MLB NEWS/RUMORS Thread

Belli and Seager are the big question marks in this lineup when Seager comes back. The talent is there, but Belli needs to show something more toward the end of the season, and next year is make or break for him.

Seager has to prove he is more resilient, but the issue is I would rather have MM at SS next year if we re-sign him. Unless JT falls off a cliff, Seager can’t do 3B....and mobility and durability is still a problem.

If Dozier is also re-signed, 2B is a lock for him, which leaves 1B. Do we keep Belli and Muncy there? Push Belli out to LF or CF and have Seager try out 1B with Muncy. Assuming Muncy begins to rake again, you have to have him in the lineup.

And if we drop Puig and try for Harper, Harper stays in RF. Hell Puig will probably stay in RF if he stays.

There’s some decisions to make in the down the road.

 

You look at some of their comments and wonder, " what else are they going to say here? " PR and politics being real things in the sports industry, if you're the FO or the manager, doesn't do anybody any good to open up the Seager switching positions can of worms to feed the media right now. I'd say I'm about 50/50 on FO/manager comments in general. Some of the stuff they feed the media is just fluff or whatever they have to say to get to the next question, so I pass a lot of the time. I just feel it's a bit early for optimism in Seager's case, but I can see the good in backing him publicly.

However, it does remind me of when Roberts, before this very season, " ruled out the possibility of Bellinger playing in the outfield in 2018. " Well, cut my legs off and call me shorty..Bellinger has played so much fucking outfield this season, it's a joke. So next year, if Roberts is still around, I'd appreciate if he came out before next season and said, " we have ruled out the possibility of winning the World Series in 2019. " Or even before then, right after this season is over.." we have ruled out the possibility of re-signing Machado. " I was all in for Harper/LAD for years, but on 2nd thought, handing out a monster contract to an infielder is the safer bet and that's without considering LAD's situation at SS.

 

^Was this pre-Muncy? Who'd have thunk he'd be playing so well.

 

i don't think muncy returning to form is going to be happening
hope i'm wrong but whatever he found he lost rather quickly so it wasn't too hard to figure out
seems like he swings at stuff he wouldn't even flinch at earlier

 

I do too but nothing he's done recently gives me reason to think it's happening anytime soon. He's been unbelievably bad of late. Last night's RBI single was a joke. Pulled his head off on a hanging breaking ball and hit it off the end of the bat down the right field line. Kemp wasn't even aware the ball went to the right side.

 

Well, sure, but I'd say Bellinger's status/future/tenure is a bit more important than Muncy's. There's always a pecking order. As fun as Muncy has been, what happens to Bellinger at the end of the day, that's just more important. Just as I don't think a Muncy could stop Corey Seager from taking 1B if that's the position he's best suited to play moving forward. But with Bellinger being a good glove at so many spots and probably LAD's most athletic player, it was natural to move him to the OF. Overall point being, early on it was one thing and before you know it, it's another. Similar could happen with Roberts' comments here on Seager for one reason or another. We just have to wait and see.

Now, Gebbeth said there will be some decisions to make down the road and he expounded on that, but let's take that a bit further and into unmentionable territory. Let's go full " what if ". What if Seager can't get back to the left side of the IF and 1B is the best spot for him? Combined with..what if Bellinger truly can't handle the bat when playing in the outfield? Whether it's his concentration, his routine being disturbed/different/whatever..what if LAD eventually stops ignoring the numbers and makes the decision that 1B is the best place to get Bellinger to produce ( his OPS sitting around .850 at 1B this year last time I looked) and they want to reset him at that position next season?

So what if LAD is, under the radar, in a situation where it's going to be Seager VS Bellinger for 1B and the other becomes a trade piece to get a young, talented, controllable starting pitcher? Could be very interesting. Which guy would you deal? Not " do you think this would happen? "..because this is what if. Which guy would you trade and what talented, young starting pitcher would you target? Top MiLB starting pitching specs from around the league included. Who do you want for Seager or Bellinger? I'm not 100% sure who I'd target, but off the top of my head perhaps James Paxton and I'd maybe offer up Seager and see if the M's would bite on teaming up the brothers Seager at the corners. At 29, Paxton isn't young, but he's very talented and trending up with less innings on his arm than the average 29yr old guy. Not that I'd do a 1 for 1 swap, but just those guys as the headliners..but again, who would you want?

 

Lol Good ol' baseball. Perhaps we've reached the point in the season where Kemp is wishing he hadn't let his weight shift back and forth so drastically over the last few years. He's been cold since early June. Lack of discipline with the diet can catch up..reminds me of the FO getting on Puig about his diet and lbs. We found out Kemp had bad hips the year he was traded to SD and then to gain and lose so much weight yearly after that, his frame has gotta be shoddy and thats before considering age and attrition. That's a lot of stress.

Bringing him back from ATL's already worked well enough though. If he's out of gas, so be it. Successful patch by the nerds. Just have to hope the nerds have the balls to sit him eventually if the spiral continues.

 

Mental masturbation.... had they NOT fucked up by signing those hacks (and other known damaged goods + the 32MM to Olivera) in the first place we could have been buyers last winter and had JD Martinez making US the best team in baseball right now.

 

His swings recently are so ugly it makes you wonder if there isn't something physically wrong.

 

Shhhh...not allowed to mention all that.
Only the good stuff they've done.

 

My point was before Muncy appeared I'm sure Belli was ticketed for 1B. I can't even think about next season because this isn't over obviously and I have no clue who is coming back or what the nerds want to do and IF by some miracle we win it all who knows what direction the nerds will go. I am of the mind that pitching wins championships so the more the merrier.

 

Playing MLB's competitive balance game on a solid level. Skirting that insane repeater tax and at the end of the day still managing to nab a superstar player from the worst owner in pro sports..been an impressive year considering the tax handcuffs.

Now, if they can just dump Ned on the Orioles...
I know Ned reportedly had an interview with Angelos about a FO position, get him the fuck outta here.
Those boots were made for walkin

 

I get what you were saying. I was countering

So just any talented arm in return for Seager or Bellinger?

 

He's had the ankle stuff over the last couple weeks as well I believe, but it's been off longer than that. Can look at the swing, but we've also seen him enough in the OF and on the bases. Just a shell of what he was athletically, what one would expect given the circumstances.

I think enough of us said before the season that if Kemp were a 1.5 WAR guy, we'd take it and call it a success.
Well, he's at 1.2
Close enough

 

I agree in theory with you, Mr. Rogers.
And all that foul mold in the deep recesses of my mind will come tumbling out in droves, completely cleasing it from the scummy memories...when we win a damn world championship finally. That's when. Wipe the slate clean. Only then.
Until then, I leave all the useless cockeyed optimism and pretense to experts like yourself who really enjoy it and sadly believe it helps the team...and in some cases ,actually think they are superior because of their denial.
I could see if we signed Villar, but noooooooo..!