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Stratos

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Everything posted by Stratos

  1. Stratos
    Yeah, they get a full year from Parades over Morel, and Boyd and whatever RP and catcher they sign can't only do better than Hendricks, Neris, and Gomes. If they make a trade they may add wins as well. There's definitely a path to 85-88 wins. But Busch/Imanaga could regress a bit as should Taillon, plus Nico from the injury. I'd peg them at 85 wins.
  2. Stratos
    Nice, thank you.
  3. Stratos
    Make sense if he wanted to be the #1 catcher somewhere to get playing time. Amaya started 107 games at catcher. Matt Thaiss is not going to be our 3rd catcher with no options left. He's either our #2 or he's going to traded/DFA'd.
  4. Stratos
    Jansen signed to Ray's on a solid 1 yr deal. It's going to be Matt Thaiss isn't it?
  5. Stratos
    Something to consider is that the Cubs met with Craig Counsell last offseason in total secrecy until that signing was announced. Given all the rumors about trades to free up payroll there is a chance they've met with Soto and are trying to find a way to make it happen on the payroll.
  6. Stratos
    Same
  7. Stratos
    If the Dodgers get Sasaki they have a rotation of Sasaki, Ohtani, Yamamoto, Snell, and Glasnow. Has a team ever had 5 legit aces in a rotation?
  8. Stratos
    What is nice with all these rumors is that if true it seems that Jed is trying hard to find a way to improve the team, looking for trades and whatnot. You've gotta think some kind of trade happens, and likely sooner than later since any money freed would give them more flexibility in FA before more players are signed by other teams.
  9. Stratos
    They're not trading their best hitter Seiya with hitting lineup they have, unless they intend to try to sign Soto, which seems like a pipe dream. But if that were the case keeping Seiya over Bellinger would seem a no brainer.
  10. Stratos
    Yes if Seiya moves back to RF then anyone in the org can play DH. Shaw, Cassie, Mervis, Alcantara, Triantos, Canario, Ballesteros etc. They could all compete in ST and throughout the season, and maybe have a platoon. Chance they could sign a cheaper guy like JD Martinez too. I have no idea what they'd do with the money saved on Bellinger though if they aren't interested in Soto or a top SP. They're not big pen spenders.
  11. Stratos
    He does have upside if he has a season where his walks are on the low/average side. Otherwise he's pretty average. Lefties hit him better the last few seasons so a bit strange. With Yates looks like they're bargain-hunting again instead of paying for top talent. But i assume they'll check in on everyone interesting regardless. This smells like the Neris deal.
  12. Stratos
    Hard to say on the former. They would have payroll room to add a bat. Per Soto, I don't believe any reports with a Boras negotiation, he could be dropping that to journalists to drive up bidding.
  13. Stratos
    If Nico goes for Crochet it frees up some money as well. It wouldn't be hard to replace Bellinger's offense if Seiya plays RF and DH is open. We have to remember that Nico is only slightly above average with wRC+ but provides a bunch of SB too. Probably harder to replace his offense at 2B than Bellinger. But we have Shaw/Triantos/Cowles to try.
  14. Stratos
    White Sox would probably prefer prospects in the lower minors, which works for us, would be nice to keep our main AAA guys plus Cam Smith. Maybe they'd get someone like Cruz, Rojas, Mathis, or Valdez or someone else from us. Mariners have to give up a bunch to get Nico. Between Shaw, Triantos, and Cowles (with Busch in the back pocket) you could imagine we should be able to get maybe 2 WAR a year the next 2 years out of 2B without Nico. If you can extend Crochet this is a no-brainer trade you make, he's projected one of the best SP in baseball next year.
  15. Stratos
    I was thinking about it and the situation isn't any any different than last year. We have Imanaga and they seemed to want to keep a slot open for Wicks/Brown/Assad and longterm Horton but they needed another SP so they went with Hendricks. Boyd replaces Hendricks here, leaves a spot for one of the young guys plus injuries always happen. Unfortunately doesn't move the needle much but they do have some money left to spend to stack some upgrades at pen, catcher etc
  16. Stratos
    Blue Jays could also be interested.
  17. Stratos
    I feel like Crochet seems like a better match for the Cubs than the Mariners since the Sox would want prospects rather than an MLB guy. I think any prospect is on the table for the Cubs especially if you can get an extension from Crochet. He's projected at 4.9 WAR next year, he's a stud.
  18. Stratos
    https://images.app.goo.gl/XTxB7ZvSBcZRxk6D9
  19. Stratos
    Boyd had TJS on his UCL, a separate surgery on his forearm flexor tendon, and 60 day IL for tricep issue all in the last 4 seasons. Let's hope he's better now.
  20. Stratos
    Mariners would be dumb to trade Kirby or Gilbert, it's not happening. They're trying to contend not rebuild
  21. Stratos
    What does "viable candidates" mean though? That they seem to match up well? He doesn't say "are interested in...."
  22. Stratos
    I've lived in the city. Toronto has fickle fans (and the ballpark sucks) but when the team is winning the fans come out in droves and can pay for substantial payroll. In 2016 and 2017 (their last ALCS appearance and Bautista bat-flip era) they had the highest attendance in the AL. The stadium seats 50k fans. They're also Canada's only team and all their games are nationally broadcast (the tv channel owns the team) so they can get a lot of TV viewers. They'd be smart to invest in a star player, especially with Vlad/Bichette on their way out). Most Jays fans are casual baseball fans. Ohtani would have been huge for them.
  23. Stratos
    I watched the below recent interview with Cubs Minor League hitting coordinator Rachel Folden where they talk about his hitting. She admits she doesn't have catching expertise but she also says "he can catch" and doesn't have any clear deficiencies as a catcher. He's also in better shape, and from recent AFL footage you can see he's slimmer than in Spring Training. She praises his intelligence as a hitter and ability to pick up on pitcher patterns, tipping pitches etc (which would translate well at catcher). She's obviously not going to say anything negative about the guy, but just got me thinking that the Cubs may actually think Ballesteros is a real future option at catcher and we shouldn't write him off. In the minors he's started 236 games at catcher and only 41 at 1B and 42 at DH. They haven't moved him off catcher at all yet and hasn't played much 1B, so that's a good sign. Usually they move guys off catcher lower in the minors if they don't think its a fit. Seems like he still has work to do on this throwing (not mentioned) based on last year, but if they can get his bat in the lineup at C that would be nice. Based on his youth I could see him spending virtually all of 2025 in the minors though.
  24. Stratos
    How much do the Cubs have left to spend under the tax cap after the Boyd signing? Did someone here mention about 40m? With the guess that they'll probably leave about 8 - 10m in space so around 30m left? 30m would be enough for a FA catcher, one of the better pen arms, and about 7m left for other needs (another reliever or SP, maybe a bench bat).
  25. Stratos
    Yup this is the dumbest rule change I've ever heard. People suggesting it are morons.
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