Poll: starting pitching staff going forward

[Sibelius Hindemith]

I think Kirby is likely to get you the most value because there will be GMs out there that look at his command and velocity and think they can fix the mental issues so they will be willing to give up some legit talent to get him. Castillo, on the other hand, appears to be on the downside with less imposing stuff than a few years ago.

[Lamda]

Kinda tricky because of the discussion about maybe we flip prospects and Miller to get 2 years of Skubal

But, obviously Luis has gone full Felix with the velocity so he is not worth the money

Why would Miller be more "flippable" than Kirby or Gilbert?

More years of control and lower current salary. Gilbert is basically ready to buy out the last of his Arb years with a decent contract so if a team is looking to sell their player and get a player back cheap over the next few years than Miller would be more attractive to them than Gilbert or Kirby. Miller is just starting his first Arb year next year so he'll get around 2.5 mill whereas Gilbert I think is in his 3rd so he's looking at 8+ roughly.

[Lamda]

Good poll idea Sibelius.

Bryan Woo and Luis Castillo from where I'm sitting.

Miller actually looked pretty good too if he can get things together. Great trade bait.

I'm sure somebody already posted this-

Jump on that shit. Don't care what it takes. I wanna know this from the forum. Out of our starting 5, realistically how many do you think we can/should keep considering Cade is on his way along with Sloan. It's a tough call. Based on this past season I'd go with Woo & probably Gilbert. Any ideas anybody? This would be a monumental decision. The likes of which we've never seen. If Jerry & Justin are serious about getting back to LCS, this is the type of bold move you make. Best team, best fit. Nuff said.

IF you could get a player like Skubal AND sign him long term as part of the trade - or someone like him - then i'd be for trading Castillo, Gilbert and Kirby and sticking with Woo/Miller. Woo is a no-brainer and Kirby/Gilbert need 4-5 year contracts at 10-15mill/year. If you get an Ace and sign him to 30mill/year then salary needs to go so that's why you trade those 3 and keep the cheaper 2 but I don't think we lose much between Woo/Miller and Kirby/Gilbert. Then you figure Anderson/Sloan come up to round out the rotation next year near August. You then go with whomever to fill the 2 SP spots until that time.

If we don't trade for an Ace - then you try to trade Castillo and one of Kirby/Gilbert and whichever you keep you try to sign to a team friendly deal buying out Arb years for 4-5 years. Castillo you trade and hope to get the team to cover 10-15mill of his 25mill owed deal but that free's up salary to get more players this offseason. Kirby/Gilbert you trade in hopes of getting a really good player in return - be it a cheaper long term pitcher or more preferably a good bat.

[Sibelius Hindemith]

I'm not sure trading two starting pitchers away is a good idea unless you are hoping to see more of Evans and Hancock (or some other team's version of them).

[DavidGee24]

One thing I would look at is how these pitchers performed in the playoffs.

Let's start with Gilbert. In the two biggest starts of his life he totally crapped the bed each time. Further, he's the most overrated pitcher in the game. In 2024 he led the league with a 0.887 WHIP yet had an ERA of 3.23 and a WAR of 2.8. Nobody in the history of Major League Baseball has ever put up contradictory numbers like that. In 2025 he had another great WHIP of 1.031 but an ERA of 3.44 and a WAR of 2.1. He's the kind of guy who dominates but then totally wilts under pressure, gives up the big hits, and we saw it in the ALCS. Even so, he never has bad seasons so it would have to be a huge offer for us to move him.

Miller? He had an awful 2025 but was outstanding in 2024 and in the playoffs he showed us something and you can't overrate how big that is. I'd like to see us keep him.

Kirby? He pitched well in two of his playoff starts but got bombed in his other start, and despite his talent he's a "when it rains it pours" kind of guy which comes down to his mental makeup. Remember in 2024 when he complained about going out to the mound for the sixth inning? We probably should trade him.

Castillo? Long in the tooth. Gone, unless we trade another starting pitcher as getting rid of two probably isn't a good idea unless we acquire another team's ace.

Woo is one of the best in the game and is obviously on the don't-even-bother-asking list.

Unless Kade Anderson is ready in 2026, I'm not liking Hancock or Evans in our rotation.

[Captain 97]

It's hard to make a proper evaluation based on this past season because literally every single one of them except for Castillo was battling through injuries. You really need to heavily weigh 2024 when making the evaluation as well.

Its pretty obvious that Castillo would be the one you want to trade but with his age, his salary and his declining performance I don't think you are going to have any takers. You might be able to get a low level prospect if you agree to eat most of his salary but why bother.

If there is a trade to be made I think that Kirby is probably the one I would be least sorry to see go.

[Lamda]

I'm not sure trading two starting pitchers away is a good idea unless you are hoping to see more of Evans and Hancock (or some other team's version of them).

I hear you which is why I suggested in another post that we sign a journeyman SP to cover things till August.