MLB hot stove discussion 2018/19 off season

[ZiggysFryBoy]

MLB also needs a salary floor.

[tower912]

Deferred salary is a problem, too.  This year's Tiger Roster is going to be another rebuild.  However, their payroll is still going to be skewed  as they are still paying Prince Fielder and Justin Verlander. 

[WI inferiority Complexes]

I kinda wish MLB would stop trying to relate to the casual fans--who still won't like baseball that much anyway-- at the expense of the fans who really love the sport. 

You can't have a reliever come in for one batter? 

[buckchuckler]

I kinda wish MLB would stop trying to relate to the casual fans--who still won't like baseball that much anyway-- at the expense of the fans who really love the sport. 

You can't have a reliever come in for one batter?

Completely with you on this.

[Silent Verbal]

I kinda wish MLB would stop trying to relate to the casual fans--who still won't like baseball that much anyway-- at the expense of the fans who really love the sport. 

You can't have a reliever come in for one batter?

I love baseball, but September can be almost unwatchable.  I was at a game last season where the manager made 8 pitching changes in a game where his team was losing by 5 runs.  Probably added 45 minutes to an hour to the gametime, at least.  Even diehards don’t enjoy sitting through that.

[dgies9156]

I love baseball, but September can be almost unwatchable.  I was at a game last season where the manager made 8 pitching changes in a game where his team was losing by 5 runs.  Probably added 45 minutes to an hour to the gametime, at least.  Even diehards don’t enjoy sitting through that.

I’m an old geezer but I remember when games were done in 2 hours to 2.5 hours. With TV and hundreds of pitching changes, those days are quaint.

[Lennys Tap]

MLB also needs a salary floor.

Yep

[ZiggysFryBoy]

Deferred salary is a problem, too.  This year's Tiger Roster is going to be another rebuild.  However, their payroll is still going to be skewed  as they are still paying Prince Fielder and Justin Verlander.

Bobby bonilla! Still getting paid by the Mets.

[CTWarrior]

Completely with you on this.

I don't.  I figured they were going to go to 2 batters, but 3 is better.  Baseball got along fine for 100 years without one batter specialists.  Anything that lowers mid-inning pitching changes is OK in my book.  May put a little more offense in the game, too.

[SaveOD238]

Here's ALL of the rules that have been discussed:

• A three-batter minimum for pitchers- I don't like this, but I understand why. There have to be exceptions for guys who come out and get shelled (maybe if you give up 2+ runs) and for end-of-inning situations (come in and get the third out but don't come back for the next inning).
  
  A universal designated hitter- It was going to happen eventually.  Would rather see it wait a year.
  
  A single trade deadline before the All-Star break- I'm ok with one trade deadline, and I'm ok with it being earlier, but before the All-Star break is too early.  NBA's is before the All-Star break, but NBA All-Star game is also 2/3 way into the season.  Go back to July 31 hard deadline.
  
  A 20-second pitch clock- I'm 100% behind this one.  My wife wouldn't let us go to Brewer games when Gallardo pitched because he was so slooooowwww.
  
  The expansion of rosters to 26 men, with a 12-pitcher maximum.- I don't like the 12 pitcher maximum, especially if theres a DH.  You'd be talking about 14 hitters for 9 lineup spots, but there's not much pinch-hitting in AL ball because there's no pitcher spot to compensate for.  13/13 is a decent compromise. 
  
  Draft advantages for winning teams and penalties for losing teams. Only if the penalty is for multiple years of intentional losing in a row (but how would you measure it).
  
  A study to lower the mound.- A study, ok fine.  Actually doing it? It would be a big change that would tremendously boost offense, and I'm not sure I want that.
  
  A rule that would allow two-sport amateurs to sign major league contracts- The Kyler Murray rule....gotta keep up with NFL

[SaveOD238]

I am still a voter, and voted this year.

They are slowly weeding out us oldsters. Maybe this will turn out to have been my last year to vote, maybe not.

I do look at voting for the Hall as a privilege, and I take my responsibility seriously.

82, maybe you can't answer this out of a sense of integrity to not talk about potential players, but what do you think of CC Sabathia's chances at the Hall?  I read an article this morning that said he's probably going to be the 17th player to get 3000 strikeouts, plus he will likely reach 250 wins and has a 3.70 career ERA.  As a Brewer fan, I remember his two months in Milwaukee fondly.

I just don't see Sabathia talked about much when people write articles about active potential HoFers.

[Spotcheck Billy]

And yet 4 of the top 5 free agents are still on the market.  And many others.

Sure, 15 teams incorporating their 1st DH in the next month or so sounds doable, why wait another year?

[MU82]

82, maybe you can't answer this out of a sense of integrity to not talk about potential players, but what do you think of CC Sabathia's chances at the Hall?  I read an article this morning that said he's probably going to be the 17th player to get 3000 strikeouts, plus he will likely reach 250 wins and has a 3.70 career ERA.  As a Brewer fan, I remember his two months in Milwaukee fondly.

I just don't see Sabathia talked about much when people write articles about active potential HoFers.

I haven't done a deep dive into him, but a quick glance makes me think he's a borderline case. His raw stats (wins, Ks, ERA) put him in a range of Mussina, who just got in, and Morris, who got in last year via the veterans panel. They also were borderline guys. He's certainly not an elite guy that makes me say, "Oh yeah, he's in." Nor is he one I think will be kicked to the curb.

CC had a very nice 12-year run from 2001 to 2012, with a 191-102 record (16-8 average yearly record), 3.50 ERA and 2214 Ks. He was an innings-eater (at least by modern standards), won a CY and finished in the top 5 of CY voting 4 other times. The CY finishes definitely will impress many voters, and deservedly so, because they signal that he was a dominant player, relative to his peers, for a long stretch. He was the stud on some decent (and less-decent) Cleveland teams and was the ace of the Yankees' last WS winner ('09).

All that works for him, as does the fact that he has spent the majority of his career in New York. Working against him: Unlike Mussina, he has not finished his career strong, and has been mediocre-to-bad, hurt or both for much of the last 5 years. In general, voters don't favor guys who just seem to be hanging on.

Given the trends, and his impressive CY finishes, I'd give him a better than 50/50 chance of making it eventually. I'm guessing I'll no longer have a vote when he becomes eligible. I voted for Mussina and Morris, and I also have voted for Schilling, who probably will make it eventually.

[dgies9156]

Deferred salary is a problem, too.  This year's Tiger Roster is going to be another rebuild.  However, their payroll is still going to be skewed  as they are still paying Prince Fielder and Justin Verlander.

Sorry folks, I'm a capitalist and I do not understand why the players should agree to something that would save the owners from their own stupidity at the expense of the players.

Bobby Bonilla was a boomer. The Mets have no more business paying him than my first employer does me, now. But yet they agreed to something really stupid because, well, they could.

The Albert Pujols contract generally falls into the same category. While should the players agree to something that would limit Mr. Pujols' earning power into his retirement if Artie wants to throw around a few hundred million in chump change? As much as I hated to see Mr. Pujols leave St. Louis, give him credit for squeezing ole Artie as hard as he could.

What we're seeing with the current wave of free agency is the first burst of sanity in baseball in years. Sabermetrics and other data analytic tools have shown that hitting and power skills decline after age 32, which is a big reason why Mr. Harper et al are not getting the length of contracts from free agency they think they deserve. That's a function of information and the market, not artificial limitations.

Ultimately, I recognize that if you are a fan of the Miami Marlins or the Kansas City Royals, big spenders and long contracts probably make your chances of seeing another world championship, or consistent excellence, modest at best. But the players have a right to make a living and if you're a Royal or a Marlin (or an A, Mariner, Twin, Tiger and a host of other teams) fan, you're going to have to spend your money far more wisely than ole Artie, the Steinbrenners, Ricketts, whoever owns the Dodgers this week (Magic, I know) etc.

[MU82]

I wonder if Washington's $300M offer for Harper is still on the table. It seems highly, highly unlikely that he will get close to that from anybody else.

[Chili]

Bobby bonilla! Still getting paid by the Mets.

Brewers are still paying Aramis Ramírez - though not as bad Bobby - still made me double take when I saw that.

[Spotcheck Billy]

Brewers are still paying Aramis Ramírez - though not as bad Bobby - still made me double take when I saw that.

https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/pittsburgh-pirates/aramis-ramirez-159/

Are you sure? It looks like a settlement was made in 2015.

[Chili]

https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/pittsburgh-pirates/aramis-ramirez-159/

Are you sure? It looks like a settlement was made in 2015.

Still on the books as 2019 deferred salary here:

https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/milwaukee-brewers/payroll/

[buckchuckler]

Sure, 15 teams incorporating their 1st DH in the next month or so sounds doable, why wait another year?

Yeah, that was the point I was trying to make.   


And Realmuto to the Phillies seems like it is done. 

[Spotcheck Billy]

Still on the books as 2019 deferred salary here:

https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/milwaukee-brewers/payroll/

thanks

[SaveOD238]

Yeah, that was the point I was trying to make.   


And Realmuto to the Phillies seems like it is done.

A buddy of mine texted to say this is a the all-in move the Phillies are making to sway Bryce Harper to join.

[WI inferiority Complexes]

A universal designated hitter- It was going to happen eventually.  Would rather see it wait a year.

From the Detroit Free Press in 1973:

[SaveOD238]

From the Detroit Free Press in 1973:

That comic is pretty funny to look at because nowadays the complaint I hear isn't about hitters not having to field anymore, it's about pitchers not having to hit.  I've seen and heard a lot of debate about the DH in the last 24 hours and not a single person has said "wow those lazy DHs not having to play the field!"

[buckchuckler]

Frank Robinson passes.  Truly a legend of the game.  One of the best ever.

[CTWarrior]

Frank Robinson passes.  Truly a legend of the game.  One of the best ever.

The bane of my existence as a young Red Sox fan watching those powerhouse Orioles teams of the late 60's early 70's.

Great, great player.  Didn't quite get his due because he played at the same time as Willie Mays and particularly Hank Aaron and was just a tick less than those guys, but he could really play.