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Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 8/6/24
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Steve Adams
8:45
Good morning! Looking forward to another chat. We'll get going at 1pm CT, but feel free to submit questions in advance, as always.
1:02
Greetings! Let's get underway!
Giants fan
1:02
Who is  better defensively Patrick Bailey or Gabriel Moreno?
Steve Adams
1:03
I have Bailey as the best defensive catcher in MLB (and one of the best defenders overall. Not a knock on Moreno to say he's below that. He's still quite good.
Pedro Grifol
1:03
Can I make it to the end of the season?
Steve Adams
1:03
Surprised it hasn't already happened, honestly.
Spud
1:03
The Joey Ortiz slump has reached epic proportions. Coupled with the recent loss of Christian Yelich to injury, the Brewers offense has become reminiscent of 2023. Why not take a flyer on J.D. Davis while Ortiz figures it out at AAA?
Steve Adams
1:04
Ortiz is still playing better defense than Davis could be expected to. But the slump is pretty considerable, and it dovetails with his IL stint for that neck injury. Obviously don't know first-hand, but hard not to wonder if he's playing through a good bit of pain
C4
1:05
Hey, when will I be returning to the Twins?
Steve Adams
1:05
He said yesterday he's jogging and turned a corner in the past few days. Still needs to get some sprint work in and then go on a rehab assignment. Sometime mid-August seems feasible?
Dan
1:06
Wound Padres been better off packaging the prospects they used for Scott and Hoeing and gone after Flaherty or Fedde?
Steve Adams
1:08
I think that's arguable -- certainly with regard to Fedde. We also don't know, however, if the White Sox/Tigers felt as highly about Snelling, Mazur, etc. as the Marlins did. Both  have had some struggles this year and shown some red flags. Also don't know how the Padres perceived Flaherty's back.

It's not always just an either-or scenario. There's lots of context involved in the decisions and we can't just presume that Snelling/Mazur/Pauley would've appealed to one of those AL Central clubs. Presumably, Chris Getz loves Miguel Vargas
Free agent
1:08
Who is the number one free agent going into the off-season behind Juan Soto?
Steve Adams
1:08
Corbin Burnes
1:09
We're due for another update to these, but here's how our Free Agent Power Rankings looked at last check:
Astros
1:09
Good morning. I am trying to figure out how much of Verlanders contract the Astros will have to pay next year and if there is a third year?
Steve Adams
1:10
Verlander would unlock a $35MM player option if he pitched 140 innings and avoided an arm injury that threatens his 2025 availability. He's not going to get to 140 innings, so it's a moot point. He'll be a free agent.
houzer
1:10
Bo Bichette - what are the chances the Jays would take a salary dump offer on him this offseason (1 year / 17.5M)? And would he be a good risk for the Tigers to take on if they're ready to turn Baez into the highest paid Util man in the MLB?
Steve Adams
1:10
No way the Jays are simply content to dump Bichette's salary, no
1:11
They'd want legitimate high-end prospects/young talent. And with Bichette only having a year to go before free agency, that doesn't fit especially well with the Tigers' current trajectory.

If he were a free agent looking to max out on a one-year deal and return to market, sure, but giving up guys they control for 5-6 years to buy low on Bichette off his worst season ever doesn't really work.
ROY
1:12
Everyday, all year, allstar rookie excelling at a position change and top 10 in NL batting avg. Merrill or once every 5 days Skenes?
Steve Adams
1:14
Reframed:

Player who impacts every single plate appearance that happens while he's in the game, or player who comes to the plate four times per game and makes a handful of defensive plays every day?

I reject the notion that Skenes is "less" valuable or impressive because he "only" pitches every five days. It's silly in an MVP discussion -- starting pitchers should get way more MVP love -- and arguably even less relevant in ROY voting.

Skenes has been the best pitcher in the National League since he was called up. I'd vote for him right now. It's not a knock on Merrill, who's been outstanding.
Orange, Blue, and Red Bird
1:15
Has Anthony Santander of the Orioles hit himself into a getting a qualifying offer attached to his free agency?
Steve Adams
1:15
He's going to finish with 40+ homers. I'd be surprised if he doesn't get one at this point.
O!
1:15
Jackson Holliday looks pretty good, right?    :)
Steve Adams
1:16
It is almost as though the large contingent of fans who completely wrote off his entire career after 36 plate appearances earlier this season were overreacting
Sandy Alcantara
1:16
Am I traded next trade deadline?
Steve Adams
1:16
If he's healthy, absolutely. I think there's a chance he moves this winter.
Cy young thoughts?
1:17
Skubal/Burnes. Is there anyone else right now on the AL side?
Steve Adams
1:18
Seth Lugo has the same ERA as Skubal but in 14 more innings. Logan Gilbert and George Kirby are in there. I'm probably forgetting someone. I think Skubal is the favorite, but there are enough pitchers in striking distance that it's hardly a foregone conclusion.
Rox
1:19
Does teoscar get around 5 years, $110 this offseason? And where does he fit best?
Steve Adams
1:20
I don't think he'll get there. He'll turn 32 in October and he's probably getting a QO from the Dodgers. I think he'll settle in around four years and $80MM (which is what we predicted last year in a weird offseason where few teams wound up spending much of anything). Could see him having to "settle' for three years (probably north of $20MM per), but he's having a better year this time around, which helps.
Joe Pactwa
1:22
Do you think teams that are out of the running will put their players with expiring contracts on waivers this month as a courtesy to allow those players to join a contending team?
Paul
1:22
The Jays seemed to be trying to get under the CBT when they waived Kiermaier, didn’t retain any of Garcia’s salary in their first trade, and didn’t retain all outgoing salaries at the deadline. Roster Resource shows they are still around $4m over. Do you think they’ll try to get under like the Angels last year with some waiver placements?  Chad Green maybe?
Steve Adams
1:25
Lumping these together because they're similar. Yes, I think there'll be several teams who try a waiver purge this month -- some to get veterans onto winning clubs (e.g. Angels/Kevin Pillar) and some to try to dip under the luxury tax if they fall further back in the standings. Giants are one team that could do this (Conforto, Yaz, etc). Rangers too (Heaney, possibly Scherzer). Just depends how the standings play out.

Darragh is actually working on a piece on this for our subscribers right now.
Willy Adames
1:25
How much do you think I get per year this offseason? 15mm per?
Steve Adams
1:27
Way more. He's a 29-year-old shortstop with power, a plus glove, beloved makeup, etc. He's got all the ingredients that Baez/Story/Swanson had when they were going into free agency and signed for 144, 144 and 177, respectively. He's an easy $100MM+ contract for me, and I'd take the over on 150.
Kevin Pillar
1:28
Why wasn't I traded?
Steve Adams
1:29
I doubt there was a huge market. He'll probably land with a contender on waivers later this month. No reason for the Angels to hold him, and he's said he's likely retiring after the season, so putting him on waivers late this month gives him one more run with a contending team.
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