Skubal wins historic arbitration battle, Framber signs w/Tigers, IKF to Boston, Padres sign Andújar

00:00:01
Speaker 1: Charging about.

00:00:04
Speaker 2: All right, let's have some fun talking about from Bravaldez landing with the Tigers. First off, aj I need to give full credit to Detroit. I was quite critical of their off season, but their off season wasn't done yet, and if you looked at their off season before this, you're like, cool. They brought some guys back that were actually they didn't even have the choice Glabor Torres returning right with the qualifying offer. They signed Kyle Finnegan, they had him already, they signed him back. Kenlee Jansen was an addition Drew Anderson coming from overseas. But it was a very very weak looking off season until they land from Ravaldez. Thirty eight million dollars, highest ever average annual value thirty eight per year, I should say, highest average annual value for a left handed pitcher ever three years, one hundred and fifteen million dollars. It's the most money and the most years given out during the Scott Harris Harris since he's taken over as the Tigers leader in the front office. Yes, they did offer brag midmore than thatlast year, but he didn't take it. So your thoughts on all of this and how it makes the one two punch for the Tigers look really good.

00:01:07
Speaker 3: Two things on this one.

00:01:08
Speaker 4: First of all, if you went into this offseason and said, and now these guys weren't on the Tigers last year, Glaber Finn, again, there was another whoever they there was another one they brought back, and they brought those guys in Kenley.

00:01:20
Speaker 3: Let's just use Kenley.

00:01:21
Speaker 4: Okay, he'd be like, man, the Tigers had a pretty good offseason. But because they were some of those guys are already on the Tigers. Then you're like, oh, they just brought back the same team. Kind of like the argument with the Yankees is right, now you throw fromber in top. Yes, now you have a one two punch. And what did aj Hinch say when we talked to him all the time, We need another guy behind Trek to really take pressure off Terrek. They're hoping it would be Jack Flaherty. He's up and down right. They're hoping it has been Casey Mice. He's had injury problems. He did make the All Stars team last year, though, Reees Soulsen had some injury problems. But now you go, Tarek Frommer do you throw Jack against the three with the way aj Hinch can manage a bullpen in the postseason. Casey My looking good as a four, Olsen as the five. This is a pretty good starting rotation, and you throw in McGonagall and some of the other guys that they have coming. The Tigers are on the rise, even if school believes just because they have Fromber for three years.

00:02:13
Speaker 3: I love what they've done.

00:02:15
Speaker 1: Now.

00:02:15
Speaker 4: Once it's done, they might go on sign someone else who that he knows, but right now where they're at, I love where the Tigers position themselves, especially as Bob Nightingale said in an Al Central that you can go up really fast.

00:02:26
Speaker 5: There's a lot of teams that have like five quality pitchers, and I would say some of those rotations people would argue are better. Nobody has a top heavy lineup like this. Obviously, a top heavy rotation like this. Obviously, if Zach Wheeler comes back and as a cy Young top three CY Young finisher again this year, and so is Christopher Sanchez, I think that would be in power packed one to two, but one two based on the fact that the numbers across the league, American League, American League, Central, National, it doesn't matter against lefties has been way down. This is a massive, massive pickup for a team who has gone to the playoffs the last two years and said, all right, well, if I can just figure out how to win one other game, you know, Scooble's gonna win it, and then they go out and lose Schoobles games in different in different fashions, and the Tigers still move on. So now, the fact that they have two lefties that are both number one, Schooble being an ace, Framber being a high quality one. This is the most top heavy rotation in the game for sure.

00:03:37
Speaker 2: Well top heavy, I mean, I like some of the guys that fill out there. You're just saying it's a really nice one.

00:03:42
Speaker 1: Too.

00:03:42
Speaker 2: Top heavy means there's not much on the bottom. There's still there's still talent, there are three, four or five.

00:03:48
Speaker 1: Yeah, there totally is.

00:03:49
Speaker 5: But but as far as like a the fact that Framber is a number one for all but maybe eight teams, and he slots in behind the best pitcher in the game, Paul Skeens could be the best picture. I get it, you know, there's an argument there, but Skeens is the best pitcher in the game, and then you slot a number one behind them.

00:04:12
Speaker 1: We heard this from tons of teams. The Red Sox started out the offseason.

00:04:16
Speaker 5: We're not going out for any We're not gonna go pick up any threes or fours, like we're looking for a number one to slot in behind Garrett Crochet.

00:04:24
Speaker 1: They had their chance.

00:04:26
Speaker 5: If you slot in a frame Ervaldez behind there, if you slot in you know, a Freddie Peralta behind there, you know, then hey, you know what. The Red Sox have that top heavy rotation. I don't mean top heavy in a negative way, because I really like what reees Olsen does. I think Jack Flaherty has shown that he has flashes of brilliance. I think he's a gamer, and I think he goes out there every day. And I think Casey mis Will has a chance to have an entire full season of an all star type of pitcher and not just you know, some flashes. But if he stays healthy, he's already shown what he can do. So yes, I think it's a great rotation, but it is ridiculous that you get to go into a playoff series, which is their goal, with a one to two punch of Framber and Terrek.

00:05:15
Speaker 4: I'm only mad about one thing here, Honestly, I saw Scott Harris at the BBWAA. He didn't tell us that this was coming down the pipeline, and it would have been nice.

00:05:25
Speaker 1: When I saw him.

00:05:26
Speaker 4: I mean, he could have been like, hey, I just want you to know, like just pulled me to the side. Oh you know, hey, off the record, we're going to sign fromber Just don't tell anybody.

00:05:33
Speaker 3: Okay, I won't, but just so I would have known in the back of my head.

00:05:36
Speaker 4: And when everyone was saying pirates orios, I could have been like, what about the Tigers.

00:05:39
Speaker 3: I would have looked really smart.

00:05:40
Speaker 2: But I understand, don't you think Frombert probably was trying to get how much did Ranger Spires get one thirty something years? Yeah, so maybe he was trying to get that, even if it was over four years whatever. It is, right, you're trying to play some game in your head.

00:05:58
Speaker 3: No, but I don't care about them, Scott.

00:05:59
Speaker 2: And he comes down on the price and the Tigers are like, okay, we're in. We're in now.

00:06:04
Speaker 4: It's all about foul territory though, Scott. Look how smart we would have looked if we just would have said the Tigers are in company.

00:06:10
Speaker 1: Man, I'm with you.

00:06:11
Speaker 2: I think My point is that I don't know if they knew they were in at that point yet, that's the thing, can I I can actually give you a difference.

00:06:20
Speaker 4: So this has been going on for weeks now, so he knew Scott when I see you, I don't know when else see you, Scote, but I'm coming for you.

00:06:27
Speaker 1: I'm just kidding.

00:06:27
Speaker 2: I love Scott Monday of me, Monday.

00:06:32
Speaker 4: Scott Harris. I love Scott here. Actually he's great. So I can't. I can't. It's just it's all in fun. Okay, Just everyone understand, it's all in fun.

00:06:40
Speaker 2: This was the first time that he gave up a pick with the signing too right. He had been playing the long game, and we were saying all off season, when is this team going to push their chips? And this is the kind of move that pushes your chips in and says, hey, can we now get to the postseason and make a run riding these two starters, And it looks like that is definitely possible. We're talking aj Hinch, Tiger's manager tomorrow. Good timing. This is the team of the week between this signing and the arbitration result. Again, if you're watching right, now, we don't know yet, but if you're watching later a lot of people do, we might get that answer. So we'll let you know as soon as we find it out. But also, this team has not one, not two, but three free agents in their starting rotation coming up after this season. It's not just Schoogle, Casey Maiz and Jack Flaherty are both free agents, so let's assume you lose all of them. Fran Barvaldez is still there. But yes, all in is the situation right now, and this team has some nice prospects coming up through the pipe, but it does look like this is one of their better chances to win a World Series this season coming up. The Stotting rotation certainly has it.

00:07:44
Speaker 5: What oh no, I just have one comment that just thought about it, and maybe we'll talk about with Hinch tomorrow. When Hin's got the job with the Tigers. He and I were talking and he was talking about what they have coming down the pipeline, like this is unbelievable. This is like the pitching that we have coming down the pipeline is pretty sick. And the fact that not every one of those dudes that we talked about when he and I spoke for a while, hit and the Tigers still went in and made some other moves. Should show teams who have this like plethora of pipeline, it's just not gonna work out. If you have four prospects, you're lucky. If two work out, If you have six prospects, you're lucky. If two or three work out, like, it's not your entire organization ready. So good for the Tigers for saying, Okay, Casey Mice seems like he's hit. Scooble obviously has hit. But if you go back to Wyn Hinch was first hired, there were some other guys that weren't that didn't hit, that they thought were going to anchor this rotation. And they've built this playoff team during this time and they're not afraid to continue to add to it. And I think other teams need to do this.

00:09:03
Speaker 2: I agree. And for from Er, I mean, the age hurts him a little bit in terms of how many years he's looking for He's been super solid and consistent. I know you mentioned Kratz yesterday on the show while I was gone, how he makes his starts every single year. Maybe teams tried to dig him in the second half he was a little weaker. His stuff dropped off a bit over a five ra. The walk rates creeped up. I think it was the highest it had been in four years. But to me, we're nitpicking the sinker curve ball combination, the ground balls that he gets. There's just a lot to like and Aja when you watch him pitch, it looks like that's going to last. He's also got the build. This is not a fragile dude.

00:09:43
Speaker 1: This is a big dude.

00:09:45
Speaker 2: Yeah, you're more worried, I mean, just being straightforward here, You're more worried about the mental game. And let's forget the Salazar incident. We've talked about that enough. It's just he is a guy where you speak to two teammates and people around him where you're like, you got to you gotta harness it right. He's even talked about working with mental skills coaches stuff like that. That's not a secret. Those are stories that have actually been a success story. Let's keep in mind he signed out to the Dominican Republic for ten thousand dollars at twenty one years old. Do you know how many people make it at twenty one years old when they're signed as an international guy almost zero, and especially when it's a ten K dude, that means they don't really like you. They just think like this is a complete lottery ticket. We'll give it a shot. There's one tool, one pitch, something that we like. So he is a super super development story from the Houston Astros who ends up being a super contributed to them for a long period of time. But anyway, it's more about, hey, can we keep this in here and keep them in the game, right? Can we keep the brain the mind intact. He's a competitor. He pitches. As you can see here from Chandler. Rome signed in twenty fifteen. At one point in twenty nineteen he was on the forty man shopping block, and then from twenty twenty to twenty twenty five. He's worth about nineteen wins by Baseball Reference War one twenty eight era plus nine hundred and seventy three innings World Series clinching game that he won. As Chandler said, he defines player development success. That's impressive if you look at the whole body at work and now the results paying off with a big contract.

00:11:20
Speaker 1: Right.

00:11:21
Speaker 4: Congratulations, we have me mentioned congratulations of Frombur and his family, and congratulations to the Tigers. I mean, we all were talking about everything else, but let's not forget congratulations to Frombur and his family. Good for you, man, you stuck it out and you did it.

00:11:37
Speaker 2: Yep, opt out after year two just in case he's like the best picture in baseball the next couple of years and or one of the best and wants to take another dip and try and get a two or three year deal instead of just the one that he would have left at that point. Heading into twenty twenty eight, there are deferrals. We don't know what that looks like yet, so the number in net price and value, which is one fifteen, might change a little bit. As a guy who went to the GM meetings to plead his case. Right, it all comes together here towards the end of the off season, right heading into spring training. Last point here, and then we'll get to some other signings. Did you guys see the Jesse Rogers tweet, our friend Jesse tweeting about who else was in on Tromper. I almost thought it was like a parody tweet. It said the Orioles were in, Okay, said the Blue Jays were in. Did you guys see the third team.

00:12:22
Speaker 1: It wasn't Pittsburgh the other day, you mean recently.

00:12:26
Speaker 2: You'll never guess the third team that he go to Twitter while we're talking right now, let's do this exercise. I want to see your response one of you guys, just if you have your phone queue up your phone. You haven't said the team yet, and I want you guys to see Rockies. We're in the same range in terms of how things are going lately.

00:12:46
Speaker 3: NAT's Twins.

00:12:51
Speaker 5: Oh yeah, come on, they.

00:12:56
Speaker 1: Were in on Freddy too. Supposedly they're trying.

00:13:01
Speaker 2: Freddy Prince.

00:13:03
Speaker 6: No freaking Freddy Peralta Prince.

00:13:07
Speaker 2: That one actually makes a little more sense because Freddy doesn't cost much. But no, no, that one makes sense because he doesn't cost much in terms of money. You think the Twins were about to shell out one hundred and twenty million dollars for Framber Baldos this offseason after what they've done before this and what they've done over the last three years, they were suddenly just gonna be like, just kidding, we want Framber.

00:13:26
Speaker 5: How were they were They like that guy at an auction where it's like, you know, hey, I'll take one hundred dollar two, two, two two?

00:13:35
Speaker 1: Can I get a three? Three? Three? Can I get a three?

00:13:37
Speaker 5: And they like scratched their head and they were like, oh, we got four hundred and twins were like no mmmm. And then someone else been They're like that was close.

00:13:49
Speaker 2: No, We've done this exercise before. They're not that. What they are is the person at the auction that says, I'm just gonna act like I can ball with everyone else, so I'm just gonna go right early on. I watched this right and they're like, all right, Fromber at eighty and they're like eighty and then someone's like eighty five and they're like, all right, we were in on fromber see you.

00:14:11
Speaker 1: They're like, dang it. I really want to know.

00:14:13
Speaker 5: I hope it comes out how how close the Blue Jays really were, like what they were willing to go because of how stacked, Like are they willing to send Cody Ponce to Triple A because you know with his thirty million for three years the Triple A? Like where where he would have fit? Or like is Shane Bieber more hurt than what we thought? Like I want to know where the pirates were too, Pirates fans at me, let me know where were you guys so close?

00:14:46
Speaker 2: We have breaking news people. Derek Scouble is going to make thirty two million dollars this year. He went to battle against his team, the Tigers, who said he was only worth nineteen million dollars, which was less than the record for an arbitration eligible pitcher. That record was eleven years ago David Price nineteen point seventy five mil. So he said, I'm worth thirty two. They said, nah, you're nineteen and the arbitration panel said, you guys are crazy. Scooble wins. So he is getting thirty two million dollars. The Tigers just signed from Brivaldez, so I don't know how much the deferrals are, but you put those two together, there's going to be seventy million bucks at the top of the rotation. This the final season for Schoogle before he hits free agency. Almost everybody looked at this and said, what am I missing? How can they win? As in MLB and the Tigers on this one. Jim Bowden, who is a former front office exec, he super pro cap stuff like that, but he even said on our show and in other places, I don't understand how this could even be a case, and clearly the arbitration panel agreed. When you are a five plus arbitration guy, that is when you can start to make comps two you free agency, School's got awards, he's got it all. This was going to be a tough one even if he didn't actually bring the two SAGNG awards with him. So AJ your thoughts on.

00:16:09
Speaker 3: The dub or did he bring those?

00:16:14
Speaker 1: Or did he We'll ask him in training.

00:16:18
Speaker 4: Maybe he did, Maybe he did it just saying he might have. Uh, but I'm just gonna tell you this right now.

00:16:24
Speaker 3: I'm pope. You heard me, Yale. I love this.

00:16:26
Speaker 4: This is freaking awesome. Yes, go Trek Scoogle you deserve it. And all the people out there saying, you know, listen, I understand markets for free agency with Fromber.

00:16:38
Speaker 6: And arbitration is different. But because Scooble is a fifth to five plus player, he can use free agency as a point in his case. And they did that. I guarantee you.

00:16:49
Speaker 4: Scott Boss said we are using Scherzer to grom Verlander all these guys that are making all this money, and they would have used Fromber on his own team if they had known. And Fromer is not for all the people on Twitter saying this fromber is not represented by Scott Borris. He's an Octagon client, right, So Scott Boris did not know this. But if he hadn't known this, they would have used this too because it would have shown two things. One it's his own team and two they just paid a starting pitcher who many people say is not as good as Trek schoobl less than what Schoobol is asking for. So way to go, Trek Scoogle super excited about this. Good for you, and you know what, Tiger fans, you should be excited too, because this means he ain't trading them and they're going for it this year.

00:17:28
Speaker 3: So good on you Tigers.

00:17:30
Speaker 2: They weren't trading him either way, I know, but now of the case, but now, well now the fraanbur news I think helps add to all of this. And I mean now they're not trading him period. The chances of them not being in the mix that the trade deadline and then having to trade him are very low. And then Krats, the chances of them being in the mix and then trading him would be insane. You don't do that. So Schoogle is going to play out the year with the Tigers, he's going to make thirty two million bucks. If you took that price number and you put inflation on it, then it's about twenty seven million bucks, still less than the thirty two or I guess still thirty two is above that, but it's above the midpoint. I should say, still more than the midpoint. The midpoint is what you're arguing, twenty five and a half million bucks. Are you worth more than that? And just by inflation alone, let alone comping Schoogle and his recent accomplishments to where price was at at that moment, means it's a really tough case. He comps himself against other pictures that are out there that have bigger salaries than him. I mean fromber came after that, but it would have been another to add to the mix among many other pictures where he could be like, oh, we're doing free agent comps better than him, better than him, better than him. We're good. So I'm sure we'll get much more on what happened inside the room.

00:18:52
Speaker 3: But they don't talk about it.

00:18:55
Speaker 2: No, we'll get we'll get some info, Yes they do. You don't think they'll not.

00:18:59
Speaker 3: Really, most a lot of guys don't talk about it. Corn Burns September about it.

00:19:06
Speaker 2: Corbyn Burns told us about how they blamed the whole thing on him making two bad starts out of a billion.

00:19:12
Speaker 4: He's one of the few that's ever talked about it. Most guys don't talk about it.

00:19:16
Speaker 2: Okay, largest salary ever in the arbitration tration system, thirty two mil. It's only a million more than what Juan Soto got for position player that's in that arbitration period. So the picture now, three years later beat Soto. It's still just crazy to look back, and I know this is all funny money for most people in life, but this is just how the game works. And again, if it's not going to him, it's going to the team. The record before this was nineteen.

00:19:48
Speaker 3: Nineteen.

00:19:50
Speaker 5: Yeah, sos for him and I only have two points.

00:19:57
Speaker 1: The first one.

00:20:00
Speaker 5: Man he could still be traded and would still be of value if he could. If he was traded, I'm not saying he's getting traded. I'm saying a thirty two million dollars. There are very few teams that'd be like he's a little too high price. The teams that want to win, and the other thing that I'm looking forward to and I know this is very much like, hey, let's enjoy this one thing. Let's enjoy this.

00:20:22
Speaker 1: What's his free agency gonna look like?

00:20:24
Speaker 5: I mean, we get to do it, and it's gonna be marred by the whole CBA discussion. Maybe it would speed it up because somebody's gonna want to sign him long term before the CBA, before the owners lock the players out. But man, what is it gonna look like? It's starting with a four. So if you don't have a four in front of your two commas that you're gonna offer him, don't come to the table. He's gonna break the record. It's gonna be awesome.

00:20:51
Speaker 2: So, AYJ, this morning, you were going back and forth with Ben Burlander and he was posting, how well, I guess not back and forth. You quote tweeted what he said friendly exchange. No no, no, Ill Will. I'm just saying you were kind of clarifying, to be honest, what he was talking about, because there's so much public misinformation and the education process on arbitration is kind of crazy. So he was talking about how like, I don't know who needs to hear this, but Framber and Trek Scoogle are not to be compared since Schoogle is in the arbitration system, and it's like, no, actually, they are definitely to be compared. That is exactly how the arbitration system works for someone that gets to this point. So you wrote, how if you don't think Scott Boris would have used this contract in the case you don't know how it works. They absolutely can use free agent contracts. School's year away from free agency, therefore can use comps in free agency. Jim Boden, our resident GM, has been texting with me all day sending me information. Of course he was on the front office side. He was in these battles for decades AJA, and he was super oud of it, saying this is a no doubter. He was like, School is definitely going to When I'm actually texting with him right now, I was like, because of course MLB is going to advise to go at nineteen and I was like, what number do you think the Tigers should have done? That would have driven up the midpoint where they would have won. So anyway, he's going back, I'll let you comment and then I'll let you go and then I'll no, well, no.

00:22:12
Speaker 4: People listen First of all, I wasn't argument with Ben Verlinder. I just wanted people to understand that, yes, it is a different thing. Okay, free agency, arbitration different, but because he's five plus, he can use any free agent contract out there that's been signed as a free agent because he's one year away. And I've talked about this, you can use one year ahead, and it's covered.

00:22:31
Speaker 3: In the CBA. But most people dont understand.

00:22:33
Speaker 4: It's like they just hear things on Twitter and they hear things on whatever they're listening to. But in the CBA, it actually lays out the rules of arbitration, and one of the things is if you're a five plus, you can use free agency.

00:22:44
Speaker 6: And so that's what Terry schools, I guarantee you.

00:22:47
Speaker 4: Scott Boris argued, Hey, these guys have all been free agents, they all signed for this. Some of them might have had three Cy Young's. You know, Verlander sures of those guys, but he's like, this guy's not even a free agent yet, he's already got two sided, he's dominated the you know, he's got his team to the postseason. He's done all these things that nobody really has ever done to that point. So he should be higher than anybody else. Now the number for the Tigers, listen, MLBIT one hundred percent has influence on what they file at. Okay, if they would have filed at twenty two twenty three and made the midpoint, you know, twenty seven to twenty eight, they had a better chance. But because they fired so filed so low, and then David Price from twenty fifteen was just a little bit ahead of it, it seemed like all they had to do was just show, like, man, he's gonna make less than David Price.

00:23:32
Speaker 3: That's a big thing.

00:23:33
Speaker 4: And if all they had to do was show twenty five point five million and one cent, if he was worth twenty five point five and one cent.

00:23:40
Speaker 1: He wins.

00:23:41
Speaker 4: We don't know why they picked he wins. He wins, And that's it. That's all I was trying to say. And I also just keep tweeting at people. Even though the Internet says that Scot Borris is from ravald as his agent, he is not.

00:23:51
Speaker 3: He is reaped by Octagon.

00:23:53
Speaker 4: So no, Scott Boris did not have any clue that from Ravaldees was signing this with the Tigers when he was sitting in that room.

00:23:59
Speaker 3: That's it. That's all I want to say.

00:24:01
Speaker 1: That's it.

00:24:02
Speaker 2: Congratulations, dere, goodbye to you.

00:24:05
Speaker 1: AJ.

00:24:06
Speaker 3: Well, well, before I go, I gotta see this Scott. Happy birthday.

00:24:09
Speaker 4: It's Tank Aaron's birthday, and it's also my son's nineteenth birthday.

00:24:13
Speaker 3: So happy birthday, Austin.

00:24:14
Speaker 4: I love you, and I appreciate that you guys wore UAB green form today. I'm going to watch his game right now. He starts at two o'clock Central, so appreciate it.

00:24:22
Speaker 3: Love you guys. Have a great weekend.

00:24:24
Speaker 1: Yeah.

00:24:25
Speaker 3: Yeah, it was back when I had the frosted tips by the way.

00:24:28
Speaker 2: Yeah, you guys were matching back then. Yeah, Austin, happy birthday, Good luck in your game. We are wearing your UAB green AJ. Have a good night watching the game, and then we'll see you on Monday. I'll be back with you in person. Enjoy the super Bowl.

00:24:42
Speaker 3: Thanks kil Hawks.

00:24:43
Speaker 1: There you go.

00:24:44
Speaker 2: I'm with you on that one, all right. So let's continue this just for a moment because I'm going back and forth with Bowden right now, and I'll share bits and pieces of what he was sharing with me because the misinformation out there is nuts.

00:24:56
Speaker 1: Right.

00:24:57
Speaker 2: So the way this works is a five year player can be compared to free agents if the roles are similar, statistical profiles, lineup, performance, trajectory is comparable. This all stuff coming from the CBA salary cited are from recent arbitration outcomes, and then it says why Scoogle can reach into the class above as in the free agency period. He checks the boxes that arbitrators look for when allowing limited class above comps true frontline starter, cy Young caliber seasons, Cy Young seasons, hardware, and top of the league finishes matter a lot in hearings, full high impact season durability. You're getting all of this right. So I asked JB. I was like, where do you think the numbers should have been filed? And he's like, I think Boris could have even gone maybe to thirty six, and the Tigers probably should have filed at like twenty eight. And then he thinks both sides should have settled at thirty two, so he ends up getting thirty two anyway. But he basically said, I mean, there's been a lot of law is actually on the player side with this, so you have to be careful and not go too crazy. Many people thought thirty two was crazy, but I mean here's somebody who's in our rooms all the time, who is fighting on the team and executive side, who said, yeah, I think you could have even potentially gone higher. But the fact that the other side files so damn low. I mean, he said he thinks Scoogle could have won even at thirty four to thirty six. Special accomplishments always gets paid in arbitration and always breaks records, and he is the pinnacle of special accomplishments.

00:26:29
Speaker 1: Right now.

00:26:30
Speaker 2: You had someone that was driving the perfect storm durability plus back to back cy Young Awards. That means I am the best back to back years, making full starts, riding that into the playoffs. I'm a one man wrecking crew on my team. That is very obvious. We always go, oh, Scooble, and we look at which game Schooble's pitching in the playoffs. It just seemed like a home run and it ended up being that way. And some people might think we're talking too much about this, but it's a historical case. We like to bring you inside what the game is talking about, and everyone in the game has been talking about this for a bit because it leads to a bigger battle. But it also just says, Hey, a guy that's been pitching in the bigs for a while now and who's been in pro ball for ten plus years and is the best in class is still making what the dude from eleven years ago is making. Imagine if you did that with an NBA player and you looked back at eleven years ago and said, oh, okay, same salary's there.

00:27:24
Speaker 5: I mean, especially with doesn't add up, especially with how long it takes to get to free agency. You know, the other leagues, it's it's a different it's a different case. And so in free agency has been way back to current flood. And you know, the original the original making of the Players Union, like there was there was no free agency, and some of the some of the things that were brought up by owners like, okay, well if somebody leaves for free agency. Their first proposal was if somebody leaves for free agency, then the team that he goes to, the team that he came from, gets to pick whatever player they want from the other team that he goes to, like ASA nine things. So arbitration is a very necessary for I guess some teams necessary evil, but for the fact of.

00:28:13
Speaker 1: Being able to.

00:28:14
Speaker 5: Maximize your value as a player, because your career, even if it's twenty years, is very short compared to the length that a team is going to be a team for the history of baseball. And that's why this is historic, because there will be another player who wins two Cy Youngs before his last year of arbitration. There will be another pitcher of Paul Skeins who is increasing his value. And had Trek Skoubel lost this case to Major League Baseball, not to the Tigers, if he had lost this case, then it would have hurt so many other players. I'm not saying like hundreds of players, but the handfuls of players that are able to push salaries for their short, short careers, like I said, and like Paul Skeenes, Paul Skins right now is like let's go Trek, thank you. If somebody owes Trek any any dinner, it's Paul Skins. Because Paul Skins he has started out his career better than better than Trek's google. So if he continues on the trajectory that he has right now, you're talking about a guy who could have three or four sims. I don't even I don't even understand how I could be saying something like that. But before this, you know guys that had multiple back to back cy youngs before before they even reached arbitration. Tim linsecom he pushed, He pushed that before he was even to his first arbitration. So he helped push that. David Price pushed it to where Trek Scouble is and now Tarrek Scougle pushed it to where Paul Skins will.

00:29:56
Speaker 2: Be perfectly stated, that's what this show's for. We're just trying to explain it all as best as possible and that should do it. Red Sox fans were looking at everyone tweeting out the Red Sox signed an infielder, and they were like, who Isaiah Connor fileffa nice depth piece. He's been a really solid utility defender. He can play second, he can give you short, he can give you third, he can bounce around there. They're still looking to complete their infield but Socks fans aj are like, cool, happy with that. Where's our big power bat that they talked about in the beginning of the offseason publicly they said we need more pop. So they lose Bregmant. They tried for him, they tried for Pete Alonzo. They didn't get him. You know, Sars, for example, said right now, the models put them at about mid tier for position players. We can show that tweet before you comment if we have it. I think he said they're sevent right now in projections for their position players. Again, we're not. This show isn't just playing the numbers game. But I'm just using some context here. Do you feel like they're a bat short with their infield?

00:31:12
Speaker 3: I think that's the thing. I love their pitching listen. I love Ikf.

00:31:18
Speaker 4: I think he does a lot of things really well, especially defensively. He's not bringing a ton of pop. You know, he'll get you some knocks. It's still a base or two for you, but he's not changing the dynamic of a lineup. I like this signing for if if someone fails at second or third, they can move them around. If story gets hurt, they can play them at shortstop, things like that. But this is not a needle mover. It's great for IKF that he got a job in Boston.

00:31:42
Speaker 3: He'll go there and probably love playing there.

00:31:44
Speaker 4: But yeah, I wish they would have gone out and got as Warez or a Bragman or someone like that.

00:31:48
Speaker 3: But they did it, but they're really.

00:31:50
Speaker 4: Good at pitching, so hopefully they're pitching can carry them a long way.

00:31:53
Speaker 3: And listen, maybe.

00:31:57
Speaker 4: Cassis comes back and goes crazy, or I don't don't know, Christian Campbell figures it out. I've seen video of him recently changing some stuff in his swing.

00:32:04
Speaker 1: I don't know.

00:32:05
Speaker 4: We'll see, but right now, I mean, IKF, congratulations, but not.

00:32:08
Speaker 3: A needle over for me.

00:32:10
Speaker 2: They have guys that have high ground ball rates too, Crats Ranger, Suairez. Of course, Sonny Gray is a high ground ball percentage. So at the very least get that run prevention in check. And it's not like they don't have options. They just were seeking some type of infield pop that they didn't really get.

00:32:28
Speaker 3: Yeah, Scott, you can have all the run prevention you want.

00:32:31
Speaker 4: You look at the Tigers last year in the playoffs, but at some point you got to score some dang runs. Like I'm sorry, like run prevent all you want, but if you don't score it. So if you can find the best of both worlds, then you're obviously great. That's like the Dodgers and the Blue Jays were great at it.

00:32:48
Speaker 1: Last year.

00:32:48
Speaker 4: They had great run prevention they had dudes that could also bang. So yeah, it's great run prevention, run prevention, run prevention, but at the end of the day, you got to have some big dudes that can hit the ball over the fence and drive in some runs. Yeah, it's about opportunistics run scoring. When you have guys like Trek School and you have guys like Ranger Suarez in the playoffs has been lights out like elite. Maybe during the regular season there's you know, there's some questions of what's his elite status, but you do have to be able to pick the ball absolutely, And I think this is an upgrade for the Red Sox because they had some troubles.

00:33:22
Speaker 5: We had Alex Korra on here. He felt like they were trending the other direction. They started the season out as the worst defending team in baseball, particularly they're infield. But this is what happens when you play guys in positions that they're not considerably used to. You have, like you just have moving pieces because they're trying to get the best lineup out there. You have to be opportunistic with your power and I think I KF is going to get a lot of flak because Red Sox fans are like, oh infielder, oh.

00:33:55
Speaker 1: Man, I hope, oh what like I had two home runs last year?

00:33:58
Speaker 5: Who I kf is really good at what he does and he's gonna be remembered for negative things. He's gonna be but this is a guy who won a Gold Glove. And then other teams felt like the Yankees felt like, oh, we can switch him to be a shortstop.

00:34:14
Speaker 1: We can switch it.

00:34:14
Speaker 5: His value is in that utility role and this adds to that depth for that defense. But they've still swung and missed on that final little piece that I think would take pressure off of Roman Anthony. People say it's contraras at first base. I'll say it's a nice signing. It's not that one that like, they're right now banking on the fact that Roman Anthony will be an MVP caliber bat and this early in his career, that is a lot of pressure.

00:34:45
Speaker 1: Can he do it? Absolutely, he can do it.

00:34:48
Speaker 5: But to make him carry this after you got rid of Devers, after you couldn't resign Bragman, that is a large, large task to be the guy in your second season.

00:35:00
Speaker 2: Well said, really well said. Let's start with Miguel enduhar one year four million dollars. San Diego Padres two million dollars in incentives that could bring it up to six as far as I know. So what do you think about in Duhar landing with San Diego Krats? I mean, the Padres have been somewhat quiet. They did bring back Michael King, they lose Luisa Rise. What do you think of their offseason and the Duhar edition. I feel like he has barely gotten any love in the public spheres. Also played for some crappy teams lately, but he's been really good as a platoon guy.

00:35:48
Speaker 5: He has been very good. He doesn't take care of the need for them to add more slug so I think he's kind of a reciprocal piece. But I think this team, I think this team is really good and there is there. Yes, if you're gonna that's the beauty of baseball, you know you're gonna pick out the negative. Oh they didn't hit for enough slug Yes, you're right, they didn't. But they have a dynamic lineup that I think you're gonna see in improvement from Jackson Merrill. I think maybe he had a little bit of a down year compared to his rookie year. But he was dealing with some injuries. I think the sky's the limit for him. I think they have veterans that go out there and they play every single day. And they're a playoff team. Yes, they're playing a tough division. It's gonna be tough from the win the division.

00:36:35
Speaker 1: Yes.

00:36:36
Speaker 5: Do I think they sat on their hands this offseason? Absolutely not. I think they. I think they had their offseason at the trade deadline and then they went out and brought Michael King back. And there's so many like, oh, you know, you know, running the same team back and the whole offseason. Are they at the trade paveta? Is this a if AJ Pereller feels like there's something that will make his team better, he's going to do it.

00:37:01
Speaker 1: Whether it's get.

00:37:03
Speaker 5: Getting rid of a top prospect to add a JP Sears and a Mason Miller, whether it's bringing back Michael King on a three year type of Sean Maniah type of deal that the Mets gave to Sean and Ia and Michael King, you know, coming off a little bit of an injury, like, he's going to make this team the best they can. And I think they were already a pretty good team. Could they have done enough this offseason for me to say they're better than the Dodgers. They're you know, they're or they're even the second best team in the National League. I don't know that they had those moves available to them, and maybe their rotation will be a little short, but I think getting Joe Musgroves back is a huge thing. Bringing Michael King back and having him healthy first full season is huge, And they have one of the most athletic lineups because they all were shortstops at one point in their career except for Meggie who Miggie little known fact second place rookie of the year. Does anybody know Scott Do you know who he lost to when he was second place Rookie of the Year?

00:38:09
Speaker 1: I do not.

00:38:10
Speaker 2: What was that twenty seventeen.

00:38:13
Speaker 1: Eighteen eighteen.

00:38:17
Speaker 2: Woh, so that's a good second, that's a very nice second place. Yeah, he was highly touted for a while. I remember back then, Oh the Yankees would never trade and du harr and then he kind of journeyman. And last year you know how many had bats did he end up getting Let's see three? I mean, put together nice numbers last year, especially when he ends up with Cincinnati. But I mean, this is a dude that should rake against left handed pitching, can still give you good at bats against right handed pitching. I remember one of the stories I read about him last year was how pictures were getting away with first picked strikes against him. You know, he's one of those wait for a strike guys. He got rid of that, started blitzing a little bit more earlier and counts this a talented guy. And he's entering his age thirty one season. You think that he's been around forever just because we've talked about him forever, But entering his age thirty one season should be a nice solid bat addition and not a negative on slug. I mean, if anything, he might be a tick above average on slug depends what you're looking at. At least average slug.

00:39:17
Speaker 5: No doubles. He's a big doubles guy. The biggest thing that I think that I think hurt him because he's got a nice flat swing that controls the zone and he makes a lot of contact. He's going to be a low on base percentage guy. The biggest thing for him is, well, he hurt his shoulder. I don't think that power ever really came back consistently for him.

00:39:38
Speaker 1: I think his rookie.

00:39:39
Speaker 5: Year, I think he hit like twenty some homers, twenty seven homers, forty seven doubles. Like that's big slug, Like that is that slug that is like whoa, this guy's like, this guy's going to be a multi year All Star. His shoulder injury, I think, really really hurt him, and it was one of those things that now he's redeveloped himself as you know that like platoon advantage guy, the ability to he plays hard like he's he's shifted to. I think he shifted to mostly to the outfield, if I'm not mistaken, because he was a third base when he came.

00:40:18
Speaker 2: Up outfield and slash. I don't want him in the outfield every day, honestly, But I'll get to the.

00:40:23
Speaker 5: Hi good good signing, good signing to add to the depth of this team.

00:40:29
Speaker 2: Yeah, all right, let's speed through. Just quick hitter Jose A. Orchty signs with the Pirates during the show. That looks like about a year and I think maybe a million and a half bucks for him. So instead of Fromber they go to another former Houston astro and Jose Rachidi. He's battled some injuries and under performance and all that depth rotation piece for the Pirates, and maybe this means the Pirates are still dancing in the trade waters and they end up dealing away another one of their pitchers. That's been the way that they've mostly acquired offense. We'll see if that continues. That's how they were able to land Password, That's how they were able to land Brandon Lao. They've only signed one big free agent I guess too technically, right, who is the reliever they signed? They signed a reliever that I'm forgetting right now? Is it Sodo Gregory Soto? And then they signed Ryan O'Hearn. Yeah, So they just haven't had a lot of success on the free agent water because they're sending out the same offer as everyone else. But good for them to get Erkiti.

00:41:32
Speaker 5: I think another one one thing real quick talking about getting a bat for the Pirates. If you're a Pirates fan, like I s Triolo's not a bad I mean, Jared Triolo's not a bad player, Like can he be an everyday third baseman? Yeah, and like he brings a lot of value. So maybe that's why the Pirates maybe aren't saying Okay, we're willing to go that extra money for Suarez. We're willing to go because they think he's going to be in everyday third basement or is his value being able to bounce around the infield. But when you if you have Connor Griffin, you have Brandon Low, you have you have O'Hearn at first base, a utility player is less and less valuable when you have dudes that play one hundred scheduled to play one hundred and sixty two games in a season. Soolo's Treolo is a good player. If you delve into what he does, he is a good player. Is that bat available to take to make it an upgrade over him