At the end of this offseason ask yourself if what gets done is what Luhnow would've done. If the answer is close to yes then Click was a good hire.
Agree, although I will say that this offseason is like no other we have ever seen Obviously we have the pandemic and what it has done to finances, which none of us truly know But we also have the upcoming CBA, which itself has pretty big impacts on a lot of decisions being made right now Luhnow proved himself to be a great team builder. He hit big on a couple of top picks and missed on a couple of others. But the dude could build a roster
Click didn't panic and trade guys at a low point. He didn't try to force something. He acquired Raley for free. These are positive signs to me that he at least won't sink the ship quickly. There were times during the regular season that it looked like Baker was running the show. The playoffs looked very different like Click gave Baker the plan on how to use pitchers and Baker executed it nearly perfectly. If Crane spends up to or close to the luxury tax, he can make Click's job a lot simpler. Spend money for veteran talent, save prospect talent for Astros. It also would give Click the luxury for swing for the fences trades if he doesn't have to waste trade chips on filling holes. In other words, I think what Crane does is much more important this offseason than the GM.
Do you think Maldonado is a starting level catcher? Because Maldonado projects for 1.1 fWAR over 435 PA, while Castro projects for 1.0 fWAR over 282 PA.
Joe Smith is in for the 2021 season per Kaplan. He thought about returning late last season after his mom died, but Corpus Christi's Covid problems prevented him from thinking he would enough time to get ready. https://theathletic.com/2244717/202...s-to-play-in-2021-opens-up-about-his-opt-out/
Too bad, I guess the money was too much to pass up. The Astros could have used that money on a better player.
Hopefully the Mets have enough luck with health on their pitching staff to make a run and give Springer a chance to shine on the big stage, where he shines brightest. I don't think they're going to overtake the Braves even with Springer. Any word if they're keeping the expanded playoff format? May be the only way a team like the Mets gets in.
I don't think Springer will age very well. He will be worth the $100M because he should be really good for 2-3 more seasons but after that I think he will drop off very quickly.
Mets need to sacrifice a live chicken, to give Jobo some rum, and to sign some guys that can play up the middle. They've got 6 corner IFs and OFs for 4 positions. A really unbalanced roster that a little magic could turn to a division champ, but without that magic...they will screw up the season some how.
He will probably have a Beltran-like career arc... without the phenomenal stolen base numbers Beltran showcased earlier in his career. Given that George has already abandoned the running game (as has most of baseball), pretty much just focusing on age-related defensive decline going forward. George likely has just as good defensive range and a stronger arm than what Beltran had at the time of his FA. Speed will go down with age but his defensive skills aren't entirely speed based. He usually gets a good jump, takes a good angle. True value is being able to get him to the playoffs to perform... where he's also been better than Beltran was (minus the scorched earth 2004).
Smith had a 1.80 ERA in 2019 and has a career 2.57 ERA in the postseason. He also seems to perfectly fit the way the Rays have prioritized pitchers with varying arm slots - he gives you a different look that is really helpful late in the game. I can't imagine what better player the team could have signed for $4 mil.
With the current depressed salaries, there will likely be quite a few players better than Joe Smith for $4M even with that being a good deal when he signed his contract. Though, like Verlander, he likely won't produce in 2021 what the current market value is in free agency for 2021. I got nothing against either Verlander or Smith's contracts.
Well, the expected cost of Brad Hand is 6-8 million ... I would far rather have Hand at that cost than Smith at 4. There are others out there too like Trevor Rosenthal and a handful of others.
I guess we'll see what the market actually calibrates the value of guys like Hand at. What I know is the Stros definitely need quality, veteran BP arms (the could have used a guy like Smith this past postseason for sure). The idea that his salary prevented them from signing someone else is predicated on (1) whether his salary exceeds his expected value, (2) by how much, (3) whether that salary premium would have made a meaningful difference in the offer made to another pitcher, and (4) whether said pitcher would have actually signed with the team. I'm happy with the bird in the hand. (Brad Hand pun not intended). I agree both of the pitchers you mentioned are superior arms. Hopefully, they have the opportunity and funds to sign one of them.
In fairness, I don't know what the market will hold either. I just know Hand passed through waivers without being claimed and most the estimates have him at a low number. Smith is older and sat out last year, but the last time he pitched he was effective so he may help a lot.
