MLB 2019-2020 Offseason Thread

[Mx. Canadian Destroyer]

2 minutes ago, Carlos Buschtran said:

The Mets reduced Cespedes' 2020 salary from $29.5 million to $9.5 million with the ability to earn the $20 million back in incentives.  The fact that Cespedes agreed to such a steep reduction is an indicator that they had strong evidence that the injury he suffered on his ranch last summer was the result of him doing something really stupid and non-baseball related.  The Mets were probably trying to void the contract entirely and that was the best concession the union could get.  Makes me wonder how things will go with the Yankees' inevitable union battle over Ellsbury's 2020 salary.

The weirdest part is that Brodie Van Wagen negotiated Cespedes' initial contract, then filed a grievance against him. 

[MalaCloudy Black]

I bet he was stunt riding on a horse. Fucking cool.

[The Buscher]

Of course, despite the potentially huge luxury tax savings, there's little indication that they're going to jump into the relief market that is rapidly dwindling.  There was a report yesterday that they were one of the finalists for Betances, only to now see from multiple reporters that they're highly unlikely to meet his asking price which is said to be $10 million for a one year prove-it deal.  Odds are he's going to end up going to the Phillies who have given the indication that they're willing to blow past the luxury tax and he can be reunited with Girardi.

Biggest weakness on the team, bullpen single-handedly killed their playoff hopes last year, but nah, let's not to anything.  They're basically just counting on Diaz and Familia returning to form.  Diaz somehow became the first pitcher in league history with a 15 K/9 ratio and 5+ ERA over a minimum of 50 innings pitched, and they're banking on it being a fluke and he'll go back to being great.

The worst was BVW saying he counts Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman as an additions to the bullpen (THEY NEVER LEFT!) because the Wacha and Porcello signings mean they won't need to be stretched out as rotation depth.  Basically just telling the fans they're going to be pocketing the Cespedes money.

The Cohen deal can't close soon enough.

[Meacon Keaton]

March 13th, 14th, and 15th the Yankees have home spring games in Tampa. Very strongly thinking about flying down and making a weekend of it.

[The Buscher]

Gerrit Cole’s 2020 salary ($36 million) is currently projected to be higher than the entire Marlins’ 2020 payroll ($33 million).

[gunnar hendershow]

MLB needs to take a hard look at a spending floor.

[Meacon Keaton]

Yeah, that's awful. 

[gunnar hendershow]

Yeah like if you're still gonna be bad I get not wanting to spend money but a lot of fun, veteran players are basically cast aside for the cheaper alternative. I'd love a few bad players with personality on the Orioles this year.

[Krabby]

2 hours ago, damsher hatfield said:

MLB needs to take a hard look at a spending floor.

And a spending cap...

[Meacon Keaton]

Why? So the owners can continue to pocket all the money that the players are bringing in? Because that's where it's going if not to the players.

[gunnar hendershow]

Yeah revenue sharing with a spending floor would do more to competitive balance and player salaries than a salary cap would. The luxury tax is a good system I think because it helps distribute money around. I'm not a big fan of hard salary caps, even ignoring the fact it hurts player salaries, because they punish teams who do everything right and reward teams who don't. At least by putting in a spending floor you're forcing these bad teams to give some thought into their decisions. And, further, you're making it so that players have more choice about where to play. Every team will get better, and you'll see a catastrophic season once every 5 years or so instead of the 3 alone in the AL last year.

It bears reminding. When your team's owner whines about not being able to afford putting a winner on the field what they're doing is lying to you. They can all afford it, they'd rather just pocket the extra cash while watching the value of their team grow anyway.

[DMN in the House]

I like the idea of a hard cap, because it does level the playing field somewhat between big and small market, but all you need to do is look at the NFL and the way the players there are paid and treated, a lot of the stars are way below their actual worth.

In the end, I agree, a hard cap only artificially inflates the profit of owners.

[Meacon Keaton]

For comparative sake, the Oakland Athletics payroll was just a hair over $33 million...in 2001. 

[Gabriel]

I think that a defined Salary Floor should be instituted, for sure. Even if the teams that need to reach it do so by signing their younger stars to more money earlier in their careers, as opposed to spending on free agents, it's still a win for the players. Young stars are taken advantage of too much with Contract Renewable and Arbitration status, not to mention Service Time.

[The Buscher]

Ian Kinsler retires.  He still had another year on his contract, and he will instead work in a front office capacity.

It’s gotta sting a bit for him to know that he’s retiring with 1,999 career hits.

[The Buscher]

Dallas Keuchel to the White Sox.  Three years, $56 million.

[Gabriel]

The Jays have reportedly made very competitive offers for Hyun-Jin Ryu and Edwing Encarnacion. With the additions they've already made, and the development of the kids... if they can pull off those two signings, the team is destined for much better things this coming season. I mean, that's still not the playoffs, but progress is progress.

[Gabriel]

The Jays signed Travis Shaw to a one year deal worth $4 million. He's a good bounce-back candidate, and is versatile as a defender, so I think it's a solid pickup. Apparently, they're still in on Encarnacion as well, which would mean that Rowdy Tellez is probably the odd man out, starting the season in Buffalo if Edwing gets picked up.

They are also in discussions with the Red Sox about what the cost would be to acquire David Price, who pitched to a sub-3.00 ERA and a 9-1 record with the Jays during his brief stint in Toronto.

The off-season started out slow for them, and there's been a ton of discontent within the fanbase, but they've made some really good pickups so far. Nothing mind-blowing, but they've added some guys who are upgrades over who played last season, and they're giving the young core a chance to be more competitive. A more impactful signing or acquisition would be beneficial to the confidence of the core group, but overall, I'm very happy with the off-season they've had so far.

[The Buscher]

Ryu to the Jays.  Four years, $80 million.

[Gabriel]

4 hours ago, Carlos Buschtran said:

Ryu to the Jays.  Four years, $80 million.

And there's the impact signing they needed. So, Ryu, Anderson, Roark, Shoemaker and Borucki/Thornton are the rotation as of today. Much improved over last season, though it would have been fantastic if they kept Stroman.

Jays are still in on David Price as well, but there are now other teams involved, so the cost could be too great. Still though, Ryu, Price, Anderson, Roark and Shoemaker to start the season would be lovely.

Now we've got a decent amount of guys starting in Buffalo who are on the verge of being major league guys and/or have major league experience... plus Nate Pearson is this year's Vlad Jr.