JotCast | Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat

Ben Clemens FanGraphs Chat - 2/1/21

Ben Clemens

2:00

Hey everyone, and welcome to the chat.

Gonna be a lot to talk about today, so let's get right to it.

George

2:01

Hey Ben! I was hoping for your thoughts on Kieboom/Garcia in Washington. Which would you pick to be more likely a contributing player for the Nats?

Ben Clemens

2:01

Big fan of Kieboom, not like I have a ton of inside information on him but I find how much people have come down on him after a few partial seasons of at bats strange

2:02

He has 165 PA's in the majors, give it a little time

>this guy<

2:02

Ben "pretend" I am not all that smart and explain to me why we do not know whether there will be a DH in the NL by February 1!

2:02

How ridiculous is it that it's Feb 1 and there's no news on a universal DH for 2021?

Ben Clemens

2:02

Okay, I actually explained this to a relative who doesn't follow baseball at all last week, so I've got you

2:03

The owners think that the players would pay a lot of money to have a universal DH

So they keep asking for valuable concessions in exchange for the DH

The players don't actually care that much. They'd take it, don't get me wrong, but it's not an extra roster spot or anything

So the owners keep saying "Hey we'll give you the DH in exchange for that pot of gold"

2:04

And the players are like "no what this pot of gold is full of gold you idiots"

Pumpsie Green

2:04

The Jays are looking for pitching, and may be looking to move an outfielder. How about Randal Grichuk for David Price? Helps the Dodgers stay under the luxury tax by spreading the outlay over 3 years instead of 2.

Ben Clemens

2:04

This trade would make sense if the Dodgers decided they wanted to get worse by a good amount for no reason

So I mean, never say never

2:05

But yeah, that feels like something the Dodgers don't at all need to do

They hvae other levers to pull cap-wise and also, it's a marginal penalty

Certainly not enough to move a valuable player to fix it

Gil McDougald

2:06

What is your reaction to the MLB proposal to play a 154-game season starting in late April, keep the universal DH, expand the playoffs, etc.?

RE: NL DH

2:06

I understand that expanded playoffs is huge for the owners and worth more than the DH, but what else would the players even want to even out that deal that isn't big enough to be decided by the next CBA?

Ben Clemens

2:06

I don't think the players should accept expanded playoffs for this year, period.

Like you said, anything big enough to work as a value offset is big enough for the CBA negotiations

2:07

That said, the OWNERS should chip in the universal DH in exchange for some marginal thing, getting their way on spring training or something like that

It's equally annoying for players and front offices to not have resolution on this

Guest

2:08

while driving, i just heard mlb radio announce that ST is being pushed back a month and that the season for 2021 will be reduced to 154 games.

Ben Clemens

2:08

That's what MLB proposed. The union is extremely likely to reject it.

bosoxforlife

2:08

On a scale of 1-10, where do you put the level of distrust between the owners and the MLBPA and how will it manifest itself right now.

Ben Clemens

2:08

It's like a 9

It will manifest itself in the players not countering the owners' offer

2:09

And likely in the 2021 season playing out as the CBA dictates rather than with some concessions from both sides for COVID

Guest

2:09

Will there be an Eddie Rosario signing piece?

Ben Clemens

2:09

Yeah, it should be popping up soon

Simon Garf, Your Uncle

2:09

If Ozuna is a DH, would you rather have 3 years of Nelson Cruz decline phase or 5 years of Ozuna at 1.5x the price?

Guest

2:09

Do you reckon the reason Ozuna hasn't signed is partly to do with MLB dragging their heels about the universal DH and partly about Ozuna wanting to get paid like someone who can play in the field?

Ben Clemens

2:10

I think this is totally why there's a holdup on Ozuna

Even if a team thinks he can play the outfield, there's a very different market for him based on whether teams have 8 or 9 hitters

Simon Garf, Your Uncle

2:11

Do you believe Ozuna's 2020 is a reflection of his future worth, or was he just hot for a lot of 2020?

Ben Clemens

2:11

It's lame but I say somewhere in between

He's not goin to hit like he did in 2020, of course

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