JotCast | Travis Sawchik FanGraphs Chat

Travis Sawchik FanGraphs Chat

Prev Page View Full Chat Next Page

Travis Sawchik

12:36

I could see that ... And that peak would make the Padres very pleased

Nicole

12:36

Tito has named Yan Gomes the Indians starting catcher. Was it the right decision? Also, what is a realistic expectation of Gomes this season? I highly doubt he will ever repeat his 2014.

Travis Sawchik

12:37

Players typically don't lose their jobs to injury, but if he doesn't perform he'll quickly lose playing time as the Indians know they have another option behind him

Rich

12:39

Value ranking Paxton- Gausman-Nola - Richards - Dynasty keeper- thanks

Travis Sawchik

12:39

Paxton-Nola-Richards-Gausman

Aaron

12:40

In your stars-and-scrubs article, the thing that stuck out most to me was that the Rangers won their division with less than 30 WAR, that seems incredible. Would love to see an article on how rare this is/what has to happen for this to even be possible.

Travis Sawchik

12:40

Thanks. I will put this down on the idea/research list

James

12:40

Indians fan here... Am I right or wrong in thinking the AL West is going to be incredibly interesting this year? Rangers got super lucky last year by the projections, the Mariners made some interesting moves, the Angels have Trout, and the Astros are goooood. Am I wrong to think the Mariners are the dark horse here?

Travis Sawchik

12:41

Oh, it's a fascinating division. Every team but the A's seems to have a path. I like the Astros, myself

Ben

12:41

I agree with your assessment regarding the 10 worst transaction list, but don't you think this is a byproduct of this being a terrible FA class preceding two pretty excellent ones? It seems pretty universally believed that free agency is an inefficient way to build a team and I see no reason to believe this has or will change.

Travis Sawchik

12:43

There were fewer opportunities to sign a really large, really bad contract this offseason, FA is really inefficient, generally, unless we see fewer young stars sign extensions that buyout arb and free agency years and then we have more 27-28 year old impact guys hit free agency

Sonny

12:44

What does ownership/FO trashing a player on the roster do to a clubhouse? Can't recall a recent example from Pitt but Levine/Betances is awful

Travis Sawchik

12:45

It can create some bitterness ... but ultimately players have financial motivation to go out and perform at their top levels.

Matt

12:45

Travis - why aren't you celebrating President's Day?

Travis Sawchik

12:45

Enemies of the People (all journalists, right?) do not celebrate government holidays

Erik

12:46

What player's 2017 will have the largest effect on his Hall of Fame chances? Someone with a year or two left who has a solid but far from guaranteed case for induction, like Chase Utley? Or someone in his early 30s who needs a couple more 4-WAR seasons to have a good chance, like Dustin Pedroia? Any others?

Travis Sawchik

12:47

Interesting question. What does Felix Hernandez have left? He's only 30 and has 154 career wins ... but his stuff really fell off, of course. Jeff wrote a good piece on Felix last week

Chip

12:47

Will Buxton blossom or possibly become a DL frequent could have been?

Travis Sawchik

12:48

Blossom. The Trouts and Bryants have spoiled us ... not every player has a smooth path to stardom

fgjghhj

12:48

Does Tyler Glasnow make 30+ starts this year?

Travis Sawchik

12:48

No. I'd put over under at 18

18.5

Sterling Mallory Chris Archer

12:49

Any post hype prospects you feel that are just ready to explode this year? George Springer just seems like he's ready to put it all together since he has the tools and the team around him.

Travis Sawchik

12:50

Profar was a former No. 1-rated prospect, and said to have outstanding makeup. I have to believe there is a quality player there with health and opportunity

Jack

12:51

What does it take for Nomar Mazara to become an all star next year?

Travis Sawchik

12:51

Keep being you, Nomar

Zach Walters Appreciation Guild

12:52

The Zach Walters Appreciation Guild is here to flood your chat with earnestness. Zach Walters is now in minor league camp with the Reds! 94-ish wRC+ projection from a UTIL between ZiPS and Steamer! That's pretty alright!

Travis Sawchik

12:52

Indeed!

Steve

12:52

I ask this as a former newspaper sports writer myself. How did you feel about writing game stories? I always felt they were pointless, and it's one of many reasons newspapers are failing.

Travis Sawchik

12:54

I have mixed emotions about the game story, but they nearly obsolete in the TV/digital media age. I think there is still value in a great game story, but how many of those are being written? The idea of a game story, and the resources devoted to it, should probably be rethought.

How many of y'all read MLB game stories?

Sometimes (29% | 29 votes)

Always (5% | 5 votes)

Has to be a Compelling Game (27% | 27 votes)

Never (39% | 39 votes)

Total Votes: 100

Dave Kingman

12:55

Where can C Seager go from his 2016 season? Might he run more?

Travis Sawchik

12:56

7.5 fWAR seasons are pretty rare, so I'd expect to be good but not elite as he was a year ago

Matt

12:57

Tell me something that will make me feel good about Joey Gallo.

Travis Sawchik

12:58

He puts on a great batting practice!

Pat

12:59

Hey Travis, just wanted to let you know how much I've enjoyed all your work so far. As for a question, how likely do you think it is that the Jays make the wildcard game again this year?

Travis Sawchik

1:00

Thanks, Pat. I think they are going to be one of a number of teams in the WC mix. So health, would help. The good news is they have Russ Martin who is always in the playoffs (seriously, look it up!). I think Bautista is going to be better

Craig

1:01

Do you still believe in Blake Swihart as a catcher? What is his upside at this point?

Travis Sawchik

1:01

I do like him as a catcher ... Unless these reported yips are a real thing

Cards fan

1:02

Rizzo for correa...rizzo is $7 more expensive in draft cash. Pull the trigger and get rizzo?

Connecting…