You are viewing the chat in desktop mode. Click here to switch to mobile view.
X
MLBTR Live Chat
powered byJotCast
Prev Page View Full Chat
Dozed and Confuzed
8:36
How far out do the Tigers need to be in order to trade Skub? If they go the whole year and don’t win, they get NOTHING out of losing him. Right?
Mark P
8:38
They'd get a draft pick back via Skubal rejecting the qualifying offer, and that pick falls after the first round since the Tigers are revenue-sharing recipients.  So that's not nothing, but yeah, still not a lot for a superstar ace.

Detroit would have to be decidedly out of the playoff picture for Skubal to be moved at the deadline.  Like, 10-15 games under .500 and totally cooked.
Optimistic Venable
8:39
In a recent chat you said last place isn’t out of the question for Minnesota. I’m sure most of that is on how much the Twins have declined, but how much do you think the White Sox are improved?
Mark P
8:40
In general, I think the positive buzz on the White Sox is a little much, since that roster is still full of holes.  But the Twins seem like they're heading squarely towards 95 losses, in my view.
Kevin
8:41
Have the Cards become a team who will perennially look primarily and perhaps only to improvements from within à la Rays and other poorer teams with that model?
Mark P
8:43
To be fair, this is how St. Louis operated for decades.  The Cards have never really been huge spenders in free agency...they make the occasional splash (i.e. Contreras, Matt Holliday, etc.) on the open market, but most of their biggest spends have been on extensions for players developed in-house.
Ketel
8:44
He gets 10 and 5 rights in April. He’s not
moving at this point
Mark P
8:45
There's also that factor.  Marte might well be open to accepting a trade, but we don't know if he wants a change of scenery or what he's feeling about staying in Arizona over the long term.
Buxton
8:46
He gets 10 and 5 rights in April. He's not
moving either at this point.
Mark P
8:47
Buxton already has a full no-trade clause in his contract through the 2026 season anyway
Guards
8:48
Looking like it’s going to be a tough season. How much of the inaction was due to loss of TV revenue
Mark P
8:50
The Guards were one of the teams who had MLB handle their broadcasts in 2025, not one of the teams who got out of their Main Street Sports contracts this offseason.

While I have no doubt the reduction of TV revenue was a factor, the near-total lack of spending seems absurd for a team that is a) won a division title, b) got three extra home games' worth of revenue in the playoffs, and c) had such clear needs in the lineup
8:51
And while nobody expects Cleveland to splurge in free agency....why not a creative trade or two?
Bill James
8:51
Do you think baseball would have been better if I never invented sabermetrics and algorithms, and Moneyball never happened? A lot of fans like looking at the back of a baseball card.
Mark P
8:52
Bill James didn't "invent" statistical analysis in baseball, but was just the first writer to start writing at length about such concepts.
Austin Hedges
8:53
I get 10 rights in April, but not 5 yet. I'm not moving from the bench in 2026, am I?
Mark P
8:54
Doesn't matter, since Hedges will sign one-year, $4MM contracts with Cleveland until the end of recorded time
yankee fan
8:55
what’s your take on the yankee’s outfield situation? I am severely irritated that they decided to give the QO to Grisham. I seriously don’t think he’s going to have another good season, I think he’ll regress heavily. I don’t care about the excuse of injuries. Yes, I’ve seen the news on Bellinger’s back, Aaron Judge keeps aging, and don’t get me started on Stanton’s health, but the Yankees have so many depth options and I really would like to see Dominguez at least get a full season. Spencer Jones is going off crazy in Spring and he’s also already turning 25! The Yankees really have an issue when it comes with giving their prospects an actual full season. (Besides Volpe of course, and it didn’t even work out well with him anyways)
Mark P
8:58
Grisham would've been a very interesting free agent case if the Yankees hadn't issued him a QO.  It's not out of the question that he still could've been on the market today, if teams similarly had a tough time evaluating his 2025 power breakout.  

When the QOs were being issued last November, the Yankees at that point didn't know if Bellinger would be returning.  So securing Grisham filled one hole on the roster, and the Yankees wouldn't have issued the QO if they weren't comfortable with the idea of Grisham possibly accepting it.

As you alluded, and as we've written about countless teams in the past, one injury can suddenly turn a surplus into a deficit.  If Stanton gets hurt again, suddenly the DH spot is open any there's plenty of room for one of Dominguez/Jones to get playing time.  If two injuries occur, suddenly New York's bench situation may look a little thin.
Optimistic Venable
8:58
So even if you’re not high on the White Sox for this season, are you buying into their prospects like the Montgomerys, Schultz, the probable No. 1 pick? Is the arrow truly headed up?
Mark P
8:59
Oh, I think Chicago is definitely showing some potential.  It's just that their big step forward isn't happening until at least 2027.
Zach
8:59
If Josh Jung repeats 2025 will he get traded and where?
Mark P
9:00
Forget a trade, the Rangers might just non-tender him
Statement that's not a question
9:00
Cleveland will 3-peat-the Tigers and their fans think they won the division they haven't won in 12 years. Underestimate away!
Mark P
9:01
"Scoreboard" is indeed a fair counterpoint to criticisms of how the Guardians operate.  But, improving the offense helps Cleveland get a step closer to being plausible World Series contenders, not just candidates to reach the playoffs and maybe win a round
Brewers Fan
9:03
As a fan of the Brewers who have had about a decade of competitiveness and the Bucks who got the ring but about to fall off a cliff.. give me the ring all day.
Mark P
9:03
As a fan of Toronto sports, ditto with the last decade of TFC/the Raptors over the last decade of Leafs hockey
9:04
That's two hours for this chat, so it's time to wrap things up.  Thanks to everyone who submitted a question, and more chattin' will be had next weekend!
9:05
If you're interested in more baseball Q&A, one of the many benefits of our Trade Rumors Front Office subscription is the exclusive weekly live chats. The more limited field means you're about 10 times more likely to get a question answered, as opposed to battling for space with hundreds of other questions in today's chat. For more on our memberships, check out this link: 

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/membership?ref=chat-3-8-26
Connecting…