mvp 78

I think the current scouting department is not very similar to the pre-Moneyball days. Eddie Romero Jr is still with the club. I think Bloom came here because there was already a decent system. He just needed to do a few tweaks, not a complete overhaul.

Well, I'd suggest that sometimes it's more fun to get a beer with a guy like Bauer or Sale, depending on your mood.

Wilt Chamberlain: overrated.

Meh. I'd rather go to Union Oyster House, James Hook or Yankee Lobster any day. Eating at Legal Seafood is basically like going to a chain restaurant. Pass.

Yaz 2 is a good story, but he'll be 31 next year and never hit 20 HR's until last season. He bounced around the Orioles system for 6 years. He has flash in the pan written all over him. Worse, his family doesn't want him to play for the Sox because they think it'd be too much pressure for him.

He probably bought the ticket and then decided to not get on the plane when he found out the Pour House is closed.

Do the Rays really want to spend 13M over 2 years for a catcher?

Or the Rays believed Meadows and Glasnow were underrated. At that point, Glasnow had been relegated to the bullpen. Here's what was written at the time. Chris Archer, the two-time All-Star with a team-friendly contract that made him the jewel of baseball's pitching trade market, was finally dealt from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Pittsburgh Pirates, less than a half hour before Major League Baseball's non-waivers trade deadline. Archer, 29, is under contract through 2021 at a palatable $27.6 million for the next three seasons. That made him attractive both for potential suitors and for the budget-conscious Rays, who had dangled him in trade talks in recent years on the chance they could get a return package featuring both quantity and quality. With just minutes to spare, the Pirates - in surprise contention for an NL playoff spot -stepped up with a deal that met their standards. The Pirates will send major league ready pieces Austin Meadows and Tyler Glasnow to Tampa Bay, continuing the Rays' pattern of accumulating advanced young players to make a run in 2019 and 2020. The Rays will also receive a player to be named. Meadows, 23, was a consensus top-10 prospect in baseball before the 2017 season, but injuries and a lackluster major league debut this season dimmed his stock. Nonetheless, the 6-3, 210-pounder has an alluring combo of speed and some power paired with a lifetime .355 on-base percentage in the minor leagues. He'll potentially pair with Kevin Kiermaier and Tommy Pham - also acquired Tuesday by the Rays - in an athletic, dynamic outfield. Glasnow, 24, was a top starting pitcher prospect whose profile has shrunk to that of a hard-throwing reliever. He has a 4.34 ERA this season - but has struck out 72 batters in 56 innings.

I believe Bauer and Sale are two completely different cases. I think Sale was standing up for his team against poor management. I think Bauer is just a self promoter.

Are you trying to talk dirty to me?

Ok, but I think him doing his "silly" twitter posts gets even more people talking about him.

No, I bet he believes if he gets each fanbase talking, there will be more pressure on owners to get a deal done.

Or they believed that a combination of Austin Meadows and Tyler Glasnow would be better long term. They were right.

Moving from the NL to the AL typically makes a pitcher worse. Lester would be here just to help the younger guys. He's got nothing left. They only bring him in if they are punting on 2021.

I'd trade for him, but I wouldn't give up much. I do think the Pirates would be better off picking up the option and moving him at some point. If they decline the option, they are a more hopeless franchise that I imagined.

He's made an advance to a bunch of teams. He's just playing the game and keeping his name out there.

There's a lot of talk about Bauer's free agency. Some of it is about his previous statements about only going year to year on his deals. Will Bauer only sign for 1 year this offseason?

Need to sign a few starters first.

Or not.

Also, WHAT THE f*** WAS THE TALKSOX SIM LEAGUE? Looking through the archives is like taking shrooms.

There was a Herald invasion? I knew about a Dodger Blues invasion, but not the Herald one.

According to dWAR, Robby is fine. Guys like Merrifield and Altuve are a bigger concern in the field. I have to give it to Altuve, he has a flair for the dramatic in the postseason.

The Yankees have largely stuck by catcher Gary Sanchez during what has been an up-and-down career, but it’s possible that could change before next season. Asked Wednesday about Sanchez’s status, general manager Brian Cashman was not willing to commit to him as the team’s No. 1 catcher going forward. Cashman said (via Bryan Hoch of MLB.com) that it’s “certainly a fair question” whether Sanchez will remain the Yankees’ main backstop. The Yankees plan to evaluate the position during the offseason. Sanchez began his career with a flourish in 2016, smacking 20 home runs and slashing .299/.376/.557 in 229 plate appearances, but his offense and defense have been inconsistent since then. Sanchez was a big-hitting catcher as recently as 2019, but the 27-year-old slumped to a .147/.253/.365 line with 10 homers over 178 PA during this past regular season. He also led the AL in passed balls and finished in the majors’ 37th percentile in framing (per Statcast), though he did throw out a respectable 27 percent of would-be base stealers. While the Yankees may be souring on Sanchez, whom they sat in the playoffs on multiple occasions, alternatives aren’t easy to find. J.T. Realmuto would represent an upgrade and a major splash on the open market, but the only starting-caliber catcher available after him in free agency will be James McCann.

And then deal him at the deadline again.

Well, he'd first have to get his leg amputated. Then he'd have to get used to the prosthetic. Probably wouldn't be ready until 2022 when he's a FA.