MLB 2022

[GhostMachine]

Yankee hat? No thanks. I don't need toilet paper.

I already have two Red Sox hats, but might be getting a third for Christmas. Really need a new Cincinnati Reds hat, though. I'm 51, and the oldest cap I own is a Reds one I've had since I was in high school.

 

 

Edited November 14, 2022 by GhostMachine

[Meacon Keaton]

Oh I see. We get swept and you're off the bandwagon. You'll be back when spring rolls around and we will accept you as always, Ghosty. 

[GhostMachine]

Admit it, Meacon: You're still sore about 2004, aren't ya?

.

[Meacon Keaton]

Aren't we both.

[GhostMachine]

2 minutes ago, Meacon Keaton said:

Aren't we both.

Well, I'm sure you and your shadow will get over it. 

[gunnar hendershow]

So the Orioles lose a year of team control for Adley but also don't get a draft pick since, while clearly being the best AL rookie, didn't play in the majors long enough due to injury so he finished 2nd in ROY voting.

Good work, yet again, MLB.

[The Buscher]

The O’s will be the only team impacted by this new rule too as Julio is under a long-term contract, as are the presumptive 1 and 2 in the NL in Harris and Strider.

I’d say this should just be a sign to the O’s that they should try to sit down and hammer out a big extension for Adley now.  The longer you wait, the harder it is to get a young player to extend.

[gunnar hendershow]

12 minutes ago, Jacob deBusch said:

The O’s will be the only team impacted by this new rule too as Julio is under a long-term contract, as are the presumptive 1 and 2 in the NL in Harris and Strider.

I’d say this should just be a sign to the O’s that they should try to sit down and hammer out a big extension for Adley now.  The longer you wait, the harder it is to get a young player to extend.

The point I will say is that he's a bit old already and plays catcher, which would give anyone pause. He hits free agency when he's 29 (will be 30 the following season). So you'd already be at the point where you consider moving him to 1B. 

They really should just tack 2-3 years on now, give him more money up front. But who knows, O's are in an ownership/payroll quagmire right now.

[Toe]

Blue Jays send Teoscar Hernandez to the Mariners for Swanson and Maro.

Kind of a bummer, but Teoscar has only one year of control left and the Jays are desperate for help in the bullpen. This also frees up an outfield spot, so I wonder if another move is coming. 

[Gabriel]

24 minutes ago, Toe said:

Blue Jays send Teoscar Hernandez to the Mariners for Swanson and Maro.

Kind of a bummer, but Teoscar has only one year of control left and the Jays are desperate for help in the bullpen. This also frees up an outfield spot, so I wonder if another move is coming. 

Look for a left-batting outfielder to be added to the team. Moving out Teo's dollars probably happened because something feels imminent on that front to Atkins.

Swanson is a solid relief arm, and as much as I dig Hernandez, he's replaceable and was unlikely to continue with the team after the 2023 season anyways.

What I really like about this trade, is that it dealt from an area of surplus to address a pressing need. I also like that it quietly establishes that anyone looking for one of the Jays catchers will need to ante-up. The fan suggestions online for trades involving our catchers have seemed to be pretty comical, like they think that Toronto NEEDS to trade one of them and will do it for next to nothing.

Nah, bish. You want Jansen, Kirk or Moreno? Better be willing to part with something significant. I'm talking high-end bullpen arms, starters that could slot into the middle of a rotation at worst, or a left-hitting masher with big OPS and good defense. That's not to say that the Jays can't toss in some other pieces to make it work better for an offering team, whether it's bench players or prospects, but I don't think the conversation gets past "would you do..." if the initial offer doesn't include one of those types of players.

EDIT: I forgot that the Jays are heavily interested in Verlander. Maybe Atkins has been given the go-ahead to make a big one or two year offer to the 39 year-old provided he could trim X amount of salary first.

[Toe]

Where do you think Gurriel plays in 2023? Is the outfield going to be him, Springer, and whomever the Jays add? 

[Gabriel]

3 minutes ago, Toe said:

Where do you think Gurriel plays in 2023? Is the outfield going to be him, Springer, and whomever the Jays add? 

It really depends on who gets added.

Free agent-wise, I'm targeting Joey Gallo, Andrew Benintendi, Brandon Nimmo and Michael Conforto as potential adds to the outfield. In case we miss out on all of them, I've got Odubel Herrera as a more "under-the-radar" signing that could be impactful for the team.

Whit Merrifield is also capable of playing any of the outfield positions.

Gurriel can play either of the corner field positions, but I prefer him in left. I really want Springer to move over to right to help keep him healthy. Merrifield can play any of the positions to spot an outfielder a day off whenever needed.

That means that center is the position of greatest need. Brandon Nimmo is clearly the top choice there, but he's going to come at a high price tag. I believe the Jays are more likely to spend money on pitching than on positional needs at the moment, so let's go with an outfield of Gurriel, Odubel Herrera and George Springer with Whit Merrifield as the fourth.

Gallo and Benintendi aren't natural centers, so Springer would need to stay there and I don't like that. They're also going to be costly. They're out. Conforto is a left-handed bat and I'd love to have him, but I don't see him in center and that makes the same Springer problem keep him from being my top target.

If a center-fielder can be brought in via trade (coming back for one of the catchers maybe?), then I'm a lot happier with that idea. Off the top of my head, I'm not sure who might be available that way, but if they can swing a deal and get someone better than Odubel Herrera, I'd probably do it.

The Marlins are in desperate need of a catcher. It would take Kirk or Moreno, likely... but Jesus Sanchez is just 25, plays center and has some pop. He'd be coming off a slightly down year offensively, but the Jays do love their reclamation projects. The White Sox have been linked to catchers this off-season, and they've got a similarly young stud in Luis Robert playing in center. He hits right, which isn't ideal, and it would probably take more to get him than Sanchez.

TL;DR version: I'm talking to the Marlins about what it takes to get Jesus Sanchez in a Jays uniform. Then I'm tackling the cost analysis of trading for him versus signing Brandon Nimmo. Would I rather part with the pieces required to acquire Sanchez, or the money required to sign Nimmo?

Ideal outfield: Gurriel in left, Nimmo or Sanchez at center, Springer in right... with a Merrifield chaser.

[The Buscher]

Jose Abreu to the Astros.  3 years, $58.5 million.

He's still a good hitter but only 15 HR last year going into his age 36 season, no guarantee the power returns to his career norms.  But the Astros already have a bunch of power bats in their lineup as is so he doesn't need to be a 30 HR guy anymore.

[The Buscher]

Rays sign RHP Zach Eflin to a 3-year, $40 million contract.

It is the largest free agent contract the Rays have ever given out.

[gunnar hendershow]

His FIP has always made him seem like a better pitcher than his ERA would have you think. So maybe Tampa Bay knows something, they certainly have the track record.

[Meacon Keaton]

I was literally just talking about this with a Phils fan at work. I told him that somehow that contract will work out in Tampa (BAY)'s favor and they'll make him look like a star. They wouldn't break their cute little piggy bank open for him unless they see something untapped.

[gunnar hendershow]

Holy shit, deGrom to the Rangers. 5 years/$185 million.

[The Buscher]

I thought with a deGrom contract it basically was going to be that he'd have to make a choice on what he wanted more - setting an AAV record at $45 million on a short term deal, or taking a 5-6 year deal for like $30 million a year to just ensure he spends his career on Queens as he repeatedly said he wanted to.

I felt if any team was going to completely throw caution to the wind to give him something close to both of these, it would be the Rangers.  And well, here we are.  Definitely understand the Mets not doing this.  This is just an insane amount of money to pay to a guy who has pitched 2 months of baseball since June 2021.

On the other hand, I feel sick to my stomach that he's actually leaving.  The pantheon of Mets pitching has always been Seaver, Gooden, and now deGrom.  And there's a real argument that deGrom passed Gooden.  Nobody was ever passing Seaver but he was headed toward number retirement territory and all of that.

[Meacon Keaton]

Ah, deGrom taking the Corey Seager route of not ever wanting to play post-season baseball again, eh? At least that $37 million a year will go a long way with no income tax. Texas has no income tax, right? If not, than whoa, bad move, Jake!

[DYSI]

32 minutes ago, Meacon Keaton said:

Ah, deGrom taking the Corey Seager route of not ever wanting to play post-season baseball again, eh? At least that $37 million a year will go a long way with no income tax. Texas has no income tax, right? If not, than whoa, bad move, Jake!

Tbf he was doing a good job of that already, and getting paid WAY less to do it in Queens.

 

It's got to be tough as a Mets fan though. He was poised to be a Mets-lifer but got a monster bag, can't blame the guy.

Edited December 3, 2022 by DYSI