Hot Stove 2023-2024

Seems like a great deal

Imanaga signing is really strange. The AAV isn’t that high, for one thing, and it’s so close to his deadline which needs to include a medical? SF would certainly have paid more for him than that bearing in mind they have money and really no pitching atm, plus Oracle would flatter his numbers a lot (a lefty pitching in Oracle isn’t as protected as they once were but Triples Alley still eats a lot of homers). That would be ideal for a fly ball guy.

It feels like a small move for the Cubs themselves, who haven’t done anything with free agents. I don’t know. It feels weird.

Actually this whole free agent class is underwhelming. Loads of the top guys still out there, most of the contracts given out so far are short.

lmao

Jon Heyman said on @670TheScore that an Imanaga suitor was willing to double the Cubs' contractual guarantee. He chose Chicago.

— Steven (@GoCubs49) January 10, 2024

Here is the exact clip for anyone curious.

Heyman actually said “more than double.” pic.twitter.com/CuApmyu4jU

— Steven (@GoCubs49) January 10, 2024

maybe he heard there's an alamo drafthouse across the street from wrigley field now

i don't really know what the cubs' plan is ... the counsell hiring seemed to suggest some further big spending and then they've done almost nothing. i'm guessing they're still trying to get bellinger back (and will probably overpay) and hoping the NL central stays weak, but i wouldn't bet on the cardinals being as bad this year

i guess in hindsight the counsell hiring was more opportunistic than phase 1 of an ambitious plan

Cardinals are definitely not as bad this year, though that Palacios trade seemed unpopular. Wondering if the Cubs want Stroman back, but not at his price.

so they'll sign bellinger and stroman and be ... approximately as good as they were last year. cool.

I mean they wildly undershot their X-W/L, had a better run differential than the brewers and even with their crazy W-L underperformance, they were still one win away from the wildcard. Running it back and hoping for a regression to the mean on W/L with their new (much better) managerial hire honestly isn't the worst plan.

All that said, I fully expect the Brewers to turn on the burners every game with the Cubs this season and really sock it to them. They are going to be some fun games

hoping the NL central stays weak, but i wouldn't bet on the cardinals being as bad this year

the NL central will definitely stay weak, and even a ten-game improvement only gets the cardinals to .500

i mean, the cardinals have lovely uniforms and the Best Fans In Baseball, but they're not immune to sucking just because they haven't in quite a while

That would be true except I attended a devil magic gathering last night and a lot of weird stuff from the woods entered the stew.

Cardinals will make the WS but not win it in 2024

I would not have guessed that the other team that offered Imanaga more was the Pirates?

The Pittsburgh Pirates also had some interest in Imanaga, according to sources, but ultimately the lefty chose Chicago, where he has been based since Christmas.

pretty surprising number. i guess perfect storm for the Cubs in that maybe all the teams that are set to spend have either already spent (Dodgers) or are looking to fill other gaps (Jays). cut it as close as possible to the signing window, so maybe not enough time for fence sitting teams to figure things out (Yankees)? and i guess this whole TV contract debacle has put the chill on spending for a lot of mid market teams?

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39287711/sources-cubs-acquire-michael-busch-4-player-trade-dodgers

https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/2023/10/24/23928402/breaking-down-offseason-targets-shota-imanaga

this gets into his hr/9 which partially explains the low contract. Other NPB pitchers that have come over have a hr/9 of .25~. Imanaga has a hr/9 of 1.0. Other pitchers have their .25~ shoot up to 1.0+ when they get to MLB. So there is some legitimate fear Imanaga could get absolutely torched on the long ball. If he can figure out a way to keep his long ball stats the same as they were in the NPB then great, absolute steal of a contract for the cubs. But that hypothetical seems plenty unlikely

^^Dodgers needed one extra space on the 40-man for Teoscar but they just opened two extra spaces with that trade..... Scratch my post about no more Dodgers moves this off-season

Rays lock up McLanahan for 2 years/$7.2M

Could this be... dare I say it... their year?

If he stays healthy I guess? But they’ve lost a few players and not made many moves.

I uhhh….. think that one was a joke

Or was it...? ...?

...?

Steve I need to know if you have a chapter in your injuries notebook dedicated to Tampa pitchers and their pulled pork arms

The real joke is that the Rays could trade a bag of peanuts for a smelly sock in the off-season and would still end up being one of the trade-winners with a locked post-season spot before April is finished.
Those pesky bastards are unstoppable

Tis the season

Star outfielder Juan Soto and the New York Yankees are in agreement on a one-year, $31M contract, sources tell ESPN. Soto sets a new record for an arbitration-eligible player, beating Shohei Ohtani's $30M last year. Soto will be a free agent after '24. @Joelsherman1 was on it.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 12, 2024

Ok

Right-hander Marcus Stroman and the New York Yankees are in agreement on a contract, sources tell ESPN. Stroman, 32, was an All-Star with the Cubs in 2023 and had a great first half but struggled down the stretch and finished with a 3.95 ERA.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 12, 2024

I can't remember if he's ever started a game back at Rogers since leaving; if not, and under the assumption he will this year, that'll be something to see.

Stroman always been a Yankee in spirit lets be honest

In total, 23 arbitration-eligible players did not reach terms on a contract and are seemingly headed for a trial. Deals still could be worked out, either for one year or long-term. Here is the full list of players, their requested salaries and teams' requested salaries. pic.twitter.com/M3gBan7Huv

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 12, 2024

xp Clem

Stro pitched in Toronto 08/22 - 5IP, 3H, no decision. Reaction will be very different playing for NYA, I really couldn't care though - I love the guy and look forward to the tweets :D

Huh?!

BREAKING: Right-hander Jordan Hicks and the San Francisco Giants are in agreement on a four-year, $44 million contract, a source familiar with the deal tells ESPN. Hicks, 27, is expected to work as a starter after spending the majority of his career in the bullpen.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 12, 2024

Stro wanted to be a yankee since he came into the league but NYY never bit on him for whatever reason

i guess with, like, adolis garcia that’s a sizable percentage gap, but why even bother taking casey mize to arbitration over $25k? that’s just being dickish — shades of when the team with the lowest arb figures won a title belt

I agree in principle that it's not worth possibly antagonizing Vladdy over $1M when you're talking about the difference between $18 and $19M. But I feel like it's even dumber with regards to Arraez, who legitimately had a great season and actually deserves to win.

More like $2M, actually.

wishing the best for hicks!

if jordan hicks is able to remain in the starting rotation for a season, that would be a good deal for the giants. he was developed as a starter in the minors but rushed to the major league bullpen due to his ability to throw 105 mph (he was also 21 years old that year and was hazed by dickish members of the cards bullpen (matheny and shildt did nothing)

but i think there are a few reasons he hasn't had success in the rotation. i think the most important is he never developed a third pitch (though the two he has, fastball/slider, are both nasty). he got a chance to start for a while in 2022 and rarely made it out of the 3rd or 4th inning, and i think part of that was just hitters adjusting to him the second time around. secondly, he walks 4 to 5 per 9 innings and anecdotally, the walks seem to come in bunches, so he's susceptible to getting run out of the game early). also he is frequently injured.

on the plus side the dude throws 105 and his slider is crazy good! even if he doesn't stick in the rotation, he's one of the few relievers who would justify a $11M/yr contract, and the giants can afford it so seems like a good deal

Shōta Imanaga opened his Cubs introductory press conference in the best way possible pic.twitter.com/pS6uNUg51u

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) January 12, 2024

I’d be surprised if Hicks stayed a starter. Everyone talks about how hard he can throw, but even as a reliever he was still hitable

xp thanks for the info, it’s an interesting signing but I guess they can flip him at the deadline if the rotation doesn’t work out & get a haul for him, cos they already have Doval to close. I think he’s maybe the third reliever I’ve read about starting in the past few weeks. Realistically they don’t need him to be anything besides an adequate innings eater because that rotation is basically Webb, Stripling (ugh), injured Robbie Ray, Kyle Harrison, injured Alex Cobb, ???. Harrison is really good but had a rough debut last year but the upside is huge, so I guess they think they can take Bailey’s process and get something out of Hicks to fill some innings.

Thanks for the scouting report on Hicks everyone has I have no idea what to think of this signing

Has should be as

I will be with gyac here and be positive about all of this. Giants need another starter tho

I had to look up Imanaga's reference. When the Cubs sign me, I'm opening up my first press conference with "Let's play two!"

an introductory press conference is the perfect time to introduce your own new salsa brand

https://i.imgur.com/8GJWwuV.png

I will be with gyac here and be positive about all of this. Giants need another starter tho

Jung Hoo Lee asked if he looked handsome 😂 pic.twitter.com/1mkKrQrCup

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) December 15, 2023

Cute story re Imanaga in Chicago

Shota Imanaga listened to the roar of the crowd during the national anthem, taking in the scene before one of Connor Bedard’s first home games with the Chicago Blackhawks. Imanaga later returned to the United Center to buy a Michael Jordan jersey and take a picture next to the iconic statue.

This was early November, a few weeks before Imanaga entered the posting system created by Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball. Imanaga, a fixture with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars and the winning pitcher in Japan’s victory over Team USA in last year’s World Baseball Classic championship game, wanted a new challenge.
…
Imanaga and his associates posted up at a suburban hotel, getting comfort food at Mitsuwa Marketplace, a Japanese grocery store in Arlington Heights. Imanaga worked out at Bo Jackson’s indoor facility near O’Hare International Airport. Imanaga’s group now has a collection of tourist photos around Chicago that could best be described as “Where’s Shota?”

Imanaga felt so comfortable that he wanted to stay. He just wasn’t sure that the interest was mutual.

“Each team is different and it’s a long process,” Imanaga told The Athletic on Thursday through an interpreter. “One time I mentioned, ‘I hope the Cubs offer me.’ I was kind of joking just because at that time the Cubs were out of the picture.”

I forgot about Matt Carpenters salsa!!! Greatest mlb storyline of 2018.

Imanaga seems like a lot of fun. Love to have a guy playing for your team like that

I should just give in and become a Dodgers fan. I have only been back to Orange County since '03, so only one Giants World Series Championship since then. But there is only one Madison Bumgarner.

The baseball is a lot of fun to watch