JotCast | Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat

Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat - 1/13/25

Ben Clemens

2:00

Hey everyone, welcome to the chat

I'm gonna let questions pile up for, call it, 5 minutes

I ran into a database construction snag that I'm juuuuust about finished working on

2:02

Okay, I think I'm maybe done there

let's get going

Davy Andrews

2:02

Hi Ben!

Ben Clemens

2:02

Hey Davy

Idiotic Failson

2:02

On the heels of the extraordinarily bleak ZIPs forecast for the White Sox in general and especially the bullpen, doesn't it make sense for that team to just take as many flyers on low end castoffs as possible to see what they can get to stick? If your bullpen is literally below replacement level it seems like you have to be trying to be that bad.

Ben Clemens

2:02

For sure. But to be fair, they're doing a lot of this

Ken

2:03

How do the A's fit Rooker, Soderstrom, Bleday, and Kurtz into the same lineup everyday? Soderstrom can't play catcher effectively. Bleday can't play centerfield at all. Rooker probably shouldn't play the field at all. Is one of Bleday or Soderstrom bound to be traded once Kurtz is ready? Any chance that Soderstrom could handle left field?

Ben Clemens

2:04

I think that the A's will cross that bridge when they get to it. Rooker could maybe handle a corner outfield spot but maybe not; I think it depends on how much last year was impacted by injury

But just so we're all clear, Nick Kurtz was drafted less than a year ago, and has exactly 15 plate appearances above A ball

2:05

if it turns out that Soderstrom, Rooker, and Bleday are all such good players that you want to squeeze them into the lineup, there'll be some way to do it or they'll manage to trade one

but this is classic 'assuming all of our 50/50 bets hit we're going to be over-staffed'

like, yeah. but probably one of these guys won't pan out

Bart

2:06

Hi Ben!

Ben Clemens

2:06

Hey Bart

Carson

2:06

I feel in the minority with this, but do you genuinely believe in a path forward for Nolan Gorman in St. Louis? Feels tailor-made for a team like Seattle to acquire some pitching, with Donovan at 3B and Wetherholt eventually at 2B. Thoughts?

Ben Clemens

2:06

Perhaps... but okay, what kind of pitching are you getting back for Gorman

everyone wants to trade Seattle their middling young players for like, Logan Gilbert

I don't think the M's would even consider trading Bryan Woo for Gorman, though

Tacoby Bellsbury

2:07

What do you miss most from your pre-professional writing days?

Ben Clemens

2:07

I miss having a real office with coworkers who did similar but not completely overlapping stuff

It was nice that I could talk shop during the day, and not in a 'we're doing the same project' way

2:08

I feel like I got a lot of very good ideas from just bs'ing with friends

To be clear, that's a pretty minor thing and I love my job

but I really did like that feeling

Sirras

2:08

Ben, will Seattle trade me their best cost-controlled pitcher for my team's castoffs and nontender candidates?

Ben Clemens

2:08

You? yes

drplantwrench

2:08

hi ben! do you ever go by Benji?

Ben Clemens

2:08

nah

Bosoxforlife

2:09

MLB recently had a segment about the best free agent signings of all time. Neither Kenny or Russo mentioned the greatest FA , nothing comes close to David Ortiz.

Ben Clemens

2:09

I think the issue here is that he was never REALLY a free agent in the way we think about them

or well, I supose he was in 2011?

2:10

No, actually now that I'm looking at it, that's not true

2:11

Yeah, I don't think that signing a non-guaranteed deal counts. Like, he signed a one-year $1.25 million deal. Can't really credit the rest of his career to that deal

Carson

2:11

I hear you on Gorman, I am more pessimistic than most on him and wouldn't expect a ton. Logan Evans + a name or two would intrigue me enough.

Ben Clemens

2:12

Yeah, I mean maybe that would work? I'm not really sure. I'm generally a Gorman pessimist too, though

jaygray007

2:12

Just a followup on one of your answers to someone else... is "Rooker might have been injured, and this might have kept him out of OF duty" an actual thing? or are you just musing?

Ben Clemens

2:12

musing

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