Finally! Official Hot Stove League Thread

[bpj]

1B defense. Jose is 6th and France 10th of 18. Walker 1st. Now I know why BPJ has the hots for him. 1st base defense!!!

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx? ... =&enddate=

You know how I roll! Ever since France has taken a step back, defense has been what we're sorely lacking.



At this point I'd prefer Anthony Rizzo over Walker as the DH/1B, but what I like about Walker is that he may be available via trade so it wouldn't be up to him whether or not he signs here.

As far as stats, for 1B Walker was #2 in the league in homeruns, 6th in ISO, and 9th in wOBA, which is ahead of Matt Olson, Josh Bell, or Ty France.

Most other guys near the top of those lists are not available.

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx? ... 1&sort=5,d

Not to mention being two low cost years without a long term contract. And he's a guy that gets his OPS from SLG instead of OBP, so he's driving in the runs instead of drawing walks and passing the buck to the guy behind him.

Normally he'd be waaaay down my list of guys I would want, but considering what's available and what we need, he's a better option than most.

Walker is on pace to earn about $10M total over the next two years.

He has a career wRC+ of 119.
Dansby Swanson is going to cost $120M+, and he has a 104 career wRC+.

I just hope they focus their attention more on improving the lineup instead of worrying about what position the guy plays. We have enough versatility in hand to just add the best bats we can get.

[Vogelbomb]

Julio Rodriguez in the top 3 AL ROY and was on the OD roster so.......... MS RACK UP 2 comp b picks I believe.

Thank you very much

[Vogelbomb]

I'd be up for trading for Teoscar Hernandez. That dude is a beast. Has 30/30 potential to go with JRod

[Coeurd’Alene J]

As expected, Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts has officially opted out of his contract,

[D-train]

Oops there doing it again:

By Ryan Divish
Seattle Times staff reporter
LAS VEGAS — The goodbyes were said weeks ago, some filled with tears in the hours after a heartbreaking 1-0, 18-inning loss to the Astros ending their season, with the understanding for at least a few of them they wouldn’t be back with the Mariners.

The actual transactions went through the Major League Baseball system on Sunday without fanfare or farewells — the nature of the business of baseball.

Five players from the Mariners’ roster — Mitch Haniger, Adam Frazier, Curt Casali, Carlos Santana and Matthew Boyd — became free agents a day after the Astros defeated the Phillies in Game 6 to win the 2022 World Series.

Could any of those five players return to the Mariners in 2023? Maybe one at the most.

The Mariners will have a decision to make in the next few days — if they haven’t already — on what they will do with Haniger. They could extend a qualifying offer, a one-year contract for $19.65 million for the 2023 season, to Haniger with the intention of bringing him back for one season or getting some draft pick compensation if he declines the offer and chooses to test the free-agent market.

Seattle also has a five-day window to negotiate a new contract with Haniger, though Jerry Dipoto, the Mariners’ president of baseball operations, was adamant that course of action was a non-starter.

“Whether or not he leaves has yet to be determined, but he is eligible for free agency and will take advantage of the market and nothing will happen before free agency,” Dipoto said on his radio show in late October. “I can assure you that this will move into free agency. It is something we’ve been aware of for quite some time. He put in his time and developed his credibility as a major-league player and deserves the opportunity that he gave himself, which is to go find out what the market will bear for him. We maintain interest. I think he has interest in coming back here, but I wouldn’t call it a slam dunk.”

The concerns about Haniger’s health and his age — he’ll be 32 in 2023 — make any sort of multiyear deal beyond two years unlikely.

Haniger, who had taken a leadership role and a sense of ownership in the young roster, has been vocal about wanting to return. But since he’s finally reached free agency, it’s understandable for him to want something he views as market-level compensation. He believes his injuries have been more about fluke situations and his commitment to conditioning and preparation will keep him viable into his mid 30s.

When he’s on the field, he’s been a solid to high-level contributor for Seattle.

“We do love what he brings to the table,” said general manager Justin Hollander. “And I think everyone in our group would identify Mitch as the guy who prepares himself for the moment as much as anybody and that is a positive cultural thing that really has value that we want. We will weigh that as we get in the offseason.”

Looking at the Mariners’ current roster, only Julio Rodriguez is locked into a starting spot in the outfield. While once ballyhooed prospect Jarred Kelenic did seem improved in his approach and mindset in the final month of the season, he still has yet to prove he’s a productive MLB player and someone the Mariners can lock into a platoon situation.

Haniger would fill a need at least for one season.

Santana provided an unexpected boost when he was acquired from the Royals on June 27 when Ty France went on the injured list. He brought a boost to the clubhouse in terms of leadership and presence while also hitting some big homers and filling in ably at first base.

But the Mariners aren’t planning to have a full-time designated hitter in 2023, opting to use the position as a way to rest players, which they’ve tried to do since Nelson Cruz’s contract ended after 2018. And if they did go to a near full-time designated hitter, Jesse Winker, who was reported to have knee and neck surgeries this offseason, would be the priority candidate for the spot instead of forcing him back into left field where he struggled in 2022.

“Carlos is an awesome leader and wonderful guy, but it would have to be the right mix for us and the right players on the roster,” Dipoto said. “There are only so many ways you can rotate. Ty France is our first baseman. Carlos did a very nice job of filling in at first base when Ty was not there. While I wouldn’t commit to anything, we would love to find a way to bring Carlos back. But in order for Carlos to be back, somebody else would not be here and that remains to be seen. Not all of them can come back.”

Also
Robert Perez Jr., the Mariners’ No. 21 prospect per MLB Pipeline, defeated Orioles No. 9 prospect Heston Kjerstad, 11-10, in the final round to win the 2022 Arizona Fall League Home Run Derby at Mesa’s Sloan Park. Perez finished with 32 homers across three different rounds, tied with Kjerstad for the most on the night. He started off with 13 homers in the first round, which lasted 2 minutes and 30 seconds for each of the eight competitors, which was the most of any round by any player.

Perez, 22, had a solid season, starting with Low-A Modesto and being promoted to High-A Everett. In 92 games with the Nuts, Perez posted a .270/.369/.501 slash line with 18 doubles, a triple, 20 homers, 87 RBI, 48 walks and 108 strikeouts. He was even better in 35 games with the AquaSox, posting a .342/.477/.583 slash line with six doubles, a triple, seven homers, 27 RBI, 23 walks and 34 strikeouts to close out his season.

[D-train]

OT but very cool

https://baseballhall.org/news/randy-joh ... re-in-2023

[harmony]

At The Athletic., beat reporters Corey Brock and Kaitlyn McGrath propose a trade of righthanders Chris Flexen and Penn Murfee for second baseman Santiago Espinal and minor league pitcher Alejandro Melean:

https://theathletic.com/3772493/2022/11 ... ign=601983

Espinal's parallels to Adam Frazier -- a light-hitting second baseman coming off an All Star season -- are concerning but Espinal, who turns 28 years old on Sunday, has four years of team control with a projected 2023 Super Two salary of $2.1 million.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/play ... sa01.shtml

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/santi ... tion=2B/3B

The Mariners should aim higher.

[D-train]

At The Athletic., beat reporters Corey Brock and Kaitlyn McGrath propose a trade of righthanders Chris Flexen and Penn Murfee for second baseman Santiago Espinal and minor league pitcher Alejandro Melean:

https://theathletic.com/3772493/2022/11 ... ign=601983

Espinal's parallels to Adam Frazier -- a light-hitting second baseman coming off an All Star season -- are concerning but Espinal, who turns 28 years old on Sunday, has four years of team control with a projected 2023 Super Two salary of $2.1 million.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/play ... sa01.shtml

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/santi ... tion=2B/3B

The Mariners should aim higher.

I swear some of these beat writers must get kickbacks for the M's for their inane budget friendly weak ass suggestions. My comment.

D

Darren Warner

· 1s ago

Adding a light hitting 2B with a 99 OPS+ is a good start to improving the offense??? This would then close the door on signing any of the four FA SSs which would actually improve the offense. Please explain. Thanks.

[D-train]

[Seattle or Bust]

At The Athletic., beat reporters Corey Brock and Kaitlyn McGrath propose a trade of righthanders Chris Flexen and Penn Murfee for second baseman Santiago Espinal and minor league pitcher Alejandro Melean:

https://theathletic.com/3772493/2022/11 ... ign=601983

Espinal's parallels to Adam Frazier -- a light-hitting second baseman coming off an All Star season -- are concerning but Espinal, who turns 28 years old on Sunday, has four years of team control with a projected 2023 Super Two salary of $2.1 million.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/play ... sa01.shtml

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/santi ... tion=2B/3B

The Mariners should aim higher.

I swear some of these beat writers must get kickbacks for the M's for their inane budget friendly weak ass suggestions. My comment.

D

Darren Warner

· 1s ago

Adding a light hitting 2B with a 99 OPS+ is a good start to improving the offense??? This would then close the door on signing any of the four FA SSs which would actually improve the offense. Please explain. Thanks.

His BOLD prediction for the M's off season was that the M's sign Jose Abreu.

And then he comes out with this nonsense.

HOW DO PEOPLE GET PAID TO COME UP WITH THIS SHIT!?

Not only that... but 2x Athletic writers got together to brainstorm this excellence. Jesus fuck.