MLB Chatter Thread

I just have to adjust and except that the Hall has turned into a place not only for the all-timers, but also the guys a little below that.

I think part of it is that we revere older players more than the ones who are kind of our contemporaries.

And Biggio for the most part was awful in the post season. Sure a lot of it was against the Braves and their HOF staff, but if you're a HOFer you have to hit great pitching.

Carp said:

I think part of it is that we revere older players more than the ones who are kind of our contemporaries.

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That's part of it, but Pedro, Johnson and Smoltz are no doubters in my mind. With Biggio there is doubt.

In the 2015 HOF Biggio is a HOFer. The HOF my dad talked about and that I grew up with he's not.

Tony D said:

Again, we had the discussion regarding Biggio last year. I think the Hall of Fame is for the all-time greats. It used to be that way. For some reason it's now become watered down with really good, not great players. If that's the way it is then Biggio is in because he was really good.

If his career ends after 14 or 15 seasons instead of 20 is he on the Hall of Fame today? No way. So because he hung on for 5 more years he's a Hall of Famer? That's what happened. He was a below average player those last 6 years, but because he "compiled" the numbers he's in. I'm not a believer in the longevity thing

A lot of guys were better players than him, but didn't play 20 seasons and compile numbers. But when you look at their 8-10 best seasons compared to him they're the better player. His teammate Bagwell for one should be in ahead of him, but he didn't play 20 years. So if you're a pretty good player and hang around for 20 years you're a Hall of Famer now.

After the last 10 years or so not a big deal to make the Hall of Fame with the guys who are getting in.

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Using your argument I wouldn't vote Jeter into the Hall of Fame. He was popular and very good but he certainly wasn't great.

dallen said:

That's why I don't think steroid users should be excluded. No one knows how many used and never got caught. The entire generation is suspect. Let the great ones in with a note that they played in the steroid era. Excluding them helps no one.

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You're right.

I don't have the numbers but it seems like just as many pitchers are getting popped for PEDs as everyday players.

So I don't think it's fair to only cast doubt on hitters like Bagwell and Piazza. For all we know Big Unit and Smoltz were users as well. We know Clemens and his BFF Pettitte were dirty, so you never know.

1bigfan13 said:

Using your argument I wouldn't vote Jeter into the Hall of Fame. He was popular and very good but he certainly wasn't great.

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And, the gloves are off.

1bigfan13 said:

Using your argument I wouldn't vote Jeter into the Hall of Fame. He was popular and very good but he certainly wasn't great.

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Now you're just trolling. You're seriously going to compare Craig Biggio to Derek Jeter?

Derek Jeter
.310 lifetime batting average
.377 OBP
.817 OPS
3465 hits (6th all-time)
.300+ BA in season 12 times
200+ hits in season 8 times
14 ASG
5 World Series wins
1 World Series MVP
8 times top 10 MVP voting
10 times top 10 batting average
Postseason
.308 BA
.374 OBP
.838 OPS

Craig Biggio
.281 lifetime batting average
.363 OBP
.796 OPS
3061 hits
.300+ BA in season 4 times
200+ hits in season 1 time
7 ASG
0 World Series wins
0 World Series MVP
3 times top 10 MVP voting
2 times top 10 batting average
Postseason
.234 BA
.295 OBP
.618 OPS

Deuce said:

Bullshit that Rock Raines remains on the outside looking in.

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He was my favorite player as a kid. Should be a HOF too.

I take back everything I said about Craig Biggio. Two of his sons are on the Notre Dame baseball team.

Tony D said:

I just have to adjust and except that the Hall has turned into a place not only for the all-timers, but also the guys a little below that.

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accept

Cowboysrock55 said:

accept

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Yes, accept.

Zobrist and Escobar traded to the A's for John Jaso and prospects Daniel Robertson (1st rd draft pick SS) and Boog Powell (outfielder). Zobrist can still play at a high level but I guess the rays are just trying to stockpile young talent

GForce78NJ said:

Zobrist and Escobar traded to the A's for John Jaso and prospects Daniel Robertson (1st rd draft pick SS) and Boog Powell (outfielder). Zobrist can still play at a high level but I guess the rays are just trying to stockpile young talent

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Hit .310 and 15 HR in high A ball last year as a middle infielder. Nice, I'll take that kind of kid. The OF looks solid as well.

The Braves have traded Evan Gattis to the Astros for 3 prospects.

Looking like this is going to be a 70 win season at best.

Astros To Acquire Evan Gattis
By Jeff Todd [January 14, 2015 at 1:43pm CST]

2:03pm: The deal is not yet complete, caution Sherman (via Twitter) and MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (via Twitter), with the former saying the terms are settled upon pending physical and the latter warning there is still a chance that Gattis could be moved to another club.

1:04pm: The Astros have reportedly agreed to acquire Braves catcher/outfielder Evan Gattis. In return, Atlanta will acquire a trio of prospects: righties Michael Foltynewicz and Andrew Thurman as well as third baseman Rio Ruiz.

For Houston, it is not entirely clear how the team would use Gattis. With the DH role likely going to Chris Carter and four catchers on the 40-man roster, the Astros could use him in the somewhat unresolved left field role. Another scenario would involve another deal to clear some of the logjam behind the dish, with Gattis also receiving additional turns at bat by fielding Carter at first against left-handed pitching. Of course, Houston could be angling for an Athletics-like roster full of different options.

One thing that is clear is that the Astros are adding another big right-handed bat to a lineup that already features two of them in Carter and George Springer. As I wrote in a profile of Gattis as a trade candidate, the bat-first backstop has limited defensive value (whether behind the dish or in the outfield) but has established himself as a legitimate contributor on offense. After posting a .243/.291/.480 slash with 21 home runs over 382 plate appearances in 2013, Gattis stepped things up with a .263/.317/.493 line and 22 long balls last year in 401 turns at bat.

Of course, Gattis also comes with an attractive contractual situation. He will play at league minimum for the final time this year before qualifying for arbitration in 2016. Though his power numbers should inflate his earnings, Gattis will nevertheless remain an affordable piece for some time.

Another fact that becomes all the more obvious with this move is that the Braves are not playing for 2015. Atlanta has undergone a significant amount of roster turnover this offseason, with new president of baseball operations John Hart driving the change. The club already dealt away its two star corner outfielders, Justin Upton and Jason Heyward, and replaced their expiring contracts with a four-year deal for free agent Nick Markakis. Without Gattis to plug in left, current options are few, though perhaps an upside play for someone like Colby Rasmus could make sense.

As with the team’s other moves, young pitching will come in return. Foltynewicz, who briefly reached the bigs last year as a reliever, sat at number three on Baseball America’s list of the best ‘Stros prospects and at fourth on the MLB.com version. He will likely be given a chance to continue his development as a starter, and could even have a shot at a MLB rotation spot this year.

Ruiz was set to jockey with trade deadline addition Colin Moran to be Houston’s third baseman of the future, and was ranked by BA right aside Moran at eighth amongst the team’s minor leaguers, with MLB.com placing him ninth. The 20-year-old slashed .293/.387/.436 with 11 home runs in 602 plate appearances at High-A last year.

Thurman, 23, was taken in the second round in 2013 but has struggled to adapt to pro ball. Last season, pitching at the Class A level, he threw 115 1/3 innings of 5.38 ball with 8.3 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9.

Good to see them make a "win now" move. Hopefully it signals that they are phasing in the next step of the plan.

I hate to see Folty go, but P prospects are a relative strength for the organization and Gattis brings some legit power. I like him better in LF on this team.

1bigfan13 said:

The Braves have traded Evan Gattis to the Astros for 3 prospects.

Looking like this is going to be a 70 win season at best.

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I am a little baffled by what they are doing. They seem to be punting and looking past next year, but then they sign a guy like Markakis for 4 years.

Carp said:

I am a little baffled by what they are doing. They seem to be punting and looking past next year, but then they sign a guy like Markakis for 4 years.

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I guess they signed Markakis just so they could have a Major League caliber bat/fielder in the OF. Right now the OF consists of BJ Upton & Markakis.

If we're lucky hopefully someone shows a little something during spring training and pushes Upton out of the lineup.