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Trade Rumors Front Office Chat With Anthony Franco
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Anthony Franco
2:35
FanGraphs projects them at 75 wins, which feels about right? Maybe I'd take a slight over but I wouldn't pick them to make the playoffs right now
Go Bucky
2:35
Should Brewers fans be disappointed that they did not do more to fix the offense?
Anthony Franco
2:36
I expected a little more on the offensive side, but the payroll's already pushing it relative to where they've been in the past. Maybe the money's just not there
Still think they're the favorites in the NLC, but I'd have felt more comfortable with them over STL if they'd signed Conforto instead of McCutchen, sure
Jonathan
2:37
Hoping to sneak in two questions regarding the Padres. 1. I really am no expert on salary cap. Is it a rolling average or a one-time snapshot? And yes, Padres have to dump Hosmer regardless of cap and regardless of the prospect loss.
Oops, I meant those to stay together. B) is there no way to get cap relief through the league for the Tatis fiasco. Padres can claim some negligence (even tho the Dr stuff sounds shady) and ask the league to give a $5m or so dispensation on salary cap for this year as partial Tatis contract? Thanks.
Anthony Franco
2:37
It's not a salary cap. You can exceed the CBT, you just have to pay a fee
2:38
Those fees (which are calculated by adding contracts' average annual values, not their actual payrolls in a given season) escalate for teams that exceed the CBT in multiple seasons
So the Padres would pay taxes at a higher rate than anyone else (besides the Dodgers) if they go over this year because they did so last season
2:39
That said, the fees really aren't that bad if you're talking about narrowly nudging over. The Padres paid a little more than a million dollars in taxes last year. For a team that spent $211MM on payroll, an extra million is basically a rounding error
2:40
So I don't think that staying under the CBT is a must, but the fact that they charge escalating penalties for teams that go over in multiple seasons really incentivizes you to spend a million under the threshold than a million over
2:41
As for the second question, no, they're not getting any special treatment from MLB on Tatís
MikeD
2:41
Is there a list of free agents not signed?  Seems like quite a few of come off the board short of the two SS’s.
Anthony Franco
A's Fan
2:41
I've heard two theories regarding the... questionable... return the A's received for Matt Chapman. 1) The public writ large underestimated the risk associated with Chapman's health and recovery. 2) By so clearly announcing a payroll mandated sell off the A's got low-balled. Which theory do you give more credence to and is it applicable to the upcoming Montas and Manaea trades?
Anthony Franco
2:42
I think it's both, plus the fact that the A's targeted guys who might be "lower-upside" prospects but are more obvious near-MLB contributors
2:43
It's tough to get an eye-popping return when you've signaled that you "have" to trade the guy, and Chapman just wasn't a great hitter last year. The strikeouts are a major concern. Whether you want to blame that on the hip or not, it's looming over these discussions
2:44
And it's not like he just started slow and could never dig out of the hole, which might allow you to construct the narrative that he was working his way back from the surgery. His worst months of the season were July and September
2:45
My first reaction was also "really, that's it" on the Chapman return. But the more I considered it, the more I've come around on the A's being in a tough spot there and getting some decent if not super exciting players
Plus Hoglund, who I love
Anita
2:45
Do you think they might go after McNeil from the Mets headling with Kirk or even Marte from the Dbacks backing up centerfold or give Biggio/Espinal the reins to see how they do before considering an expensive trade at the deadline for JRam?
Anthony Franco
2:46
I don't think the Jays would give up Kirk for McNeil, nor do I expect McNeil to get traded at this point
Buck Showalter said this week he viewed McNeil as their second baseman. Doesn't mean they can't trade him, I guess, but it makes it unlikely in my view
Giantsphan
2:46
As a Giants Phan, I’m a little worried.  Between the additions of Rodon and Boyd in the last few days, I’m confident that our rotation is fairly set.  But, we still really need that corner outfielder with a bat (preferably a RH batter).  Under tje
2:47
circumstances Joc will likely contribute, but he was not quite the impact player I feel we need.  With Suzuki off the board  and Castellanos seemingly headed to Philly (not that he’s an ideal defender) who’s left for the giants to target?  Dodgers picked up another superstar, how do the Giants counter that move??? Thanks
Anthony Franco
2:47
Yeah they're in a little bit of a weird spot, kind of akin to the Cardinals/Rays thing earlier. It's just easier to upgrade the roster when you have obvious holes
2:48
The Giants, for the most part, have good players everywhere but no one (maybe aside from Crawford) you'd bet on posting star-level production, at least on the position player front
2:49
I kind of think Joc was it regarding the outfield, although it seems like they're still hanging around the mix on Story. They move guys all over the place, so just adding another good offensive player and making it work positionally makes sense
Baseball fan
2:49
Why do we have to have ghost runners for extra innings. How many times does a game go 18 innings
Anthony Franco
2:49
Preaching to the choir
2:50
I hate it. I'm at least hoping they wait until the 11th or the 12th. Doing it in the 10th is awful
Paul
2:50
How will the new playoff format work
Anthony Franco
Tammy
2:50
I know the Angels added a couple arms to the bullpen recently but it really feels it’s “too little, too late.”   With all the arms that were available and it just feels like Management didn’t won’t spend the money to put a good team on the field. There is even a glaring hole at shortstop that they seem to want to fill with journeymen.  With that in mind, do you see this team being any better than a fourth place team? Secondly, why would Ohtani wanted to sign an extension with this team when it’s failed to show a desire to spend money to put a winning team on the field.
Anthony Franco
2:51
Kind of answered this earlier, but I think they're the third-best team in the division
2:52
They are spending money, though. Payroll in the top half of the league, franchise-record for Opening Day. It hasn't always worked out and there's a lot you can criticize Arte Moreno for, but I don't think he's egregious on the payroll front
Dylan
2:52
Who will be the surprise team this year like the giants last year?
Anthony Franco
2:52
I don't think they'll win 107 games or anything, but I think the Twins could be pretty good if they get a shortstop
Dylan
2:53
I just moved from San Diego to North Carolina. Should I see the Padres in DC or Atlanta this year? Take into account team, ballpark, and city.
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