2018-19 Hot Stove thread

[full force five]

But word on the street was the Twins were going to sign Corbin. LOL.

[jakazz30]

Nats are going to regret that.

6 years is too long for a SP..

[Sidewinder2k2]

Corbin to Nats. 6 years, 125 million.

ESPN saying closer to $140M. No way I'd pay that for someone who threw that many sliders last year.

Scherzer
Strausberg
Corbin

As your top of the rotation. Yes please. That's pretty damn tough. You gotta spend the money to compete. Unless, you hit the lottery and draft 3 studs within a couple of years of each other. I expect them to offer Harper a 3 year $120 million dollar deal now. This deal most likely seals their fate with him though.

Nobody has ever used the word "tough" when describing Strasburg. We'll see how much he pitches, but he's topped 200 innings one time in his career and that was 2013. Recently it's: 127, 147, 175 and 130. And he just turned 30.

They like to throw money at their problems, but they've never won a playoff series as a franchise.

[RubeTube]

Who would of thought. Another the Twins didn't make a play for. Aww shucks!

[jakazz30]

Who would of thought. Another the Twins didn't make a play for. Aww shucks!

Should the Twins sign a pitcher that spends time on the DL every year?

[Ask Not]

Interesting notes on free agency trends from Jason Stark in The Athletic.

The free-agent negotiating period kicked off more than five weeks ago. By our estimate, 20 teams still haven’t signed a single major-league free agent. Depending on how you define “major-league free agent,” you could adjust that number upward to 22 or downward to 17. But either way, the overall theme is the same. More than half the teams in baseball have signed zero free agents. In five weeks.

Over those five weeks, only two players who reached free agency have signed a contract longer than two years. They’re both starting pitchers – Patrick Corbin (six years, $140 million with Washington) and Nathan Eovaldi (four years, $68 million with Boston) – and both signed just in the past few days.

More than half of the 13 signings so far have been one-year deals. And only six of those 13 will be earning more than the approximately $4 million average salary.

[Tommy_Hawk]

Interesting notes on free agency trends from Jason Stark in The Athletic.

The free-agent negotiating period kicked off more than five weeks ago. By our estimate, 20 teams still haven’t signed a single major-league free agent. Depending on how you define “major-league free agent,” you could adjust that number upward to 22 or downward to 17. But either way, the overall theme is the same. More than half the teams in baseball have signed zero free agents. In five weeks.

Over those five weeks, only two players who reached free agency have signed a contract longer than two years. They’re both starting pitchers – Patrick Corbin (six years, $140 million with Washington) and Nathan Eovaldi (four years, $68 million with Boston) – and both signed just in the past few days.

More than half of the 13 signings so far have been one-year deals. And only six of those 13 will be earning more than the approximately $4 million average salary.

Thanks ARod, Cano, Pujols, Zito, Cain, ect.

Nobody wants to overpay guaranteed money for half-the-contracts-worth of production. Really, I think teams are trying to reset the market, cohesively, which is probably illegal.

[Ask Not]

Interesting notes on free agency trends from Jason Stark in The Athletic.

The free-agent negotiating period kicked off more than five weeks ago. By our estimate, 20 teams still haven’t signed a single major-league free agent. Depending on how you define “major-league free agent,” you could adjust that number upward to 22 or downward to 17. But either way, the overall theme is the same. More than half the teams in baseball have signed zero free agents. In five weeks.

Over those five weeks, only two players who reached free agency have signed a contract longer than two years. They’re both starting pitchers – Patrick Corbin (six years, $140 million with Washington) and Nathan Eovaldi (four years, $68 million with Boston) – and both signed just in the past few days.

More than half of the 13 signings so far have been one-year deals. And only six of those 13 will be earning more than the approximately $4 million average salary.

Thanks ARod, Cano, Pujols, Zito, Cain, ect.

Nobody wants to overpay guaranteed money for half-the-contracts-worth of production. Really, I think teams are trying to reset the market, cohesively, which is probably illegal.

It might be collusion, but I think it's more about the new model of 'making a run.' Teams are going to rent short term players until they believe they have a championship core. Houston changed everything when tanking worked for the first time ever.

I think there's also a wait and see approach for teams 6-20 (the top 5 teams expect to contend and 10 teams seem to not be trying these days). If those teams outperform, they will fill holes (see Oakland last year), if they underperform, they sell off the short term assets (see the Twins).

[bubu dubu.]

Tulo let go today. Hasn't really been the same since getting traded from Colorado. Should surface somewhere though.

[Ask Not]

Charlie Morton to the Rays; 2yrs / $30M.
This is the first one that pisses me off. I think his stuff is ridiculous and the Twins could have had him for both short term and reasonable price.

[Miley Cyrus]

Lance Lynn to Texas for 3 yrs/30 mil. Good luck pitching in that bandbox, for next year at least.

[weimy froob]

Lance Lynn to Texas for 3 yrs/30 mil. Good luck pitching in that bandbox, for next year at least.

that's good money. good for him.

[Miley Cyrus]

Lance Lynn to Texas for 3 yrs/30 mil. Good luck pitching in that bandbox, for next year at least.

that's good money. good for him.

The new Pelfrey. Teams keep givin him chances.

[bubu dubu.]

Bartolo Colon sign anywhere yet?

[Corre Ricky Corre]

Familia to the Mets 3yrs/30 mil

[Ask Not]

Almost all these contracts look very fair. (Corbin is an outlier.)

[Small Hands]

Almost all these contracts look very fair. (Corbin is an outlier.)

Not sure I'd give Lynn $10 million per for 3 years. Rangers are probably going to regret that.

[Small Hands]

Carlos Santana dealt back to the Indians.

[weimy froob]

Bartolo Colon sign anywhere yet?

doesn't look like it. would he be willing to be a long reliever-mop up relief guy? or maybe a seventh inning specialist? i'd like to see him in the league next year.

[feekdogg]

Carlos Santana dealt back to the Indians.

Getting rid of Encarnacion in in the process. Cleveland also got Jake Bauers from Tampa (pretty highly touted prospect).

[Slim Shady]

I think it's more about the new model of 'making a run.' Teams are going to rent short term players until they believe they have a championship core.

if this is true, the twins will never have this worry and can feel free to hang on to all the fat stacks of cash

[Hornets]

Bartolo Colon sign anywhere yet?

BIG SEXY!!

[D_B_U]

Lance Lynn to Texas for 3 yrs/30 mil. Good luck pitching in that bandbox, for next year at least.

Yikes.

[feekdogg]

Dodgers just traded Kemp, Puig and Alex Wood to the Reds for Homer Bailey and 2 prospects. Pretty obvious salary dump to clear space for Harper.

[ForCaleb]

Dodgers just traded Kemp, Puig and Alex Wood to the Reds for Homer Bailey and 2 prospects. Pretty obvious salary dump to clear space for Harper.

Holy smokes!

[Miley Cyrus]

Machado with an offer on the table from the White Sox. Might make the Sox fun to hate again.

[Ask Not]

200 free agents still available. The landscape has completely changed in just 2 years.

[Sidewinder2k2]

200 free agents still available. The landscape has completely changed in just 2 years.

Teams are being smart/frugal and players/agents are being stubborn. It really makes for a dull winter if you're a baseball fan.

[Keith_Morrison]

Zach Britton to the Yankees 3 years, $39 million.

The RP market is getting thinned out.

Let’s go, FO!

[Southpaw23]

200 free agents still available. The landscape has completely changed in just 2 years.

Teams are being smart/frugal and players/agents are being stubborn. It really makes for a dull winter if you're a baseball fan.

There’s been lots of regression analysis done by FOs that especially mid-tier free agents are just not worth any sort of long term investment. For those middling in the replacement level or just above, it’s becoming very hard to get a decent deal.

If you look st baseball reference:
“Additional 1915-1969 salaries researched via Baseball Hall of Fame contract archives by Dr. Michael Haupert”

I took Dr. Haupert’s class on free agency and realized value. Changed my outlook/ruined my perception on baseball really. It’s much more statistical that I’d like it to be.