Bumgarner Flyer?

[JR Oriole]

I love the fact that he was basically impervious to the pressure that most players feel in October, so I would love someone like him in the playoffs who we know can mentally handle it.  But that was also a long time ago and he just doesn't seem even remotely close to being that guy anymore.  I am fine with not adding him and instead just being eternally thankful to him for being the only reason the 2014 Royals didn't win the World Series.  

[billw76]

Why, he hasn't been any good since 2019. No need to waste a roster spot on a downgrade.

[sportsfan8703]

13 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

But why even try to sell him?  Why would we even want him?

I’ll take any player, on an milb deal. Plus like I said, we just lost Watkins to the IL. 

[banks703]

22 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

But why even try to sell him?  Why would we even want him?

I think we forget sometimes that there's a business side of sports and pieces of an org have roles off the field. Could the O's fix him? Maybe. Maybe not. There's probably a higher likelihood that they waste $720k. But if they were able to coach him back to being a productive pitcher, it could go a long way with other talented players who are looking for opportunities to improve. Not only that but it could also improve the franchise's ability to attract talented coaching, scouting, analysts, etc. etc. employees who we don't see on television. And his playoff experience could be invaluable to the young pitchers. Lastly, it might do a lot for their relationships with player agents, etc. 

 

The O's are unlikely to outbid high payroll organizations. So they have to be thinking of ways outside of overpaying for talent. They could sign Bumgarner and he could be a worse bum than he is currently and they'd be out very little in terms of money (for a major league baseball team). Bumgarner is a big name though and if they could somehow steer him back to serviceable (which I would argue they were able to accomplish with Harvey) it could benefit the franchise off the field. 

 

I get it though. On the surface he looks like a washed up, three-time World Series winner and a waste of time. I'm only suggesting that he's a fantastic reclamation project opportunity that could yield dividends for the franchise in ways outside of on-field performance. 

Edited April 20, 2023 by banks703

[Just Regular]

Do folks believe Sutcliffe did anything for Mussina/McDonald?  

I believe he could command DL Hall's attention more so than Kyle Gibson, though of course we have mental health professional coaches for those kinds of things these days.

He's probably worse than Rougned Odor at his job though, and not as efficient as Gibson at stuff like pitching 10% of your regular season innings and none later if you make the tournament.

I agree with those who think he'll end up on a team worse than BAL, but it'd be an entertainment.

 

[dystopia]

1 hour ago, Frobby said:

How so?

He’s a douche and will be bad for the clubhouse. 

[Frobby]

14 minutes ago, dystopia said:

He’s a douche and will be bad for the clubhouse. 

What’s the evidence of this?  I’ve never heard anything negative about him before.  He certainly didn’t seem to hurt those Giants’ clubhouses when they were winning multiple World Series titles.  

I’m not particularly interested in signing formerly good pitchers whose last good season was 2019, but if we’re avoiding a guy for clubhouse reasons, I need more specifics than “he’s a douche.”  Admittedly, there may be incidents backing your claim that haven’t come to my attention, but I’d need to know what they were before avoiding a player for this reason.
 

[maybenxtyr]

56 minutes ago, Just Regular said:

Do folks believe Sutcliffe did anything for Mussina/McDonald?  

I believe he could command DL Hall's attention more so than Kyle Gibson, though of course we have mental health professional coaches for those kinds of things these days.

He's probably worse than Rougned Odor at his job though, and not as efficient as Gibson at stuff like pitching 10% of your regular season innings and none later if you make the tournament.

I agree with those who think he'll end up on a team worse than BAL, but it'd be an entertainment.

 

I think Arizona is in a very similar situation as the O's. A really good MiL system and a ML team that has potential to make some noise this season, and they didn't see the benefits of having him on hand as a mentor type.

[banks703]

11 minutes ago, maybenxtyr said:

I think Arizona is in a very similar situation as the O's. A really good MiL system and a ML team that has potential to make some noise this season, and they didn't see the benefits of having him on hand as a mentor type.

I’d make the argument that Arizona has not shown an ability to take players who have been somewhat written off by other franchises and help them turn things around. Plus, given his lack of production thus far into that contract, it’s probably somewhat of a PR move for the fans who have almost surely been clamoring for them to cut bait with him. 

[Sports Guy]

1 hour ago, banks703 said:

I think we forget sometimes that there's a business side of sports and pieces of an org have roles off the field. Could the O's fix him? Maybe. Maybe not. There's probably a higher likelihood that they waste $720k. But if they were able to coach him back to being a productive pitcher, it could go a long way with other talented players who are looking for opportunities to improve. Not only that but it could also improve the franchise's ability to attract talented coaching, scouting, analysts, etc. etc. employees who we don't see on television. And his playoff experience could be invaluable to the young pitchers. Lastly, it might do a lot for their relationships with player agents, etc. 

 

The O's are unlikely to outbid high payroll organizations. So they have to be thinking of ways outside of overpaying for talent. They could sign Bumgarner and he could be a worse bum than he is currently and they'd be out very little in terms of money (for a major league baseball team). Bumgarner is a big name though and if they could somehow steer him back to serviceable (which I would argue they were able to accomplish with Harvey) it could benefit the franchise off the field. 

 

I get it though. On the surface he looks like a washed up, three-time World Series winner and a waste of time. I'm only suggesting that he's a fantastic reclamation project opportunity that could yield dividends for the franchise in ways outside of on-field performance. 

He will take innings away from other pitchers he shouldn’t be. 

[tntoriole]

2 hours ago, banks703 said:

I think we forget sometimes that there's a business side of sports and pieces of an org have roles off the field. Could the O's fix him? Maybe. Maybe not. There's probably a higher likelihood that they waste $720k. But if they were able to coach him back to being a productive pitcher, it could go a long way with other talented players who are looking for opportunities to improve. Not only that but it could also improve the franchise's ability to attract talented coaching, scouting, analysts, etc. etc. employees who we don't see on television. And his playoff experience could be invaluable to the young pitchers. Lastly, it might do a lot for their relationships with player agents, etc. 

 

The O's are unlikely to outbid high payroll organizations. So they have to be thinking of ways outside of overpaying for talent. They could sign Bumgarner and he could be a worse bum than he is currently and they'd be out very little in terms of money (for a major league baseball team). Bumgarner is a big name though and if they could somehow steer him back to serviceable (which I would argue they were able to accomplish with Harvey) it could benefit the franchise off the field. 

 

I get it though. On the surface he looks like a washed up, three-time World Series winner and a waste of time. I'm only suggesting that he's a fantastic reclamation project opportunity that could yield dividends for the franchise in ways outside of on-field performance. 

I hear you … no. 

[banks703]

11 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

He will take innings away from other pitchers he shouldn’t be. 

Yeah I can see that argument but I also can’t think that a three-time World Series winning former Ace stud can’t have something to offer younger guys. 
 

They’ll probably not make an effort for him and that’s alright. Thankfully they are in a position where they do not have to dumpster dive to fill innings. 

[Billy F-Face3]

We are already having to consider DFAing 2 pitchers who are much better than he is, just to make room on the active roster. There's no way that I'd touch that guy.

Edited April 21, 2023 by Billy F-Face3

[banks703]

31 minutes ago, Billy F-Face3 said:

We are already having to consider DFAing 2 pitchers who are much better than he is, just to make room on the active roster. There's no way that I'd touch that guy.

Again.. minor league deal 

 

 

[Moose Milligan]

5 hours ago, Frobby said:

What’s the evidence of this?  I’ve never heard anything negative about him before.  He certainly didn’t seem to hurt those Giants’ clubhouses when they were winning multiple World Series titles.  

 

He had a dust up the other day, you don’t have to look far to find it. Someone, IIRC, on the Cardinals did something in the batter’s box and Mad Bum was calling him a p**** and saying **** you to him. I mean, on a scale of offenses that can happen on a baseball field from a 1-10 this was maybe a 2.
 

He’s like any other hyper competitive ballplayer. I believe the old school term for this was “red ass.”

That said, I don’t think we need to explore signing him. Not because of the reasons listed above, but because we’ve got depth. The days of Harvey and King Felix types should be over.