2019-20 MLB Hot Stove thread

[CSF77]

IMO the Cubs go in status Que. The only interesting issues will be Morrow healthy or not and Alzolay poised to break into the rotation.

 

[SilenceS]

Not how I remember it, wasn't it well known they were going to keep him in the minors to get that extra year?

Its not what happened. He just makes shit up. Everyone and their momma knew he was going down for an extra year of control.

 

[CSF77]

There should be no grounds for a grievance here. What the Cubs did falls with in the contract. The fact that this even went to a grevance is amazing.

Issues like this are dealt with in the CBA negotiating process not in grevance unless a violation occurred. This case there was no violation.

 

[anotheridiot]

Me either. I know that Bryant was upset that he had such a hot spring and still didn't come north with the team, and was complaining that it was being done just to screw him out of hitting free agency a year earlier. And while the Cubs stated it was for "a little more work on his defense", no one denied that the call-up date was exactly the day after that additional year of control was established.

This is how the MLBPA-agreed-to player's agreement states that service time is calculated. Nowhere does it state that a club cannot manage service time any way it sees fit, and therefore there is no basis to the grievance. Clubs do this all the time, and only because Bryant is a superstar is there even any question about this.

I understand the league office doesn't want to get on the MLBPA's bad side going into talks on the new agreement. But this is cut and dried. This is the agreement the players agreed to, and this is how the clubs have been using it. And it doesn't only become unfair when it's a superstar's years of control that are under discussion; it works the same way for all players, or for none. Bryant is not a special case.

The players made their own bed when it came to setting the service time rules, and have been lying in it. Kris Bryant isn't so special that he's better than the rest of the players in the league and deserves his free agency sooner, just because he stated publicly his suspicion he was starting at AAA because of service time. Not proven accusations, just suspicions.

And being guaranteed he was coming north if he had a good spring? By whom? I seriously doubt any such guarantee was made by the front office, and if someone verbally said the odds were good but it couldn't be put in writing anywhere, that tells you right there that if you believe that's a guarantee, I have this bridge in Brooklyn I'd like to sell ya, cheap...

-Doug

You cant blame Bryant for voting with the MLPA agreement when he was not part of it.

I know its gotten to **** Kris Bryant, long gone from those baby blues making the majority of cub fans to sound like fairies. The cubs followed the rules, they could have kept him down in the minors to field 4 more ground balls another week and not been such huge gaping assholes they were to calculate this to one fucking day. (Yes, Kris Bryant believes he was told to work on defense, he feels he literally fielded 3 ground balls and then was told he was ready)

Kris Bryant Grievance To Be Heard This Week

Kris Bryant's longstanding service time saga could be nearing its conclusion. MLB will address Bryant's 2015 grievance at some point …

www.mlbtraderumors.com

The other point I made is he will probably be making in the neighborhood of 24 million next year, set another arby record, so he is not losing much money. But he pops that shoulder again, he is not getting 300 million guaranteed he might have gotten this year.

That is our current cub fan mentality. For 3 years Theo was a genius that did nothing wrong. Now he fills up the bad choices since Lester and Ross were signed in 2015 and this brings him back to being the man?

When can Nico start to **** him over after playing all of september? May or June?

 

[anotheridiot]

Rumor is Arenado wants to be traded to LAD and will only pull his NTC to them. Add to it he has a opt out after 2 years and expect him to pull it if he doesn't get what he wants.

The Cubs are tied to him but IMO it is only kicking the tires.

cubs are tied to him because every beat write out there needs to get his twit brain on twitter and it is common practice to tie every free agent to the cubs to get the rest of the fish biting.
and I' m the one that makes shit up..........

 

[CubsFaninMN]

There are lots of hometown fans of every team who think their own version of Mario Mendoza should be an acceptable trade bait for a package of Ruth, DiMaggio and toss in Hershiser for a little pitching help.

I don't want to even count how many times last year I saw suggestions of trading Almora straight up for some team's guaranteed superstar, maybe throw in Chatwood or even Heyward to sweeten the deal. Everyone says to themselves "I want to see Player X on my team, which players on my team do I not like and want to get rid of that I can offer in return? I'm sure other teams will take my dregs for their best players. It's not a matter of talent or balanced trades, it's a matter of how good a job of selling my dregs I can do..."

Really, guys. Listen to yourselves before suggesting trades -- if the Cubs side of a trade for an established star leads off with Almora or Happ, and devolves into minor league players who aren't even on the MLB Top 100 prospects list, then you're just trying to insist that other teams really need to give us their stars for our dregs. And just keep in mind it *never* happens that way. And on the rare occasions when teams do get talked into such bad trades, it leads to GMs who never work in baseball again...

-Doug

 

[kerrywoodwins20]

I like Ross but if he runs Almora out there starting several times a week that is going to change. The kid can’t hit. One of the worst hitters in baseball over a pretty large sample size.

 

[anotheridiot]

I like Ross but if he runs Almora out there starting several times a week that is going to change. The kid can’t hit. One of the worst hitters in baseball over a pretty large sample size.

I am all for strong defense up the middle. Contrares, Baez, Almora, who knows 2B.

Somehow, Heyward can hit .230 and play everyday, is borderline terrible in center field, and nobody complains.

 

[kerrywoodwins20]

I am all for strong defense up the middle. Contrares, Baez, Almora, who knows 2B.

Somehow, Heyward can hit .230 and play everyday, is borderline terrible in center field, and nobody complains.

Heyward has been a massive disappointment but he is still a much better hitter than Almora. Heyward has been close to league average the last 2 years hasn’t he? Almora would love to be league average.

 

[kerrywoodwins20]

I don’t usually like looking up depressing stats but 66 OPS+ for Almora, 98 OPS+ for Heyward. Not comparable. Heyward costs too much but as long as he’s here he should always play over Almora.

 

[CSF77]

I am all for strong defense up the middle. Contrares, Baez, Almora, who knows 2B.

Somehow, Heyward can hit .230 and play everyday, is borderline terrible in center field, and nobody complains.

Bryant 3B
Schwarber LF
Baez SS
Rizzo 1B
Contreras C
Happ CF
Heyward RF
Hoerner 2B

Roll with it. If Hoerner starts to take off then concider him for the lead off.

But IMO they are better off maxing out Bryant's PA's then dangling him at the dead line.

 

[anotheridiot]

Bryant 3B
Schwarber LF
Baez SS
Rizzo 1B
Contreras C
Happ CF
Heyward RF
Hoerner 2B

Roll with it. If Hoerner starts to take off then concider him for the lead off.

But IMO they are better off maxing out Bryant's PA's then dangling him at the dead line.

That might be the way it looks in June or July, this Bryant thing is a swift kick in the nuts if Nico starts with the team.

 

[anotheridiot]

Heyward has been a massive disappointment but he is still a much better hitter than Almora. Heyward has been close to league average the last 2 years hasn’t he? Almora would love to be league average.

That is all he is as a center fielder, league average, slightly lower. He is worth the money if he is a gold glove right fielder, not a below average center fielder. I guess the argument would be that you cant start two outfielders who are not hitting so Almora is going to have to sit.
Almora just got to 1.8 in Arby negotiations, not the 3.5 expected, so he will be fine. He was told to improve against righties and he did, ended up sucking against lefties and only played against lefties.
I want nothing more than to see him get a legit shot at this. Happ can play 2B.

 

[zack54attack]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1219715486679805952

 

[TL1961]

it's fucking crazy the bryant service time grievance still isn't over.

It’s like the NCAA making a decision on a transfer’s waiver. Some take 5 minutes. Some take 5 months.

 

[kerrywoodwins20]

That is all he is as a center fielder, league average, slightly lower. He is worth the money if he is a gold glove right fielder, not a below average center fielder. I guess the argument would be that you cant start two outfielders who are not hitting so Almora is going to have to sit.
Almora just got to 1.8 in Arby negotiations, not the 3.5 expected, so he will be fine. He was told to improve against righties and he did, ended up sucking against lefties and only played against lefties.
I want nothing more than to see him get a legit shot at this. Happ can play 2B.

We know what Almora is. A defensive replacement and pinch runner. Let’s find out what Nico is.

 

[Diehardfan]

Its not what happened. He just makes shit up. Everyone and their momma knew he was going down for an extra year of control.

That's why I always read the Idiot's posts....he makes up so much shit that it makes me laugh. He doesn't seem like a bad guy.... not overly intelligent, but....he's, well....an idiot.

Also.......
my momma had no idea.

 

[zack54attack]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1219781233552633856

 

[CSF77]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1219781233552633856

Welp Cards got weaker.

 

[CubsFaninMN]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1219781233552633856

Tweet was deleted, so now no one knows what the hell you were posting about... This is why many of us would appreciate a very short description, maybe just a headline, in addition to a bare link that gives no information at all if the link is broken, so if a tweet is deleted like this, someone who comes along knows WHY the Cardinals supposedly just got weaker.

Looking at that response about the Cards made me think it was an announcement of Molina''s retirement. Which, to be honest, doesn't make them weaker, since he's getting so old and beat up that they can't count on him playing for a decent portion of a season any more...

-Doug