Bertz

Really good read from Sharma on the roster battles: - The lineup is likely to be the one Counsell's been running out there recently, with Happ inserted into the leadoff spot. It very much won't be a static everyday sort of thing though - He currently expects Madrigal on the IL and Cooper on the bench to open the year - Wicks is the 5th starter, and would have made the rotation regardless of Taillon’s injury - Adbert, Neris, Merryweather, Leiter, Almonte are the "core" of the bullpen - There's going to be a ton of fluidity with the bullpen to get the starters more rest. So expect plenty of Smyly/Assad/Wesneski spot starts, and that to impact which of the optionable guys (Little, Cuas, Palencia) are up at any given time

This is correct, but also these veteran NRI deals usually come with an opt out for the last day of spring training. So basically if they don't make the team but they think they've got a better shot elsewhere they can head back into FA. I think Smith is the most likely of him/Cooper/Peralta to actually opt in and head to Iowa though.

My understanding is that fastballs with lots of ride like Shota's get hit really hard when you locate them low in the zone because they're meant to be up in the zone. Almost like the inverse of throwing high sinkers. Yet Japan is still in the "pound the knees" era which doesn't really jive with Shota's arsenal. I do expect a decent number of homeruns out of Shota because I think he's going to have a fairly low GB%. But I'm cautiously optimistic he's not going to have an elevated HR/FB on top of that and give up 40 dongs like Lance Lynn.

Goldschmidt extension?

Yeah it's basically WR #3, Edge #2, and maybe DT depending on how you feel about Dexter?

He can refuse I believe, but I think he's much less likely to than Cooper or Peralta. Smith wasn't good enough for the Washington Nationals to keep around, I think he's going to have to go to AAA for someone and prove it was just the injury holding him back.

I expect a some of it depends on how they feel about Morel's progress at 3rd. But at the moment I am expecting - Mastrobuoni on the MLB bench - Dom Smith to head to Iowa - One of Wisdom/Madrigal traded - One of Cooper/Peralta on the MLB bench - The other to opt out If Morel is handling 3B well I think Madrigal gets traded and Peralta gets selected to share DH with Wisdom. If Morel's not handling 3B Wisdom gets dealt and Cooper hangs on as the dedicated lefty masher on the roster. Dom Smith has said he thinks his hamate injury has been plaguing him for a few years. He heads to Iowa and if he mashes there he comes up at some point to prove he's back to being a guy.

Unless they're loading up to grab #3 from NE, this would seem to indicate four QBs are about to be slated to go top 8

I wonder if the fact that Poles has mostly spent FA nickle and diming for complimentary players is specifically so he doesn't have to trade down and load back up on picks.

Well that's extremely horsefeathering fun

Haven't read what you're referring to but this sounds like it's them regurgitating Rapaport from yesterday. I'd guess at this point it's at least one of these two things: - Dumping Justin for a day 2 pick was a no brainer, but for a day 3 pick the juice isn't worth the squeeze and Poles figures he might as well hang onto Justin as a high end backup - Like Kyle Long mentioned, Poles is waiting for an inevitable injury to shake up the market and get someone desperate enough to offer closer to what he was initially asking for If you're not worried about the locker room it's probably the right call, but it does make the "doing right by Justin" speech a big ole whoopsie.

Yeah it's just the A's and just spring training but he looks real good

Yeah they're done. Decent chance they send someone out in order to add one of the non-roster invitees to the roster. For example trading Wisdom and adding Cooper. But they're not adding anyone of substance to the roster who isn't already in camp IMO.

Yeah if Morel can hold up at 3rd the lineup will really play

Suzuki-Bellinger-Morel-Swanson-Busch two through six for the second time in 3 games feels notable. I could see Happ leading off, this block, and then 7/8/9 shifting day by day depending on matchups?

When you're trying to peg a breakout, what you're really looking for are specific and realistic avenues to improve that combine with the skills a guy already has that can help him level up. Chris Morel is a great example. In 2022 his problems were lack of contact, hitting too many balls on the ground, and lack of defensive value despite his athleticism. Last year he started lifting the ball a lot more without giving anything else back, and this year we're hoping he makes defensive strides while keeping his offense (at least) steady. Amaya I think has an even easier path to being an impact player. Based on what he showed last year, he looks to have all the components of an above average MLB hitter. The plate discipline and contact are a smidge better than average, the raw power is average, the hard hit rate is a little low but he barrels the ball well because he hits so much in the air. On defense he had strong framing grades, but he was a little noodle armed against opposing baserunners. He got good reviews for his soft skills, though generally Ross only paired him with Hendricks or guys Miguel had already worked with in the minors. So what are his avenues to a breakout? One is for his component offensive skills, which are above average, to begin translating into above average production. That's generally how it works, so likely the fact that it didn't last year is just a SSS thing (particularly when you look at what he did in the minors). The second is to iron out the defense. The arm was supposedly great when he was young, so you can realistically hope a year further out from TJ it can improve. And the last one is to maintain his skills while piling up more playing time. As I laid out above there's a lot to like about the skills he showed last year, but it can be tough to maintain those through the rigors of catching. And that's not even mentioning Amaya's specific injury history.

I'd like to see the Yankees wriggle out of paying Blake Snell now *fast forward a week* Ah. Well. Nevertheless.

I'd assume Rypien's just there to be the guy in the QB room who already knows the system and that Bagent is still the guy who'd get to play in case of injury.

Like three months from now Amaya is going to be considered part of the new core in the same way as like Hoerner

Really good read. Among other things Brown dropped his slider and is trying to focus on upping his changeup usage and movement