Hot Stove Thread 2014-15

Not to to mention Faidi is one of the most pro-scout guys out there.

 

I don't know where the value is in these columns anymore.
The nerd/slide rule/calculator conceits are so played out, never funny to begin with.
The anti-nerds aren't reading these commentaries. They are just the most derivative troll pieces around.
If I was an editor they'd never see a copy queue.

 

In the modern MLB, what single-season benchmarks impress you in today's game?

40 home runs were always a magic number for me, but during the steroid era they were a dime a dozen. I am very impressed when a player reaches 40 home runs in today's environment. In fact only ONE player reached 40 home runs in 2014 -Nelson Cruz, who hit exactly 40. Not to mention that Cruz failed a drug test last year.

So which numbers impress you today?

How about this one: Less than 100 strikeouts for a power hitter. Very impressive in this era of record-high K rates.

Of the 26 players in 2014 who hit 25 or more home runs, only five of them struck out fewer than 100 times. Those hitters were:

Victor Martinez (an incredible 42 strikeouts and 32 homers in 641 PA)
Albert Pujols (71 strikeouts and 28 homers in 695 PA)
Edwin Encarnacion (82 strikeouts and 34 homers in 117 games. He probabably would have reached 100 k's if he had played 150+ games)
David Ortiz (another guy who failed a PED test - 32 HR and 95 strikeouts in 142 games played)
Jose Bautista (35 HR and 96 strikeouts in 155 games)

 

Gordon Edes writes that Red Sox are "all in" on Pablo Sandoval, whatever that means.

http://espn.go.com/boston/mlb/story/_/id/11861086/boston-red-sox-making-big-push-sign-free-agent-pablo-sandoval

That would suck for the Giants. It would also suck for the Red Sox and especially for Sandoval, since their fans will constantly be bitching about all the terrible swings at terrible pitches (sometimes for weeks at a time) and he will hate having that spotlight instead of the nightly bear hug he gets right now from the crowd.

 

They have good chicken and beer though.

 

Like any deal (at least from the Giants' viewpoint), in the short run, the first year or so, it will be hard seeing Pablo play some nice 3B and offer up his .750 OPS (maybe); but in the long run, say years 2-6, the Giants (and their fans) will be grateful they are not paying $18M per for an occasional 3B and pinch-hitter who brings .250/.280/.340 to the plate.

Sure there do not appear to be any ready replacements, but Panda is not irreplaceable. I am grateful for his contributions to the '14 Championship, but I always take into account that:

he was benched in the 2010 playoffs (Juan Uribe 3b), hitting heros were Ross, Freddie Sanchez, Renteria, Huff;
he hit 3 HRs in Gm. 1 of the WS but the playoff studs were Scutaro, Posey, and Pence along with Zito; and
'14 was Bumgarner.

 

You have a very weird hatred of him. You should get that checked out.

He hit .364 for the duration of the 2012 postseason with six home runs (three in Game 1 against Detroit, three in the other 15 games -- that's pretty good even without the Detroit game.)

In 2014 he got the whole ball rolling with the Game 2 double against Washington, he started both rallies in Game 7 against the Royals and was the most important piece of the lineup the whole way through. His average for this postseason was .366.

It's like you turn your TV off when he bats.

 

Ron Cey, singer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KP6ApCXRQds

 

V-Mart on the verge of heading back to Detroit, per Rosenthal:

https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/532642930075648000

 

Reportedly four years, $68 million -- $17 million/yr.

 

Fine, Ilitch is a multibillionaire and is going to die I the somewhat foreseeable future. Every nickel they pinch on payroll will go to his layabout children in the inheritance.

So bust out the checkbook again and go re-sign Scherzer, too.

 

Taveras' BAC was 5 times the legal limit:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2014/11/12/official-taveras-was-drunk-during-fatal-crash/18937679/