Power Rankings + Ken Rosenthal’s Inside Scoop: Zac Gallen update, Skubal’s arb win impact, Framber deal

00:00:05
Speaker 1: FT senior insider Ken Rosenthal with us and he's a boxing reporter. This week, that's what it felt like with Trek Scoobel and the Players Association against the Tigers in Major League Baseball, and the result is Schooble and his Cy Young Awards physically win. Ken, you wrote this morning about the heavyweight fight. Can you enlighten us with more?

00:00:25
Speaker 2: Yes? And basically what I wrote is that by overreaching with what they offered, the Tigers and Major League Baseball's labor relations department set themselves up to fail. And that was my opinion. It's an opinion, it's not a fact, obviously, but it seems to me that you had to offer Trek Scooble more than nineteen million. You had to do that before. When you were making your initial offers, they were only slightly above David Price's record nineteen point seventy five million in the initial offers, and then in the exchange, when you go off for nineteen million, school book comes back with thirty two million. If they had been higher, in my opinion, their position would have been more defensible. You had to get well above Price eleven years after he sets that record. And when you didn't do that. Granted, three person arbitration panel, you never know how they're going to rule exactly, but it seemed to me it's schooble because he had the right as a five plus player to compare himself to all players, not just those in his service class. Well, then you're bringing in free agent salaries, you're bringing in Blake's now in his thirty one million thirty eight million dollar deal. However, you want to look at it before or after deferrals, and he had a really strong case at that point. So it seemed to me that again MLB, with the Tigers and MLB as a heavy influence in this process, they sought to make their point and their point was not going to carry the day. Did not carry the day as it turned out. Ten.

00:01:59
Speaker 3: You're bringing an opinion, So here's my opinion. Tell me if I'm wrong or not. Majorally, Baseball was okay losing this because of how low of a number they went. They don't like the arbitration process. Was this almost like a oh man, we totally lost moment. Oh next next CBA, we're gonna go ahead and nix it.

00:02:21
Speaker 2: Actually, Eric, I agree with you that they're not crushed by this in any sense of the word, but not for the reason that you just described that it's going to be eliminated in the next CBA. I'm sure they would want to do that with a salary cap coming in and the arbitration system either going away or changing dramatically. But the reason why I don't believe they are that upset is because school Bolt was a rare guy five plus player, right one year away from free agency and coming off back to back cy Young Awards. How often are we going to see that going forward? We may see it with Paul Skens and that would be the test case, but you're not going to see it all that often. There's only been I believe, twelve players in history who won back to back cy Young Awards, and none before Schoogle as a five plus player. So I'm sure they would rather have won than lost, of course, But are they devastated. No. At the same time, to me and I wrote these words, it's a major blow because you lost, and you lost a very high profile case, and you lost again in my opinion, because they just didn't go far enough with what they were offering before and after the exchange date.

00:03:35
Speaker 4: With all these points that.

00:03:38
Speaker 5: There you go with all the points that you brought up, and I know Kratzy's talking about the CBA and everything else, Like for me, I'm like, this is a huge, huge win for the players expression arbitration is so hard to win these things, and to see how big a difference it was from thirty two to nineteen, I think we got like Paul Skein's probably sitting back like, oh baby, this is really good, and some upcoming players like this is a huge number for players.

00:04:04
Speaker 4: I just don't understand.

00:04:05
Speaker 5: I think it's it's a lot deeper, and I think the brass in Major League Baseball, I think that this hurts some big time. I mean, do you see it that way or you're just like, oh, it's a big blow, but it's really not. But I feel like it's a huge win for the players, Todd.

00:04:21
Speaker 2: I see it from both perspectives that I just described. A huge blow in the sense that you lost a high profile case, not a huge blow in terms of what it will mean going forward, because it was such a specific profile that Schooble filled. Now at the same time, looking at it from the reverse side, the player's side, as you just described, Yes, it's a huge win. This is a record for an arbitration eligible player. Wan Soto had that record at thirty one million. Schooble now surpasses it at thirty two million. And the other thing it did, and this could help in the future, especially with three to four your players who are arbitration and have special accomplishments like schemes. It raised the bar for pitchers. It finally brought the pitchers, at least the elite ones, the very elite ones, up to the level of position players. And one of the problems in arbitration over the years that I know has frustrated the player's side is that they've been unable to advance pitchers salaries in that process as rapidly as position players. So yes, this does help correct that. But again I will say it's a very specific case. It's a guy who is five plus and it's a guy with back to back Cy Young's. You still't see that very often.

00:05:36
Speaker 4: Now let's go to the Tigers a little bit more.

00:05:37
Speaker 5: Here, Valdez gets picked up three years, one hundred and fifteen million. School boy got his money. How do you see this Tigers team now moving forward? I feel like, you know, in those kind of meetings in the room, they're gonna bash you all the way through. You think Tarek Scooble is going to be that Guy's like, I forget this. I'm gonna play my game, not worry about anything else because of the Bologne that they went through. Do you see this Tigers team making a push for the playoffs and getting back in and making some damage again, Well.

00:06:05
Speaker 2: Trek Scooble was most likely going to go to be a free agent anyway, and most likely is going to try to win his third straight Cy Young Award. No matter what they said in the room. That's his makeup. That's all players makeups. They want to be the best they can be, and they're not gonna listen to some attorneys. This was outside council arguing the case for the Tigers, not the Tigers themselves. They're not gonna worry and be hurt by anything, especially in Schoobl's case. He won, so there's no reason for him to carry a grudge. But certainly it will only, I'm sure, add to his motivation and certainly also the team. Now, as I wrote the day before, they do not intend trade Tarrek Schoobel. They have not intended that the entire offseason their intention is to win, and in speaking to a person who has briefed on their plans, he repeated that to me. He said, we are trying to win. So you have these two pictures to coaess. Now, obviously Schooble is the ace of ases, but Valdez is pretty good himself and has been an ace on a World Series team. Obviously they got a nice one to two punch. And I wrote, in addition to hearing from that person who had knowledge of the Tigers thought process, it makes no logical sense to trade Schooble. You're gonna do that now and your fans are going to revolt. Now, yes, you're only going to get a draft pick back for him in return if you carry him through the season and then of course offer him a qualifying offer. But that's the chance you take trying to win. And people have said, well, they can still trade him at the deadline. I don't expect the Tigers to be out of contention in the Ales Central at any stage of this season.

00:07:45
Speaker 3: Based on reading your article from today, seems like you talk to people who are in the room or briefed on what happened in the room. Did you get any inkling or any any actual words that were said in the case for Major League Baseball again, Arrek Scooble, because I mean, it was a joke kind of going around on Twitter, like what could they say? What would be that like he threw the ball between his legs to try to make it out in the playoffs, Like, I don't know what they could have said.

00:08:13
Speaker 2: I saw some of those tweets myself, Eric, and they were very clever. My understanding without knowing specifically what was said is that they weren't attacking Schooble. What they were pointing out is that he is more comparable to in particular, Jacob de Gram. Jacob de Gram had the previous highest raise in arbitration. It was I believe nine point four million. I might be wrong about that in that range, and they were saying, well, if da Graham got that raise, then Schooble should only get a similar raise. His would have been with nineteen million dollars salary eight point eight five million. So that was the argument. Not so much Terrek Scougle's no good. I don't know that you can make that case. But even the argument invoking de Gram was questionable because de Gram was a four plus player at the time he got that record raise, not a five plus. And again, a five plus player you can compare yourself to anyone. So it seems to me this was not an attack on Terrek School. But and I know hearings can get like that. AJ's talked about his own hearing, and players have always said, you hear things in there you never want to hear about yourself. But maybe they pointed out a few things. I can't imagine what they were. But really it was a case of precedent for them, the league and the Tigers, and it was a case of compul pitchers to ground being one price being another.

00:09:36
Speaker 1: And there was a lot of confusion about how all of this works. I mean, I saw people that know the game pretty well tweeting how you can't compare school to free agents, and it's like, no, you actually can, based on special accomplishments, the five plus the whole deal. And now the aftermath from some people is, oh, well, Schoobl's his own case and schemes, but everyone else will still be in the same realm, And it's like, no, I disagree on that one, because you can compare arbitration to arbitration, and now you have Schooble there. So even if you're a few notches below in the future, there's a big gap between Prices nineteen and Schoobles thirty two. So my question for you is do you think that MLB will try and battle this in the next CBA. This clearly seems like something that MLB is against and the players are for, because you go to a panel and you tell a narrative versus a number, which I believe was proposed in the last CBA. Morey Brown, who's been on the show before and it does a nice job for Forbes, said he thinks this will further spur them to make this a big point in the CBA, not the top, but obviously one of their big points to get rid of this, or to at least tweak it.

00:10:40
Speaker 2: It has always been a point for them, and I believe I have a line in the column saying they can go after the system as they've done in the past. I don't expect that to be any different. I expect them, maybe, as more said, to turn it up. But if you're going to a salary cap, which is obviously what they're going to propose or at least try to get involved with then, and you're not going to have arbitration in any way this shape or form the same as that is now anyway, So yes they will try. And yes you're right Scott that a future five plus player can compare him to self the schooble, but he's not going to be schooble unless he's schemes. That's the difference. And will it drag up those players perhaps, I just don't know that that's going to happen. But in terms of the owners not liking the process, they've never liked the process, so I expect fully that they're going to at least try to make, if not major changes to the process through salary cap, somewhat tweak it if they can do you.

00:11:40
Speaker 3: Think each individual team and this is another one of my stupid series, but maybe it could stick because we don't want players. The game is about the players, and we don't want players against the teams, and clearly the teams manipulate exactly what they think the teams should pay the players. Well, we ever see a world where it's going to be Major League Baseball versus the Players Association for trek Scrugle for Paul Schemes and know more of this piratesss versus Paul Schemes.

00:12:13
Speaker 2: Eric, It's actually a fair question, and it's fair because MLB is involved on the owner's side, the club side, and the Union is involved with recommendations as well on the player side. So to some extent, it already is that. Now. I guess what you're suggesting is taking the player out of the room entirely and going about it that way, just having the MLB versus the Union. I just don't know if the Union would like that. I would imagine they want the players here in this stuff and want them getting fired up when they hear these kinds of things, because it shows in some respects how important it is to have the union and the agents doing their work that they do an arbitration. So to a very real extent, it is exactly what you said right now. I mentioned that the Tigers did not argue this case against Schooble. They hired outside attorneys to do that. So well, Scott Boris and people from the Union were arguing the case for Schooble. The Union is very much involved, and maybe not to the same extent as the ownership arm, the labor relations department. I'm not quite sure about that, but it is kind of union versus It'll be already with the subset of the player versus the team.

00:13:32
Speaker 5: With all these free agent signings going on, there's still a couple guys out there, Zach Gallen, Bassett, Schurezer. Gallen's the guy that for me, it's really intricate, but I feel like he still has a couple more good years ahead of him. Have you heard of any talks or any inklings to where he might get picked up before spring training starts here?

00:13:50
Speaker 2: So, Todd, there's been a lot of talk about the Cubs and Gallon really all off season. I don't know that it will get there. I don't know even the Orioles or the Padres or any of these other teams seeking starting pitchers will sign Zach Gallen to what likely will be a short term deal with opt outs and give up a draft pick in the process. So it seems to me, and I might be wrong about this, I'm just giving my thoughts on it. It seems to me the most obvious place for him to go is back to Arizona on a short term deal with a one year opt out so he can get back into free agency next year off a better year and without a draft pick attached. That would give him a better chance to do what he wants to do in the market. We've seen Scott Boris and with clients do this repeatedly. Gollon is represented by Boris, and if the Diamondbacks sign Gowan, of course they do not lose a draft pick. So from that perspective, it just seems to me to line up. I guess the question for the Diamondbacks will be do they have the money to do that. They've got a lot invested in some injured pictures right now, but they've already got Meryl Kelly under contract. If you get Gallon back, if even for only one year, and then Corbyn Burns comes back in mid season, you have an interesting group.

00:15:10
Speaker 3: That's kind of a loss for the Diamondbacks. They don't get a they don't get a pick for him, for him signing somewhere else. So the Diamonbacks they get they do get Zach Gallon, but are they pushing in? I get it. I get it. A team that's been in on everybody. It's the end of the offseason, and I saw what you wrote about me on Twitter that I'm a buffoon, and then I hit below two oh nine and I'm a negative. Oh that wasn't you, Ken. That was the rest of Twitter. But I said about the Pirates not actually being truly in what were you hearing? Because some of those some of those were from you, And so people are like, well, if Ken says it, then it must be true. And I am saying it's true. But your how how far of a level was it that the Pirates We're in on some of these guys.

00:16:03
Speaker 2: I'm not writing fiction, first of all, and I'm also not writing just what the Pirates tell me to think that. I understand fans think everything we do has an agenda and we're simply puppets on marionettes. That's not how it works. I'm not going to go any further. I'm not telling you where I get my information, but I am not the pirates public relations are obviously, so you ask how serious they've been. And this is the question we talked about, I believe the other day on FT. But we'll get into it again here. It seems to me they are making offers that reflect a player's value. With Ajohanes Swartz, they offered him about fifteen. He got about fifteen. The problem for the Pirates is that you can't be winning that way. Players don't want to go to Pittsburgh when they have better competitive teams or more competitive teams in the mix for them. Suaz did that with Cincinnati playoff team last year, the team that he played with for seven years. Now. In the case of from ver Valdez, they were in and they were aggressive, is my understanding, but at that aav above thirty eight million. If I had known they were going to get thirty eight million from Ravaldez, I probably would not have even put the Pirates in the aggressive category. I didn't know that at the time I reported it. I just knew that they were trying so to win these free agent battles, they're going to have to outbid other teams. And if they're not willing to do that, then you can understand why they might not want to overpay players. Okay, then go to the trade market and try to do it that way, which they have in getting Brandon Lawe and Justinskin Justinskin Garcia. I'm not pronouncing it right, it's the past word. Of course, they have made some interesting trades this offseason, So I don't know that they should be derided for trying. You could say they're not trying hard enough, and that's certainly a fair criticism because they have to do more to get these players. But they did sign Ryan O'Hearn two years twenty nine million, and they are still trying to get another hitter, whether it's through free agency or trade.

00:18:12
Speaker 3: Last team I have to ask you about raise his eyebrows for me when I see them in on possibly trading for Freddy Peralta and we're in on from ber Valdez. Is the Minnesota Twins. When their name gets put in there, I'm like, do they mean like twins of like like two people who look alike that were born at the same time? Twins? Like? How is what's your reaction when you're hearing like that type of news from your sources?

00:18:38
Speaker 2: I can't imagine. First of all, I did not hear the twins on Valdez, so I can't take any credit for that or any knowledge of it. Even that would shock me. With where they are now, they're in an interesting place. Tom Polott has taken over, Derek Falve has left, Tom poll Out has said we're gonna be competitive this year, and people have laughed at him for saying, well, you say you're gonna be competitive, but but you're not spending any money. So from that perspective, might they have thrown their hat in the ring on Valdez. Sure? More likely though, a Peralta trade would have been appealing to them, because Paralta is making eight million this year, which is severely below market for a picture of his caliber. Any team, small market teams as well as large market teams could have been in the mix for Paralta and absorbed him into their payroll. So that would not surprise me at all that they were in on Freddie Peralta. When they're claiming they want to be competitive Valdez. Maybe they were in, but in like the pirates, they were only going to go to a certain level there.

00:19:38
Speaker 1: It is Ken, Thank you very much. Fascinating week for what first week of February. I'll say I enjoyed the weekend. We'll talk to you next week.

00:19:47
Speaker 2: Thanks guys. Chalut.

00:19:52
Speaker 1: We've got power rankings, super duper early ones. SEEBS put these out about a week ago. But we've been busy and today we're a little it's busy, so we're ready. Where the league stands with most free agency dost settled. Now, keep in mind, there are a few moves that have been made since this happened, so from Bravaldez affecting the Tigers position on here. Let's keep that in mind when you're scrutinizing their list. But have fun with it. We can start with the tippy top top ten. I'll just read it out and then get your thoughts. Okay, go on to do it that way.

00:20:25
Speaker 4: Go ahead.

00:20:26
Speaker 1: Dodgers one, Brewers, two Blue Jays, three Cubs, four Yankees, five Brave six Mariners, seven Red Sox eighth. The Mets check in at ninth. Another NL's team, the Phillies at ten. How did they do?

00:20:44
Speaker 5: I think they missed one key team on here. I got to be honest with you and you guys. You guys know I've been on this team since day one, criticizing them.

00:20:53
Speaker 4: Where's the Orioles at Oh?

00:20:54
Speaker 1: Where are my?

00:20:55
Speaker 4: Oh?

00:20:56
Speaker 1: Did I just say you're on the train? Now?

00:20:58
Speaker 4: Just hop on the train.

00:21:00
Speaker 1: On the train.

00:21:00
Speaker 4: Wow, I'm on the train.

00:21:02
Speaker 1: I mean.

00:21:02
Speaker 5: First, when you pick up one of the most prolific hitters in baseball and Pete Alonzo, you can't go wrong with that. And I felt like they got him on a nice, easy deal. He probably could have made a little bit more money. Blah blah blah. We know the whole story.

00:21:16
Speaker 4: Undercover pickup Shane Boz.

00:21:18
Speaker 5: I gotta be honest with you. I love Shane Boz. I think he needed a little change of scenery, get in a little colder air. He is funny as all heck. I room with him in the Olympics. He's absolutely out of this world.

00:21:33
Speaker 4: He's pumping weights left and right.

00:21:35
Speaker 5: Listen, Zach Eflin, I gotta be honest. The dude can play. He can play, He's been there before. Is he gonna wow you right now? Probably not, but another effective starter. He's gonna give you, you know, long relief and long times there. And the one I really liked too is Ryan Helsley. Another guy that they can punch in pretty much anywhere in that that bullpen and do whatever you want with him. So there's a couple other guys, I mean, listen, Leonti tavars Is Okay, Andrew Kittingridge, Taylor Ward from the Angels. I think they should be I shouldn't. I don't think top five, but I think they should be in the top ten team that I would take off.

00:22:13
Speaker 4: Oh, man, I would take off. I mean Brewers are number two.

00:22:20
Speaker 1: I think we need to get into that. After you kick a team out.

00:22:22
Speaker 5: Man, I would, I would kick off. I would kick out. Though, my goodness, gracious, this changes everything. I'd take the Braves out. I would take the Braves.

00:22:30
Speaker 3: I would, I would. I would spot your I think you're spot on with that. I think the Braves can be shoot. I think the Braves can be second or third best team in the league for sure. There's a lot of canby though, there's a lot of canby if this does. It was so it was so unlucky that the Braves last year said, okay, five six of our starters all got hurt like that is ridiculous. That's not gonna happen again. All five or six of those starters aren't gonna have cy young years though. Either they upgraded in their bullpen with Robert Suarez. They brought back Iglacia, who was unbelievable. He was great at the end of the season. But sixth, I don't think. I don't think they're six to me, I think the Mets and Phillies are above them. Right now and they have to prove it. I still think they're a playoff team. But really the biggest, the biggest on this list is the Brewers. Like I'm not sure what CBS was doing with this one. How they had them up there. They were, they had the most wins in the National League. I get that they got rid of they got rid of pieces and added what did they add again? I mean they added Did they get Nolan McClain from the Mets for Freddie Peralta. No, they got Brandon Sproute, who could be great. Obviously, I'm not kicking the Brewers out of the top ten because of what they've done and because of my love for the Brewers, I will not kick them out of the top ten. The Braves are kicked out top ten. And if we could put the list of one time I had a little bit of a switcher route, I think the Mariners, whatever order it is, I think the Mariners are better than the Yankees currently. I think how they come into the season, they're better than the Yankees. I think the Cubs are They're a little bit. I think they're a little bit inflated on this list. Are they the second best National League team? Because I kicked the Brewers out. No, I think that. I think that falls to the Phillies. Are Mets still until the Cubs prove that they can have a great season. Is Alex Bregman taking over for what Kyle Tucker did the beginning of the season last year? Like you know, to me, I think there's a there's a pecking order in the National League, and I still think it runs through the National League East, after you have after you have the Dodgers, so I think, and I think the Mariners are ahead of the Yankees. I think the Mariners are the second best team. And I think maybe there's a world and I don't know who I kick out or the Tigers should be top ten just because they have a power packed lineup, our power packed rotation. They didn't add to their lineup. And I know this list came out before Framber Valdez was signed, but you know, so that's where I would That's where I would change. But if you told me at Tigers are eleven, I'd be cool with that too.

00:25:21
Speaker 4: H agreed.

00:25:24
Speaker 1: I like a lot of what you said. Do you want to see the bottom ten?

00:25:27
Speaker 3: Yes?

00:25:28
Speaker 2: Please?

00:25:28
Speaker 3: Because I think there's some wrong ones on the bottom ten.

00:25:33
Speaker 1: We're going from worst to not as bad thirty Rockies twenty nine, Nationals, White Sox at twenty eight, Angels twenty seven, Twins check in at twenty six. We put the Cardinals or CBS did at twenty five, Pirates go to twenty four, Marlins twenty three, Raising Florida next to them twenty two, and the A's at twenty one.

00:25:57
Speaker 4: I'm trying to think of who should be down there that it's not there right now.

00:26:01
Speaker 1: I think he's smart. Alecan has a name.

00:26:03
Speaker 4: What do you got, Crothy?

00:26:05
Speaker 3: I don't think the Pirates should be in there. I think the Pirates have done enough to improve their team, and they still have Paul Skins. Like the record, the record or the stat that if the Pirates have scored three or more runs in every one of Paul skien starts, he'd be forty three to one. Like this team's offense has improved, has their defense declined? I don't know. That's hard to say. Maybe maybe there's a there's going to be a drop off there, but with Paul Skiing's at the top, I think anything is possible. I don't think the Pirates are in that bottom ten. I also don't think the A's of Sacramento. The Aths are in the bottom ten. I think they did think every Mason Miller, absolutely, JP Sears was a quality starter for them. I know as Era wasn't great. I just think they started to acclimate to playing in a Triple A park and how they can use that to their advantage the last two months of the season.

00:27:04
Speaker 2: I think it.

00:27:05
Speaker 3: I think it goes into this season. I think some of their guys have There's there's the whole contract boost. You get a contract and all of a sudden, you're not like you're not sleeping at night. Oh man, if I'm gonna get sent down a Triple A Wait a minute, I'm already playing in a Triple A park.

00:27:20
Speaker 2: Wait.

00:27:20
Speaker 3: You know. It's just some of their guys are now solidified in their roles, and I think they're I think they're not. I don't think they're a top top or bottom ten team.

00:27:32
Speaker 5: Well, there's one team I think that should be in there. I would say Tampa Bay had the chance of being in Oh they are in there.

00:27:40
Speaker 1: Now they are in there.

00:27:41
Speaker 5: I'm struggling today. I think I think the power should be there. Honestly, I mean, listen, what have they done. They have Paul Skins, Yeah, and they still can't find ways to win. Yeah. Did they get a couple of guys, of course they did. But you can't tell me that they're a top twenty team right now. I mean, listen, they're on the bottom of the list in the NL Central each year. They can't find a way to dig out of there, and they hurt themselves at the end of the day. So they didn't really get that much big of names, and it's just gonna be the Pirates of old.

00:28:13
Speaker 1: Make Crats do what he's supposed to do, which is if he is going to defend a team and say the Pirates deserve to be twenty or better, I'm fine with that. But you know the game. If you think the A's and the Pirates do not belong on the bottom ten list that is put together by CBS, you must help them replace those two teams. There needs to be a bottom ten. It's not easy. Trust me, I went through the extra.

00:28:40
Speaker 3: Give me a sack here, hang on, hang on, I'm.

00:28:42
Speaker 1: Telling you it's not going to be easy. We can literally go through the teams, it doesn't even take that long, and you're going to struggle to find teams that replace them.

00:28:50
Speaker 3: I'm looking I'm looking through my you can go through, but I'm also looking through.

00:28:56
Speaker 1: I can, but I think the exercise is fun to do it this way. Okay, So you're not putting the the Braves in there, right, they were borderline on the top ten. The Diamondbacks, so you're putting them in the bottom ten. I'm not Cubs, Red Sox Orioles. We're good. They're not touching that list. White Sox are already in it. I'm not putting the Reds in there. I'm not putting the Guardians in there, not a bottom ten. Rockies are in there already. Not putting the Tigers, not the Astros for me, not the Royals, Angels are already in there, Dodgers obviously. I'm just going.

00:29:30
Speaker 3: Down twice twice.

00:29:34
Speaker 1: Ls are in there already. Brewers are not going in there. Twins are in there already, Mets and Yankees and Phillies are not going in there. Pirates are in there already. We're almost done with the list of teams. Padres are not going in there. I don't think the Giant should be in there. Mariners are obviously not in there. Cardinals are already in there. Rays are already in there. I'm not putting the Rangers in there or the Blue Jays and the Nats are already in there. It is a perfect bottom ten. It is perfect. They nailed it. It is very difficult to agree.

00:29:59
Speaker 5: To your point.

00:30:00
Speaker 4: You can move a couple of teams.

00:30:01
Speaker 1: That's fine, you know, to like, you.

00:30:03
Speaker 5: Know, put the Pirates of twenty two behind the Athletics, that kind of deal. You can do that kind of thing.

00:30:08
Speaker 4: But I don't. I guess, yeah, I don't. I don't see anybody else going in.

00:30:13
Speaker 1: No Sunny Days in the chat said Diamondbacks are definitely bottom ten. I mean that's fine. I respect opinions, but I don't agree. I think that they could get close to that. But I don't agree that they're bottom ten.

00:30:25
Speaker 3: Okay, that's fair. I mean, I mean I can I can definitely, I can see the Rangers. I can see the Rangers maybe sliding in there, unless they completely change the culture and unless Nimo is that shot in the arm for the offense. I think, you know, there's a possibility there. But that rotation was ridiculous. So yeah, you're right, I would say I can't. I can't replace them, so I can't take any of them.

00:30:52
Speaker 1: Out over under Marlins bet MGM saying seventy two and a half, Where are we going?

00:31:08
Speaker 4: This is close? I don't think I think they'll be under five hundred. But how far.

00:31:15
Speaker 1: Big gap between seventy two and a half and eighty one wins which is five hundred? Do you think they'll fill in that gap? They traded away some pitching, they'll probably trade away more pitching in Sandy al Contra. But they kind of surprised some people last year. They won seventy nine games this past season.

00:31:41
Speaker 4: Man, you guys put me on the spot here, Why don't you.

00:31:43
Speaker 1: Just talk about shock taking.

00:31:44
Speaker 5: Yeah, I'm gonna say under but really close, I'm gonna say under under. Okay, I think that n AL least is a gauntlet. I think it's some really good squads. Want to see them when I like the Miami Mons, I like the organization, like everything about them, But I would say closer to seventy I would little under seventy wins?

00:32:08
Speaker 3: What do you like everything about them? What is what is the like about them? Like I like some.

00:32:14
Speaker 4: Dudes on the team.

00:32:15
Speaker 5: You're gonna you're gonna gonna speak up or you're gonna speak out, let's go.

00:32:19
Speaker 3: I mean, I like, I like some of the dudes on the team. But that's why I'm taking That's why I'm taking the over is because I think this is under set, way way too low. I think if they had said, like seventy four seventy five, I would have been like, Okay, they won seventy seventy nine games last year. Seventy nine games last year, and I think you sit there and you go, okay, yes, I get it. They got rid of their best pitcher from last year in Edwar Cabrera, but that's what they've been doing. They've been pumping out pitching and supposedly they have pitching galore coming from the minor leagues. I think this is a seventy I think it's a seventy four to six six win team, and so I'm taking the over. I'm not taking as big of the over as I have taken, but I really like this one. I think they showed that they can win games, and they're some of their position players have really taken the next steps. And you have another full season of stours, you have Augustine Ramirez behind the dish. I love it. But I'm not putting any money on it, because they could get rid of another picture, they could get rid of Sandy Yep part way through the year, and I'm so nervous about it. But they could also win thirteen games against the Nationals, who have done zip zero nothing this offseason.

00:33:41
Speaker 1: Marlins have done just about zip zero nothing too. Don't forget about that. Remember the article in the beginning of the offseason from Evan Draulic about Marlin's Pirates and they're maybe one other, and yeah, the Pirates did a little bit more. Marlins didn't really participate again, so Pirates.

00:33:59
Speaker 3: Did a lot. I can't even mention the same the same breath of Marlin. Carlins and Nats are completely bring that top ten back, that bottom ten back up again. They're hauling there and they earn it.

00:34:12
Speaker 1: Marlin's for me, slide over. I don't feel comfortable about it though, but I'll go slide over on that one. Yeah, seventy one nine wins last year, Nationals are going to suck. But I mean, I think it could be a hook. I think it could be a seventy one, a seventy two to seventy three.

00:34:29
Speaker 4: Depending on what they do trade deadline and all that kind.

00:34:32
Speaker 1: Of Yeah, that's why they're trading Sandy el Contra at some point this year, so the rebuild continues. The biggest game of the year calls for a boost pack that's just as big be MGM is rolling out. The Big Game Boost Pack gives you three different ways to boost the odds on your next big game bet. Here's how it works. First, log in and your Big Game Boost Pack will be waiting for you. Next, add any big game bet to your bet slip, Activate the boost token you want to use. Finally, if that bets hits with a token activated, you get extra winnings on top of your payout. Gambling problem or concern, there's help. Call one eight hundred gambler talking bet MGM Super Bowl Sunday picks real quick. I know nothing, but I'm just gonna say, Seahawks.

00:35:12
Speaker 5: You man, I'm going against. I think people are putting the Patriots down. They don't think they're gonna come through. I have a fine I think they find a way to win. Is Brady playing No, But Brady said he wasn't. Necessarily he's not reading for that. That's why I want him to win anymore.

00:35:30
Speaker 1: Well, isn't it like Brady Belichick and he got I pissed. Yeah, well, they kind of made his life into a pretty cool life, so you probably want to be reading for them. But he's a broadcaster. Now, you gotta be neutral. Gotta be neutral. Who's winning the super Bowl on Sunday? Where do I put my money?

00:35:48
Speaker 4: Oh?

00:35:48
Speaker 3: Who's winning it? I don't know who's winning it, but it's going to be heads. It's going to be the coin toss. I'm locking that in right now.

00:35:55
Speaker 4: It's got him mighty. Don't ever, don't listen to him ever on.

00:36:01
Speaker 1: I'm not touching that one. It's too much time.

00:36:05
Speaker 3: I'm easily swayed. I can go tails.

00:36:07
Speaker 4: No, let's go let's talk about you want heads, I want tails.

00:36:10
Speaker 1: We're gonna do an hour post show, all right, we'll just three to four. We'll talk heads or tails