luismatos4prez

Cool idea. Looks like he's a serious offensive prospect but if he can't really play defense, then maybe Givens and Mancini does the job. I prefer to keep Bundy (someone has to pitch this year) and having Trumbo, Mancini, Davis, and this guy Winkler would be a mess.

Sure, claim him. But I'm sure there's a reason he got cut with 2 options left, rather than traded. A reminder: Joey Rickard had an OBP of ~.430 in AA/AAA the year before the Orioles took him in the Rule 5 draft. And it wasn't in the PCL like Locastro was.

Jon Jay and Marwin Gonzalez make the most sense to me, if they can't find work elsewhere. AJ Ellis or Matt Wieters might be brought in to pair with Sisco (or Wynns/Susac if they send Sisco down). I'm expecting Cobb to be moved soon and a starting pitcher to be signed. Maybe Bartolo Colon (yes please), Ervin Santana, or Jason Hammel.

Then Chris Davis will really never bunt against the shift.

DFAing Meisinger seems significant to me. They were at 38 before the move. They could have easily claimed Ruiz and not cut anyone to go to 39. Could mean 2 picks are the plan on Thursday. Surprised Meisinger was the cut, too.

Great list. Interesting take on VanMeter. I definitely would like Akeem Bostick with the first overall pick. I was surprised not to see Tyler Eppler on your list. Is he not actually eligible or did you just not like him?

Hard to sign ML free agents without a manager. I think a ML starter (a Kevin Millwood type) and an infielder will be signed at least.

I absolutely love shifts. The game isn't stale. It's always evolving. Offenses and defenses are constantly adjusting to fight each other. Defenses have adjusted to pull hitters. They'll either figure it out or they'll be out of the league. Maybe Ichiro-style slap hitters will become more valuable. Who knows? I love the adjustments though.

He's managed to outperform his 5+ ERA peripherals nicely. He also had 57Ks and 55 BB/HBPs this past year. That's not good. That's good for the lowest K/BB rate of any ML reliever by a wide margin. His peripherals (SIERA, xFIP) were the worst of any ML reliever in 2018 also. The peripherals don't mean much if a guy keeps outperforming them (like Gonzo did). And Castro's only 23, so he ought to be on the team this year, but I don't think he's good. Can't strike guys out and doesn't have the control needed.

I like Bostick or Eppler at 1/1. Both could do Mike Wright/Miguel Castro's 5 ERA longman/ spot starter job with more team control and upside in the future. I haven't seen any position players that I like with the first pick. Forrest Wall is at least fast and has some versatility but I'd rather go with one of the pitchers.

On a good team, I'd abandon the LOOGY type relievers. I'd have a 6 man pen. A few shut down guys in the back of the pen, a few long guys (Hess, Yefry types) that can be optioned based on rest, and use the 25th man on a bench bat. Backup catcher, utility infielder (Flaherty type), utility outfielder with base-stealing (David Lough type) and two bats (Trumbo/Mancini types) for pinch hitting on the bench.

Hess is not a major league quality starter. He's like Tyler Wilson, Jason Berken, Steve Johnson, etc. I would be okay with him as the 7th or 8th starter on the team if wins and losses mattered.

Richie Martin and Forrest Wall both seem okay. I like that they're both fast can steal bases. If nothing else, they can ride the pine and pinch run this year if drafted. I like Max Schrock a bit, too. Tyler Alexander has decent minor league numbers but he doesn't seem to miss many bats. Christian Santana is hardly ready for AA much less the majors.

Keith Law on hiring Mike Elias: Keith Law on Mike Elias's plan:

What are everyone's thoughts on Miguel Castro? Does he make the club next year? He doesn't get hit very hard, but he also walks a lot of guys and doesn't miss many bats. And adding Cervenka seems like a foregone conclusion to many. His bat seems okay, is his defense really impressive?