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Mark P
8:13
Welcome to the Weekend Chat!  Let's dive into some questions....
Baer Minimum
8:14
Miguel Andujar to the Giants?
Mark P
8:15
Andujar seems like the kind of player the Giants try to target on the waiver wire, so that pickup wouldn't surprise me.  It also wouldn't surprise me if Andujar was selected before the Giants get the chance to put in a claim
Alex Gordon
8:15
What in the hell are the Royals doing? There is no strategy here at all.
Mark P
8:16
I think their strategy of rebuilding around younger talent was pretty clear, it's just that the young talent hasn't yet emerged quickly enough.  The changes in management indicate that the Royals weren't satisfied with how things were going, but they're not going to blow things up entirely and start over
Andrew
8:17
Any moves left for the Cardinals?
Mark P
8:18
Sure, I think STL shapes up well as a team that could package a couple of players together for one singular upgrade, probably a controllable pitcher in the rotation.  Maybe you could see a second baseman or outfielder as that one upgrade, but the Cards have enough pieces at those positions that they might not want to move any youngsters until they see what they truly have
RobM
8:19
Does Rolen make it?
Mark P
8:20
At this very moment, Rolen has 79.5% of the writers' vote, with Todd Helton at 79%.  44.4 percent of all ballots have been publicly revealed.

Based on past years, numbers generally go down a bit once the full ballot is revealed, so it'll be very tight for Rolen or Helton, and I'd personally lean towards neither hitting the 75% threshold.  Both should eventually get inducted (maybe as early as 2024) but they might fall short again
8:21
(Thanks as always to Ryan Thibodaux's great HOF ballot tracker site)
Deal or No Deal
8:21
Bo Bichette to Cardinals
Mark P
8:22
The Cardinals prioritize shortstop defense enough that if Bichette was acquired, I suspect St. Louis might try to move him off shortstop.  I guess it would depend on what they gave up to land him from Toronto.

btw, a Bichette trade doesn't seem likely whatsoever for the Jays, this is purely hypothetical.
Simon Cowell
8:22
You be the judge. Does Vaughn Grissom take the ss job and run with it?
Mark P
8:23
My guess is that Grissom will have a solid season.  He probably won't be the next Harris/Strider in terms of instant impact, but Grissom seems like he can be a viable big league regular
Angels fan
8:24
I don’t like our relievers, who can we add to make our bullpen better?
Mark P
8:24
Andrew Chafin is the obvious answer, as the best unsigned reliever on the market
M.Ozuna
8:25
Do I have a job in Atlanta or do I get traded?
Mark P
8:26
Given the Braves' lack of depth at LF/DH, they'll give Ozuna another chance to bounce back, and i don't think a trade is particularly viable.
Logan G
8:26
Do you think the Phils will get another impact player? Or just some role players to fill out the roster?
Mark P
8:27
Probably role player types, since the roster seems pretty set.

Then again, betting against Dave Dombrowski making another big move is often a fool's errand
Braves
8:27
Where do you rank AA as GM in current game? Top 3? 5?
Mark P
8:28
I'd have to think a bit on a concrete list of "the best GMs," but Anthopoulos is certainly at least top five in my books.
John
8:29
How much will the Orioles follow the Astros’ blueprint of a rebuild? Could we expect a big name starter at the deadline with a few years left? Alcantara if the Marlins change their mind?
Mark P
8:30
There are actually some interesting parallels here to the Astros' rise, in that their 2015 season was "a year early," and they had a relatively quiet 2015-16 offseason rather than go full bore with adding win-now pieces.

Given Baltimore's pretty modest winter moves, Mike Elias could be sticking to that same Astros blueprint in general, and giving the O's youngsters another year to blossom so the front office has more info on who's a building block (and who might be a trade chip).
Guest
8:31
are the Marlins maybe not terrible this year? Fewer games against the division, a lineup with a little bit of upside, and If course the great pitching staff- would we be shocked to see them finish around .500?
Mark P
8:32
I'm not wild about their lineup, and their attempts to improve the offense have weakened their defense.  But, if that pitching staff stays healthy and pitches up to expectations, the Marlins will be able to stay competitive.
8:33
Can't say I love their chances since they still have a lot of games against the Mets, Phillies, and Braves, but Miami might be better on paper
Er, better than they were in 2022, that is. Not "better than the other three NL East powers."
Joe
8:34
I can’t stand what Steve Cohen is doing right now. It’s creating a competitive advantage as a team like Oakland can’t/won’t spend like this. Do you agree? Can MLB do anything since taxing him for going over the luxury tax doesn’t matter to him?
Mark P
8:34
Between the two, frankly, the Athletics' lack of spending is a much bigger problem for competitive balance than the Mets' big spending
Marky Mark
8:35
What did you think of the Arraez trade, who won?
Mark P
8:36
Win-win for both sides, in my view.  It was a very interesting deal that checks boxes for both teams.  The Marlins' decision to play Arraez at 2B (at least for now) is a bit of an issue, but they can always move him into the 1B mix if things don't work out, either with Arraez at second or Jazz in CF
Bloomin’ Onion
8:37
What’s with the boos at our Winter Fanfest? I’m building for long-term sustained success. Bello, Casas, Mayer and Raffaela are about to contribute and there will be very few dollars on the books besides those of our lifetime third baseman. What gives?
Mark P
8:37
They weren't booing, they were saying Bloooooooom?
Mo’s M.O.
8:38
Ive seen some projections showing nootbar getting some time in center for the cardinals- is he a true center fielder you would be comfortable putting out there every day, or is he  a clear second option?
Mark P
8:38
Carlson is still the top option, but having at least two guys who can be viable center fielders is a nice bit of depth for STL
Ace of Braves
8:39
Who will be the dark horse candidates for Shohei Ohtani next year? Anybody come out of the shadows to make a move on a once in a generation player other than the usual large market teams?
Mark P
8:40
It's possible that Ohtani is so unique that a wider number of teams will make an exception to try and sign him.  Hypothetically, an Orioles team with a bunch of young talent and open payroll space might target Ohtani as the face of their next contention window.

But, realistically, he'll end up with one of the big-spending teams
bravesfansince1966
8:41
Do you think a modern player with almost 2800 hits, almosy 1700 runs scored, over 500 doubles, over 100 triples, 235 Home Runs, over 1100 RBI's, over 400 Stolen Bases, over a .350 OPB and a life time BA of .284 and a 2 time World Series Champion deserves a lot of HOF consideration? If yes why is Johnny Damon's name never mentioned in HOF voting?
Mark P
8:41
Damon had a terrific career, but he was more solid than truly elite.  Not a HOFer in my view.
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