2022-23 Hot Stove thread

also, Diamond Broadcast Group (owned by Sinclair, owns Bally Sports) confirms the rumors and is headed to bankruptcy court. they broadcast for these teams:

Arizona, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Los Angeles Angels, Miami, Milwaukee, Minnesota, St. Louis, San Diego, Tampa Bay, and Texas

it also affects other sports that feature balls, such as the NBA and NHL

https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/80012/in-the-dirt-sinclair-prioritizing-buybacks-over-baseball-hurts-fans-the-most/
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-25/sports-broadcaster-diamond-faces-8-6-billion-debt-reckoning

xp someone ask keith law if he thinks jeff mcneil is a prospect

*correction: the NHL does not feature a ball

Greinke is a Royal for one more (likely final) year

he had a pretty solid 2022, hope he finishes on a high note.

i hope so too, but his peripherals didn't look great last year

Beltran hired by the Mets:

https://baseball.realgm.com/wiretap/55598/Carlos-Beltran-Joining-Mets-As-Special-Assistant-To-GM

Timing in interesting, after he did better in HOF voting than I think was the general expectation (because of the scandal and the Mets bailing last time).

(I think George Costanza was once up for the same job with the Yankees but lost out to Wilhelm.)

is anyone else excited about the world baseball classic

I am, but not so excited that I have any idea when it starts

still a month away - first games are march 8.

some teams are still announcing rosters, but you can see them here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_World_Baseball_Classic_rosters

team gb is going to…. lose badly lol

yeah, it's probably going to get ugly for czech republic as well.

dominican republic is gonna be mighty good again

People are saying Japan is the fav to win it?!

yeah, i'm really, really looking forward to getting to see them play, especially to get a chance to watch Munetaka Murakami and Roki Sasaki

Baseball’s Best Young Hitter and Pitcher Play in Japan

also, Ohtani.

the US starting lineup is going to be monstrous (OF: Trout, Betts, Tucker; IF: Goldschmidt, Arenado, Turner, Witt Jr, Alonso, Story; Realmuto catching), but good pitching is even important in a tournament and japan has some of the best pitchers on earth on their team

even ^more^ important

I am now sufficiently excited.

ONLY ONE MONTH REMAINS!

haha but yeah i am relatively excited for it. i had never watched a WBC before the last go round and found it really gripping and way more intense than i thought it would be. it also led to unforgettable (for me) moments that wouldn't be possible in MLB, like

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuiEAdveNE0

something like that might happen in an all-star game, i suppose, but even then there's something about it coming in the midst of a competitive game where they really, really want to win (and have fun) that made it special

I always pay *some* attention to the wbc (I think we have a thread for it). I always enjoy seeing guys explode onto the scene through it

padres extend Yu Darvish through 2028, $108M, $18M AAV. when the contract is up at the end of 2028, darvish will be 42 years old.

a lot to pay for his Phil Niekro years

that is…pretty generous of the padres

spring training, pitchers and catchers reporting, all of that. is time for a new season thread yet? i want to get past this horrible, awful winter and part of it, psychologically, is the idea that baseball is happening again.

i took a screenshot of facebook content that i didn't ask to see but thought was intersting

https://i.imgur.com/jWPnC1b.png

There’s still a month of spring training to go though. Feels like the general thread needs to be closer to opening day.

That chart made me laugh. If you overpay enough people, you look come out looking pretty good.

midseason form

Jacob deGrom felt some tightness in his left side, and — given the cold weather and how early it is in camp, we’re told — they’re going to hold him back a day or two. We’re told the seriousness level is such that he would play through it if it were the regular season.

— Levi Weaver (@ThreeTwoEephus) February 15, 2023

good luck, texas

for anyone who cares about the bally sports mess, today is the day of their first missed interest payment, which kicks off the bankruptcy process. the next 30 days is a grace period for the missed payment. at that point, mid-march, it'll become more clear what kind of bankruptcy this is going to be, whether it's one negotiated and handled with MLB participation or more of a free-form chaotic thing

Diamond Sports' future was a topic on this week's podcast.

Listen here: https://t.co/jDj7q2c1tj pic.twitter.com/5JsP3v7CUI

— John Ourand (@Ourand_SBJ) February 15, 2023

a couple arbitration things. i guess the big one is corbin burnes. he asked for $10.75M, brewers countered with $10.01M, he lost his case. burnes wasn't happy about it:

Every fear that going to an arbitration hearing against Corbin Burnes could harm his relationship with the Brewers was founded.

“There’s no denying that the relationship is definitely hurt from what [transpired],” Burnes said. pic.twitter.com/Xv8DFyiKde

— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) February 16, 2023

sounds like during the hearing, the brewers (or their reps in the case at least) tried to blame not making the 2022 playoffs on burnes (who pitched very well last year), and he's pissed.

in less notable news, ryan helsley also lost his arbitration case. he asked for $3M, will receive $2.15M instead. he was one of the very best relievers in the game last year and can throw 104 mph, but ok cardinals

Seems like a bad way for the brewers to save 749k

Textbook illustration of why arbitration hearings are a minefield to be avoided.

(If possible, obviously, and $750,000 is very avoidable.)

machado opting out after this season:

Machado confirms he plans to opt out at the end of this season, said Padres know where he stands when it comes to a new deal. Noted the market has changed dramatically since he signed.

“There’s a lot of money out there.”

“As a player about to opt out, it’s pretty good to see.”

— Chelsea Janes (@chelsea_janes) February 17, 2023

Just don’t have a subpar season after you plan to opt out

yeah, kinda gutsy! to be fair, though, i think the market has shifted such that even if he had a relatively disastrous season, he would still probably be able to get a raise by opting out and signing with a team willing to snag him based on his record so far

He would have to completely implode to not make off like a bandit next offseason

looks like the White Sox have snagged Elvis Andrus for $3M, 1 year

One of those middle infielders I'm forever falling into the trap of thinking is a viable 3,000-hit candidate as they approach 30 (Andrus had 1,457 hits and was coming of a career high 191 going into his age-29 season). His career defensive stats are good, so it's too bad he'll be primarily remembered for his disastrous 7th inning against the Jays in the bat-flip game.

https://defector.com/the-search-for-the-real-jason-heyward-continues

i wish the dodgers good luck, i hope heyward gets it together but even if not he's possibly a good piece for a championship contender. would be nice, if he does get it together, that bellinger does as well. so it feels like the best possible even swap outcome.

he seems like someone who might benefit from a year overseas to try out all of his possible swing mechanics with a bit less of a spotlight on his struggles

hell, pretty much everyone would benefit from a year overseas, we should all try that next year

Apparently Machado is getting an 11 year extension at $350M. Yow.

only some of that is new years and money, but yeah.

The star third baseman was planning to opt out of his contract after the season but will instead stick around, as Machado and the Padres are reportedly finalizing a new 11-year, $350MM contract. The extension begins this year and will run through the 2033 campaign, which will be Machado’s age-40 season. He gets full no-trade protection and the deal does not contain any opt-outs. Since Machado had six years and $180MM remaining on his previous deal, this new agreement will add five years and $170MM in new money for the MVP Sports Group client.

Getting $170M for your age 35 to age 40 seasons still feels like a big win for Machado.

oh for sure! plus they can go on and put that padres hat on his hall of flame plaque

He’s so close to being a slam dunk HOF it’s kind of wild

he's pretty close. i'd rank guys like Freeman, Arenado, Harper and Betts ahead of him in terms of HoF odds; but i wouldn't bet against him at this point

i would bet $30 against him. but i'd bet $80 for him. and $1 on "becomes a home plate umpire", just because that one is worth tons if you win

For the fourth consecutive season, I had the AI create a motto for every MLB team. pic.twitter.com/DE05AkuqnB

— Dan Szymborski (@DSzymborski) March 4, 2023

Former Cy Young winner Trevor Bauer is finalizing a one-year contract with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars in Japan, sources tell ESPN. Bauer was released by the Dodgers and went unsigned by MLB teams after serving a record domestic-violence suspension. Deal will be official tonight.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 13, 2023

bye bitch!