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Live Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 5/2/17
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Steve Adams
3:01
Greetings! I'll start grabbing questions in a minute or two, but feel free to start sending them my way
Mat
3:02
With the Mets in need of a starter, who would you suspect them looking at?
Steve Adams
3:04
At this point I don't think there'll be too many serious options available. Maybe the ChiSox/Padres will be willing to deal, but even Chicago is only a half game out in the AL Central. And the Mets aren't going to make some kind of Godfather offer for Quintana at this juncture.

Honestly, I think they'll pick up Tommy Milone for cash/PTBNL and just try to stop the bleeding until Matz is back.
Brian
3:04
What could the Giants get in return for Cueto if they haven't turned things around by July?
Steve Adams
3:06
Cueto brought back three pretty solid, near-MLB-ready left-handed pitching prospects (Finnegan, Reed, Lamb) for the Reds two years ago when he was a rental. But, he's two years older now and has the downside of a four-year, $88MM player option remaining on his contract, which would rightly scare any team. So a lesser return than what the Royals parted with -- I'd imagine one really solid prospect plus another lesser piece or two.
Cueto will be an interesting trade scenario to watch, because we haven't really seen an elite player that's likely to opt out marketed at the deadline in this regard.
Drew
3:06
How long before teams like the Blue Jays, Rangers, Giants etc. start waving the white flag for the season?
Steve Adams
3:07
Doubt any of them really start shopping pieces around until late May/early June -- assuming none of them turn it around.
Oliver
3:07
Is Aaron Judge an MVP candidate thus far?
Steve Adams
3:08
If the season ended today, sure he'd get some love. But he's not going to sustain this pace, and it's tough for a corner guy to beat out Trout when he's doing what he's doing in center field. Rookie of the Year candidate for sure though.
Greg
3:09
What is your biggest surprise about the Yankees competing to start the year? Judge? Headley? Castro? Starting pitching ?
Steve Adams
3:10
Probably Judge and the improvements he's made in terms of contact and approach at the plate. He just looks so, so much better this season. I still think the rotation will be an issue for them later in the year. I don't think that CC/Pineda/Tanaka will each hold up for 30+ starts again.
Skip
3:10
If Colon/Garcia struggle, how long before the Braves call up one of their young arms
Steve Adams
3:11
That'll be more dependent on when their young arms start showing they're ready. The Braves will let Garcia and Colon struggle as long as they're healthy. The prospects will dictate their own timelines in that regard... not like the Braves have any delusions of taking the NL East in 2017.
rangers
3:11
Can Yu Darvish fetch two top 100 prospects in a trade?
Steve Adams
3:13
If he's healthy, that'd be my expectation, yeah. Granted, there's a difference between an Amed Rosario/Gleyber Torres type and a guy at the back of a top 100 list or two, but Darvish should fetch a haul. He's not that expensive and would be among the best available arms on the market.
Matt Klentak
3:14
Is Cesar Hernandez a legit .300/.360/.420 kind of hitter?
Steve Adams
3:15
Think I said this a couple weeks ago, but not with the huge uptick in K's. He's rocking a .430 BABIP right now and his K% is up a good 7 percent or so. I like him, but whatever changes he's made to generate more power are going to burn his average/OBP in the long run if this keeps up.
T
3:15
the Adam Jones situation - what the hell is wrong with people and can MLB do anything about it?
Steve Adams
3:17
Some people are just jerks. It's hardly the first time a player's been heckled with some form of racial slurs, but good on MLB and the Red Sox for their response and for pushing to eliminate that type of behavior. Obviously, it's an uphill battle and will never be fully eradicated, but I think it's positive momentum that we're even talking about it to this extent. Several years ago that's probably not the case
Trev
3:17
Profar to padres by deadline seems inevitable, right? What would a deal look like if profar improved his stock a little down at AAA
Steve Adams
3:19
I don't think it's inevitable. Possible, sure. But inevitable? Preller probably likes Profar from their time in Texas, but Profar has two years of control beyond 2017. The Padres would probably prefer someone with more control. Plus, when was the last time Profar actually performed at a high level? 2013? I've said for months that the name value here doesn't match the hype, and it's truer now than ever. I don't think he'd bring much of a return for the Rangers, and if he did right the ship in AAA, they'd probably find at-bats for him in the Majors.
Ryan
3:19
Which player has the most trade value right now? Least trade value?
Steve Adams
3:20
Trout or any young, controllable star with 5+ years left... Seager/Lindor/etc.

Least... Pujols has to be up there in terms of immovable contracts around the game.
Guest
3:20
What are the cubs thinking about doing with Ian happy with an already stacked infield/roster
Steve Adams
3:21
My guess is that he'll eventually be part of a trade package to address an area of need. But you never know -- if someone like Zobrist or Baez gets injured badly, they may hang onto him and plug him into the 2017 roster this summer.
Guest
3:21
Will bellinger get demoted again? Makes no sense for dodgers; he is on a tear
Steve Adams
3:23
The more he hits, the harder that gets. I'd imagine that they called him up with a short-term promotion in mind, but if he keeps raking they're not going to send him down. That said, it's easy for a tear that's lasted all of 25-30 ABs to turn ugly in a hurry.
JM
3:24
Speaking of trading for starters, think the Indians are looking at anyone with the struggles of Bauer/Tomlin?
Steve Adams
3:25
I'd expect Michael Clevinger to get another look before they go out and make a move, but sure I can see it come July. I talked about that at greater length in their offseason review a few weeks ago: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2017/04/offseason-in-review-cleveland-i...
joe
3:26
seager, lindor, or correa if you were starting a team tomorrow?
Steve Adams
3:27
Blah. I'd probably take Lindor ever so slightly over Seager, just because the defense is better and scouting reports suggest he'll stay there longer. All three are great, though I think there's a bit of space between Seager/Lindor and then Correa.
Bill Nye
3:27
Do you think we will see a day when a "reliever" starts the game for an inning or two and the "starter" comes in with hopes of finishing the game? Or a day where there is no real "starters" anymore and just situational pitching for a while game?
Steve Adams
3:29
I do think at a certain point teams will begin experimenting with limiting their pitchers to facing the lineup one or maybe two times at most. Statistically speaking, it makes sense because data overwhelmingly shows that hitters improve when facing a pitcher a second, third, fourth time (due both to that pitcher fatiguing and that hitter getting several looks at the same opponent in a short time).

But, you'd also have to try it with the right set of players. Getting players to buy in to that type of thinking would be difficult; you're fundamentally changing the manner in which they experience a game they've spent their entire lives playing. And, arbitration rewards innings, wins, etc. -- so there are financial reasons for the players to push back as well.
JTFWoodhead
3:29
has doug fister done a workout? is he planning to? feels like a good candidate for the Mets rotation.
Steve Adams
3:30
Mets watched him work out last month, but no deal came from it. Maybe they'll circle back now. Problem is -- as Alderson alluded to -- by the time Fister ramps up for an MLB start, the Mets may very well have Matz and/or Lugo back. Still think having Fister or a similar vet for depth would be good though. Wheeler won't start all year and other injuries are bound to creep up.
James
3:31
What should the Rockies do to become contenders for NL West?
Steve Adams
3:32
They'd need to add a couple of arms to that rotation to really sell me on their chances. I like what's coming together there in terms of the core, but I don't buy the current staff in 2017. And I wouldn't advocate selling pieces for short-term rentals, given where their organization stands as a whole. If they can land someone like Quintana or Archer -- a guy that's around for another several years -- then by all means, pursue that opportunity this summer.
Totally Chipper Jones
3:34
Do you think we will see a day when performance based contracts with no limit replace the guaranteed contracts based on past performance and arbitration? I.E. Mike Trout makes Mike Trout Money, but Pujols would have made his money in the cardinal days and pennies now?
Steve Adams
3:34
I don't think the MLBPA would ever go for "your performance dictates your pay, but you have no guarantees."
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