hot stove 2019-20

supposedly if the red sox are paying $14-$15m per year to dump price, the *dodgers* can stay under the salary cap luxury tax

i don't understand rich people. or rich teams. or rich owners.

surprised the Twins are shipping a prospect like Graterol for a starter like Maeda.

Rays vet James Click is the new Houston GM

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28634922/new-astros-gm-james-click-seeks-quick-success-replacing-jeff-luhnow

• think the twins concluded that graterol didn't have the command/third pitch to start, and getting a reliable (and cheap!) starter helps them go for it now

• wilmer flores to sf (two years, $6m), fragile greg bird to texas (minors deal)

• it's worth noting how little the luxury tax actually costs -- only the yankees and dodgers have *ever* paid any significant money on it, and the penalty just isn't that much. (otoh, since almost half the proceeds from the tax go to the non-threshold breaking teams that refuse to spend their own money, it is probably galling to the big-spending clubs)

hey way to go red sox lol

when’s the last time a player of betts’ stature was traded by the team that drafted him in the prime of his career? and didn’t demand to traded? just can’t believe this actually happened

― k3vin k., Tuesday, February 4, 2020 10:38 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

since im not really up on baseball these days the only thing i cld come up with was that they didnt think they cld retain him, if its just a straight financial move my god

i think he had said he was planning on becoming a free agent next year, but getting alex verdugo and a RP prospect for the 2nd best player in baseball suggests the motivation was mostly financial

dear god the rockies signed ubaldo jimenez to a minor league deal

he's 36 and last pitched in 2017, when he had a 6.81 ERA over 142 IP for baltimore

maybe arenado has a point

dodgers are also trading pederson to LAA for rengifo. i have no idea why the angels would do this unless they intend on swinging pederson to someone else for pitching. or adell. i have no idea how LAA has made this many moves and they still don't have any pitching.

― ℺ ☽ ⋠ ⏎ (✖), Wednesday, February 5, 2020 3:08 AM (nineteen hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

The trade isn't finalized yet for some reason but the Dodgers are trading Joc, Ross Stripling and a dude who hit 19 homers in rookie ball for Rengifo and another prospect, maybe two.

ya, i'm more confused what the dodgers plan here is.

the motivation was mostly financial

― na (NA), Wednesday, February 5, 2020 12:00 PM (six hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

wild times

maybe Mookie's secret sauce was some secret Alex Cora shit

ha didnt even think of that

btw really looking forward to Astros being serenaded w/Bang the Drum All Day/Bang a Gong/She Bangs/etc all season long.

true lol

bang bang on the door, baby!
bang bang on the door, baby!

hopefully 3 other teams will be busted by April to spread the love

Execs referred to below are RIVAL execs, not from #RedSox. Their overriding point: For many years, Sox made short-term decisions with little regard for future. They were left with a depleted farm system and an expensive roster. They eventually needed to pivot - or crash. https://t.co/5TvJXNAvuP

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) February 5, 2020

which of those rival execs have won four championships in the last 15 years

it sounds like the criticism is....extremely well-placed

cldnt they have like traded someone else

I hate this.

My kids say they don’t like the Red Sox any more.

Tempted to blame JD for this but it’s not his fault.

i'd think there'd be at least a few teams interested in david price with a three-year $16m/yr contract, which is apparently what the dodgers are getting. i'm unclear why you'd have to throw in a hall of famer to make that work.

and if your biggest need is replenishing your farm system, i'm equally unclear why you'd design a trade for your two biggest contracts that doesn't even begin to do that.

@jay_jaffe
Good nugget here: Mookie Betts joins Hall of Famers Tris Speaker, Eddie Collins and Jimmie Foxx as the only players to put up a 10 bWAR season and then get traded by their respective teams while still in their 20s

From @peteabe: Red Sox to name Ron Roenicke as manager after MLB investigation concludes https://t.co/QyLKTmFLoC via @BostonGlobe

— Alex Speier (@alexspeier) February 7, 2020

that is...not exciting

but another nice piece of news in an all-time terrific offseason

he was cora's bench coach, so i guess they must be confident about the investigation?

or nonapologetic

Good luck, Rene Riggleman.

hunter pence is back in the bay

lol

Twins pulling out of the Betts/Price deal apparently!

whoa

Munching popcorn gif

really don't understand how these things get announced/leaked before they're final

I'm literally pacing the room here

what if some form of the deal goes through anyway and the Sox.... sign Mookie as a free agent next year with the money they're saving on Price

I wanna believe

https://twitter.com/MLBPA_News/status/1225903486006710275

Hmm

Major League Baseball Players Association Executive Director Tony Clark today released the following statement: pic.twitter.com/bxzIj9GQmb

— MLBPA Communications (@MLBPA_News) February 7, 2020

i know of a few in hockey, but i cannot recall a traded player ever returning like that in baseball apart from aroldis

just when I was gonna invite Tracer's kids to become Mets fans

The Red Sox developed reservations about Graterol after examining his medicals, and were denied when they asked the Twins to include another high-quality prospect in return. It's unclear what caught the Red Sox off guard, as Graterol has a known injury history that includes Tommy John surgery and a shoulder impingement. It's also unclear why the Red Sox asked the Twins for more, considering the Red Sox weren't sending any players to Minnesota in the swap.

Just read that Bloom was literally the only external candidate for the GM job - didn't know that. Makes sense though

Bottom line: #RedSox and #Dodgers should be motivated to complete deal. BOS could be left with Betts, Price and all their previous financial concerns, valid or not. LAD would be left with Maeda and Pederson unsettled - and once again they would be shut out on a star.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) February 8, 2020

"valid or not"

"BOS could be left with Betts" oh no how awful!!!

Saddam Hussein might remain President of Iraq, along with all the concerns about his weapons of mass destruction, valid or not.

wouldn't you rather be rid of him now though?

seems it would be rough going for both of these guys coming back knowing the club preferred them gone