mtutiger

Of the two, Rodriguez seems like the most likely to opt out. But for him to do so likely means he pitches very well next year and makes an opt out a less desirable outcome than it currently seems at the moment

Man, political journalists are some of the most oblivious people...

That's basically his former employer's MO as well. The Giants have tended more toward value in free agency, often buying low and building up free agents versus handing out big long term deals with high AAVs. The degree to which he was involved in that (versus just executing Farhan's vision) isn't clear, but its at least a clue as to how he may view building a roster.

Are they numerous this year? The premise of shortstop free agent discussion since the offseason has begun on this site basically treats Correa as the only option. I like Correa and wouldn't mind if he came here. But I dont see it happening for a variety of reasons. Not the least of which I dont buy that Harris, based off of his past history, is going to be interested in handing out long term deals the likes of which Correa is pursuing.

And yet they're gonna outbid the Cubs or Yankees or whoever for Correa?

Why Correa over other options? Also, given the length that Correa is likely to pursue contract wise, I don't think it's at all clear whether he fits Harris' philosophy

Same. I'd go as far as to say the quality of the product on the field is higher than anything happening in the NFL right now (at least outside of Buffalo). And more than anything else *that* is why LA was knocked out.

What I find interesting about this mini-freakout over the Padres-Phils is that, between the two of them, they have the same amount of wins averaged out as the '21 Braves. And I dont recall any freakout over the "integrity of the playoffs" during last years postseason.

Stick to politics, Ross.

I still think he's capable of getting the high end of what he's pursued in the past in terms of years and I dont know if Harris would be interested in that. But I could be wrong, although I suspect that if Harris' posture is more on the aggressive side, he'll cast a wider net than just Correa and probably look at other options as well (ie. Swanson, Boegaerts)....

Mowing down minor leaguers again for Mr. Wentz

And then I wake up to the Padres beating up on the Dodgers! Given how LA has owned them over the years, that's years of psychological terror that San Diego and their fans just excised...

I think we need to see what Harris does this offseason. He laid the markers down about putting the best possible team out on the field versus a perpetual rebuild in his introductory press conference. And the other thing is the culture of the place he came from: during his time there, the Giants had developed internally, but they had been a great example of a team that has added from the outside in order to be good or respectable. Both in terms of free agency, trades and waiver wire. We are perpetually jaded because of how the Avila era went. But I have a feeling that our jadedness is influenced by having watched Avila for so long... someone with new ideas may be able to pull off some moves that we don't see coming because of how we have been conditioned during the Avila era

None of the above. Given Harris' history (particularly with the Giants, but also to an extent with the Cubs), I am skeptical that 10 year contracts are something he is keen on. That's not to say the Tigers will not be active in the shortstop market, but I dont think Correa is in the plans tbh

Georgia is changing demographically, but like most southern states, it is a state that is really polarized on race. What makes Georgia different from Alabama or Mississippi is Atlanta, and how it has become more educated over time and how it has been a magnet for POC. Put another way, the floor for either party at this point is probably around 45-46%. And the battleground is on two things: turnout and suburban voters in ATL. Walker's antics will not help him, but there is a built in floor of support for better or worse.

Incredible

Incredible

Regardless, Correa going to Detroit seems even less likely than last offseason.

It's a novel thought, obviously, but it stands to reason that increasing domestic production seems like a requirement to doing less business with SA and OPEC+ countries. I dont know enough about the oil market to know whether we are capable of increasing domestic production on our current footprint, but I'm guessing we would need to open new sources to cut into the percentage we get from SA and OPEC+. And, politically, that is tenuous for Biden given the party he represents. Not a climate change denialist or against moving toward cleaner energy or anything, but I do wish we collectively were more pragmatic about the fact that fossil fuels are going to be the reality for a while still. There just seems to be a "black and white" approach to this issue that eschews trying to balance the practical needs of the population with environmental concerns stemming from the use of fossil fuels.

Yep. All the vice signaling from the usual suspects may be as much about future cases centered around the propagation of vicious conspiracy theories. Including involving one of the largest media outlets in the country.

Rafters got the W tonight finally and, fortunately, Dingler had a nice game in the process. 2-2, 2 RBI, 1 BB.

As hard as I've been on Willi, there's a pretty compelling argument to be had (mostly based on age and future ability) that , if you had to keep one of the two, he'd be worth keeping around more than Harold. In a perfect world both wouldn't be around, but I suspect at least one of them will continue to be employed by the club.

I honestly wonder how secure either Castro is - discussions here have generally centered on Willi, but while Harold has a decent bat relative to the 2022 Detroit Tigers, I don't know that you can completely count on them penciling him in next year given the issues with his defense. My gut tells me Harold's back, but IDK.

At a minimum, it's the end of the Zack Short era one imagines.... possibly Willi too given arbitration. Regarding the bolded, yes yes yes. As much as some would deride "call em up" comments around here during the season, the fact that a team with a historically bad offense was as hesitant to use transactions and the waiver wire as the Tigers were during the season (among other things, of course) really spoke to how bad AA was at this whole general managing thing.