You are viewing the chat in desktop mode. Click here to switch to mobile view.
X
Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 3/11/25
powered byJotCast
Steve Adams
8:34
Good morning! We'll get going at 1pm CT, but feel free to submit questions ahead of time, as always. Looking forward to it!
1:00
Good afternoon! Let's get going
Passport Office
1:00
Does anyone else hate these overly early overseas openers?
Steve Adams
1:01
I'm sure some people do. I love them, though. Atmosphere is always great. Fun to see other countries loving/appreciating the sport. If it were more feasible middle of the season, I'd welcome more of them.
Mr. Red
1:01
Were you surprised to see Noelvi Marte go down to the minors?
Steve Adams
1:02
Not really. He looked lost last year and has had a poor spring. He's got a long ways to go before he builds his stock back to where it was a couple years ago.
baseball gods laugh and laugh
1:02
Hi Steve, what would you do about the catching situation for the Mets? I would sign McCann ASAP.
Steve Adams
1:03
Yeah, McCann or getting Tomas Nido out of Tigers camp if they're amenable to that. I think it's pretty hard to bring in an outside acquisition and have him learn a whole new staff on the fly. Obviously they CAN do that if they need to, but McCann and Nido already are familiar with/have worked with several guys on the staff, which can help in a short-term need/pinch like this.
Gibby
1:04
Cardinals have to make a trade with the Yankees and/or Orioles now…right?
Steve Adams
1:05
I'd have said back in November that they "have to" trade Erick Fedde and Ryan Helsley this winter. They did not. So, sure, I think Fedde to either NYY or BAL makes good sense, but do they "have" to do it? Not at this point.
Doug
1:05
What's your take on Trevor Bauer's post on joining the Yankees pitching staff for league minimum?
Steve Adams
1:05
He's been tweeting that he'd sign for league minimum for like three years now
Mo's BowTie
1:05
Fedde to the Orioles for Honeycutt.  Who says no?
Steve Adams
1:06
If I were the Cardinals I'd want more than Vance Honeycutt.
Ryan
1:06
Is KC an option for Verdugo? The outfield is likely still to be a huge problem for them. A platoon with Renfroe would provide an upgrade. Is his personality that bad that he's still available? (Along with coming off a rough year)
Steve Adams
1:09
If it's true that the Pirates "floated" something around $8MM before signing Pham (using Jon Heyman's wording from his report last week) and Verdugo didn't take it, then I'm not surprised he's unsigned. That's about where I'd have pegged him back in November. If he's holding out hope for something in that range at this point, he's going to be at home for awhile longer.

With regard to the Royals, yeah, there's a pretty clear fit there, but I also can't blame them if they'd rather just stick in-house. With how Verdugo hit from mid-May through season's end, you could easily argue he's not an improvement there.
Vinny Capra
1:10
Have I earned a shot with the big club this spring? I am out of options.
Steve Adams
1:12
He's on Milwaukee's 40-man roster, has had a nice spring, is out of options as you said, hit decently in AAA last year, can play three infield spots and left field. I'd lean yes. At the same time, he's a 28-year-old journeyman with 37 MLB plate appearances and a middling track record overall in AAA. If they move on for someone younger, I won't be shocked or anything.

I dunno what that means percentage-wise... I guess I'm around 60-40?
The worst
1:13
Do you see the Marlins being the worst team this year and can they challenge 120 losses?
Steve Adams
1:14
Depends how early they trade Sandy, but yeah I think I have them pretty close with the White Sox at this point. The roster is brutal. You can see the rotation being decent if healthy, but the lineup and bullpen ... oof.
Marlins fan
1:15
Should the Marlins look at bringing in Verdugo or JD Mart to help their team?  They look like a 40 win team as is.
Steve Adams
1:15
On a very relate note: yes, to both
Related*
Athletics
1:15
Is there room for an addition like JD Martinez for this team yet?  Team seems close to .500 if they add one more player?
Steve Adams
1:16
Doesn't seem like they want to play Rooker in the OF full-time (or barely at all, really).
Roger Goodell
1:16
NFL free agency - way less talent than MLB, way more entertaining to follow. Why are baseball fans so quick to defend the drawn-out offseason? The frenzy is fun
Steve Adams
1:17
Why do some people prefer action movies while others like slow, plodding dramas? People are entertained in different ways. There's no objectively right answer. I like both, but I prefer my baseball to be year-round and have even before I started working here. I like that there's always something to be keeping an eye on.
David Robertson
1:18
What's keeping teams like ARI and TEX with questions at closer from signing me? Where and when do you think I sign?
Steve Adams
1:19
Rangers ownership doesn't want to go over the luxury tax. D-backs are already at a franchise-record payroll by $20MM or so.
naked
1:19
Alcantara for a package around Dominguez/Lombard Jr./Schlittler.. who hangs up first?
Steve Adams
1:20
I doubt the Yankees would give Dominguez up there, but I agree they should be trying their best to make the Marlins give up Sandy before the market really develops.
JackJ R
1:20
I recently saw that the Yankees had "good" insurance on Cole.  Now that they will unfortunately  be collecting, does that impact in any way their payroll penalty taxes?
Steve Adams
1:21
Cole's full contract will still count against the CBT, but the Yankees will still get a big chunk of cash back. I'm not sure on the details of the policy, but if they get, say, $20-25MM of his salary covered by that policy, they could sign Kyle Gibson for $8-10MM and effectively have the entire thing (salary + tax) offset by their insurance policy
Andi
1:22
Did the Blue Jays learn nothing form the Angels and Ohtani, how can you let Vlad walk for nothing but a single draft pick? Got to be pragmatic at some point.
Steve Adams
1:25
I think they'll be more pragmatic in July if they're out of the playoff picture and move him then. For now, they're still trying to win and see a roster with Vlad as the best path to do so (understandably).

Now, you can justifiably question that mentality. I wrote last summer that they were making a mistake by only listening on short-term players. I thought Vlad and others should've been marketed then. They clearly disagree.

Probably doesn't help that the front office has to know change could be coming down if things don't turn around this season.
Mitch Haniger
1:26
Do I make the Mariners roster? Seems like Tellez is making a push for my job
Steve Adams
1:28
I don't know if 5-for-24 with a pair of homers is "making a push," though that small sample is better than what Haniger has done thus far. Still, Haniger is making $15.5MM this season and that alone is going to give him a big edge. I don't think Tellez is making it without an injury, personally. Mitch Garver just had a scare, but X-rays on him came back negative.
Tbone
1:29
Barring any wild injuries do you think the reds can be competitive this year as is?
Steve Adams
1:31
Yeah, I think so. The NL Central isn't a powerhouse by any means. I have the Cubs and Brewers ahead but not by a huge margin. I don't expect a Wild Card team to come from the NLC -- the East and West are deeper -- but I think the Reds will be right there to the point that things like injuries and trade deadline activity could be the ultimate determining factor.
Lou Collins
1:31
Can the Red Sox make a legit push for the AL East crown? Yanks are banged up and the Orioles are still young. Would be a fun race to watch with all 3 teams going at it.
Load More Messages
Connecting…