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Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 4/30/24
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Steve Adams
8:39
Last chat of April! We're more than a month into the season but still have four teams sitting on single-digit win totals: Rockies, Marlins, White Sox and ... Astros (!?). The Twins have won 8 straight. The Marlins have lost 7 straight. San Diego's dropped five in a row.

I'll be back to start chatting at 1pm CT, but feel free to submit questions ahead of time. Looking forward to it!
12:56
Greetings! Let's get underway!
Julio Rodriguez
12:56
Your best guess, am I just a warm weather hitter? Has the league adjusted to me and I haven't made the needed adjustments yet? Too much pressure being THE superstar in Seattle, for the only team never to even appear in a World Series?
Steve Adams
12:59
J-Rod had slow starts in 2022 and in 2023. He was hitting .205/.284/.260 on this date in '22 and .209/.301/.442 on this day last year. The Mariners in general tend to start slow, and I doubt it's entirely coincidental given the climate in which they play their home games. Rodriguez's K% is up this year but he's not chasing or even whiffing more than last year. The batted-ball data is still great. I think he's a superstar and will generally be fine.
John
12:59
Is Pressly a likely trade candidate if the Astros don’t turn it around?
Steve Adams
1:01
Potential free agent reliever in his mid-30s on a relatively expensive contract is a pretty classic summer trade profile, yeah.

Pressly's contract does have a $14MM option that becomes guaranteed if he makes 50 appearances this season. (He's at 12 presently) So he could be more than a rental, which might impact his status a bit, but generally yeah -- if the 'Stros are out of it I'd expect him to be out there.
Puzzled
1:01
How is it that Alex Cobb was put on the 60-day IL but can come off in 30 days?  was one of those a misprint?
Steve Adams
1:02
Cobb was placed on the 60-day IL on March 28 (Opening Day), retroactive to March 25 (the maximum 3 days by which an IL stint can be back-dated). The "60-day" term begins with that March 25 date, regardless of when he's shifted from the 15-day to the 60-day. It doesn't reset when he moves to the 60.
Traveling Wilbury
1:03
Who do you think has the worst record at the end of the season, the White Sox or Oakland?
Steve Adams
1:03
Sox
Guest
1:03
So, Miranda has hit “well” since his call up. Will the Twins try to keep his bat in the lineup upon Lewis’ return? Or is he going to be an up and down guy?
Steve Adams
1:04
The Twins use the entirety of their left/right platoon system pretty aggressively. If Miranda is still hitting when Lewis comes back, they'll find a way to keep him in the mix by working him in some at first base, designated hitter, etc. They'll probably have some new injuries pop up along the way anyhow. Most teams do.
Tyler
1:04
Will the A’s trade Mason Miller before the trade deadline given all the injury problems with pitchers?
Steve Adams
1:05
They control him through 2029. Even for a team in Oakland's situation, I'd be shocked if they gave up 5+ years of someone as talented as Miller.
Ms
1:05
How good is mariners pitching! Last nights game was amazing
Steve Adams
1:05
I picked the Mariners to win the World Series because I cannot get over how talented and deep their pitching staff is.
LeinieGuy
1:06
Oneil Cruz or Elly De La Cruz?
Steve Adams
1:06
Elly -- more a statement of praise for EDLC than a knock on Oneil
SK8RAY
1:06
Thoughts on Tampa Bay's City Connect?
Steve Adams
1:06
Thumbs up from me
Tim
1:06
Brandon belt is a great fit for a number of teams. Jays come to mind. Why no interest?
Steve Adams
1:08
He's only a "great" fit if the Jays want to play 39-year-old Justin Turner at 3B full-time, which seems suboptimal. But Belt would be an upgrade over Vogelbach so yeah, point stands.

In general, I don't really get the lack of love for Belt, who mashed RHP last year and would've been available on a 1-year deal that in no way breaks the bank.
Presumably still would be
Giants fan
1:08
Does Logan Webb have a chance at a cy young?
Steve Adams
1:08
I don't have a list of my top-10 pitchers in MLB handy or anything, but Webb would be on it, so yeah, easy to list him as a candidate.
Chris
1:10
Does this Astros recent call up mean the end for Jose Abreu?
Steve Adams
1:10
I don't think they'll just straight up release Abreu one month into the second season of a three-year deal, but it should definitely cut into his playing time
Sox fan
1:11
Red Sox staff ERA (2.68) for real or an early season mirage?
Steve Adams
1:12
They have practically an entire rotation on the injured list and the depth is so thin that they're starting guys like Chase Anderson and Cooper Criswell. Depth has always been the issue here. The Sox have some talented arms (Houck, Bello, Pivetta, etc.) -- they just don't have much behind them and didn't do much of anything to rectify that this winter.
jason
1:13
Do either / both Kimbrel or Jansen make the Hall of Fame?
Steve Adams
1:13
I expect they'll both get in
John
1:14
If norby gets the call and performs well for the Orioles, how do they call Holliday back up? Do you believe there is too much depth for the Orioles for this situation?
Steve Adams
1:15
Injuries are inevitable, and if not, Holliday is 20. It's not like he'd burst into flames and fall off the face of the earth if he didn't have an everyday MLB role until he's 21. But some degree of health/underperformance elsewhere on the roster will clear things up, I'm sure.
Cards guy
1:15
Is it over already?
Steve Adams
1:16
It's been a crappy month but they're all of two games under .500 and 4.5 back in the division. I wouldn't say it's over even if they were in this spot like four months from now.
Ms
1:16
Do you think the struggles of polanco/garver mean Cole young or Harry ford get called up earlier than otherwise thought?
Steve Adams
1:20
Polanco's already hitting better than Kolten Wong did last year, and the M's gave Wong like two-plus months to figure things out.

Polanco's K% is up, but his chase and swinging-strike rates are actually both down noticeably. He's being a bit passive, with his overall swing% down by about 5 points. Maybe that's the M's asking him to be more patient. Maybe he's just trying not to be overaggressive in a new setting. I don't know for sure, but I'm not all that concerned about him in the long run. He has a lengthy track record and we're talking a slump of a few weeks here.

Garver's hitting the ball hard. His K's are up and his contact's down. A little more worrying given his long slate of injuries, but he's a notoriously streaky guy anyhow and I still think he can be a good DH for them -- particularly against LHP.
samuel
1:20
do you see the royals staying in the race? im a big kc fan but its been a fun start.Salvy and the pitching have been fun surprises
Steve Adams
1:22
The offense is just pretty bad outside of Witt, Salvy and Vinnie. A rebound from Maikel Garcia or a step forward from another young hitter would make me feel better, because I don't think the starts from the non-Ragans/Singer arms are fully sustainable. Lugo was great last year but his K% is in the gutter this season. Wacha's a 4.00ish ERA guy who'll probably miss 6-10 starts. Marsh's start is nice but he's like Lugo in the dangerously low strikeout category. The bullpen has the second-lowest K% in MLB.

There could be some help coming from the farm, and maybe if they're hanging around .500 at the deadline they'll push in some chips to add some veterans, but the Royals' roster is pretty top-heavy.
1:23
One injury to Witt, Ragans, Singer, Perez or Pasquantino and it's going to hurt a lot.
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