Quote from MrPadre19 on March 29, 2024, 4:56 am

Quote from sportwarrior on March 28, 2024, 11:44 pm

Quote from MrPadre19 on March 28, 2024, 11:44 am

Quote from sportwarrior on March 28, 2024, 7:11 am

The Will Smith deal will go down as one of the most team-friendly deals in recent memory. I see comments relating his contract to those we've given Darvish and Boegarts and Machado, but honestly, this is in an entirely different realm of "friendliness." JT Realmuto has an AAV of 23m+. That puts the Dodgers on the hook for a full $9m less AAV than what Will Smith would be trying to beat on the open market. This is almost shockingly good for the Dodgers at an AAV that nobody will even blink at in 5 or 6 years.

Also, Happy Opening Day: Part II!

Kind of depends on how you look at it.

You could easily consider it a 5/$28 mil per year deal and it doesn't seem that friendly.

Will he be Catching in 5 years or a very average 1b/DH?

Not saying it's a horrible deal....I just find it hard to look at it like it's only $14 per year when he won't likely be Catching for the 2nd half of the deal.

Obviously they are spreading it out for the CBT....so it just hits different to me.

 

 

That was precisely my point in my original post. This can be viewed, essentially, a 140m deal for 5 or 6 remaining years of productivity, but spread out over 10 years to minimize the AAV hit. In 7 years, 14m is going to be a drop in the bucket.

By comparison, Buster Posey got a 9/167m deal I'm 2013. That's 11 years ago. There really isn't any way you can spin this as anything but team friendly.

Unless you consider in 7 years Smith will be a below average DH...or out of baseball altogether.

Drop in the bucket for the dodgers maybe....

 

Quote from fenn68 on March 30, 2024, 4:28 am

MLBTR had an interesting piece on Brandon Belt … the last of the better FA  still unsigned.

Apparently he does want to play in 2024 but has no offers … only some inquires from teams by no offers. He has not wanted to sign a minor league (make good) contract … so maybe a factor … viewed as an aging DH only type vs RHP is potentially a limiting factor … however he was productive in that role in 2023 so still surprised all teams are just not interested … with rosters set going to be hard for him until a key injury or a player in a similar role just fails.

On the other hand, once Manny assumes 3B again, do the Padres look to Belt as the LHH DH at a low cost but a veteran with a proven track record or are they OK with Pauley / Wade in that role at even a lower cost?

Stat wise Belt should have appeal … price seems to be heading into the bargain range … is there anything about Belt beyond the stats that are keeping teams away?

Quote from WindsorUK on March 30, 2024, 10:56 am

Okay, Soapbox time....

Rhys Hoskins slide? 100% attempt to take out McNeil( spiked him on his off the bag ankle) and Brewer manager Pat Murphy saying that's good, hard, clean, baseball??? This mother f**ker a dinosaur? He probably thought Utley breaking Tejada's leg was a good play.

I'm all for players giving it their all but baseball is NOT a hard man game! If these pussies( Hoskins said NOTHING on the field but when he got another Brewer in front of him, THEN he got tough!) want to be hard men, head over to their local MMA gym, see what REAL toughness looks like.

I'm tired of this on going BS. Baseball is a game of skill, angles, positioning, and athleticism. Hoskins should have been booted from the game. And Murphy......Jesus.....what an embarrassment to baseball in 2024.

Okay, off Soapbox......

Quote from Jeremy Hill on March 30, 2024, 2:44 pm

Quote from WindsorUK on March 30, 2024, 10:56 am

Okay, Soapbox time....

Rhys Hoskins slide? 100% attempt to take out McNeil( spiked him on his off the bag ankle) and Brewer manager Pat Murphy saying that's good, hard, clean, baseball??? This mother f**ker a dinosaur? He probably thought Utley breaking Tejada's leg was a good play.

I'm all for players giving it their all but baseball is NOT a hard man game! If these pussies( Hoskins said NOTHING on the field but when he got another Brewer in front of him, THEN he got tough!) want to be hard men, head over to their local MMA gym, see what REAL toughness looks like.

I'm tired of this on going BS. Baseball is a game of skill, angles, positioning, and athleticism. Hoskins should have been booted from the game. And Murphy......Jesus.....what an embarrassment to baseball in 2024.

Okay, off Soapbox......

I respectfully disagree. That's almost exactly how you're taught to slide to break up the double play in that situation. It was a little late, but he slid in the vicinity of the bag without over sliding. I get McNeil and the Mets being upset, but it was a legal slide and confirmed by the umpires as such. It wasn't close to the Utley situation. I've seen a ton of players and baseball people weigh in on Hoskin's side. I haven't seen any against him. I think McNeil and the Mets look way worse in this situation. Videos have already surfaced of a dirtier slide from McNeil. Then they throw behind Hoskins today when he's already 3-3 and they're down 4. Their own broadcast team called them out on it.

Quote from WindsorUK on March 30, 2024, 3:46 pm

Isn't a runner required to hit dirt on his slide BEFORE he gets to the bag? Hoskins clearly slides right on top of the bag. If that's what they're teaching, guys are going to continue getting hurt. I'm sure there are actually guys still out there that think Utley's slide was okay.

To me, it just doesn't look like a baseball move. If Hoskins was really trying to beat the throw to the bag, he'd have gone down earlier. But if, as you say, he was just trying to break up the DP, had McNeil been actually trying to turn 2, there would have been a massive collision. Does anyone really want to see that in baseball?

Maybe I'm getting soft in my old age, Jeremy. I'm sick and tired of the " unwritten rules". Those belong in the past. Game is more entertaining now- we don't need brushbacks, throwing behind hitters, wipe out slides on the basepaths, not swinging 3-0 when you're up by 10, etc.

Baseball is a beautiful game. Play to the "actual" rules. I want to see both Hoskins and McNeil playing all 9.

Glad to disagree though. If we all thought the same, chats would be rather boring.

Quote from Jeremy Hill on March 30, 2024, 7:03 pm

Quote from WindsorUK on March 30, 2024, 3:46 pm

Isn't a runner required to hit dirt on his slide BEFORE he gets to the bag? Hoskins clearly slides right on top of the bag. If that's what they're teaching, guys are going to continue getting hurt. I'm sure there are actually guys still out there that think Utley's slide was okay.

To me, it just doesn't look like a baseball move. If Hoskins was really trying to beat the throw to the bag, he'd have gone down earlier. But if, as you say, he was just trying to break up the DP, had McNeil been actually trying to turn 2, there would have been a massive collision. Does anyone really want to see that in baseball?

Maybe I'm getting soft in my old age, Jeremy. I'm sick and tired of the " unwritten rules". Those belong in the past. Game is more entertaining now- we don't need brushbacks, throwing behind hitters, wipe out slides on the basepaths, not swinging 3-0 when you're up by 10, etc.

Baseball is a beautiful game. Play to the "actual" rules. I want to see both Hoskins and McNeil playing all 9.

Glad to disagree though. If we all thought the same, chats would be rather boring.

2 things separate this from a slide like Utley's in my mind. First is that Hoskins stayed in the established base path and slid at the bag even if he clearly meant to take McNeil out. The second is that he was already on the ground in his slide when he made contact with McNeil. Utley pretty clearly veered and basically just threw his body into Tejada's knee. I think you're far less likely to injure someone taking their legs out from under them than crashing into them. Utley's was pretty obviously dirty. I wouldn't even call it a slide. I see Hoskin's as a clean hard play. I also think if McNeil handles the transition cleanly he sees Hoskins coming and has a chance to avoid him.

I agree with you in regards to intentionally throwing at guys. I've always looked at it as dangerous and cowardly.

Quote from MrPadre19 on March 31, 2024, 7:17 am

Quote from WindsorUK on March 30, 2024, 10:56 am

Okay, Soapbox time....

Rhys Hoskins slide? 100% attempt to take out McNeil( spiked him on his off the bag ankle) and Brewer manager Pat Murphy saying that's good, hard, clean, baseball??? This mother f**ker a dinosaur? He probably thought Utley breaking Tejada's leg was a good play.

I'm all for players giving it their all but baseball is NOT a hard man game! If these pussies( Hoskins said NOTHING on the field but when he got another Brewer in front of him, THEN he got tough!) want to be hard men, head over to their local MMA gym, see what REAL toughness looks like.

I'm tired of this on going BS. Baseball is a game of skill, angles, positioning, and athleticism. Hoskins should have been booted from the game. And Murphy......Jesus.....what an embarrassment to baseball in 2024.

Okay, off Soapbox......

I just find it ironic that Jeff McNeil is the one complaining about a slide.

https://youtu.be/04Sj-W_oAkU?si=9yZLDSqI0oTC8313

Now “that” was an illegal slide!

 

Quote from LynchMob on March 31, 2024, 9:12 am

Franmil Reyes homered in his first NPB game as the Nippon Ham Fighters won their opening game 4-1 over the Chiba Lotte Marines.

Quote from Randy Manese on March 31, 2024, 10:49 am

Sasaki got a no decision in his game.  Pitched 5 innings, gave up 1 run, 1 earned run, 1 walk and struck out 7.  Was in line for the win but the closer blew the game in the 9th.  Chiba Lotte Marines lost 3-2.