Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

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mikechamp
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Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

Post by mikechamp »

These comments came from a chat with MLB Trade Rumors' Mark Polishuk that occurred on January 29.

Not a lot of questions this week, so I included 3 bonus Q&As: one about LHRPs (since the Cards might be in the market for one), one about the new rules not applying to the Baseball Classic, and one about HoF voting. Enjoy!

The link to the entire chat can be found here: https://live.jotcast.com/chat/mlbtr-liv ... 14945.html

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How significant is the news that Bally Regional Sports Networks restructuring their debt or possibly going bankrupt? Is this an opportunity for MLB to take over all broadcast streaming services? Are the big contracts signed between players and clubs vulnerable? Are some MLB clubs at risk of going bankrupt?

Mark Polishuk
I believe salary money is in escrow, to protect against teams not being able to pay players. No teams will actually go bankrupt, but the Bally situation is certainly a major concern for almost half the league. At least a few of the teams have their TV deals up in the next year or two, however, so they might not be impacted too severely.
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Odds that Juan Soto goes to the Cards in two years?

Mark Polishuk
Again pretty slim, because a huge free agent signing to the level of a Soto deal isn't the Cardinals' style.
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The Brewers are towing the budget line harder than ever in this recent contention window. Is that rotation a big seller at the deadline if they're out of the race? Or do we see them keep trying to make do with what they have?

Mark Polishuk
If Milwaukee fell out of contention, my guess is that one of Woodruff/Burnes/Adames would be traded at the deadline. Maybe not a hard reset for the Crew depending on just how far out of contention they are, but I think they'd make the move on one of their 2024-25 free agents.
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Say Cleveland’s youth movement regresses this season. Do they trade Bieber at the deadline for a big haul of prospects, or wait until the off-season? If the Cardinals are in contention would they give up Walker and other prospects for 1.5 years of Bieber?

Mark Polishuk
If the Guardians did fall out of the race, there is indeed a good chance Bieber is dealt at the deadline rather than in the offseason. Waiting until the winter would increase the number of suitors, true, but if Bieber is pitching well and healthy, the Guards will still get plenty of interest in July.
The Cards would make sense as a possible suitor, but Walker seems pretty close to untouchable. If anything, Walker might be getting regular playing time in the lineup by July.
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What do you make of the Reds' plan to only catch Stephenson twice a week? Is he Joey's replacement?

Mark Polishuk
The Reds' top priority is keeping Stephenson healthy, so if that means making him a part-time catcher, that's what they'll do. Plans could change later in the season depending on Stephenson's status, Votto's status, or what's happening with the other catchers.
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Marlins not budging on Eury for Bryan Reynolds, huh? Looks like Reynolds opens the year as starting center fielder for the Pirates, no?

Mark Polishuk
It is only January 29, plenty of time yet for a trade. If it's a month from now on February 29 (wait...) and Reynolds is still a Pirate, it feels more like he'll indeed hang with the club until at least the deadline.
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I mean just take a stab in the dark. Who finally signs Chafin?

Mark Polishuk
Cubs
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Would you rather sign Chafin for 2 years/$18M, Matt Moore for 2/14, or Will Smith for 1/8?

Mark Polishuk
I'd go with Chafin. Surprised that he's still on the market, frankly.
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Will the New Rules in MLB be used for the Baseball Clássic 2023?

Mark Polishuk
They're not, which makes for a bit of an awkward adjustment (or re-adjustment) for players in the WBC playing in between Spring Training stints.
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I have a problem with the HOF voting. You are not good enough one year but In a couple of years you are suddenly good enough. Why?

Mark Polishuk
Keep in mind that HOF voters....
a) can only vote for 10 candidates maximum
b) have had a lot of guys associated with PEDs clogging the ballot in recent years
c) have a lot of turnover in the membership, as new writers get ballots and older writers retire or stop voting
d) are allowed to change their minds about players

So with all this in mind, it isn't surprising seeing players vary wildly in terms of year-to-year vote totals.
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heyzeus
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Re: Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

Post by heyzeus »

Bieber's a good pitcher. Jordan Walker will not be traded for him.

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Big Amoco Sign
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Re: Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

Post by Big Amoco Sign »

Walker + other prospects? That's worse than Cards Talk proposal.

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NDark
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Re: Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

Post by NDark »

Yeah if Soto didn’t do it then Bieber won’t for sure. At least unless something drastic happens. Really starting to sound like they expect Walker to be with the team soon this year.

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MinorLeagueGuy
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Re: Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

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NDark wrote:
January 30 23, 3:22 pm
Yeah if Soto didn’t do it then Bieber won’t for sure. At least unless something drastic happens. Really starting to sound like they expect Walker to be with the team soon this year.
Not only that, but the FO is kinda on the hotseat in regards to highly valued prospects + success at the Major League level. They really need a guy to come up and be a success almost right away. Hudson was supposed to be a near top of the rotation guy - he had 1 successful year. Reyes was going to be a #1 arm as a starter - attitude and lack of command ruined his youth, and as a young man he couldnt stay healthy. Bader was supposed to set the world on fire offensively, while tracking down every ball that left the bat - he never got comfortable in the box for any real length of time, got hurt, got traded. Carlson was touted as a cerebral switch-hitting son of a HS coach that was going to have an instant impact on our offense - he's been about as "meh" as guy gets while still being covetted by the FO.

All these guys were "off the table" in trade talks in recent years.

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mikechamp
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Re: Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

Post by mikechamp »

Not going to deny your examples there, @MinorLeagueGuy, but we also have to remember that we could have had a potential star in RF if he hadn't died in a car accident.

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MinorLeagueGuy
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Re: Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

Post by MinorLeagueGuy »

mikechamp wrote:
January 30 23, 7:08 pm
Not going to deny your examples there, @MinorLeagueGuy, but we also have to remember that we could have had a potential star in RF if he hadn't died in a car accident.
I was there when he hit his postseason homerun in SF. MinorLeagueGuy is a homage to Oscar's Spring training appearance when the production team didnt have info on him. So, standing on 3rd base, the camera panned to him and the caption read, "Minor League Guy". Still breaks me up.

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