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RosterResource Chat - 6/19/25
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AvatarJason Martinez
2:00
Welcome to the RosterResource Live Chat. Assuming the internet doesn't break again in the middle of this like last week, we'll be around answering as many questions as possible for at least 60 minutes. Here we go ...
Tyler
2:01
Barring an injury, the Cubs have a roster crunch coming in the next couple of weeks when Shota Imanaga and Porter Hodge come off the IL. Only three pitchers on the 26-man have options remaining (Ben Brown, Cade Horton and Daniel Palencia), and I don't see Horton or Palencia being taken out of their roles. Brown makes the most sense for Shota, but, Hodge has to go somewhere?
AvatarJon Becker
2:02
I think you’re right that Brown’s days could be numbered. As for the other spot, Hodge himself could get optioned down depending on how his rehab assignment goes; I know he had that one awful outing skewing his stats but it’s not like he’s been perfect outside that game either.
Hazmat Corntail
2:02
Who’s your odds-on favorite(s) to stick in the Stros’ rotation as others come back: Walter, Gordon, Gusto?
AvatarJason Martinez
2:04
All three have been equally effective and consistent as of late and there really aren't any other factors involved. All have options remaining. Unless the eye test is showing something different, it's a pretty equal competition right now.
Dan'l
2:05
How would you manage the Card's roster leading up to the deadline? There are a lot of ok players at various ages, a couple mid-level prospects blocked (i.e. Saggese), and sort-of competitive this year but a realistic shot at (and in) the '25 postseason is low.
AvatarJon Becker
2:06
This has been my comp every time there’s a fringey team but if they’re closer to good than great I think they probably can still justify the 2022 Orioles path and sell off some guys like Helsley, Fedde, and Matz, none of whom factor into the 2026 roster on their current contracts anyway. If they’re firmly in playoff position I could see them buying to ease up that logjam, though I wouldn’t expect anything huge.
Guest
2:07
Noticed Xander Bogarts is pretty high on most projection systems. Do we really believe that or glitch in matrix?
AvatarJason Martinez
2:09
The track record is still very good. His underlying numbers are all good and it looks like he's one of the most unluckiest hitters in the league right now. And, at age 32, he shouldn't have fallen off this much. So that's what the projections are seeing. Watching him pretty regularly, he looks pretty bad. But so does that entire lineup aside from Machado. And that's been the case for every season at Petco Park aside from 2024. Hitting a baseball is difficult enough and playing 81 games there is unforgiving. Not a lot of balancing out.
Guest
2:10
are teams still not great at telling their injured players who want to push through that it's time? the Jays took forever with Santander and now the Twins with Ober. one injury is fine maybe, but they are/were both dealing with two!
AvatarJon Becker
2:12
Not sure what’s been going on with Ober (I can’t find any reporting of anything he’s been dealing with), but yeah we knew Santander was hurt for a bit and he just didn’t go on the IL for awhile. In general, there are always a lot of factors to these decisions. Is the player in pain or just discomfort? Did he even tell the team he’s hurt? Who can come up to replace him? Is there risk of further injury? Teams are generally pretty careful but it’s also hard to force these competitors to take a break, too.
Phil
2:13
I'm hoping we can have some sober discussions of the Red Sox roster minus the caterwauling (not that I'm not sympathetic with the caterwauling, but as a fan, I'm not really going to just stop watching the team as punishment for a bad decision, so I feel ready to move on). What are some of their next moves, do you think? Is Campbell headed back to Worcester for a bit, and who gets those at-bats? Is there still a first baseman trade that might make sense, particularly given that they have some extra money now? I'm not even going ask about Yoshida--clearly either he's hurt worse than we know or the Red Sox just don't think he's good enough to roster, or he'd be DHing in Worcester right now.
AvatarJason Martinez
2:18
Before the season, I thought the Red Sox were in the best shape of any team in baseball (close with the Dodgers). I picked them to beat the Dodgers in the WS ... https://blogs.fangraphs.com/the-fangraphs-2025-staff-predictions/

Bad communication all around seems to have gotten them to this point where they traded Devers when they did and for who. But they're playing good now. They could be aggressive at the deadline. They have a legit ace, one of the best closers in baseball, and that lineup is deep, even if they lack some pop without Devers. Yoshida is a really good hitter and I think getting him back into the mix (maybe within the next few weeks) will help. Letting Campbell figure things out while he's the No. 9 hitter is fine.
AvatarJon Becker
2:18
I think sending Campbell down when he’s overall been okay (though rough defensively) and coming around lately would be a bit of an overreaction for sure.
Phil
2:18
Who gets squeezed out when Luke Raley comes back?  I suspect it will be Canzone, but I wish it would be either Tellez or Solano
AvatarJon Becker
2:20
Canzone, Mastrobuoni, and Young are the three guys with options, so I think it would be one of them, and Canzone is the most redundant, being an outfielder. Tellez wouldn’t shock me since Raley could step in at first; Solano would since he’s been hitting better of late and they love platooning.
Guest
2:20
which team(s) have surprised you the most so far?
AvatarJason Martinez
2:25
It probably shouldn't be a surprise but the Astros continuing to just be way better than any team in that division no matter which superstar player leaves and no matter who gets hurt is amazing. Winning culture is a real thing, as long as their is a strong core of veterans who has been there through the success. And they're one of those teams that has a sneaky good farm system.

Padres looking like the 2023 version of themselves is also surprising. I thought this team and the front office had finally figured out how to succeed at Petco Park last season. Maybe the baseballs changing again is a big part of it. But it's really a bad roster right now and they're not even trying to shake things up.
Nick
2:25
Is this the year the Phillies trade for a solid RH OF bat? I know they need a reliever too, but so does everyone so that’s not as interesting to talk about. They’ve had a hole in CF (and sometimes LF) for years now
AvatarJon Becker
2:27
It’s a tough fit unless they’re going to give up on Kepler or Marsh starting against righties along with lefties, against whom they’ve already sat plenty, and I don’t see that happening. Sure, they could trade for a platoon bat but how much better than Rojas/Kemp/Sosa are those options anyway? Maybe they swing bigger by including Marsh in a trade for a righty, but that’s just me spitballing.
Jpac
2:27
Which is the better option for projections (any proj. System) ros or update?
AvatarJason Martinez
2:29
ROS only shows projected stats for the remainder of the season (80ish games). I believe "update" shows a full season based on the current projection, which is going to be different than it would be at start of season. For example, I'm sure PCA's looks much different now than it did in March.
Jim
2:30
When Wilyer Abreu returns from the IL, do you think he plays every day with Refsnyder getting at bats at DH?
AvatarJon Becker
2:31
Absolutely. I think Duran will be in LF, Rafaela CF, Abreu/Refsnyder RF, Anthony DHing — but they’ll do some mixing and matching so Anthony gets to play the field (they can add another lefty by sitting Rafaela for Hamilton and shifting Campbell to the OF).
Peter
2:32
Do you think Brady House establishes himself as a solid regular for the Nats this season?
AvatarJason Martinez
2:35
There's no one standing in his way and the Nats have every reason to look ahead to 2026 and figure out who else besides Wood and Abrams will be part of their future. So far, so good (only 14 PA). But the BB/K numbers in AAA (much improved from 2024 but still not great) tell me he could struggle making adjustments once he's not locked in. If he plays solid defense, I think they'd be happy if he was a 25 HR/.800 OPS guy. Not sure he's more than that.
Taco Grande
2:35
Helsley has the 168th rated WAR for relievers since May 15. ERA above 5, BABIP over .400 with a hard hit at 40%. SIERA and XFIP in the 2s. So some reason to think he could be better, but how much more leash will the Cardinals give him?
AvatarJon Becker
2:36
I think plenty, especially with the peripherals looking good, as you noted. A month isn’t a lot of time for a reliever to put together a particularly meaningful sample size and it’s not as if the Cards have someone banging on the door for the job anyway.
Hazmat Corntail
2:37
With Misoiorowski up and the rest of the current Brewers rotation seemingly locked in, it’ll take an injury or them falling out of the WC for Henderson to get another shot this season, yes?
AvatarJason Martinez
2:40
Correct. If Woodruff makes it back, Henderson would likely be SP7. Maybe SP8 if Nestor Cortes also returns. But the chances of 2 or 3 SP landing on the IL at some point is still pretty high so I wouldn't rule him out. They have to feel pretty good knowing they can pencil him in for 2026 and have him under team control for 6 years.
Guest
2:40
barger's had a couple mini-dips since may, another bigger one will come eventually, but how much more does he have to do to be safe even thru that on a healthy jays team
AvatarJon Becker
2:42
There still ought to be plenty of time for him even when/if Santander and Varsho are both back and everyone’s healthy; he’d just play more third base instead of right field. Clement has been awesome against lefties and pretty bad against righties so that makes a lot of sense as a platoon.
James
2:43
Is the Cam Smith breakout underway?
AvatarJason Martinez
2:46
He made it through a few rough patches early on and he now has a 146 wRC+ over his last 124 PA. His team has opened up a nice lead in the AL West. I'm guessing the confidence is high and he's showing signs of him becoming an impact bat in the 2nd half. Good example of sticking with a young player. But I think that specific team in that situation has been a big part of it.
AvatarJon Becker
2:46
He’s also been great in the outfield despite never playing there before this year, so he’s shown quite the knack for rolling with the punches and making adjustments.
Mike D
2:47
Any chance Angels move Detmers back to rotation this season?
AvatarJon Becker
2:48
Not a zero percent chance, but he’s been working as a one-inning guy for a majority of the season and doing really well at it, so it would be hard to stretch him out and also maybe not very prudent to mess with what’s working. If they need another starter I’d think they’d dip into the minors for Dana or Ryan Johnson.
Guest
2:49
Shaw is looking like a 5-10 HR guy right now, do we think there's something there in the offseason (or even another demotion possible this year) to get to the FV power that was prospected?
AvatarJason Martinez
2:52
Cubs are in position to give Shaw another month to evaluate him before deciding if they need to upgrade at 3B. So he shouldn't feel too much pressure at this point and he definitely can't start trying to hit HR. Or maybe he's already feeling pressure and trying to HR and that's why he's struggling.
Guest
2:52
presumably a blip for the Yankees but why does it feel like they're going to keep having issues vs RHP especially down the line? still have a season 117 wrc+ v rhp
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