark P
7:52
I love coming up with wild trade scenarios, but even I can't think of a semi-realistic case of why another team would trade for Stanton right now
Phil
7:52
As expected, the Phillies are completely mediocre
Mark P
7:53
The glass half-phull version of this is that even with everything that's gone wrong for the Phillies thus phar, they're still only phour games out of phirst place.
David
7:53
Has there been any talk about expanding 40-man rosters? It seems that all the injuries are making it tough for teams to stay within that limit without releasing promising players.
Mark P
7:54
For all the talk about adjusting the active roster from 25 men to 26 men or more, I don't think there has been much discussion of raising the 40-man limit.
Sandy
7:55
What would Arizona want for Marte?
Mark P
7:56
A lot. Marte is controlled through 2024 on a very reasonable contract, so assuming he stays healthy between now and the deadline, the Diamondbacks can justifiably ask for a big package --- maybe something like two younger MLB-ready guys and two noteworthy prospects
7:57
That said, a Marte trade would signal that Arizona is entering a larger overhaul, as opposed to be just looking towards 2022.  They might such bigger-picture decisions for the offseason.
CheeryVladdy
7:58
How does MLB increase offence? Re-juice the ball?
Mark P
7:59
Moreso than changing the ball back to the pre-2021 specifications, the bigger change would be cracking down on the illegal substances being used by pitchers.  We seem to have reached a tipping point where everyone is now openly acknowledging that this is happening on pitching staffs throughout the game, so now it's only a question of what the league will do about it.
Josh
8:00
Looks like a lost season for the Twins. How active do you think Falvey/Levine will be at the deadline?
Mark P
8:02
Pretty active.  I mentioned earlier about the D'Backs that I'm not sure if they'll look to reload or rebuild, but I'm pretty sure Minnesota sees 2021 as an aberration and they'll look to contend again next year.  So that means they'll be discussing and maybe moving the pending free agents (Pineda, Happ, Andrelton, maybe Nelson Cruz) but probably not guys like Berrios or Buxton
John
8:02
Could the Orioles package Means and Mancini to get one higher end prospect? Feel like trades now don’t get much in return, especially for us Orioles fans with basically nothing to show from Machado’s trade
Mark P
8:04
Machado was dealt with just two months remaining on his contract, however.  Means and Mancini each have years of control remaining, so either would net a better haul (and really, the jury is still out on what the O's got back for Machado).

It's possible Mancini/Means could be paired together if another team made just an absolute mega-offer, but the better bet is that the O's will maximize the return by moving each in separate trades.
Ben
8:05
Any idea what the all-time record is for most players on one team to be on the IL (or DL) at the same time?
Mark P
8:06
Good question.  Off the top of my head, the 2014 Rangers come to mind as a recent team that was just overwhelming devastated by injuries.  Of course, then you have outliers like the 2019 Yankees who lost a guy to the IL almost every other day but they just kept winning.
Kevin Gausman
8:07
Am I the leader for the Cy Young Award?
Mark P
8:08
It wasn't until writing that Gausman post earlier tonight that I realized just how good he's been this season --- he's tied for fourth in fWAR among all qualified pitchers this year.

Assuming this hip problem isn't a big deal, Gausman is certainly in the running, but there's plenty of competition in the NL
Gord
8:08
Should the Mariners consider trading Mitch Haniger or would they be better off extending him and having him be the veteran leader for the kids coming up?
Mark P
8:10
The good news is that the M's can hold off on this decision until maybe February of next year, to get as much info as they can (i.e. what Haniger does the rest of the season, and what he would expect in contract talks)
8:11
I've written before that Haniger might be a candidate for something of a slightly-below-market deal just because he might want more security given his past health problems.  But, he's been healthy so far and he's been hitting great, so that window for the Mariners might have passed.
Jerry D
8:12
Biggest target should be pitchers, right? Outfield looks better with Kyle Lewis back and finally hitting, infield looks fairly set with Ty France and JP Crawford both looking pretty good. Obviously, they would need Evan White to figure things out and they would need someone to man 3B, but pitching seems like a much bigger need, right now...
Mark P
8:13
And here's the other factor about a Haniger trade....who's to say the M's will even be deadline sellers?  They're staying afloat in the playoff race, and the Mariners might be that rare team who "goes for it" just for the sake of a playoff berth just so they can end their drought.
8:14
The M's would ideally want a first baseman or second baseman, assuming France can largely handle the other position.
Joe
8:14
Do you think the Cubs will make it to the post season?
Mark P
8:14
Will the Cubs make the 2021 postseason?
Yes (29.1% | 203 votes)
 
No (70.9% | 495 votes)
 
Total Votes: 698
Soler
8:16
What do you think happens to his playing time? He’s been struggling recently
Mark P
8:17
If this groin injury ends up putting him on the IL, it'll be a moot point.  But assuming Soler is healthy, one would imagine the Royals would keep playing him until the deadline in case he heats up, and helps them win games or improves his trade value.
Gord
8:18
Good point, probably just my 25 years of Mariner fandom triggering my pessimism.
Mark P
8:18
As a longtime Maple Leafs fan who is dreading tomorrow night, I feel your pain.
hoot gibson
8:19
Does Springer take over leadoff for the Blue Jays when Semien just won the MVP for the month of May
Mark P
8:20
I'm not sure either Springer or Semien would much mind where exactly they hit in the batting order.  If the Jays want to keep sticking with what's working with Semien as the leadoff man, I doubt Springer would have much objection to hitting a bit further down
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