Boo Bichette: Phillies stunned to lose star, J.T. Realmuto returns

00:00:03
Speaker 1: Hi, this is jt ol Mute. Welcome to the Philly Show.

00:00:08
Speaker 2: Rubin Tomorrow Junior, Jim Salisbury, Toddszlucky. It's a Philly Show. It's Saturday, January seventeenth, twenty twenty six six something of an emergency podcast, Guys. We usually don't record on the weekend, but obviously major, major, major news with the Phillies on Friday. The Phillies feel that they had Ba Bashett practically playing third base for the Phillies in twenty twenty six and beyond slips through their fingers to the Mets, and then they re signed JT. Real Muto. The Game of Chicken is over three year, forty five million dollar deal. Social media was a hell of a place to be on Friday. Guys, is this all unfolded? Let's get your quick reactions. Jim, I'm going to start with you everything that happened, everything we've been talking about for the past ten days, and then to hear the Bashett deal so close and then falling apart. What do you think?

00:01:06
Speaker 1: Yeah, it feels like the luft hansa heist at LaGuardia, you know, and good Fellas, I mean, you know, the Mets play right next to LaGuardia, and they they swooped in and cut the Phillies off the off at the pass because on Thursday night I sensed legit real confidence that the Phillies thought they were in a good place and we're going to bring this thing home in the next day or two. And I think the fan base was excited. There's great disappointment there. I can tell you there's great disappointment in the front office. And you know, this guy would have really really helped that lineup. You know, two hundred hit potential, little strikeout rate except bats, drives in runs, extra base pop, you know, really really good hitter. You're bringing in a young player, freshen up the clubhouse. It made sense on so many levels. And you know, I think the Phillies made a really good offer. You know we talked about remember I said the other day, you think they'd go two hundred million, You think they'd go seven years to ten. They were right in that neighborhood with an offer over twenty eight million AAV. And you know, the these short term deals with a lot of high AAV and opt outs are deregu and the Phillies have a reluctance to do them. I can see why. I also see why the team teams will do them. So the Mets, you know, they get both Boba Schett on what could be a very very expensive could be a one year deal because he could opt out and go back on the market again next year. But you know, in terms of the Phillies, great, great disappointment with the fan banse, the front office, you know, all across, all across the border, because such a would have been such a good fit, and we weren't focused on him when the offseason started, and we liked him, but we didn't think it was a possibility. And then all of a sudden it's a possibility, and everybody's excitement level grows, and then there's such a letdown because they felt like, like you said, he slips through their fingers.

00:03:24
Speaker 3: As if the Phillies fans didn't need to have another reason to be pissed off at the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are the wild cards here. The Dodgers signed Tucker. That was a target for the Mets, right and the target possibly for the Boston Red Sox. So a couple of things happened. Ranger goes to the Boston Red Sox on a panic sign and I also I believe that, in my heart of hearts, another panic signed by the New York Mets to sign Bobachett. And to do what they did, they basically blew everybody out of the water.

00:03:58
Speaker 4: As far as the AAV, nobody was there. They gave them.

00:04:01
Speaker 3: Every opportunity to get out of that contract. They gave them everything they wanted. And I think you're right, Jim. I think the Phillies thought that they had them in their hands, and and the Mets decided just to do something that was unreasonable just to get them because they couldn't get Tucker and they probably won't get Bellinger, and so they they had to do something because.

00:04:23
Speaker 4: You know, it looks like Bellinger's gonna probably end up going to the Yankees.

00:04:25
Speaker 3: So I think it was it's really the Dodgers who created this whole domino effect. And uh, the interesting part about this is there's so many different machinations of things that have to happen. Right, they have that offer out there on JT. Do the Phillies, if in fact, do they get that deal done, do they still honor the offer on JT? If Bobaschett signs. I mean, they're probably lining up their trainers to get them ready to do a physical.

00:04:56
Speaker 4: They're doing all this stuff.

00:04:58
Speaker 3: Do they at that point start yanking the deal from from JT? Or does John Middleton just say, you know what, screw it, We're gonna bring them all on and we're.

00:05:08
Speaker 4: Gonna try to figure out.

00:05:09
Speaker 3: The dollars after that. And uh, and that's that's a fascination. We talked about this a lot fascinating offseason, what they were going to try to do, et cetera, et cetera. I think the fact that it took JT so long to sort of get to the point where he would take a deal that the Phillies said, you know what, let's make a run at Bobachett. He's still out there. It's a possibility they made a heavy run at him. And honestly, you can't blame blame the Phillies.

00:05:36
Speaker 4: I mean, the guy.

00:05:37
Speaker 3: They offered him more money and more years, and when the Mets decided to do something that I thought was unreasonable with regard to the forty two million dollar AAV and the ability to opt out of those.

00:05:52
Speaker 4: Things, you can't blame Bobaschett.

00:05:56
Speaker 1: You can't blame the Phillies, right, the Mets had had a bag full of money. Mets had a bag full of money for for Tucker fifty million dollars a year. He goes to the Dodgers and then they're like, oh boy, what do we do? We still need a pat?

00:06:10
Speaker 4: Uh?

00:06:10
Speaker 1: You know it's not gonna play. We're not gonna play Brett Baty at third base here, Bo, you take the bag.

00:06:16
Speaker 2: Of money, right, That's exactly what happened. So I, you know, I a lot of a lot of stuff came out of yesterday. You know, I can tell you that the deal was for two hundred million a flat, two hundred million, seven years, two hundred million. Now the question is is did his agent say we have a deal virtual handshake or was it a hey, if you meet this price, we're gonna get there. I you know I I The word livid was used in terms of the reaction to the news that Bo did not end up, you know, coming to the Phillies and went to the Mets. It kind of a rug pulled out from under them situation. So I think a lot of one of you guys just said it on social media. A lot of people very upset I think that feeling is the same in that front office and throughout that entire organization. You know, they they thought they thought it was close.

00:07:13
Speaker 3: Yeah, I would be surprised at Greg Gensky, who is the representative, just having known him and knowing that he's going to have to do deals with the Phillies in the future, that he actually said, yes.

00:07:26
Speaker 4: It's possible.

00:07:28
Speaker 3: It's certainly possible, because the hammer is with the player, and if the guy the player and they you know, if the Mets did what they did and when they and when they panic moved and and went to that that that offer which was really significantly different than the than the Phillies offer.

00:07:47
Speaker 4: You know, he can't blame the guy for making a change.

00:07:50
Speaker 3: But if they actually had a handshake and they had a deal done, that's when in that situation, if in fact that they had sort of agreed, that's not a great look for that particular agent. And I would be surprised, based on Greg Gensky having been in this industry a long time, that he would necessarily do that. Not a good look for his organization and not a good look for him to have renegged on a deal. And uh, and I got to believe that the ies were not dotted and the t's were not crossed.

00:08:25
Speaker 4: When when he you know, decided to go to the Mets. But talk about my feeling.

00:08:30
Speaker 2: We're been talking about that frustration though. When you think you're super close, I imagine, right like the word starts to spread throughout the organization. Uh, hey, find out what number he wants to wear. You know, we got to get start thinking about this stuff. Does he need to call you know, do we need to call a guy to get him off the number? Hey, we need to make sure this is set. We need to make sure that's set. I mean, what are all those what are the things that kind of start happening as it gets as it gets close, and.

00:08:55
Speaker 3: Yeah, there's a ton of stuff you start, you know, you get the trainers ready, they got to get make and the doctor's ready. Hey, we got to do a physical on this guy quickly because the news is going to get out and let's make this happen. Nowadays, you can say, hey, uh, we have an agreement, but we have to get through the physical.

00:09:13
Speaker 4: I mean you actually say that.

00:09:15
Speaker 3: I think nowadays you in the past we were like hand slapped. You know, you can't say that a deal is done publicly, all you can say is we're still in talks.

00:09:24
Speaker 2: Stuff like that.

00:09:24
Speaker 1: I mean, sometimes these days the physicals aren't always clinical. It's a you know, it's a review of medical records. Like the Phillies trainer is given access to the other team's medical records for X amount of hours or something.

00:09:39
Speaker 3: Well, no, no, they're already wide open anyway, because in the free agency, I think it's different now the free agency, it's wide open.

00:09:46
Speaker 4: They get to see him, So the reviews are already there.

00:09:48
Speaker 1: But it's not clinical though, right, they don't always.

00:09:51
Speaker 4: Sometimes it's not if they don't feel like.

00:09:53
Speaker 3: Listen, Boba Sheets had some injury history. He's got some calf issues. He's been you know, he's had some polls and stuff like that. That's something that you may want to bring in and see and talk to him about it.

00:10:04
Speaker 1: Yeah, mcl strain in September.

00:10:07
Speaker 4: He's had some stuff.

00:10:08
Speaker 3: So so he's one of those guys you probably want to have.

00:10:11
Speaker 4: You know, be looked at.

00:10:12
Speaker 3: But the fact that you talked about the frustration Todd, I got to tell you, man, when something like that happens, it is it's rough, man, It's not a fun thing to be.

00:10:24
Speaker 4: Part of because you have no control.

00:10:28
Speaker 3: It's that's the difficulty in the beauty of free agency is that that player and that agent can do whatever the hell they want. They really can't unless the unless there is an actual exchange of papers, emails, something signed a letter of agreement in l o A, you really have no other recourse. And uh and and you know you typically typically the agents are good about and shake deals.

00:11:01
Speaker 4: But handshake deals are handshake deals. They're not necessarily done deals.

00:11:07
Speaker 1: Really, I want to ask you. I want to ask you Ruben to so uh, these you know, huge aa V deals. And when you're talking about the Dodgers and the and the Mets and the team like the Phillies, they're all repeat offenders on the luxury tax. Boba Schett next year is getting forty two million, and there's another five on the buyout, and then they're paying on that one year salary, the twenty sixth salary. Aren't they paying one hundred and one percent tax? So it's like a ninety million dollar The Mets are making a ninety million dollar commitment for one.

00:11:39
Speaker 2: Season, almost almost one hundred million, ninety one hundred million dollars, say to me.

00:11:45
Speaker 4: That to me is a panic sign.

00:11:47
Speaker 1: The money is crazy at the top end of this game, and it's going to become the backdrop of, you know, next winter. And with these opt doves, what I wanted to ask you, Ruben, A lot of teams don't like them. At teams are doing them. I think they're all the risk is on the team, and I see why they do it because you think you can win next year. You know next year, and in some of those in some regard it would you know it fits a team like the Phillies. We are ready to win right to win right now, and the clock is ticking and they're getting old, and old teams get hurt, and there's a lot of a lot of bad things that can can happen. But the Phillies don't like opt outs. I understand why. Where did you feel on opt outs? And they weren't as common when you were a GM, but they're more common now. But where do you feel on them?

00:12:32
Speaker 4: No, they are very much much more common.

00:12:34
Speaker 3: I did not like them when I was a GM because I felt like if we had a player, I wanted him to commit to us, and I just didn't feel comfortable with it. Now with the money the way it is. Actually, I got no problem with them, and I'll tell you why, because I feel like the player in an out, in an opt out situation is basically playing for his baseball life every single year he's having to form to show the world, Hey, I'm even better than this contract than the contract I've already signed. I'm even better than the based on my performance than what I already agree to.

00:13:12
Speaker 1: Then take a one year deal and get rid of the safety net. Because if you stink, you still get paid.

00:13:18
Speaker 4: Yeah, that's that is the difficulty.

00:13:20
Speaker 3: If you stink, you get paid, but you still have you know, you there's a reason, there's a reason why you sign that guy, so you'd have to take the risks as a team. But I think in this day and age, with the money and the way it is, if this guy plays his ass off for me for that one year, then I've gotten one I wanted out of the guy.

00:13:41
Speaker 4: And if he wants to go.

00:13:42
Speaker 3: Take off, then it gives me more payroll flexibility and I can try to figure out, you know, how to work that money into the into the next and maybe utilize whatever I was going to pay him in the future in Bobashet's situation. If he opts out after forty two million and he plays his ass off for the Mets, he's still out there. He's a guy that that's forty two million dollars that I had budgeted for.

00:14:08
Speaker 4: Right, maybe I can play with and do something else with.

00:14:11
Speaker 1: I hope you can pitch, because the Mets still to me, you know. Oh yeah, a couple of nice young kids in Roa. But they need more rotation.

00:14:19
Speaker 4: No doubt. I mean they have Semion now at second base.

00:14:23
Speaker 3: Obviously Lindor is short, and now the Shed at third base or pretty r good. They got Polanco at first. They feel that they probably did a little bit better with their offense, so it'll be interesting. They need pitching, though.

00:14:37
Speaker 1: They need pitching.

00:14:37
Speaker 2: I want to mention if you're watching this on YouTube, we're getting closed to ten thousand subscriptions, so hit the subscribe button if you can. We appreciate your support for the show, and obviously go to the Phillies show shop dot com. It's a great way to support the show. We appreciate everybody support. Okay, So I mean, we can keep talking about Bo, but I also want to let everybody know that we're going to talk to JT's contract and him coming back, and also later in the show, we're going to talk about what comes next for the Phillies, because everybody wants to know that, so stick around. Okay, So let's very shortly after the news breaks about Bashett, JT agrees to a three year, forty five million dollar contract with the Phillies. There are he can make up to five million dollars more per season in incentives. I don't know what those incentives are. We guess maybe you know, innings played or games played, games played whatever. Right, So if he stays healthy, JT does what JT does, which is catch three quarters of every game this season, the next season, he's going to make twenty million dollars. It was a stalemate for the longest time, right, Jim, you said on Thursday show, you heard it was just south of three years forty five. Maybe they gave him an extra mill iron things out to get I think it was.

00:15:56
Speaker 1: I think it was three years. I think it was fourteen times three, which is forty two. And I think they went, you know, a million more each season and out of the incentive package, or maybe the incentive package was there, but you know, they moved, and I'm glad he's back. I think that the strength of this team is still starting pitching, pitching staff in general, but starting pitching. And I think he's a huge piece in this starting rotation success so last handful of years. And I think you have a number of guys in that rotation that you're counting on that count on him, that count on him to get them through games and to be kind of their big brother or a soulmate, whatever you want to call it, partner in crime. They're out there, They're a team within a team, and I think you're going to have a pitching staff that's happy he's back. And I think he does a lot of nuanced things for this team. And I don't like some of the vitriol that is directed at him because he was being a businessman, no different than Boba Schett. Was being a businessman looking to get as much as he can and maximize his paycheck, just like we all do. So this is a guy who is who has you know, he goes out there and bleeds for the Phillies. You see him get hitting the fruit basket and come right back out there. He can play on my team any day, I'm glad he's back.

00:17:18
Speaker 3: Yeah, I'm glad he's back too. And don't get me wrong, listen to me. I thought Boba Shitt would be a great addition and tould be happy to move forward without JT. If Bobashitt was on his ball, Plump.

00:17:29
Speaker 4: Wanted to both.

00:17:30
Speaker 1: I want to both.

00:17:32
Speaker 3: If you remember, at the outside of this of this free agency period, I questioned whether or not Schwarber was more important than JT, because you know, JT is such an central part of what the Phillies are trying to do, which is have really strong pitching and strong defense, and that's essential to having success. Now, I didn't really agree. I didn't necessarily agree with going to three years because I've been there and done it and went three years on an older and aging catcher that ended up hurting us.

00:18:03
Speaker 4: This is an aging ball club.

00:18:05
Speaker 3: But I'd rather have the player than not have the player, and so that's what the Phillies decided to do.

00:18:11
Speaker 4: I don't have any issue with it now. It's not my money.

00:18:15
Speaker 3: But if I were the GM at that juncture, I probably would have gone to a shorter deal, just because I've lived through the longer deals and they didn't work out for me, but the importance of what he brings to the table is huge.

00:18:28
Speaker 4: He is a leader on the team.

00:18:30
Speaker 3: He impacts the game and on every single pitch of the of the game, basically especially on the defensive side of the ball. And he's a gamer and somebody you absolutely want to have on this team.

00:18:43
Speaker 4: I agree with you, Jim.

00:18:45
Speaker 3: The fact that you know he was waiting it out and you know people were pissed off at him about it, Well, that's.

00:18:50
Speaker 4: What free agency is about, dude.

00:18:52
Speaker 3: You're trying to maximize everything you possibly can to get the biggest deal. You could be pissed off all all you want, but the man was doing exactly what you want to do.

00:19:02
Speaker 4: This is a democracy, brother, and so this is something that is all part of free agency. He got what he wanted.

00:19:09
Speaker 3: He's back on the Phillies, and now I think the Phillies are gonna be working on the Margins.

00:19:14
Speaker 1: And I don't care about the third year. The extra year, Yeah, two years would have been would have been great, but this team is loaded with contracts where you could say, too many years, too many years, too many years, too many years. It's gonna get ugly at the end. It's gonna get ugly at the end. It's gonna get ugly at the end. What's one more? It's only three years.

00:19:35
Speaker 3: You know.

00:19:36
Speaker 2: It's funny because if I was JT, I would have done the same thing that you guys would have done, which is I'm coming off a five year deal, aav over twenty three million. I would say, yeah, I didn't have a great year offensively, but obviously he thinks he can be better offensively. But I would be like, do you do you understand how much importance I bring to this ball club? Go talk to Zach Wheeler, Go talk to Aaron Nola, Go talk to Haeseslzardo shared this story before, but this summer, talking to somebody on another team who knows JT very well, and obviously he's on a different team now said, do you guys realize how lucky you are to have JT behind the plate, calling game planning and calling games. What a tremendous asset now there obviously there's no way to put a dollar figure out can monetize it? You can't. And that's that's the thing. It's an intangible and everybody I know in today's day and age, I'm a. I am a big believer and a lot of the analytics out there guys. But uh, but also like so now, a lot of people poo poo all the intangibles, you know, clubhouse leader Kyle schver or who gives it crap? You know, JT game planning, who cares give me the give me the w r C plus Ruben.

00:20:46
Speaker 4: People give.

00:20:48
Speaker 2: Give me the w r C plus Ruben, but also give me the game planning that is going on given.

00:20:55
Speaker 1: Don't go there, don't don't go WRC plus.

00:20:58
Speaker 2: I'm just trying to rile up Ruben.

00:21:00
Speaker 1: People are so good.

00:21:01
Speaker 3: People are so close as to what my real feeling is about analytics and such that it's funny.

00:21:08
Speaker 2: The trolling is just awesome. It's awesome.

00:21:11
Speaker 4: They have no idea what I really believe in.

00:21:13
Speaker 2: Any of it.

00:21:14
Speaker 4: So you get you do legitimately get a kick out of it.

00:21:17
Speaker 2: But but going back to JT, though, like the game planning is so valuable, how he handles these pitchers from pitch to pitch. Go back and listen to the episode we had with JT before spring training and he told this great anecdote with a Ryan Kirkering about setting up a guy I think it was with the two seemer in a certain situation. He had never asked Orian to do it before, and he's like, I think this will be the pitch to get him out in a big spot. And they had a great laugh about it in the dugout. That's what a great catcher does. Again, you can't put a dollar figure on it. Is it worth an extra year at fifteen million dollars? I don't know that question, but you know what you're getting in this guy. So yeah, there's there's legit concern about his offense. You know what, what is he going to look like in two or three years? But to your point, guys, there's a lot of other guys on this in this deal, on this team right now, where you I would have as much or greater concern about, you know, what they're going to look like at the end of this contract. And they got to win now, So you know, what are you gonna do? Not sign JT, hold hold on the money and sign Victor Carrottini and then people going holy crap, they didn't even resign JT either. I mean, what the hell are they doing this year? You know?

00:22:29
Speaker 1: So if I could, like if I could just raise this issue because I wonder about it a little bit. You know, they were at that impast You know, they are human beings. You wonder if people feel disrespected, if if you'll coming to camp feeling that way. I think he's more of a man than that. I'm sure you're going to you know, but you got Alec Bohm who's for two years in a row. Is seeing his name and he you know, clearly would have been the guy they moved. If if Thursday night had blown up on the Phillies, you know, how's he gonna feel? I think those are legitimate clubhouse concerns. Would would they concern you coming into camp when you're the GM Rubinay?

00:23:13
Speaker 3: Would concern me some? And uh, you just don't know how he's going to react to it. I mean, you hope that you know the man well enough to know that you know, you shrug it off, you go play baseball. And this is part of the business. This is the business of the game. Every team's trying to get trying to get better. It's not personal, it's it's it's business. And does he need to be talked to? Do is Alec going to be talked to? Does Bryce and Stott need to be talked to. I mean, yeah, I'm sure there's some conversations that will happen.

00:23:48
Speaker 4: But at the same time, these guys are also trying to prove to the world.

00:23:52
Speaker 3: Particularly in Bone's case, because he's going to be a free agent.

00:23:55
Speaker 1: He wants to prove to the world.

00:23:57
Speaker 3: Hey, I'm one of the better shoots, you know, third basement in the third basement in the game. I'm coming out in a free agent year where there's no players, I mean, there's not very many players that that pool for next year is no bueno and you got you know, a strike, possible strike or.

00:24:15
Speaker 4: Lockout coming up.

00:24:16
Speaker 3: He wants to prove to the world, Hey man, I'm still here and I'm a viable major league player.

00:24:22
Speaker 4: Which he is.

00:24:23
Speaker 3: He's a good major league player, and I think he wants to prove to the world that he deserves, you know, a big contract too, somebody, Hey look at me. Here I am and hey, listen, the man has improved vastly defensively, he is. He's still a good run producer. He hasn't developed the power that you would hope from that position and that body type and that you know, and that natural power.

00:24:50
Speaker 4: But he's still a pretty damn good everyday major league player, which is a hard thing to do at the big league level.

00:24:56
Speaker 1: And on top of it all, you got Harper with the whole elite things. So you've got three players who could really come in well a little you know, a little edge, a little little chip on the old shoulder, which I'm fine with if you channel channel it the right way and turn it into performance.

00:25:12
Speaker 2: So absolutely so, what do we think is going to happen next guys? It seems to me they're they're going to kind of go back to where they were right after they signed s for with the Winter meetings, which was now that they got JT done, and assuming they got that done, it was going to be kind of nibble around the edges. Maybe they get a right handed bat to play some outfield, although they have they Dave Dombrowski has talked a ton this offseason about auto camp being healthy and being a productive bat. You have Weston Wilson who's out of options. Brian da la Cruz is going to be is having an incredible Winter league season for whatever that's the worth. Winter ball season, for whatever that's worth, He's going to be in camp. But maybe there's somebody else out there. They I think they need some rotation depth, especially now that Rangers gone. If somebody gets dinged in spring training, maybe that's gonna be rough. Assuming Wheeler's not ready to go, So they need to get some rotation depth. Yeah, So what do you guys think about what they're going to do the rest of the off season, the rest of the off season. Camp starts in less than a month. What do you think.

00:26:17
Speaker 3: Well, I think that they're going to try to make some runs at some pitching on the edges.

00:26:21
Speaker 4: I think the starting I think you're absolutely right.

00:26:23
Speaker 3: So odd that we've talked about this last two or three years, they've been sort of lucky that they've had just enough depth.

00:26:30
Speaker 4: There to be able to move forward. But you gotta you're still hoping.

00:26:34
Speaker 3: That Andrew Painter becomes Andrew Painter and a viable major league pitcher. You have Taiwan Walker under under control and in a contract. He creates some depth for you. Then sort of beyond that, there's some question marks. Somebody goes down. Wheeler is not going to be ready for the opening Uh for opening Day, I don't I don't believe. I can't imagine he would be probably soon thereafter. But man, you know you cannot. I mean you've got to count on eight to ten starting pitchers pretty much a year, and and right now they're looking at five or six, and they probably could use a few more. Now, they've done a nice job of fortifying and giving themselves some optionable players in the in the bullpen. They fortified their bullpen. It's better. People talk about running it back, Well, it's not. They've got Jirond you know, they got Joan Duran for the entire season at Keller the entire season. You're talking about two really really good bullpen pieces.

00:27:33
Speaker 2: So that's better.

00:27:34
Speaker 4: But I think they're going to work on trying.

00:27:36
Speaker 3: To, you know, gain a little bit more depth in that starting rotation somehow.

00:27:40
Speaker 1: And they you know, with the money they had airmark for Baschett, it's sort of an acknowledgement they'll have maybe some flexibility at the deadline or some flexibility the rest of the winter. We'll see.

00:27:53
Speaker 2: Right So they're at forty forty players on the forty man roster right now. JT is going to get re added. What's the next move?

00:28:02
Speaker 4: Is it?

00:28:02
Speaker 2: Nick Castianos, I say no, And here's why I stay now and tell me if you agree or disagree. And I might again, I might be wrong on this, But you have Harrison Bader out there, right, he's still a free agent. And then there's another right handed hitting outfielder out there I believe.

00:28:24
Speaker 1: Is up there, is up there.

00:28:26
Speaker 2: But you have a couple a couple of bats out there in the outfield, the Phillies wait, I mean, I guess they could just cut loose with him. But does it make sense to wait once Bater falls off the board, maybe a couple of those other top outfielders off the board, and just try to squeeze two million dollars out of somebody that fell short and in the batter sweepstakes and whatnot, try to get some money or is it just is it not even worth the hassle? I mean, you there's a couple of guys on other guys on the forty man roster that they could take off, and you know it wouldn't be a tremendous loss. Nolan Hoffman's out out there. You know they have some they have some bullpen arms that you could maybe take off the forty man if if saving that money is important enough, that is that stupid?

00:29:10
Speaker 4: No?

00:29:10
Speaker 1: If you think you can actually do that save some money or two or three million, and it only costs you a couple more weeks. Give it a try. But the whole world knows he's leaving. You know, I wouldn't spend two or three million on and when I can get him for the minimum when he gets released.

00:29:28
Speaker 3: But so here's the thing. They have some time at the timing issue for me. Okay, So if he does and they decide that the guy they're going to take off the roster, and they don't want to lose other guys on that roster, and they decide to make Castianos the guy that they take off, he would be designated for assignment. And I believe the rule is such that they have ten days and I'm not sure about the offseason, maybe it's eight, but they have ten days to quote unquote dispose of the I gotta believe that within the next ten days what we in January sixteenth right now, by twenty sixth, I think it's the ten days, don't quote me on those days on the titles zone, and then within ten days, you know you're gonna end up having the big boys sign Already, h Tucker's gone a bunch of other guys.

00:30:24
Speaker 4: There's not a whole lot of outfielders that are out there.

00:30:27
Speaker 3: You know, the Bellinger is going to be signed by the Yankees or somebody. They'll be gone probably, you know, by before February first. Maybe they have the ability at that point to look at a team like the Pittsburgh.

00:30:41
Speaker 5: Pirates or you know, some team that's looking for a bat that needs to put some put a little bit of a payroll on there so they don't keep getting handslapped. Put a little payroll into there sitting maybe a right handed bat or a veteran bat or a DH that can help them a little bit. And maybe they can't get two teams to have interests. It's all takes is one or two teams to have some interest and then you maybe save a couple of million bucks and make a move and give them for for whatever prospect you can get, you know, the twenty seventh prospect on their on their thirtieth you know prospect list or something like that.

00:31:21
Speaker 1: So, uh, lads, Uh, we're gonna see a lot of Bobashett. Philly's gonna see a lot of Boba sh Yeah, he's gonna he's good. He's gonna come down to Philadelphia a lot. I'm just wondering. You know, what type of reception do you think he's gonna get.

00:31:34
Speaker 2: Yeah, he's gonna get killed.

00:31:36
Speaker 4: What do you think his nickname is gonna be?

00:31:39
Speaker 1: Just that at all?

00:31:40
Speaker 2: Booa shit oo Dad.

00:31:45
Speaker 1: There's no doubt about that.

00:31:46
Speaker 2: There's no doubt about that. You're let's throw it. I'm gonna throw throw another hypothetical out there, say, Bobaschet has an amazing season, like hits, three thirty wins, a batting tipe, I know, thirty home runs, healthy, two hundred and fifteen hits. Yes, I'm exercising.

00:32:07
Speaker 4: The opt out boys. Yes, I'd sign him. Okay, there we go.

00:32:13
Speaker 1: That's what I wanted to.

00:32:14
Speaker 4: I certainly consider him.

00:32:15
Speaker 1: Will We'll only be twenty nine next year, and then he maybe go to second. Aden Miller will be ready to play third. I don't know who knows, but I'll always take you know, in his game and sports bygones quickly become bygones. You know, I always said, like covering that jd Drew drama, so you can't bring him here. You might disagree with with me, Reuben, because you lived it. I lived it from the outside observing it and writing about it. But I always said, the minute he comes and hits one of the upper level of the vet, they're gonna love him. So it never happened.

00:32:48
Speaker 4: I think JD. Drew is a different type of personality.

00:32:51
Speaker 3: Though.

00:32:51
Speaker 4: I don't think you would ever made it in Philadelphia. Maybe not, but like couldn't make it to Boston.

00:32:56
Speaker 3: He wouldn't have made it in you know, great athlete, great, you know, had an comunity, but he was great.

00:33:01
Speaker 4: In Saint Louis. My point is the places he needed to be.

00:33:04
Speaker 1: People forgive when you know it's over and done with, and now you help me win.

00:33:11
Speaker 2: If next offseason something happens like that and Bob Baschett signs a six year deal with the Phillies, and you can bet that he'll be getting the biggest standing going.

00:33:21
Speaker 4: Book it.

00:33:22
Speaker 1: He comes into the press conference and says, I've seen the era of my ways. Give me red pinstripes.

00:33:28
Speaker 2: But we know right now he's going to get the crap boot out of them all.

00:33:33
Speaker 4: No, he's going to take some ship.

00:33:35
Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely, absolutely, Well, all right, everybody, that was our little emergency pod And we'll be back though to talk more about the fallout. From Bashett and you know JT announcement coming next week. I'm sure, the official announcement coming next week, I'm sure. And everything else that's going on before spring training. Pictures and catchers report on February eleventh, and clear Water that's their first, they don't report, that's their first workout February eleventh. First full squad workout is February sixteenth. So it's almost here, fellas, and we will be back. We'll be back next week.

00:34:13
Speaker 1: Smell Ulata bus.

00:34:15
Speaker 4: Tell you, James.

00:34:16
Speaker 2: The Philly Show is brought to you by the Foul Territory Network. Subscribe to The Philly Show on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.