MLB Free Agent Season

[Insidious Von]

Don;t fret about Juan Soto, he's a wingnut, his Mets team-mates will hate him soon enough. That's what happened in San Diego.

The Jays are condemned to scrape their asses at the bottom of the AL East. Ed Rogers is too feeble to make the tough decision to fire the Shatkins. Vlady's gone, maybe they can trade him for Bob Uecker.

 

[maurice93]

At this point does Bo actually want to play in Toronto?

I've always felt he was a second baseman. Love to see him in pinstripes with that hair and beard off.

Of course we would gladly take Vlad as well.

Losing Soto hurts but that contract?...Jesus.

I don't think either side (Bo or the Jays) want to make a long term commitment to each other right now
I think the best thing the Jays can do is just keep Bo, let him play it out in 2025 and hope he plays better as he fights for a contract. If the Jays compete great, if the Jays don't compete, his trade value might go up at the deadline. He is a good player, but nowhere near an elite player, so the Soto stuff has no impact on him,

Regarding Soto, if we keep the perspective in the scope of 2025 only (and what $50m gets you for 2025 only) it made sense for the Yankees to pay him $50m especially since the Yanks window with Judge and Cole is not going to be open that much longer.. Of course the term is a major issue, and it rightfully had to be considered by the Yanks. Its not the $50m AAV that bothers me, its the massive term.

As an example would you trade, for 2025 only, Juan Soto for Willy Adames + Luis Severino (or Kikuchi). Because that is what $50million gets you in 2025.

I also think Boras, Heyman are throwing a lot of crap right now about the Yankees having a chance to match -- I don't buy it at all ... yes the Yanks could have matched, and then the Boras camp would have went back to the Mets to re-up. I don't believe anything was a "final' match and I think the Yanks saw that.

 

[The Oracle]

I also think Boras, Heyman are throwing a lot of crap right now about the Yankees having a chance to match -- I don't buy it at all ... yes the Yanks could have matched, and then the Boras camp would have went back to the Mets to re-up. I don't believe anything was a "final' match and I think the Yanks saw that.

'' If this was of the utmost importance, and the future of the franchise hung in the balance with Soto’s decision, how did the Yankees let themselves get outbid? Well, because they seemingly didn’t have a say in the matter — Steve Cohen just wouldn’t stop. The Mets owner made big waves as soon as he took over the franchise, washing out the stains of the Wilpon Era almost immediately with a spending spree that brought in superstars and ushered in a 100+ win season. While things didn’t quite gel the way they hoped and they had to retool briefly before launching themselves back into contention this year, Cohen made good on all of the owners’ fears before they voted to accept his bid for the Mets: He’s incredibly rich, passionate about investing that money into the team, and if he wants a guy bad enough, he’ll do whatever it takes to win him over. The Yankees are MLB’s most valuable franchise, but no other owner has nearly as much cash on hand as Cohen, one of the 100 richest people in the world point blank. ''

'' To wit, this wasn’t a mere $5 million difference in offers, as originally reported. Cohen’s final push featured a $75 million signing bonus, so Soto will average $61 million in AAV over the first five years of the deal, far more than the Yankees’ $47.5 million AAV submission. He’s getting more present-day money due in part to Cohen’s readily-available wealth, and with one simple contract decision in 2029, this actually becomes an even more staggering $805 million deal for Soto. ''

 

[countd]

'' If this was of the utmost importance, and the future of the franchise hung in the balance with Soto’s decision, how did the Yankees let themselves get outbid? Well, because they seemingly didn’t have a say in the matter — Steve Cohen just wouldn’t stop. The Mets owner made big waves as soon as he took over the franchise, washing out the stains of the Wilpon Era almost immediately with a spending spree that brought in superstars and ushered in a 100+ win season. While things didn’t quite gel the way they hoped and they had to retool briefly before launching themselves back into contention this year, Cohen made good on all of the owners’ fears before they voted to accept his bid for the Mets: He’s incredibly rich, passionate about investing that money into the team, and if he wants a guy bad enough, he’ll do whatever it takes to win him over. The Yankees are MLB’s most valuable franchise, but no other owner has nearly as much cash on hand as Cohen, one of the 100 richest people in the world point blank. ''

'' To wit, this wasn’t a mere $5 million difference in offers, as originally reported. Cohen’s final push featured a $75 million signing bonus, so Soto will average $61 million in AAV over the first five years of the deal, far more than the Yankees’ $47.5 million AAV submission. He’s getting more present-day money due in part to Cohen’s readily-available wealth, and with one simple contract decision in 2029, this actually becomes an even more staggering $805 million deal for Soto. ''

Not a fan of long term deals like this after 10 years skills will be declining. i guess you have to do it if you want to land a superstar!

 

[tml]

Jays have reportedly signed Yimi Garcia to a 2 year $15 million contract.

 

[The Oracle]

Jays have reportedly signed Yimi Garcia to a 2 year $15 million contract.

Yankees will see your Garcia and raise you with Max Fried

Yankees sign lefty starter Max Fried to eight-year, $218 million contract

Forced to pivot from Juan Soto, the Yankees capitalized on a market strength by signing the erstwhile Atlanta southpaw.

www.pinstripealley.com

 

[Primetime21]

Blue Jays trading for Guardians 2B Gimenez

The Toronto Blue Jays agreed to a deal with the Cleveland Guardians for All-Star second baseman Andres Gimenez, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan.

www.espn.com

 

[tml]

Take that, Oracle. All that Soto stuff was a smoke screen to divert everyone's attention away from these guys.
https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/articl...g-trade-with-guardians-for-2b-andres-gimenez/

 

[onomatopoeia]

I think the Jays would be better with the three pitchers Cleveland acquired for Horowitz.

 

[Toronto Passions]

Take that, Oracle. All that Soto stuff was a smoke screen to divert everyone's attention away from these guys.
https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/articl...g-trade-with-guardians-for-2b-andres-gimenez/

Sandlin sounds promising. I don’t necessarily agree with this move however. I thought Spencer Horwitz would’ve made a fabulous number 2 hitter from the left side.

Philip

 

[onomatopoeia]

The Jays nabbed Angel Bastardo from the Bosox in the Rule 5 draft today. Angel is a 22 year old RHSP from Moron, Venezuela. He was 0-5 with a 5.36 ERA in 10 AA starts in '24. That's a Venezuelan two days in a row.

Other Venezuelans who have played for the Blue Jays include Fred Manrique, Alexis Infante, Robert Perez, Maicer Izturis, Dioner Navarro and Omar Daal.

 

[Dartman]

Soto really only signed a 5 year contract. Because he has a out clause after 5 years. And he will opt out for more money then

 

[Toronto Passions]

0% chance that Vlad gets $50 million and unlikely that it hits $40 (might get close).

Naw! 100% Vlad gets at least 500 million. I don’t even think there’s a chance in hell he signs an extension anymore and he must want to test free agency at this point.

This moronic administration led us to believe that Jordan Romano’s arm was about to fall off. And then the Phillies go ahead and sign Romano for 8 million or whatever it was? These guys are constantly acting like they’re the smartest guys in the room and that they somehow dictate the flow of baseball administration, yet in reality, they are completely clueless. This president and GM are single-handedly or double handed lead or whatever you wanna call it, destroying baseball in Toronto. That’s the reality of what’s really happening.

Philip

 

[The Oracle]

Take that, Oracle. All that Soto stuff was a smoke screen to divert everyone's attention away from these guys.
https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/articl...g-trade-with-guardians-for-2b-andres-gimenez/

What's your opinion on this one?

 

[Toronto Passions]

Pirates Acquire Spencer Horwitz From Guardians

The Pirates announced the acquisition of first baseman/second baseman Spencer Horwitz from the Guardians for a three-player package: righty Luis …

www.mlbtraderumors.com

Poor Spencer being used while everyone gets what they want. And brilliant Ross acquires our 40th second base on the roster with no power. Great thinking Ross…

Philip

 

[The Oracle]

Poor Spencer being used while everyone gets what they want. And brilliant Ross acquires our 40th second base on the roster with no power. Great thinking Ross…

Philip

The good news is that he's going to get a good shot to start everyday.

If I'm him I view this as a good career move.

 

[tml]

What's your opinion on this one?

I'm not sure what to think. Gimemez seems promising, but why would Cleveland let him go? The thing that struck me was the fact that both guys the Jays recieved seem to be under contract for several years for a relatively modest amount. I wonder if that was the primary motivation. It will all depend on how well Horowitz develops. When AA was in charge a lot of the "prospects" he traded away didn't amount to much with their new teams.

 

[onomatopoeia]

I'm not sure what to think. Gimemez seems promising, but why would Cleveland let him go? The thing that struck me was the fact that both guys the Jays recieved seem to be under contract for several years for a relatively modest amount. I wonder if that was the primary motivation. It will all depend on how well Horowitz develops. When AA was in charge a lot of the "prospects" he traded away didn't amount to much with their new teams.

Why Cleveland let him go:

From wikipedia:

'On March 30, 2023, Giménez signed a seven-year extension with the Guardians worth $106.5 million.

In 2023 he batted .251/.314/.399, had the lowest average exit velocity of all AL batters (84.8 mph), and led the AL in percentage of balls that were softly hit (21.7%).'

His 2022 offensive numbers, while being paid at or near the Major League minimum salary, had been excellent for a player in his first full season in the Majors.

If the Jays trade Giménez at any time before the 2026 trade deadline, this was probably a good deal. If they don't, they'll essentially be paying $23.5 Million per year, (about 9% of their budget), for three subsequent years of a Leo Jimenez clone. In the short term, this deal will probably help the Jays to contend with the Rays for 4th place in the AL East.

If they add a few more Hispanic players, other teams might start calling them the Blue Hays again.

 

[tml]

View attachment 386113

View attachment 386111

Why Cleveland let him go:

From wikipedia:

'On March 30, 2023, Giménez signed a seven-year extension with the Guardians worth $106.5 million.

In 2023 he batted .251/.314/.399, had the lowest average exit velocity of all AL batters (84.8 mph), and led the AL in percentage of balls that were softly hit (21.7%).'

His 2022 offensive numbers, while being paid at or near the Major League minimum salary, had been excellent for a player in his first full season in the Majors.

If the Jays trade Giménez at any time before the 2026 trade deadline, this was probably a good deal. If they don't, they'll essentially be paying $23.5 Million per year, (about 9% of their budget), for three subsequent years of a Leo Jimenez clone. In the short term, this deal will probably help the Jays to contend with the Rays for 4th place in the AL East.

If they add a few more Hispanic players, other teams might start calling them the Blue Hays again.

Good information.
I'm more old school so exit velocity doesn't mean much to mean(I'm not saying it's not important).
In a few years $23.5 million for a decent second baseman might not be as bad sounding as now. Also, it might be less than 9% of the payroll.
You're forgetting the most important factor for the Jays these days...DEFENCE!!!!!
More hispanic players might help keep Vladdy.

 

[maurice93]

I think the Jays view someone like Will Wagner as similar to Spencer Horowitz. Both have had similar pedigree … neither were considered great prospects, drafted very late, and had to hit, hit, hit to establish themselves as later age prospects. They are both weak defenders at positions beside first. And they have hit at AAA and MLB when given the chance.

Both were quite poor defensively at second base, we know the Jays value defence, and I think the Jays have decided to move on from the Vlad idea at 3rd. So 1st is not really an option for either. So there was no clear spot for both on the roster. Wagner can also play 3rd which is something Horowitz does not

Now you get the starter at 2nd for 10m (in 2025) and relief depth which is desperately needed, and you hope to get Horowitz type production from Wagner … although less pop if we believe Horwitz surge in power in 2024 is going to continue.

I am OK with the deal. Not saying it’s great, but it’s not certainly not bad when looking at the 2025 window.