2016-17 Hot Stove thread.

[tower912]

Detroit with the first major trade of the offseason, sending Maybin to the Halos for a AA pitcher.   The tigers also picked up the option for KRod.     Tiger's GM has made it his stated goal to make the team younger and more flexible in this offseason.     That probably means that Kinsler, Upton, and JD Martinez can be had for major league-ready, club-controlled contract brandishing prospects.    And if anybody want Anibal Sanchez or Mike Pelphrey, just offer a used jock-strap and pick up their salary. 

[Dr. Blackheart]

Fowler activated his player option to become a free agent.  Won't rule out returning to Cubs.

[MerrittsMustache]

Fowler activated his player option to become a free agent.  Won't rule out returning to Cubs.

I think they let Fowler walk unless they can get him back at a discounted rate again. He's 30 yo and coming off the best season of his career, not to mention they have Almora seemingly ready to take over in CF.

It'll be interesting to see how the Cubs look next season.

I doubt that Hammel and Chapman will be back. Maddon has said that Montgomery will be a starter next season so they'll need a LH reliever. Wood is a UFA but will he want to go somewhere to be a starter? Is Edwards going to take over as the closer or is it Rondon's job again?

With Schwarber returning, they'll have 10-11 everyday players on the roster. Could they trade Soler for a reliever? How will LF and 2B look with Baez, Zobrist and Schwarber all healthy?

Lots of questions but it's hard not to trust Jed and Theo at this point!

[GGGG]

Brewers off season:  Can they find a place to trade Braun?  Other than that...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

[brandx]

And if anybody want Anibal Sanchez or Mike Pelphrey, just offer a used jock-strap and pick up their salary.

we'll even pick up most of their salary.

[Lennys Tap]

I think they let Fowler walk unless they can get him back at a discounted rate again. He's 30 yo and coming off the best season of his career, not to mention they have Almora seemingly ready to take over in CF.

It'll be interesting to see how the Cubs look next season.

I doubt that Hammel and Chapman will be back. Maddon has said that Montgomery will be a starter next season so they'll need a LH reliever. Wood is a UFA but will he want to go somewhere to be a starter? Is Edwards going to take over as the closer or is it Rondon's job again?

With Schwarber returning, they'll have 10-11 everyday players on the roster. Could they trade Soler for a reliever? How will LF and 2B look with Baez, Zobrist and Schwarber all healthy?

Lots of questions but it's hard not to trust Jed and Theo at this point!

While everyone else looks to fill holed in their every day lineup the Cubs have the luxury of deciding what to do with their "extras".

I know that the crosstown rivals rarely trade, but if the White Sox are serious about a rebuild and they're looking to move Chris Sale the Cubs have the young talent to get it done. Could be a win/win that would help the Sox down the road and make the Cubs overwhelming favorites for the next few years.

[🏀]

While everyone else looks to fill holed in their every day lineup the Cubs have the luxury of deciding what to do with their "extras".

I know that the crosstown rivals rarely trade, but if the White Sox are serious about a rebuild and they're looking to move Chris Sale the Cubs have the young talent to get it done. Could be a win/win that would help the Sox down the road and make the Cubs overwhelming favorites for the next few years.

The issue being the Sox aren't serious about a rebuild unfortunately.

[jficke13]

Brewers off season:  Can they find a place to trade Braun?  Other than that...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Haudricourt from the JS says it's a high probability that the Brewers move Braun to the Dodgers. Expects the Brewers to get Puig in return and for the Dodgers to pick up Braun's salary. I'd be glad to get rid of Braun's salary, but Puig just can't seem to put it all together. Not sure there's any reason to expect him to do so in Milwaukee either.

[brandx]

Haudricourt from the JS says it's a high probability that the Brewers move Braun to the Dodgers. Expects the Brewers to get Puig in return and for the Dodgers to pick up Braun's salary. I'd be glad to get rid of Braun's salary, but Puig just can't seem to put it all together. Not sure there's any reason to expect him to do so in Milwaukee either.

They'll have to get at least one good prospect along with Puig. Obviously Urias and Deleon are off limits, but LA has a stacked system.

Of course the Dodgers will pick up Braun's salary. It is a bargain - barely more than Andre Ethier money; less than Adrian Gonzalez. And it gets cheaper the last two years of the deal.

[LAZER]

They'll have to get at least one good prospect along with Puig. Obviously Urias and Deleon are off limits, but LA has a stacked system.

Of course the Dodgers will pick up Braun's salary. It is a bargain - barely more than Andre Ethier money; less than Adrian Gonzalez. And it gets cheaper the last two years of the deal.

I wouldn't call Braun's contract a bargain. LA would be on the hook for 75+MM for a 33 year old player that can't play defense.  I think an AL team makes more sense for Braun.

[DegenerateDish]

As a Sox fan, I hope the Cubs success would light a fire under the Sox front office, but I doubt it.

[LAZER]

As a Sox fan, I hope the Cubs success would light a fire under the Sox front office, but I doubt it.

I think they finally do it, but can the front office execute the right trades?

[#UnleashSean]

Braun will only be traded to an al team. And no you won't be getting someone of puigs talent for a 33 year old who can't field. That's as asinine as when the JS reported the cubs were shopping for Braun.

[wadesworld]

Braun will only be traded to an al team. And no you won't be getting someone of puigs talent for a 33 year old who can't field. That's as asinine as when the JS reported the cubs were shopping for Braun.

If the Brewers and Dodgers had an extra half hour at the trade deadline the Brewers would've gotten Puig (subtraction by addition) along with 2 solid prospects and an expiring contract.

[MerrittsMustache]

As a Sox fan, I hope the Cubs success would light a fire under the Sox front office, but I doubt it.

One of the seemingly overlooked aspects of the Cubs turnaround was that they were still drawing close to 3M fans per season even when they were tanking. They have the draw of Wrigley, a loyal fanbase and Theo sold big on the notion of hope. Most MLB teams can't afford to go into full blown tank mode for 3-5 seasons without getting killed financially. To put things into perspective, in 2006 (the year after the Sox won the WS), the Sox drew a franchise-record 2.97M fans. That same season, the 66-win Cubs drew 3.12M fans.

Personally, I think the Sox should trade Sale right now. They're not going anywhere with him and teams have shown that they're willing to trade young, big-time talent for stud starters. That one trade could re-shape the whole future of the franchise...but as LAZER points out, it's depended on the FO getting the right prospects in return.

[jficke13]

Braun will only be traded to an al team. And no you won't be getting someone of puigs talent for a 33 year old who can't field. That's as asinine as when the JS reported the cubs were shopping for Braun.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2016/09/13/ryan-braun-yasiel-puig-dodgers-brewers-trade/90311414/

Haudricourt isn't a hack. If  he writes this: "Braun and Puig were about 20 minutes from being traded for one another two weeks ago, according to several executives with direct knowledge of their trade talks, but the teams ran out of time at the Aug. 31 trade deadline." He's not making it up for clicks.

[LAZER]

If the Brewers and Dodgers had an extra half hour at the trade deadline the Brewers would've gotten Puig (subtraction by addition) along with 2 solid prospects and an expiring contract.

I think Braun is a bad fit for the Dodgers right now (admittedly the deadline is a different story).  They've got plenty of roster issues to address and I don't think Braun solves any of those problems.

[RJax55]

One of the seemingly overlooked aspects of the Cubs turnaround was that they were still drawing close to 3M fans per season even when they were tanking. They have the draw of Wrigley, a loyal fanbase and Theo sold big on the notion of hope. Most MLB teams can't afford to go into full blown tank mode for 3-5 seasons without getting killed financially. To put things into perspective, in 2006 (the year after the Sox won the WS), the Sox drew a franchise-record 2.97M fans. That same season, the 66-win Cubs drew 3.12M fans.

Solid point, but if the White Sox went full tank mode, really how much would it hurt their attendance?

They have been consistently averaging just above 21,500 the last four years.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CHW/attend.shtml

Does a 75 win Sox team really move the attendance needle anymore than a tanking, but building for the future 62 win club?

I think the bigger issue is that Reinsdorf is now 80 years old. And, while reportedly in good health, it seems that he doesn't want to throw away seasons doing a complete rebuild. Hence, why it has been reported that Kenny Williams has not allowed Rick Hahn to move Sale & Quintana. Rumors are that Hahn was interested in moving them.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

I think they let Fowler walk unless they can get him back at a discounted rate again. He's 30 yo and coming off the best season of his career, not to mention they have Almora seemingly ready to take over in CF.

It'll be interesting to see how the Cubs look next season.

I doubt that Hammel and Chapman will be back. Maddon has said that Montgomery will be a starter next season so they'll need a LH reliever. Wood is a UFA but will he want to go somewhere to be a starter? Is Edwards going to take over as the closer or is it Rondon's job again?

With Schwarber returning, they'll have 10-11 everyday players on the roster. Could they trade Soler for a reliever? How will LF and 2B look with Baez, Zobrist and Schwarber all healthy?

Lots of questions but it's hard not to trust Jed and Theo at this point!

Agreed on Fowler although I'd be happy to have him back.  If he moves on then Zobrist is your likely lead off hitter next year. 

I think Hammel will absolutely be back.  Picking up his option at that price is a no-brainer.  I think Montgomery spends one more year in the bullpen and as an emergency starter and then moves into the rotation in 2018, when Lackey, Hammel, and probably Arrieta are all gone. 

If I had to guess, Wood will move on as well for what he is going to be looking for. 

They obviously add a huge bat in Schwarber next year and hopefully Heyward can rebuild his swing in the offseason. 

[brewcity77]

As a Sox fan, I hope the Cubs success would light a fire under the Sox front office, but I doubt it.

Even if it did, I'm not confident they would be able to get the job done. They have repeatedly shown an unwillingness to tear it all down. They could move assets like Sale, Quintana, Abreu, and Frazier and restock their minor league system, but would they get the right guys? Would they even be willing, or would they rather splash money in free agency to patch holes and try to stick with the "win now" mentality?

Reinsdorf has had a ton of success, but I'm starting to think neither the Bulls nor Sox will turn it around as long as he is at the top of the food chain. Similar to how the Blackhawks needed Bill Wirtz out of the picture, Reinsdorf is now the guy who's trying to cling to and recreate past success without having the patience to do it right.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Even if it did, I'm not confident they would be able to get the job done. They have repeatedly shown an unwillingness to tear it all down. They could move assets like Sale, Quintana, Abreu, and Frazier and restock their minor league system, but would they get the right guys? Would they even be willing, or would they rather splash money in free agency to patch holes and try to stick with the "win now" mentality?

Reinsdorf has had a ton of success, but I'm starting to think neither the Bulls nor Sox will turn it around as long as he is at the top of the food chain. Similar to how the Blackhawks needed Bill Wirtz out of the picture, Reinsdorf is now the guy who's trying to cling to and recreate past success without having the patience to do it right.

If the White Sox don't go that route this season I don't think they will anytime soon. Even as a Cubs fan I'm curious to see what transpires. With the lack of pitching in free agency this offseason it could be the right time to try and cash in.

The Sox would also never send Sale to the Cubs, which I completely understand.

[brewcity77]

If the White Sox don't go that route this season I don't think they will anytime soon. Even as a Cubs fan I'm curious to see what transpires. With the lack of pitching in free agency this offseason it could be the right time to try and cash in.

The Sox would also never send Sale to the Cubs, which I completely understand.

No, and I don't think the Cubs would send them Schwarber, which is probably what it would take to land Sale.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Good stuff here. And I can laugh about it because we won.

http://www.theheckler.com/2016/11/04/maddon-yanks-hendricks-from-victory-parade-after-4-23-blocks/

[#UnleashSean]

Don't count out a Schwarber trade just yet. Schwarber's ability to catch was a huge draw for the Cubs. While his hitting is amazing we will have to see how much of his speed he can get back and if he will ever be able to catch again. If neither of these happen, he may live on as a DH hitter like Ortiz.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Don't count out a Schwarber trade just yet. Schwarber's ability to catch was a huge draw for the Cubs. While his hitting is amazing we will have to see how much of his speed he can get back and if he will ever be able to catch again. If neither of these happen, he may live on as a DH hitter like Ortiz.

I suppose you can never say never but I don't see any possibility of that occurring, especially after what he was able to come back and accomplish in the Series.

And there's no reason not think he'll be able to play LF next year.