LookinUp

Well, I think the feeling is that Holliday will force a promotion before that time. That's the thing. If Westburg's a .750 2b/3b, he'll be replaceable.

I'm not sure how meaningful it would be, but I do think it would be helpful (and certainly much more entertaining) if MLB was able to condense its free agency period into something that drew constant headlines for a few weeks, rather than over 3 months.

I didn't know that. Thanks.

Mark Buerhle and Jamie Moyer, but without the years and years of success to show he could pitch successfully with lower velocities. It's such a narrow lane to succeed in.

See, I think the opposite. I think the money to re-develop is a massive asset that will inflate the sale price. I don't think he plans to run the project. I think he sees it like a homeowner sees a sparkling new kitchen. Something that raises the price. I don't know what JA wants, but to me the sale almost has to happen within 12ish months of PAs death. It's not just the MASSIVE taxes that he can't pay, it's the whole legal situation with his brother and mother. I think he's already preparing the sale, at least partially because of that. It's just a matter of time. You guys are reminding me of the Redskins fans who were convinced Snyder would never sell. I think it was inevitable, just like this is with the Angelos family. It's happening, and soon.

Cleveland could make a case. Maybe even Minnesota. Others? I'm not sure. It's certainly not just the O's state-side.

If there's one age old truism among coaches it's that there's always someone who thinks they can "fix" a talented player. He'll have options. It's just a matter if he chooses the right one and if they're lucky enough to make it work.

I don't know how they'll do it, but it would be great if some of the seating could get more shade. Day games in the summer are brutal in the direct sun. I won't go unless it's on the 3b side or under cover.

I'd say it's very likely that Rubenstein purchases the O's pretty soon. He has fewer hurdles to cross than a lot of folks would, assuming he's able to come up with majority cash requirements. The sale of our Commanders, for example, was much more difficult. Harris didn't have enough cash and had to bring a huge list of partners with him to make it work.

Yes it will. I wonder if he'll choose comfort or quality. If it's comfort, he'll go home I'd wager. To me, if I had a golden arm like that guy does, I'd find the smartest pitching organization in the world and take whatever deal they offer me. He could be the best closer in baseball in a year if things suddenly clicked. Hell, he was a starter. Imagine if he figured out command/control enough to be a starter? I'm not saying it's likely. I'm saying that his arm raises his odds above most other guys.

I love my prospects. I didn't even love the Hernaiz trade and we had like 5 guys ahead of him. That said, it's part of what good pipelines do. The fact that we just got a AAA/ML arm with upside for someone that came from our INTERNATIONAL PIPELINE, to me, is a massive news story unto itself. From your lips to god's ears, brother. I'm not predicting Gagne, but this group definitely gets the benefit of the doubt with guys like this. My guess is he'll end up a solid middle reliever for at least a major part of 1 season for us. Anything more is gravy.

Ha. If there's one thing I've learned reading this message board over the years is people hate process. It freaks them out. It can be a rebuild. Labor strife. Ownership changes. Free agent negotiations. Trade negotiations. Stadium lease negotiations. Basically anything that involves a negotiation is often met with people getting angry at the greedy people involved on either side. It's like there's no awareness whatsoever that negotiations are part of a process which is usually motivated by some kind of deadline. 95% of the public stuff that is released before the deadlines are part of the process, and usually meaningless. I'm not saying negotiations don't go south. I'm just saying that people freak out over the wrong headlines.

There was some talk in various threads about the huge hold-ups to a sale being: 1. Peter passing away 2. The MASN O's/Nats deal 3. The stadium lease Two of the three were basically solved, or at least found a steady state for #2, in the last few weeks. I feel like there was a 4th issue that was also solved, but I can't remember. Either way, at this point it seems like JA has this tee'd up and ready for a sale when the time comes.

Considering we're at 92 pages, we're 6 days to the xmas/New Year's week and the Sox are waiting for Yamamoto to sign, I'd definitely take the over.

I dug the girlfriend and respect that she didn't treat a team video like a night at the Oscars. He seems a little quirky, but is probably just a really great dude. I have good friends like him.

That John Stephens write up is something else. Something tells me he wouldn't even make an affiliate with this regime. My how times, and data, have changed.

This is a blockbuster, folks.

Yeah, with leadership like they have, they're liable to be stubborn and get no deal or do the opposite and take a bad deal for them. It's totally unpredictable.

I'd wager it's very significant to our internal rankings. We're now a player development org. We want youth and tools to work with.

Quick bat, but his leg kick is just so weird to me. It's almost mechanical. Then he whips the bat through at 1,000 mph. lol

It’s their age that sets them apart. All 3 are very young for their level. That’s a sign.

Threads like this are always fun to look back on. I was mostly talking about DL Hall. In hindsight, his stuff wasn't great at the end of 2022 and that foreshadowed an unhealthy start to 2023. I still have hope that the guy gets past his health issues and pitches through the things he needs to work on. I don't rule out a Blake Snell like career for him, even though most do at this point.

Happened on a Friday. A lot of us aren't even around on Fridays/weekends. I think it's helpful, personally because Wacha is a guy I wanted. Of course, I just posted a link in the offseason thread.