JD-TWINS

How is it the FO’s fault when essentially the entire line-up shuts down for the last 6 weeks of the season in ‘24?

How many games did Gallo start at 1B? There was nobody else available - Wallner couldn’t do it…….. context is always good. Not a Gallo fan but he played 4 positions throughout ‘23. He was kept around due to $11M sunk BUT he also filled defensive holes through the season.

Lots of teams that don’t have any options ahead of them and more typically, aren’t competing for a Division title. There are 13 spots - not some infinite number of spots to create opportunity.

Nobody that’s playing well is ever, ever blocked……hit the ball, force your way to the Show. It’s not, come on up & give it a shot, we’ve got our fingers crossed that you stick. AAA is a proving ground - dress rehearsal……perform and we have to play you at Target! That should be the message from the organization.

RH hitter, unlike Kiersey. No lost prospects signing a free agent v. trading for one later. Can always trade him later…….don’t love him but not the end of the world.

Least upside or aid in depth on the clogged 40-man.

Agreed, Grichuk isn’t a star but the Team needs offensive capabilities spread across the line-up. That’s the frustration for me with the Bader signing. Bader’s OPS+ is 91 for his career and declining. Grichuk had a decent year in ‘24.

Completely agree on Emma - no real reason to doubt him but the “MLB ready tag” for whenever convenient in ‘25 is a probable fantasy. Keaschall - he’ll need some time but I’m more hopeful his bat will play by mid-season at least in St Paul…….2B or 1B savior at some point in ‘25 - fingers crossed! Has the organization ever promoted or even suggested playing Larnach at 1B? I don’t get the thought process, randomly, from the fan base? …….not really worried about Castro and his fit with the Team ……. if traded, OK. If he’s still with the club he’s probably playing most of the time at 2B, assuming health on the left side of infield. He’s not the answer at 1B & I’ll be surprised if he sees an inning there.

Gasper - Rule 5 pitcher acquired - Camargo ……..all guys clogging the 40-man IMO. A potential move for a real 1B would be Castro (1yr control) and Matthews (5yr control) and Tonkin for PEN depth to Boston for Casas. I don’t see the demand for Castro with Bader/Martin/Keaschall/Miranda/Julien/Lee …….a group that can cover Castro’s flexibility over the course of the season.

My feeling was Grichuk for offense v. LH pitching 100% (25% of games) ……….DH maybe 20% of the games…….PH 30 games (18% of games) ……..OF start v. RH pitching for rest or historical match-up advantage (15% of games) - he plays 75% of games for $5-$6M. Kiersey as the CF back-up defender. Castro at 2B & Martin as 5th OF ………either Julien or Lee starting year in AAA to get their bat right! Bader flips some of that around ….. Kiersey seems to have no shot w/o injury……that’s OK, he’s a depth guy. I just liked Grichuk’s bat so much better than Bader’s!!!

At this point, unless Lee or Julien are sizzling at the plate in Spring Training, I see Castro as the nearly everyday guy at 2B (70%) until somebody displaces him with their offense. Keaschall & Lee both at AAA to start the season is very possible. Julien really needs to show something to be on roster!

Marlins probably aren’t a real trade partner. Paddack is potentially solid for 85-100 innings in a season at this point. Am hoping he gets half dozen starts (1 per month) and works from the PEN a couple innings at a time a couple outings per week. His stuff plays well if only seen once in an outing by the opposition & he can work at more of a max effort in short stints of 25-35 pitches.

Steer is a fixture in Cincinnati. 156 games & 158 games last 2 seasons. Team voted him MVP after Rookie campaign in ‘23. 58 XBH in ‘24 and played 4 different positions. Pasquantino missed 4 weeks with a wrist/hand injury in ‘24. He had 97 RBI in the middle of the Royal’s line-up. Trading him at all will not happen. Trading him to a Division rival certainly will not happen. For any media platform to suggest he would be traded seems like a huge stretch.

Friedl in CF for Reds - LH…..Will Benson in RF for Reds - LH ……..Jake Fraley in RF or LF or DH for Reds - LH ………..3 of 5 rostered OF are LH!

Not sure about the 2-3 premises that were raised in the article regarding sale & payroll: 1) Team put a FLOOR of $130M in play……..”this means they need to cut salary to get to that number” - why?………Obviously, they can spend more than the FLOOR if ownership is on board …..seems that another $6M for DeJong to have a SS/3B back-up with some pop (24 HR in ‘24) and decent defensive skills is possible…….my assumption is that Lee is not ready in FO view ……..Castro could be part of trade talks? …………a comment earlier, “where are the $$$ for a FA coming from….?” Why would a fan be concerned with this? 2) No reason to think that they may trade CC or Lopez to somehow “…look better for potential buyers”. Seems like a negative move to attract a buyer. Another thought is that Castro may be slated for more OF time & another depth IF is needed………doesn’t seem to make sense with the recent signing of Bader. Not trading Larnach & certainly not Wallner to be able to play Castro more in OF! My thoughts are Eddie is on his last leg and does not exude confidence in the FO. Lee isn’t ready and there needs to be other options considered for short term. Keaschall isn’t ready until at least June/July. Lewis is still a fair injury risk. CC is still a fair injury risk. DeJong is a potential insurance policy for the first 3-4 months of the season. Urias brings no value over internal youth options.

Agree on Headrick - seems exclusively like PEN depth at this point. Team needs a 1B! Agree that acquisition needs to take place. No way, IMO, Paddack is in Opening Day rotation…..agreed! I like him as spot starter half-dozen times and PEN weapon on 2 days per week regimen. Varland same type of role on alternate days, as needed. Obviously, Paddack may be traded.

Gotta have a back-up option in CF is the point because Castro might not be a guy that’s available! I do not like Harrison Bader. E-rod/Martin/Keaschall cannot play CF at the level that Bader supposedly can. If Team has a need for 70 starts in CF, they need an option…..similar to Michael Taylor approach. I hope Julien or Lee or Keaschall tears the cover off the ball and Castro is available in OF! It was certainly what sunk them from August 15 - Sept 30 of ‘24!! I agree that consistent offense will overshadow occasional defensive lapses. Gotta play generally sound defense. Yankees showed in Playofffs that lack of defense can be tough to overcome in a short series.

I too think Castro is just fine whenever needed in CF ……up to even 80-90 games. Bad news is he’ll either be traded OR he’ll have to play 3B or 2B regularly because Lee & Julien can’t hit or Lewis is hurt. My point is the odds are Castro wouldn’t/won’t be available to play CF.

A nice, optimistic view!! ……as with most signings, Fingers crossed!

I agree - nothing to get jazzed about here! Earlier today I posted at TD that Bader had .650 - .620 - .656 OPS the past 3 seasons…..not a great FA target! Then we all got the news. I guess the fair evaluation is, will he be better or comparable defensively & offensively to Larnach - Martin - Wallner v. LH pitching? He can play CF and those 3 cannot, really. The best point I ran across in the early comments here was, & I’m paraphrasing, “…….if he fills a depth need & allows the Team to keep (afford) Vazquez & Castro, it’s a good move.” …….I can’t argue with that but it is a lower bar than I hoped for from the organization. A TRADE for a 1B, which is still a viable thought, would reverse the sting of Bader signing & inactivity.

Can’t disagree on defensive losses. Bader, the previous 3 seasons, has OPS totals of .650 - .622 - .656 respectively. I think Kiersey fills CF depth and Martin/Castro in corners and shift focus elsewhere (maybe 1B).

Seems to me that Martin and Miranda generate same or better offense at like positions. Castro & Martin in corner OF spots v. lefties. I’m usually very pro veteran for depth but it seems that at 35 and peak year 6 years ago (2019) the Team should fill spot with youth or via trade for a REAL contributor (maybe just a 1B)?. Grichuk, to me, made most sense for the cost….signed this week for $5M. Canha’s defensive flexibility and MLB experience are attractive though. Miranda has a “reverse splits” bat so he isn’t very effective against LH pitching. Also, there needs to be an alternative at 1B…………..I’m hoping they can scrape by a couple months and maybe Keaschall could fill that roll?

Yep! He looks like a Legion Ball pitcher that plays OF a couple times a week to get his bat into the line-up. One thing the author did not mention is his slow, indecisiveness after fielding the ball. He’s not thinking ahead enough and he looks up and assesses where he wants to throw (many times not where he should throw) to show off his arm. Coaching, & more attention to detail, (coaching), should help improve him greatly. Principally playing RF I would think will help as well since it will become more “routine”.

It does seem curious that Baltimore did not pursue him at this relatively small $$ amount. Why?

I’m not sure if you think better or worse with “above”. Assuming better? IMO, they have a great opportunity with Varland and Paddack in middle innings to be very good! Certainly they have more to like than those two…….pretty deep. Who’s going to be effective in ‘25?