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Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 1/6/26
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Steve Adams
8:37
Good morning, and happy New Year to all! I'll get going around 1pm CT, give or take a couple minutes. Feel free to send in questions ahead of time if you're so inclined. Looking forward to it!
12:59
Greetings!
Happy New Year
Let's get going
Michael Young is my goat
12:59
Am I delusional in thinking signing Verlander, Coulombe, and Hoskins would both fit the Rangers budget as well as round out the roster in decent fashion. I view them needing a middle of the rotation guy, a leverage arm(some liberties here), and a part time RH bat who can dh and/or play a corner spot. Seems fairly realistic to me, assuming Verlander doesn't want to specially go back to Detroit or Houston.
Steve Adams
1:01
We don't have a great sense of the Rangers' stopping point for their budget, but they've watched several guys who were good contributors in 2025 -- Hoby Milner, Jacob Webb, Shawn Armstrong -- sign pretty cheap one-year deals elsewhere, which doesn't seem to bode well for them having the money to sign the guys you listed.

I'm also not sure they'd see a big enough gap between Hoskins and Burger. Also imagine you're probably underselling what Verlander can/will command on a one-year deal once he signs.
1:02
Tl;dr ... I think that's probably a more expensive slate of names than they sign. On an individual level, sure, I can see them bringing Coulombe back.
In Suspenders
1:02
Are my Giants going to "show the money"?
Steve Adams
1:03
I think they're of the mindset that they "showed the money" when they acquired Devers, signed Adames and extended Chapman.

Their offseason has been wildly underwhelming to date, but they've repeatedly signaled that they don't think they'll be going particularly long-term on any prominent free agents.

Would still love to see them grab Tucker or Bichette, but nothing they've done to this point suggests to me that they're going to stretch to those levels.
The Real Steve Adams
1:04
Cijnte and Montes for Donovan, who says no?
Steve Adams
1:04
I think both is too steep for the Mariners to pay. Have a hard time seeing the Cardinals turn that down.
Douggy18
1:04
Why has Jonah Heim gotten no attention?  Has he fallen off that badly?
Steve Adams
1:06
He's been terrible for two seasons and is probably the third- or fourth-best catcher on the market at the moment. Have to imagine he's waiting on Realmuto and Caratini to sign.

Heim probably gets a big league deal, but if you told me he had to settle for a minor league contract/NRI, I wouldn't be stunned. He's batted .217/.269/.334 over his past 925 MLB plate appearances, and his once-elite defensive grades have cratered.

That's not going to be a priority for any club.
Bucco Basement
1:06
Boras gets blamed alot for allegedly leaking information about interested teams to drive up contract offers. How true are these accusations and how much do you think this kind of information unfairly gets fans' hopes up that their team is actually in on FAs when they are not realistic destinations (thinking specifically of the Pirates' connection to Okamoto and the ridiculous assertion that they are "in" on Bellinger)?
Steve Adams
1:07
90% of agents/agencies put things out to the media -- it's not a Boras-specific thing.
WandersLust
1:07
As the off-season progresses and teams firm up depth charts, does a trade of Brendan Donovan or Ketel Marte become less likely?
Steve Adams
1:09
I've said repeatedly that I don't think Marte will move -- even if I am admittedly working on something regarding which teams are the best fits in a trade based on need/payroll/young pitching supply -- and I'd be shocked if Donovan is a Cardinal on Opening Day
1:10
On Marte: I don't think it happens, but it's obviously being discussed, and it's of immense interest to our readers, so I think it's worth looking at without overplaying the likelihood. There's obviously a non-zero chance he goes ... I just think it's far likelier he stays put.
Cory
1:10
So I assume a reliever or 2 on major league deals or trades, as well as at minimum a Trevor Larnach trade at some point. After that, what would you expect the Twins to do the rest of the offseason? For example, do you think they listen on someone like Wallner too? Thanks!
Steve Adams
1:11
They have to sign (or trade for) at least two relievers. I don't know who's giving up anything for Larnach. I was surprised they tendered him a deal. Maybe someone sees an OF go down this spring and shows some interest.

No reason they wouldn't listen on Wallner, in my eyes.
Donnie
1:11
If the Phillies dont bring back JT, Is Adley a reasonable fallback option?
Steve Adams
1:12
Baltimore president Mike Elias has been pretty clear that he thinks having Rutschman and Basallo on the same roster is a strength. They'd be selling low on Adley, and Basallo hasn't really proven himself as a major league catcher anyhow.

I just don't think a Rutschman trade is all that likely.
Reds
1:12
Is Spencer Jones a legit ROY candidate and what are the chances he gets traded?
Steve Adams
1:14
Yankee fans probably hate every time I take a Jones question, because I'm about as bearish on his outlook as anyone at MLBTR (and probably at other sites... FanGraphs, PitcherList, etc.)

I just don't see how someone who swings and misses THAT much in the minors can produce in the big leagues. The tools are huge, the physicality is impressive, all that ... but he fanned in 37% of his AAA plate appearances. That's Joey Gallo levels of minor league strikeouts.
1:15
Obviously Gallo had a few really good years, so maybe that's not an unrealistic outcome for Jones, but I just don't think he's going to be a star and think there's a larger-than-usual chance (relative to other top prospects) that he just isn't productive at all in the majors.
Dbacks Rotation
1:15
Mike Hazen cannot be done adding can he?  Kelly, Nelson, Pfaadt, Rodriguez, and Soroka - I don't see the quality or the quantity of innings.  Not a ton of help in the upper minors either.
Steve Adams
1:15
No, I don't think the Dbacks are done adding to the staff (or the roster as a whole)
Tim
1:16
Any new rumors involving Skubal?
Steve Adams
1:18
Probably shouldn't be so down on the idea of trading Skubal ... we'd draw in more traffic if we played it up and focused on it consistently haha. But everyone here has said since Day 1 of the offseason (beforehand, really) that we think the Skubal talk is overblown.

I know people will keep writing about it until the season begins, but I've been of the "less than 1% chance this happens" mindset all winter
Jay
1:18
Berrios, Schneider, and Adam Macko for Mason Miller.  Who says no?
Steve Adams
1:18
If that were all it took to get Miller, he'd be a Blue Jay
1:19
Actually, no, he'd be with another club, because another team would happily blow that package out of the water. It's a nonstarter. Berrios has negative trade value. Schneider is a bench piece. Macko might be like a fourth or fifth piece in an actual Miller package, but this doesn't even get the ball rolling.
Pirates
1:19
Does Pittsburgh have a realistic shot at signing Geno? What other FAs/ trades could they pull off to field a competitive team while they still have Skenes?
Steve Adams
1:20
Sure, I don't think Suarez is unreasonable there. At this point, I'd take the under on our 3/63 prediction from November, and even if that were the stopping point, the Pirates could make that offer.
mike
1:20
why is  Luis Arráez market so quiet??
Steve Adams
1:21
Most front offices just don't think he's that good. He has an elite hit tool -- probably the best in MLB -- but zero power, declining OBP skills, poor speed and little to no defensive value. He's a fun throwback, but it's not a skill set that is valued in today's game
Andujar
1:21
Can’t wait until I am splitting time at DH and right field for Cleveland this year.
Steve Adams
1:22
Hey we can mock the Guardians' thrifty ways, but Andujar is probably going to be a nice bargain for someone as long as his new club uses him properly (minimal time in the field, more PAs versus LHP than RHP, etc.)
AstrosFAN
1:23
1 of 3 Christian Walker, Issac Paredes, and Jesus Sanchez is traded. I feel like 2 of 3 are traded, what do you see each fetching us?
Steve Adams
1:24
I don't actually think any of the three are traded. Dana Brown is about as candid and straight-shooting as a GM gets, and he's openly said he doesn't think he needs to trade anyone from the group. I tend to agree. I'd be looking to move Walker, but he doesn't seem to want to eat half the contract and sell low, which is perfectly defensible.

Paredes is the only one of the three with positive trade value, and he's obviously the one they'd be least inclined to trade away.
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