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Mr Bean
7:52
I think tanaka, pax and DJ will all be FA when they are 33 if they accept QO.
Mark P
7:54
That's definitely a factor, especially for Paxton and DJ who haven't already had that huge long-term contract yet.  But if you're a James Paxton going into free agency with a solid but non-elite track record, a notable injury history, and you're already 32, there must be concern that a big long-term offer won't be out there....especially if there isn't a 2020 season, during which you could have improved your stock.
Jorge78
7:56
Do you think teams should play less inter-league games?  Seems to me there are too many.  Thanks!
Mark P
7:57
I don't mind interleague games, they still have a novelty to them.  What I'd like to see is fewer inter-division games, actually --- 76 games per season spread around the same four opponents can be monotonous
Dream Bracket
7:58
Which team had the greatest season in baseball history?
Mark P
7:58
The 1992 or 1993 Toronto Blue Jays, of course.

No, I'm not biased as a Jays fan.  How dare you!
Jon
7:59
If there is a major league season, but no minor league season do you expect to see a lot of rushing prospects to the majors for seasoning purposes?
Mark P
8:00
Not for players who weren't already on the brink of callups already.  Teams aren't going to want to rush their top prospects before they're ready, out of fear of hurting their development, or risking injury.  (Or, starting their service-time clocks early.)
Jeterleader
8:01
Will Tim tebow ever play in the mlb?
Mark P
8:01
Given how so much of Tebow's career already seems like a publicity stunt, I'd say there's a decent chance.
Stevil
8:02
Has there been any rumblings over the international amateur signing period being delayed?
Mark P
8:03
I would imagine that will be settled once the draft is out of the way.  The latest word was still July 2 for the opening of the signing period, though the league has the flexibility to push it as far back as January if need be
Rob
8:05
Which of the Rendon and Cole megadeals are most likely to be bad
Mark P
8:06
I'd say Cole only because Rendon's deal is shorter, and position players on the whole provide more value than pitchers.  But I don't think either will end up being "bad," per se.
Jim
8:06
Word on Verlander's recovery?
Mark P
8:08
Given that we're over a month away (in a best-case scenario) from any games, I'm cautiously optimistic in saying that Verlander should be ready to roll by the time a season starts.  Then again, like the closing credits of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, I'm not a doctor.
BillyBobEppler
8:09
How many picks are the Angels getting in this years draft in total ?
Mark P
8:10
Four.  They gave up their second-rounder as compensation for signing Rendon
Value
8:11
The value of pitchers vs position players should be debated. Look at the Tigers rebuild. They value  pitching almost every year in the draft. Even this year they are consdering the pitcher from Texas A & M. The reason it is even debated for the Tigers for this draft is because they already have so much pitching. They still might take the Aggie.
Mark P
8:13
A great pitcher can help you in 30-35 games per year, whereas a great position player can help you in as many as 162 games.  That's a simple fact.  That said, a great pitcher can take on larger import in a short postseason series, and truly good pitching is so hard to find that teams value it appropriately
8:14
"You can never have enough pitching" is a cliche for a reason.  For as many good arms as Detroit has in their system, if only one of them ends up being a quality big league pitcher, that still counts as a win for the Tigers.
Jorge78
8:14
Thanks for the extra long chats Mark!  Helps with the boredom.....
Mark P
8:14
No problem! It helps that there isn't usually a ton of news breaking on Sunday nights.
Omar
8:15
Any update on who the Giants plan on taking? I’m kind of indifferent toward Zaidi at this point. Seems like taking a lot of shots and hoping something hits.
Mark P
8:16
"taking a lot of shots and hoping something hits" isn't a bad strategy when you're running a team with as many pricey, mostly-immovable contracts as the Giants.
Pumpsie
8:17
Is the Altuve contract underwater? Also, if FA prices drop dramatically next year, do some of the recent big signings start to look real bad, real quick?
Mark P
8:19
Teams could hardly have been blamed for making those signings, since it's not like they saw the pandemic coming.

As for Altuve, he is owed $26MM per season from 2021-24, as well as $26MM this season (though a big chunk of that 2020 money has already been surrendered due to the lack of games).  Hard to say it's a bust in any fashion at all, since Altuve was still playing very well last season and he only just turned 30 years old.  Not hard to imagine him still being very productive for at least the next couple of years, and potentially even through the entire length of that contract
Besides, Altuve's first extension was such a bargain for the Astros that it's almost all gravy at this point
Billy Martin was right!
8:20
Do you think the Pine Tar game was fairly ruled after the fact, or did Billy Martin have a legit beef? (Sending his ace Guidry to CF, and left handed 1B Donnie Baseball to 2nd base ooooh boy...)
Mark P
8:21
This was before my time, as my dominant memory of that whole incident is the completely enraged look on George Brett's face after he was called out.
CardsFan76
8:22
Top 5 players not in the HOF excluding Bonds & Rose?
Mark P
8:24
I'm leaving out players who are still active or aren't eligible for HOF induction yet.  My list off the top of my head is Roger Clemens, Lou Whitaker, Minnie Minoso, Scott Rolen, Fred McGriff
Red Sox
8:24
Is their room for Lucroy and Arauz because of expanded rosters?
Mark P
8:25
Quite possibly.  Ron Roenicke hinted the other day that Arauz could be included on a 30-man roster.
Reality
8:26
Since reality is far too stark in the world today——-what is your favorite “reality” show?
Mark P
8:27
I've never been a big reality show fan.  I watch Survivor and Amazing Race, but those are ultimately game shows more than they are "reality shows" in the style of Real World, the Kardashians, etc.
Flatbush
8:27
What about Gil Hodges?
Mark P
8:29
Hodges isn't in my top five, but I'd say he should be in the Hall.  I think it was Joe Posnanski years ago who argued for some kind of "overall career" induction committee to choose baseball people who made a mark in several elements of the game.  Hodges might be a bit short of Cooperstown as a player, but combining his playing career and his managerial career would be enough to get him over the line.
8:31
Let's call it a chat for this week.  We'll be back next Sunday, when hopefully we'll have a bit more clarity on whether or not we'll get a baseball season.
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