You are viewing the chat in desktop mode. Click here to switch to mobile view.
X
Klawchat 11/9/17
powered byJotCast
Keith Law
2:11
It's the school exam and the kids have run away. Klawchat.
Erix
2:11
Why is it that pitchers go in the top 10 in the draft but are seldom top 10 intl prospects?
Keith Law
2:12
Is that true? I assume you mean pitchers are seldom among the top 10 bonuses in IFA. I would guess that the reason is that predicting arm health for 15- or 14-year-old pitchers is rather difficult.
Ronald Acuna
2:12
What type of package could Ender Inciarte return?  Could he be a centerpiece of a top-of-rotation arm?
Keith Law
2:12
I would think so - or a middle-of-the-order bat at a position of need (third?). If you don't get something like that, you don't trade him.
Wally
2:12
What would you do if you were Mike Rizzo?  All in for 2018 then let harper, Murphy maybe Stras leave and do a total rebuild?  Or, do you think there is enough room between them and 2nd place in the NL East to make some changes now (trade one or more of Murphy/Gio/Roark/heaven forbid Harper?) to extend the window while still giving them a good (albeit lesser) chance to win the East in 2018
Keith Law
2:13
All in for 2018 while you have this group. Hard to forecast assembling another roster with 2 real MVP candidates, 2 real CYA candidates, and so much additional talent. Have to go for it.
Bored Lawyer, Esq.
2:13
Forrest Whitley had rather high BABIPs throughout his stops in the minors.  Is that a blip? What could it mean relative to his stuff?
Keith Law
2:13
Wouldn't take anything away from it. Research on BABIPs has focused on the majors, not minors.
ssimon
2:13
Your Stick to Baseball links from last weekend included the L.A. Times' investigation of Disney's tax breaks in Anaheim. Are you as opposed to these subsidies for corporations as you are for owners of baseball teams?
Keith Law
2:15
No, because there's at least some economic benefit from such subsidies or tax breaks. Financing a sports stadium doesn't bring economic benefits; any jobs created are unskilled and temporary, and "new" spending is generally shifted from other (local) outlets. A city or state can subsidize the construction of, say, an Intel fab or a Toyota factory, and thus create skilled jobs that will generate new tax revenues and increase local consumption. That said, there has to be an actual cost/benefit analysis there, and the LAT article claimed that Anaheim isn't getting what it pays for.
Dan
2:15
A thought on the home run spike. Obviously the ball is juiced and that is clear as day. But isn’t interesting that the spike seemed to affect the lower-middle power guys? The players who’d normally hit 10-15 were hitting 20-25 instead. But the top end guys maybe didn’t that big of a spike? Everyone thought Stanton could do this if healthy, this might be Judge’s peak but it wasn’t out of nowhere, and bellinger is also a freak.
Keith Law
2:17
I disagree. Stanton, Judge, Bellinger all benefited, clearly. Khris Davis hit 43. Justin Smoak nearly doubled his career high to 38, putting him top 10 in the majors. It seemed to affect everyone.
Same question different day
2:17
Given the new bal environment, is it at all possible to project potential power output from minors to majors?
Keith Law
2:17
It's probably doable but I would guess a large adjustment is required to any model - and of course it could become irrelevant if the ball gets un-juiced.
Jay
2:17
I think I've asked you before but am curious if you think teams are much closer to wanting more studys or medical access to this - How much do you think deteriorating eye sight for hitters as they get older factors into rising strikeout rates compared to just the physical decline component?
Keith Law
2:17
My guess, again just off the top of my head, is very little. I believe it's mostly loss of quickness & reaction time.
Jack
2:17
What do you make of the Giants reported interest in Heyward? Is it even legitimate to think that such a trade is possible?
Keith Law
2:18
Baggarly said it's not true. I'll go with him on anything Giants, other than Omar Vizquel's legacy.
Patrick
2:18
Good day Keith! As a favored source of baseball knowledge, I instead want to tap your knowledge of European metal music.
My hockey playing friends are clamoring for more of that type music, and I don't know where to start. Recommendations that won't scare off the rest of the on-ice skaters?
Keith Law
2:21
Maybe go for some classic German thrash like Destruction, more contemporary thrash like Hammerfall, Viking metal acts like Tyr, or, if they can handle it, something a little more experimental like Gojira.
Adam D.
2:21
I am struggling to see a realistic way for the Giants to contend before 2020. Given what they have now, would you advocate for an Astros-style tear down and who would you make untouchable? I'll be honest, I am leaning that way and would probably only keep Bumgarner and Posey.
Keith Law
2:22
If you're doing that, you don't keep anybody. You trade Posey now, because a 30-year-old catcher with 3 years left on his deal and 800 games behind the plate isn't going to gain value.
Harrisburg Hal
2:22
With your math and science interests, did you consider engineering?
Keith Law
2:23
My dad was an EE, and he liked his job, but he didn't encourage that as a career path for me, primarily because he saw how much the job tended to change with each new generation of technology. I did enjoy programming, but I'm not sure it would have worked for a career for me, given my desire to express myself creatively too.
Stupid hypo guy
2:23
If their defensive values were the same, Vlad Jr is well above Acuna, right?
Keith Law
2:23
That's true.
Derek
2:23
Others (maybe you too?) have said Acuna is by far the best player in the AFL. Is he really much better than Robles? 2017 minor league hitting stats look awfully similar (of course noting that Acuna is half a hear younger, and spent time in AAA and Robles did not).  Does Acuna's defense profile better in CF? It's hard to believe Acuna has more speed.
Keith Law
2:24
I didn't say that, because I only saw one Acuna AB (and then a HBP). Robles wasn't there yet, but he might be the better prospect anyway.
ssimon
2:24
Based on your estimation of what the QO free agents will receive, which among Jake Arrieta, Wade Davis, Lance Lynn, Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Lorenzo Cain, Alex Cobb, Greg Holland, and Carlos Santana, would you encourage a competitive team to sign?
Keith Law
2:24
I might consider giving up a pick for Arrieta, Cain, and maaaaaybe Santana. That's it.
Jeff
2:24
What are the best mobile boardgames that you would recommend?
Keith Law
2:25
One of my offseason projects will be a new ranking of all the iOS/mobile boardgames I've played, which has to be over 40 by now. Carcassonne is still the best. Agricola is great. Caylus is too, if it's still supported. All the Days of Wonder titles are good. 7 Wonders comes next week...
John
2:25
How much is Otani actually losing? If he is as good as advertised (an ace and a top five DH in the AL) what kind of money could he get in arbitration?
Keith Law
2:25
He won't get to arbitration until he has three years of service. He's leaving well over $100 million on the table by coming now.
Dale Cooper
2:25
Most murder investigations don't take as long as MLB's Braves investig........wait.....did.....did the Braves......murder someone?
Keith Law
2:26
This and the weird leaks have me wondering what on earth is going on over on Park Ave.
Ryan
2:26
Enjoying the annual freakout over early offseason Boras asking prices? You'd think people who watch the same movie year after year would get wise to the plot, but apparently not.
Keith Law
2:26
And then we had the freakout over the freakout, which was really hard to fathom. I'm in favor of players asking for and getting every dollar they can, but if I think a team overpays a player, darn right I'm going to laugh at them.
Kevin
2:26
Out of the HOF veterans committee nominees, who do you think gets elected and who do you think should get elected?
Load More Messages
Connecting…