JosephC

Look at it this way. The Crosby deal averages 4.3 million per season. True, there are a bunch of journeymen kickers who make 600-700k and bounce around the league from year to year. But OverTheCap has the 16th highest paid kicker making 3.751 million, so that number is a pretty good reflection of what could be considered league average. So basically the Packers would be paying Crosby about 550k above league average per season. To me that's a pretty small price to pay for a guy who has been really solid performer for Green Bay for a really long time.

Rays get: LHP-Josh Hader Brewers get: LHP-Jose Alvarado RHP-Shane Baz LHP-Shane McClanahan RHP-Joe Ryan 3B-Kevin Padlo

No way would Severino been considered a part of this package. The Yankees were thin enough with starting pitching to begin with. If Severino is KO'ed for awhile, J.A. Happ is probably the #3 starter and it seemed like they wanted to dump him a couple months ago before Paxton and Severino went down.

It is my hope that the 26th man spot evolves into a late-inning baserunning specialist who will come in and really slow the game down in the late innings. Just to make Manfred even more stupid. Even though Manfred no longer needs any help looking stupid.

I have to admit that the more I look at it, the more I think the payroll cut is a pretty big story heading into the season. I was surprised to see the jump to 122 million in 2019 and figured some belt-tightening would be in store for 2020, but I never guessed the cut would put the team below <100 million. It's looking like this season's opening day payroll will be below the number the Brewers were at in 2014 and 2015. Actually, looking at Cot's running payroll total, adding in an estimate for Holt, and it is looking like the Brewers opening day payroll will be right around the level they ran at in 2012. There were also two 63 million dollar years stuck in there, although I figure most of those funds probably went to Maryville, Carolina and the Dominican Republic. Over the last decade or so, Milwaukee and Cincinnati have been flipping back and forth between the smallest TV markets in baseball. Recent numbers: https://mediatracks.com/resources/nielsen-dma-rankings-2020/ https://mediatracks.com/resources/nielsen-dma-rankings-2019/ Despite that, from 2010-2019 the average payroll for these teams has been: Reds = 99,446,199 Brewers = 90,937,754 Over an 8.5 million dollar difference on average. Currently the Reds running payroll total for 2020 on Cot's is 141.4 million dollars, nearly 20 million higher than the Brewers all-time high payroll and likely 40+ million more than what the Brewer's payroll will be this season. I also puke at the thought that "Attanasio owes us nothing." Sure, he wasn't here when Miller Park was built, but he had no problem sticking his hand out and collecting the five-county sales tax that went years longer than it was projected. I'd bet a really large amount of people who say "Attanasio owes us nothing" will completely forget about that when Attanasio comes looking for 1 billion dollars for a new playground, then they will say "it's a collaboration with the public." Also ridiculous seeing all the comments about MLB owners constantly screwing players out of money, but when the guy in our own backyard dumps 20% of his payroll then it's just the smart way to do business. Yes, this is a direct criticism of Attanasio, but also a criticism of MLB in general. It is ridiculous that MLB rolls in and coerces politicians, who turns around and gives the stupid "we're a MLB city" line to the public...and then after getting 100's of millions...the league continues to support a system that doesn't treat Milwaukee like a true "MLB city" but a "second class MLB city." So if anyone reading this takes exception with me bashing Attanasio...maybe we can find common ground on the MLB system that results in two successful seasons being followed up by a 20+% slash in payroll. It's not right. People of Milwaukee/Wisconsin should expect better.

Sure didn't look like a player worthy of a 40-man spot last year. He'll turn 29 during the season. Would be interesting to know how the majority of MLB teams view him. A guy who was set back by injury problems and a possible late bloomer or just not a MLB player? He's obviously out of the Brewer's long-term plans as they risked losing him instead of players like Feyereisen and Yardley. I am surprised by this as it makes the 40-man roster mix 21 hitters and 19 pitchers. With the way they like to shuttle pitchers back and forth, I figured that the number of pitchers would stay at 20 or more throughout the season. Kind of doubt that the 15-day DL for pitchers change would have played into this decision, but who knows? Kind of hoping now that maybe a Stripling deal (or other trade) is in the works to acquire another pitcher.

Sure didn't look like a player worthy of a 40-man spot last year. He'll turn 29 during the season. Would be interesting to know how the majority of MLB teams view him. A guy who was set back by injury problems and a possible late bloomer or just not a MLB player? He's obviously out of the Brewer's long-term plans as they risked losing him instead of players like Feyereisen and Yardley. I am surprised by this as it makes the 40-man roster mix 21 hitters and 19 pitchers. With the way they like to shuttle pitchers back and forth, I figured that the number of pitchers would stay at 20 or more throughout the season. Kind of doubt that the 15-day DL for pitchers change would have played into this decision, but who knows? Kind of hoping now that maybe a Stripling deal (or other trade) is in the works to acquire another pitcher.

Available free agents that were 0.5+ WAR pitchers last season- Andrew Cashner (1.8 WAR) Jason Vargas (1.8 WAR) Collin McHugh (0.5 WAR) Sam Dyson (0.9 WAR) - injured, will miss entire 2020 season Aaron Sanchez (0.8 WAR) - injured, at minimum would miss first half of 2020 but could miss entire season McHugh looks like he might be the last attractive candidate but he didn't pitch after August 30 due to a bad elbow and he missed a big chunk of 2017 with a bad elbow. Have to look at the trade market if seeking quality pitching.

Available free agents that were 0.5+ WAR pitchers last season- Andrew Cashner (1.8 WAR) Jason Vargas (1.8 WAR) Collin McHugh (0.5 WAR) Sam Dyson (0.9 WAR) - injured, will miss entire 2020 season Aaron Sanchez (0.8 WAR) - injured, at minimum would miss first half of 2020 but could miss entire season McHugh looks like he might be the last attractive candidate but he didn't pitch after August 30 due to a bad elbow and he missed a big chunk of 2017 with a bad elbow. Have to look at the trade market if seeking quality pitching.

All part of the plan: Monday's news- https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2020/02/17/economic-impact-miller-park-2-5-billion-according-new-study/4785243002/ Tuesday's news- https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2020/02/18/brewers-lost-money-2019-principal-owner-mark-attanasio-says/4790377002/ We see what you are doing here Mark. For those that like Miller Park/American Family Field, prepare yourself for the brain-washing that it is old, decrepit, the roof is about to fall in...and the Brewers need 1 billion dollars from you to stay competitive!

All part of the plan: Monday's news- https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2020/02/17/economic-impact-miller-park-2-5-billion-according-new-study/4785243002/ Tuesday's news- https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2020/02/18/brewers-lost-money-2019-principal-owner-mark-attanasio-says/4790377002/ We see what you are doing here Mark. For those that like Miller Park/American Family Field, prepare yourself for the brain-washing that it is old, decrepit, the roof is about to fall in...and the Brewers need 1 billion dollars from you to stay competitive!

Hiura isn't ready defensively. Now they can put him a AAA for the first four months of the season where he can improve his defense and the Brewers will gain another year of control. No, I'm not serious...just want to see the reactions to this idea.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28714873/mlb-commissioner-rob-manfred-defends-punishment-astros What happened to the "we need the cooperation of players" excuse for not suspending players? Looks like it has been replaced with, "well the Astro players would have been victimized because they didn't get the memo" warped line of reasoning. Rob Manfred sucks.

Mike Soroka was terrible last year. 2.68 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 169 ERA+, 3.46 K/BB. I would have expected a lot more out of a 21 year old. I always get a kick when Brewer fans bad mouth other team's pitching. Even a guy like Julio Teheran. Bring his name up and most Brewer fans would probably say "over-rated, mediocre, never lived up to his billing." But taking the bWAR he posted for the Braves, put him in a Brewer uniform and it would be the third best bWAR in FRANCHISE HISTORY. Speaking as a Brewer fan...and it's completely discouraging to say this...but history shows that Brewer starting pitching is just about the equivalent to Chicago Bears quarterbacking. Uugghh. I'd gladly take a whole bunch of those over-rated Braves pitching prospects.

The "botched" version has no bearing on what King does going forward. I don't think so either, but one never knows how media treatment impacts what goes in inside the head of a 20 year old athlete.

There were at least a couple articles before the grievance was decided that speculated that many teams probably didn't view Bryant as the super-star, corner-of-the-franchise type player that he would have been regarded as back in 2017. His 3-year average bWAR/fWAR is 4.2. From 2015-2017 his average bWAR was 6.5 and in 2018-2019 it was 2.75. From 2015-2017 his average fWAr was 6.9 and in 2018-2019 it was 3.55. He missed a good chunk of 2018 which impacts the number but last year was a 4.2 bWAR/fWAR season...really good but not near what he has posted from 2015-2017. I think the best projection would be to just take the 4.2 WAR figure from the 3-year average...which happens to match last year's number...and project him as being worth 8.4 WAR total over the next two years. 18.6 million in salary in 2020 and let's estimate a 24 million dollar salary in 2021. That's 75.6 million in value minus 42.6 million in salary...I only have him as having +33 million in surplus value. My guess is that if the Cubs get offers in that range, they will not be trading him. Obviously they would not be trading him to Milwaukee, but by my calculations a Bryant for Turang + Ashby + Eduardo Garcia package would be an even trade.

WR TE OT WR (again) ILB DE backup QB OG

https://madison.com/wsj/sports/college/basketball/men/the-events-that-led-to-erik-helland-s-ouster-as/article_cc9bfae1-a8a3-5b05-a6dd-72922f1123e2.html#tracking-source=home-top-story After reading that I don't have the impression that either King or Helland is a bad guy. I just think King was unhappy and wanted out and wasn't necessarily looking to use the Helland situation to extract himself from Wisconsin (he may now after an irresponsible press completely botched the initial reporting). Helland seems to have got caught up in an age of political correctness where context means nothing. It's nice that Tucker stepped up and let us know what occurred as he was directly involved in the going's-on and the aftermath and probably can give the clearest and most accurate picture of what happened.

The other dead giveaway that this was a league-wise problem is the fact that MLB was unwilling to suspend any players despite it being obvious that players should have been suspended. Set the precedent of suspending Astro players and then they will have to suspend Red Sox, Yankee, Cub, Brewer, etc, etc, etc, players when/if more information comes to light. No way the owners were willing to go down this path as it may have actually cost them some money in the end. Don't touch those money-makers, just throw a couple scapegoats under the bus and maybe it will all just go away. Another eye-opening report at The Athletic today regarding Beltran. https://theathletic.com/1600638/2020/02/11/details-emerge-about-carlos-beltrans-role-in-the-2017-astros-clubhouse-and-the-teams-sign-stealing-scheme/ Both McCann and Beltrán played for the Yankees during the 2014, ’15 and ’16 seasons before joining the Astros in ’17. But it was Beltrán who, according to multiple sources, told the Astros that their sign-stealing methods were “behind the times.” During the season, small groups of Astros discussed their misgivings. McCann at one point approached Beltrán and asked him to stop, two members of the 2017 team said. Now the Yankees got a slap on the wrist a couple years ago for improper use of the dugout phone. According to the Yankees, a member of the staff called the replay coordinator to find out if a ball was a strike or not. https://www.sny.tv/yankees/news/what-are-the-yankees-accused-of-in-sign-stealing-scandal-and-what-are-the-facts/312352288 But if this latest report from The Athletic is accurate...it sure makes it look like the Yankees were not only cheating but probably "ahead of the times" when it came to using electronic technology to steal signs. Another really ugly day for MLB.

Playoffs are simply a money-making gimmick by sports leagues and that's been obvious for a long time. All leagues will eventually get to the point where over half the teams are in the playoffs because it will keep more markets interested deeper into the season which makes more money. It also gives fans of mediocre teams the impression that the product they are getting is better than it really is because "we are in the playoff race every year" when that actually means they likely drift between the 12th and 22nd best team in the league which is clearly nothing special. Note that last year the teams that tied for the 14th best record in the league were the Red Sox and Cubs, so the networks are likely screaming for more playoff teams to catch a big market team or two that has disappointing seasons. Basically expand the playoff and there is no way the league can lose because it's more money, money, money and the general public will never figure out that the more playoff teams are included the more and more meaningless the regular season becomes. But it's all about determining a true champion. Don't make me laugh.

As much as I want to see the Astros punished more, I wouldn't side with him if I were on the jury. He wasn't a good pitcher that year, even if you exclude the games against the Astros. His claim that he was one of the best pitchers in Japan seems dubious as well. That game may have been the final nail in his coffin, but he was already in the coffin with many nails in it. I agree with you at just face value. However, if he could get Toronto's GM (or similar front office official) to state that they final game against the Astros was the primary reason he was sent down (lost his job), then I think his bringing suit is legitimate and the legal system needs to sort it out.

After the recent trades, the Dodgers reportedly have 42 players they need to fit on the 40-man roster. Stripling had pretty much been thrown into a deal to clear Pederson's salary (and free up a roster spot) where the return was a young player that projects best as a utility guy. They may just opt to slash a couple fringy players off the back end of the 40-man roster, but the deal that didn't happen with the Angels sure makes it look like they may be willing to do some deals that could end up being bargains for the trading partner.

Values of new deals IMO: Red Sox = +79.25 million Adds Verdugo (+75.5), Downs (+23.0), Wong (+3.85) Subtracts Betts (-36), Price (+60.9), 48 million dollars (-48) Twins = -10.95 million Adds Maeda (+1.8), 10 million dollars (+10), fringe prospect (+2.2) Subtracts Graterol (-18.9), #67 pick (-3.85), Raley (-2.2) Despite what seems to be the general opinion out there, I still think the Betts/Price/Verdugo deal is one of the most lop-sided deals I can remember. It's like the general population has completely forgotten that Betts is only under contract for one more season, is seeking a 420 million dollar deal...Price is 34 years old, has only averaged 119 innings over the last three years and basically missed the final two months of 2019 with a wrist injury (threw <5 innings in August/September). Twins did much better getting the 10 million payment out of the Dodgers. Who knows, maybe the reported fringe prospect ranks a little higher than what is currently being reported? I would not have dealt a high-upside arm like Graterol for Maeda.

I'd have significant interest in Stripling, Graterol and Edwin Rios as a possible first baseman of the future (Rios still has 2 option years left).

Hard to believe Boston would let this deal fall apart. Maybe I'm seriously over-estimating Verdugo's value? I can understand over-emotional Boston fans being upset over losing Betts....BUT HE IS STILL ESSENTIALLY A ONE-YEAR PLAYER FOR THEM since they apparently aren't willing to give him a 420 million dollar contract. Being able to dump Price now seems to be a gift straight from heaven, even though they would be eating half of his salary. Boston = +71.3 million Adds Verdugo (+75.5), Graterol (+18.9) Subtracts Betts (-36), Price (+60.9), 48 million dollars (-48) Twins = -17.1 million Adds Maeda (+1.8) Subtracts Graterol (-18.9) Dodgers = -54.2 million Adds Betts (+36), Price (-60.9), 48 million dollars (+48) Subtracts Verdugo (-75.5), Maeda (-1.8)