caulfield12

Bad Giolito is back again...let's see if he can manage to at least record a quality start. Unfortunately, he's already thrown too many pitches to get through 6 unless it's a REALLY quick 5th.

What's the latest timetable on when Adolfo will be able to return to outfield play (after surgery)? Maybe he DH's again at the start of the year and slides into RF/LF in the middle of the season? Guess it's not too far off from what the Angels are doing with Ohtani this year...

Basabe will likely be in AA to start the year, unless they send him to the AFL and he just completely lights it up. I doubt with his K rate and an OPS in the mid 700's they're going to push him THAT fast up to AAA and the majors. (Although it's the White Sox, so who the hell knows...) We do have TOO many deserving candidates for the AFL for the first time in about two decades.

Francisco Liriano in 2006...

Ilitch spent like a madman in Detroit, too. But yeah, the pharmaceutical industry was kind to Ewing Kauffman. Fwiw, he was worth "only" around $2 billion at the time of his death in 1993, so that's around $22 billion if it was growing at roughly 10% interest per year.

Now all we need is Optimus Prime to sign off on it... Giolito's K rate has definitely picked up from the first 2-3 months of the season, no doubt about that.

What would it take for Mauer to make the HoF? With a little bit shy of 2100 hits...not looking like a sure thing that he gets to 3000, or wants to hold on long enough. And where does he go next? Re-up with the Twins, or jump (re)start his career by leaving Minnesota?

How/when is Moncada going to learn to hit lefties? Winter ball?

Did the Mets get 7 years of control with deGrom and Syndegaard? Just curious. Because they were supposed to dominate the decade with a rotation centered around Harvey, Wheeler, Matz, etc. Have the Braves been holding back their young pitchers to get that extra year? Premium young hitters would seem to be the more precious commodity these days. (That said, obviously those team-purchased control years/options on Sale and Q played a huge role in expanding their trade value...and it’s also possible that Hahn feels more confident they can go that direction with Jimenez, who didn’t get all his riches upfront like Moncada and Robert.)

Well, therein lies the question. How can the Right use Pelosi, Maxine Waters, Schumer or Ocasio-Cortez-Cortez so successfully, but the Left can’t successfully turn around and do the same with “fill in the blank” name (someone other than Trump, and the jury’s still out on simply opposing Trump leading to any significant electoral success or turning out more Latino voters)? Of course, it’s fair to point out that women almost alway absorb the harshest attacks, whether it’s HRC, Palin, Liz Warren...why isn’t Bernie Sanders held to the same standard for disinterest or lack of knowledge about foreign affairs? As an Iowan, how can junk politicians like Grassley and King hold office so long (incumbency effect, yeah) despite such voluminous trails of idiocy?

And who wanted to give Arrieta $75 million and 3 years?

I'm not sure exactly where the "tsunami" of talent is in Wave 2, once you get past JImenez and Kopech. Theoretically, you can include Burdi, and then Collins/Cease, although both those players are likely at least 1/2 season away from the big leagues still. Basabe would be the next, unless you want to include Zavala, which is pushing it (especially with the emergence of Narvaez and Palka/Delmonico's return). Ian Hamilton, too. I guess 6 players is "relatively close" to a wave, and (7) with Dunning, but he's probably even further behind...and the slide backwards of (8) Hansen has compounded that depth problem in the rotation. One would think that who they sign for the pitching staff in the FA market is going to be the biggest indicator. If it's merely a couple of veteran placeholders or they really break out the wallets for the equivalent of a Lester/Darvish/Arrieta-like signing (which many would argue would be at least 1 1/2 years too early.)

Gonzalez

It's a little bit like the Shields situation, getting blasted the previous start and overlooking it due to the prior body of work. The rumor was that Darvish was tipping his pitches (with the Dodgers, particularly in the WS), and that there was not any noticeable deterioration in his actual stuff. In hindsight, it's easy to say they would have been better off keeping Arrieta, but that would have been the thinking of approximately NOBODY in February of this year.

Personally, I think it was 50% exactly what she said (sensitivity, allowing constituents to speak freely), but the other 50% was protecting her from yet another PR gaffe with the national media and especially GOP waiting to pounce. Taking her soundbites and throwing up an image of Pelosi alone might be enough to hold some right-leaning GOP House districts.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/commentary-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-becomes-the-sarah-palin-of-the-left/ Ocasio-Cortez already getting compared to Sarah Palin...oh well, it was fun while it lasted

Actually, I meant from that group of "second wave" outfielders:Robert, Basabe, Rutherford, Adolfo, Gonzalez, I guess you can stick Call in there if you want to. (Obviously, Robert's got to show more pop, eventually.)

It's whether you want to outbid the rest of the market by 10-15%, see Buehrle with the Marlins/Loria in 2012.

Don’t forget Adolfo, too. We’ll know a lot more about Robert from the AFL. Also, fwiw, Mercedes (obviously older), Collins and Narvaez making the catching situation is at least look more promising.

That’s exactly what got Hillary (Goldman Sachs), Romney (47% don’t contribute) and Obama (cling to guns and religion) in trouble...miked comments from private fundraisers that leaked out. One key difference is this was a meeting with constituents about district issues.

3/4 now, 919 ops, really is (inarguably) the best overall OF prospect, based on performance alone.

Positive spin, if you look really hard and squint...or just throw out April and May altogether, Giolito would be an okay 5th starter. Or we can blame the defense, umpiring, etc. Covey and Lopez falling back hasn’t helped much either. Of course, if we can screen for positive, the reverse should be equally true...Moncada would be the worst player in baseball if we threw out his first two months.

The difference is only $100+ million there. Between Matt Harvey, and, let’s say, Dallas Keuchel. Do we go with a sign and flip one year Bandaid or legitimately target a long-term piece for the rotation?

Except it’s total AAA innings...that’s very deceptive, because he came up very late at the end of last year. And his ERA was well into the 4’s about six weeks ago. If he gets lit up, there will be many who argue he was rushed to placate the fanbase. In fact, some of the AAA/AA competition might be better than what the Twins, Royals and Tigers are sending out there right now.

Lopez is, at worst, a fifth starter or potentially elite bullpen piece. Giolito has looked that way his last 6-7 starts as well, and there’s been a notable uptick in velocity from his first two months. Now if we still don’t have any “sure” rotation pieces in place at the end of 2019, something has gone terribly awry.