Monday, January 30, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 30, 2023 -- "Bargain Shopping and the Pirates"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

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"I’m thinking about this today because of the Pirates’ offseason, which seems like a decent example of what some teams would do if forced to meet some arbitrary payroll minimum under the current compensation structure. Coming off their second straight hundred-loss season and third straight season of sub-.400 baseball, the Pirates have raised their payroll by 20%, mostly with a series of one-year contracts for veterans."

Friday, January 27, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 27, 2023 -- "Michael Lorenzen (?) and the Tigers"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

You can subscribe to the newsletter for one year for $79.95 using your PayPal account or major credit card.

--
 
"I don’t know why the Tigers are wasting their time with Lorenzen and Boyd. If you need the innings, get pitchers who can provide innings. Otherwise, use the guys you have in house. You’re eventually going to have to do so anyway."

Wednesday, January 25, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 25, 2023 -- "Scott Rolen"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

You can subscribe to the newsletter for one year for $79.95 using your PayPal account or major credit card.

--
 
"Rolen was a continuation of the line that runs back though Mike Mussina and Tim Raines and Bert Blyleven, fully qualified Hall of Famers whose cases needed a push from statheads to get over the line. Rolen fit a lot of categories the Hall has typically shorted -- a third baseman, a player with a broad skill set, a guy who drew walks, hit doubles, and played defense. His statistical comps are almost all outfielders. He was underrated during his career, and has had a low profile after it."

Tuesday, January 24, 2023

Joe Sheehan Newsletter, January 24, 2023 -- "Can't"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

You can subscribe to the newsletter for one year for $79.95 using your PayPal account or major credit card.

--
 

The Joe Sheehan Newsletter
Vol. 14, No. 136
January 24, 2023

Over the weekend, the NFL played out its quarterfinal round. Advancing to the semis were three of the four teams who advanced a year ago. The Kansas City Chiefs will host the AFC championship game for the fifth consecutive year. I noted this on Twitter, once again making  the point that the NFL’s vaunted “competitive balance” is mostly mythological despite the presence of a payroll cap.

As it usually does, this ruined my mentions for two days. I shouldn’t be surprised that the public conversation on this hasn’t advanced past 2004 or so, and yet I am every time.

I want to focus on one strain of the argument today, one that kept coming up in the thread, the idea that the NFL system is better because teams in smaller cities can retain their stars whereas in baseball they cannot. Over and over again the idea was expressed that teams in smaller cities can’t keep the players they drafted. (I won’t say “developed,” as that’s the job of semi-pro teams affiliated with colleges.) Now, I have danced around his at times, and what I want to do today is present a bunch of information about baseball contracts to inform the conversation. Very little of what follows is opinion, just facts.

Let’s start with an update of a chart I have run before, the largest contracts in baseball history and the city of the team that signed the player. (All data from Cot’s.)


Mike Trout         $427M    Los Angeles
Mookie Betts       $365M    Los Angeles
Aaron Judge        $360M    New York
Francisco Lindor   $341M    New York
Fernando Tatis     $340M    San Diego
Bryce Harper       $330M    Philadelphia
Giancarlo Stanton  $325M    Miami
Corey Seager       $325M    Texas (Dallas/Fort Worth)
Gerrit Cole        $324M    New York
Rafael Devers      $314M    Boston
Manny Machado      $300M    San Diego
Trea Turner        $300M    Philadelphia



This chart has changed a lot in recent years, and is certainly what people think of when they think of big-city teams buying up players. Of the 12 teams to sign a player to a $300 million contract, eight play in the game’s five largest media markets. The two Padres signings stick out, as San Diego plays in the fourth-smallest media market of any baseball team.

Of these 12, four were cases of a team retaining a player it developed. None were cases of a small-city free agent leaving for a big city. Two, the Francisco Lindor and Gerrit Cole contracts, were for players who started their careers with small-city teams and were traded.

Expanding the range, there have been 31 contracts of at least $200 million signed in baseball history. Here’s how they break down, dividing the league into thirds based on this data. (For this project, I have slotted Toronto at #9 overall. Neither the Blue Jays nor the team bumped from the first category, the Astros, have any contracts herein.)

Large market: 13
Medium market: 10
Small market: 8

I don’t know what other people want that list to look like, but it sure looks reasonable to me. Large-city teams may have some advantages in attracting superstar players, but as I have written before, that’s a feature, not a bug. There are more people in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, and more money is made by everyone when those teams do well.

If you go through those 31 signings, you see all kinds of fun stuff. Robinson Cano moved from New York to Seattle in free agency for $240 million. Zack Greinke went from Los Angeles to Phoenix for $207 million. The Reds, Brewers, Padres, and Mariners all signed homegrown talents for the bulk of their careers. It’s certainly not a list of contracts that shows the small-city teams in the league being shut out in the market competition for high-priced talent.

Let’s run at it from a different direction, one that gets specifically at the idea that small-city teams can’t retain the stars they develop. I created a list of the 33 best players of the 21st century, everyone with 50 bWAR from 2001 through 2022. Indulge me as we look at their paths.

Albert Pujols played in St. Louis through age 31, then was signed to a ten-year, $240-million contract by the Los Angeles Angels.

Adrian Beltre played in Los Angeles through age 24, then was signed to a five-year, $64-million contact by the Seattle Mariners.

Mike Trout has played his entire career, through age 30, in Los Angeles, and is signed through another decade.

Alex Rodriguez played in Seattle through age 24, then signed a ten-year, $252-million contract with the Texas Rangers, in Dallas/Fort Worth.

Justin Verlander played in Detroit through age 34 and was traded to Houston.

Clayton Kershaw is 35 and has played his entire career with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Zack Greinke played in Kansas City through age 26 and was traded to Milwaukee.

Max Scherzer was traded from Phoenix to Detroit at age 24, played in Detroit until age 29, then signed a seven-year, $210-million contract with Washington.

Robinson Cano played in New York through age 30, then signed a ten-year, $240-million contract with Seattle.

Miguel Cabrera played in Miami through age 24, was traded to Detroit, and will likely end his career there.

Roy Halladay played in Toronto through age 30 and was traded to Philadelphia.

Chase Utley played in Philadelphia through age 36.

Joey Votto has played his entire career in Cincinnati.

Carlos Beltran played in Kansas City through age 27 and was traded to Houston.

CC Sabathia played in Cleveland through age 26 and was traded to Milwaukee.

Ichiro Suzuki played in Seattle through age 38.

Mark Buehrle played in Chicago through age 32 and then signed a four-year, $58-million contract with Miami.

Paul Goldschmidt played in Phoenix through age 30 and was traded to St. Louis prior to his walk year.

Evan Longoria played in Tampa/St. Pete through age 31 and was traded to San Francisco.

Cole Hamels played in Philadelphia through age 31 and was traded to Texas.

Mookie Betts
played in Boston through age 26 and was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Joe Mauer played his entire career in Minnesota.

David Ortiz was traded as a prospect and waived just after his 27th birthday. He played the rest of his career, 14 years, in Boston.

Ian Kinsler
played in Dallas/Fort Worth through age 31 and was traded to Detroit.

Chipper Jones played his entire career in Atlanta.

Nolan Arenado played in Denver through age 29, signed an extension to play there until he is 35, and was traded to St. Louis.

Manny Machado played in Baltimore until he was 25, and was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Dustin Pedroia played his entire career in Boston.

Barry Bonds is one of the 30 best players of the 21st century while playing just seven seasons in said century. He played in San Francisco until he was 42 and was blackballed after leading the league in OBP in 2007.

Johan Santana played in Minnesota through age 28 and was traded to the New York Mets.

Mark Teixeira played in Texas (DFW) until he was 27 and was traded to Atlanta.

Torii Hunter played in Minnesota until he was 31 and then signed a five-year, $90-million contract with the Los Angeles Angels.

Scott Rolen, who will hopefully be a Hall of Famer in eight hours, played in Philadelphia until he was 27 and was traded to St. Louis.

That’s a lot of names and teams and numbers. What you can take from it, is that there is just no pattern of the best players in baseball being sucked up by the teams in the largest cities. Four players played their whole careers for one team, including teams in Cincinnati and Minnesota. Others played the useful parts of their careers for their original team before being traded or let go, including Chase Utley, Evan Longoria, Ichiro, and Ian Kinsler. Some of these stars left larger cities for smaller ones via free agency: Adrian Beltre, Robinson Cano, Mark Buehrle. This are the best players of the 21st century, and you cannot find any pattern as to where they go mid-career.

Many of these players did not leave their teams, but were traded, which is a decision by the team to not retain the player but rather to lower payroll and go into a rebuild. It’s a choice. I hope by now you recognize that the baseball economy is flush with cash, and that cash is distributed generously around the league in a way that no team can say they “can’t” sign a star to a market-rate contract -- even before getting into issues of owner wealth, the steady appreciation of franchise value, and the immediate and direct positive effects of investing in the baseball team.

Let’s drill down a bit further on the specific complaint that a small-city baseball team could not retain a Patrick Mahomes. The label “small market” has been mishandled at times, but I think it’s fair to consider five teams at the bottom of the charts on their own tier: The Milwaukee Brewers, the Cincinnati Reds, the Kansas City Royals, the San Diego Padres, and the Pittsburgh Pirates. (Baltimore, per the data, is actually smaller than Pittsburgh, though we generally consider Pittsburgh one of the game’s smallest cities. For our purposes today, we’ll include the Pirates and not the Orioles.)

These are the best players produced by those teams in the 21st century:

Zack Greinke played in Kansas City through age 26 and was traded to Milwaukee.

Joey Votto has played his entire career in Cincinnati.

Carlos Beltran
played in Kansas City through age 27 and was traded to Houston.

Ryan Braun played his entire career in Milwaukee.

Andrew McCutchen played in Pittsburgh through age 30 and was traded to San Francisco.

Carl Crawford
played in Tampa/St. Pete through age 28 and signed a seven-year, $142-million contract with Boston.

Johnny Cueto played in Cincinnati through age 29 and was traded to Kansas City.

Starling Marte played in Pittsburgh through age 30 and was traded to Arizona.

Lorenzo Cain was traded to Kansas City at 25, played there through age 31 and signed a five-year, $80-million contract with Milwaukee.

Jake Peavy played in San Diego through age 28 and was traded to the Chicago White Sox.

The problem here isn’t that those teams aren’t retaining their stars. The problem is that they’re not producing stars. Votto and Braun are the two best arguments against this idea  that small-city teams can’t keep their superstar players. McCutchen isn’t far behind -- he spent the productive part of his career in Pittsburgh and was traded with more than a year left on his contract. I usually throw Joe Mauer in here as well, your mileage may vary. Even when teams lose or give away the player, they have usually gotten his most productive years.

Once you’re outside this group, four of which get help in the form of revenue-sharing payouts estimated at more than $50 million a year, you’re into teams that have self-limited despite being in cities a size bigger, like the Guardians, Rays, and A’s. The specifics of each situation notwithstanding, only the Guardians have an argument for being constrained by their potential revenue, and again, they’re getting lots of financial help from the other teams.

Even those small-city teams are often just making bad choices. The Reds could have a 2023 starting rotation of Luis Castillo, Sonny Gray, Hunter Greene, Tyler Mahle, and Nick Lodolo for less than $35 million, and be a legitimate wild-card contender and fringe NL Central contender. They chose to put that money into Powerpoint lying. The Royals have produced two Hall of Famers this century and traded them both. You can’t build a rule set based on David Glass being cheap.

“Can’t” is just bootlicking. The image of a class of baseball teams treating the rest of the league like a farm system was far more true in the 1950s than it is in the 2020s. If a small-city team comes up with a generational talent, it can keep that talent, as is evident above. When it doesn’t do so, as the Royals repeatedly chose under Glass, as the Reds and Pirates have done in recent years, that says far more about the owner and the management team than it does the “system.”
 
 
 

Monday, January 23, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 23, 2023 -- "Twins/Marlins Trade"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

You can subscribe to the newsletter for one year for $79.95 using your PayPal account or major credit card.

--
 
"This trade is a projected three-win player for a projected three-win player, and as such may not look like much on the page. The Twins have so much more depth offensively than they do in the rotation, however, that it aligns their roster better. It does increase the pressure on their young hitters to be healthy and productive. As much as this trade’s outcome will depend on Lopez, it will depend on Miranda. Kirilloff, Lewis, and Trevor Larnach making the loss of Arraez tolerable."

 

Friday, January 20, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 20, 2023 -- "A Quiet Winter, and the Rockies"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

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--
 
"The Rockies seem content to hope that better health and an influx of younger players will be enough. Kris Bryant hit well last season in and around injuries that limited him to 42 games. Rookie Sean Bouchard hit .297/.454/.500 in his cup of coffee, and likely starts the year with at least a platoon role in an outfield corner. Top prospect Ezequiel Tovar is just 21, and the shortstop job is his -- there’s really no one to take it from him."

 

Thursday, January 19, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 19, 2023 -- "Books"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

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--
 
"I use Baseball Reference as much as anyone, but the thing about the Handbook is that you can just find things. If I want to know what Spencer Strider’s strikeout rate was last year, that’s three clicks away on any number of devices. If I am not looking for any specific piece of information, I can just flip open the Handbook and learn, oh, Andrew McCutchen is closing in on 2,000 hits and 300 homers. Huh, I didn’t remember Jake McGee pitched for three teams last year. Also, I’ve never heard of some of these guys."

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 17, 2023 -- "Kauffman Corner and the Royals"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

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--
 
"The last thing we talked about on the podcast was the Royals’ window. They don’t have the pitching to be projected as a factor in 2023, though there’s the whiff of a 1989 Orioles about them. I don’t see much reason, though, why they can’t be a wild-card contender in 2024. There is a lot of position-player talent here, and at least the makings of the back half of a pitching staff. We’ll learn this year how much of the Royals’ problems was in the dugout, and how much was on the field."

Thursday, January 12, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 12, 2023 -- "Carlos Correa and the Twins. Honest."

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

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--
 
"Correa accepting this contract, with a guarantee less than two-thirds of what was on the table a month ago and a back end with the most team-friendly terms for a free agent since Andre Dawson handed the Cubs a blank contract in 1987 and told them to fill in the number, gives away the game. Whatever is in the physicals, whatever the state of his right leg, he doesn’t think he can do better than this contract."

Wednesday, January 11, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 11, 2023 -- "Brandon Belt and the Blue Jays"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

You can subscribe to the newsletter for one year for $79.95 using your PayPal account or major credit card.

--
 
"The Jays have built on a strong 2022 season by making tactical moves to get better. After so many big swings -- George Springer, Kevin Gausman, Matt Chapman -- they’re taking smaller ones now, having established their core through development and big-ticket additions. This looks, right now, like the best team in the AL East."
 
 

 

Monday, January 9, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 9, 2023 -- "Random Player Comments"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

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--
 
"The risk is that Hosmer will once again hit for a high batting average for a while, play his usual low-range, low-error game at first base, be a good citizen, and push the Cubs away from contention. Matt Mervis may not be a star and there’s a chance he’s not a player at all, but he has an upside Hosmer can’t possibly reach. I can see the quotes now, after Mervis is demoted after hitting .154 in 31 well-scattered PAs on April 22...'We just like what Eric brings as far as leadership, giving us professional at-bats, and making the plays at first base. Matt is going to be a big part of this team, just not now.'”

 

Thursday, January 5, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 5, 2023 -- "Rafael Devers and the Red Sox"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

You can subscribe to the newsletter for one year for $79.95 using your PayPal account or major credit card.

--
 
"Keeping Devers may not be enough to launch the 2023 Red Sox into the playoffs. They play in a very tough division, and while they have spent money to improve the roster, it’s still extremely thin and unreliable. Devers, though, should still be a star, still be a core piece, when the products of a rebuilt farm system are ready to take back the AL East. This is one of the best moves any team made this winter."

Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, January 3, 2023 -- "Jean Segura and the Marlins"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

You can subscribe to the newsletter for one year for $79.95 using your PayPal account or major credit card.

--
 
"The Marlins’ offense projects to be well-below-average again, and somehow among the oldest groups in the league. Six projected Marlins starters are at least 30 years old, and eight of their 13 projected position players are as well. The Marlins seem to be actively trying to squander an epic run of pitcher development by pairing it with the kind of hitters the 1982 Yankees might have signed."

 

Monday, January 2, 2023

Newsletter Excerpt, "Diamondbacks/Blue Jays Trade"

This is a preview of the Joe Sheehan Baseball Newsletter, an e-mail newsletter about all things baseball, featuring analysis and opinion about the game on and off the field from the perspective of the informed outsider. Joe Sheehan is a founding member of Baseball Prospectus and has been a contributor to Sports Illustrated and Baseball America. He has been writing about baseball for 25 years.

Your subscription gets you the newsletter and various related features two to five days a week, more than 150 mailings (more than 200,000 words) a year full of smart, fun baseball writing that you can't find in the mainstream. Subscribers can also access the new Slack workspace, to talk baseball with me and hundreds of other Newsletter subscribers.

You can subscribe to the newsletter for one year for $79.95 using your PayPal account or major credit card.

--
 
"This was as pure a baseball trade, shorn of financial considerations, as you’ll find in today’s game. What makes it even more interesting is how even it is; both teams traded from strength, both teams balanced their rosters, both teams can consider themselves better for having made the deal. I’d rather have the Diamondbacks’ side because Moreno may well be an All-Star and Varsho has those warts, but this sure looks like a win-win trade to me."