Finally! Official Hot Stove League Thread

[D-train]

This out 4 hours ago...
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/seattle-mariners

"Mariners open to adding another outfielder"

What I get from the article is that at least they are willing to trade Winker, Kelenic, or Trammell for a lower-upside but more stable veteran bat.
What does that make Winker, Kelenic and Trammell? Lower than lower-upside and unstable.

Besides the possibility of resigning Mitch Hanniger....
Other free agent possibilities include Andrew Benintendi, Jurickson Profar, Cody Bellinger and Washington native Michael Conforto, who’s looking to reestablish himself as a middle-of-the-order caliber hitter after a season lost to shoulder surgery.

Benintendi nice power!
I like Profar too. He would keep the line moving.

Benintendi’s ability to get on base has value, but there’s no power, average defense….he really is the OF version of JP.

He would probably make the team a little better. But Seattle’s in a unique position. They’re just a couple of stars short of seriously contending for a World Series. They invested in pitching, it really doesn’t make sense to slouch on the hitting after getting this far.

He definitely has minimal power but his D is great. 6th of 76 OFers in UZR/150

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx? ... &sort=19,d

[Sexymarinersfan]

This out 4 hours ago...
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/seattle-mariners

"Mariners open to adding another outfielder"

What I get from the article is that at least they are willing to trade Winker, Kelenic, or Trammell for a lower-upside but more stable veteran bat.
What does that make Winker, Kelenic and Trammell? Lower than lower-upside and unstable.

Besides the possibility of resigning Mitch Hanniger....
Other free agent possibilities include Andrew Benintendi, Jurickson Profar, Cody Bellinger and Washington native Michael Conforto, who’s looking to reestablish himself as a middle-of-the-order caliber hitter after a season lost to shoulder surgery.

Benintendi nice power!
I like Profar too. He would keep the line moving.

Benintendi’s ability to get on base has value, but there’s no power, average defense….he really is the OF version of JP.

He would probably make the team a little better. But Seattle’s in a unique position. They’re just a couple of stars short of seriously contending for a World Series. They invested in pitching, it really doesn’t make sense to slouch on the hitting after getting this far.

He definitely has minimal power but his D is great. 6th of 76 OFers in UZR/150

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx? ... &sort=19,d

In no way am I out on Benintendi. He's definitely better than anything we've trotted on there since Raul Ibanez or Randy Winn.

[D-train]

Yeah I have him ranked above Mitch, Conforto and Gallo but below all the other options.

[ddraig]

When Mitch is healthy, and that's the rub, he is a more than adequate OFer. I can see both sides to the argument, but I wonder if the M's are cutting off their nose to spite their face? If Mitch accepted the qualifying offer, they could still trade him if they found a better presence in either corner position. And $20 million is cheap compared to what they may be looking at as his replacement. Having Mitch in the fold could also sweeten a pot if an acceptable trade presented itself. Potentially one OFer for another with some additional pieces thrown in. And if nothing came of a trade, you still had Haniger in the OF.

In Mitch's defense. he certainly wouldn't want to be taken out of the lineup for a niggling injury. Plus major time on the IL would further degrade his chances for a better payday in 2024. Mitch needs to prove himself. But the M's would be taking a gamble with an individual who at best can be described as "fragile." As I said, I can see both sides, but at $20 million, it seems relatively cheap for a potential upside. Maybe I'm looking at this as a "bird in the hand" scenario?

[ice99]

Fangraphs predictions/projections:

Judge
Nimmo
Benintendi 2.3 WAR
Haniger 2.1
Bellinger 1.7
Conforto 1.6
Brantley 1.5
Gallo 1.1

JD made the move for Teoscar before Anaheim got Renfroe, there's no reason why he should be running around panicking.

[harmony]

The Athletic features free agent Japanese outfielder Masataka Yoshida in a piece that quotes his former Orix teammates, Adam Jones and Stefen Romero, who have Seattle Mariner connections:

https://theathletic.com/3928988/2022/11 ... ent-japan/

Jones and Romero think Yoshida is ready for Major League Baseball.

[D-train]

Fangraphs predictions/projections:

Judge
Nimmo
Benintendi 2.3 WAR
Haniger 2.1
Bellinger 1.7
Conforto 1.6
Brantley 1.5
Gallo 1.1

JD made the move for Teoscar before Anaheim got Renfroe, there's no reason why he should be running around panicking.

2.1 is a good estimate for Mitch IF he stays healthy all season. They are predicting 141 games. I shall take the under.

[Mesully11]

I am warming up to a bounce back one season offer to Bellinger.

[Pharmabro]

The MLB Network committed an error with this proposed trade of Jesse Winker for Gleyber Torres and Deivi Garcia:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck2yH4ShILc

I saw that.

As Sexy said it is an arms race. I hope we make at least 3 or4 more significant upgrades: My prime targets is to put another TOR type to the rotation, bring in 2 significant upgrades to the offense, And let's add a lefty like Chaffin.

[Pharmabro]

This is Wong vs. Gleyber
Wong has some good numbers
CHaserate, Whiff, BB, and such. He had his best year last year with a 118 OPS+

I think I like Gleyber's hitter profile much better in look at his Hard-hit percentage, Barrel rate etc.

So what profile looks like the better bet to have an up-year in Seattle?