mtutiger

Is it safe to assume that he slipped in part due to his age? Already 24 years old.

He hasn't had his time at the majors yet, but getting Reese Olson for Daniel Norris is another eye opener. Very solid prospect who projects to being a major leaguer for a guy who wasn't even rostered for the Brewers postseason run last year. The Wilson/Norris deals definitely provide hope they can get a little more than we think they can.

Also, I don't think it's particularly creative. He gets called out in this letter because he's a big name, but do we really know that he'd be the best possible option on the market? There are a lot of good and dynamic organizations in this league, such as the Dodgers and Rays, who have folks employed who deserve a shot at running a ballclub. Given some of the outside org hires made last offseason in player development, the Dodgers in particular make a lot of sense for the Tigers to look at should they want to theoretically hire someone as GM from the outside. I would prefer they do that than go get an Epstein, who has been out of the game for a while and doesn't seem interested in coming back.

If they were to move on from Avila (and assuming it isn't some "move AJ upstairs" maneuver), I would like them to look at the Dodgers org, particularly with some of the player development hires they have made and furthering continuity on that front.

I know that they were trying to go underslot, but the pick I didn't quite understand today was Jake Miller. I know they are all lottery tickets, but outside of his relatively good K/9 and BB/9 numbers, didn't see much to suggest any chance of success.

Andrew Jenkins, 1B, Georgia Tech in the 9th Round

Seth Stephenson, OF, Tennessee

Gold is probably the most intriguing pick thus far IMO... he took a pretty hard fall given where he was ranked. Has the tools to be a big leaguer, but can he put it together?

For now, yes.... we'll see long term.

Gold and Jung, one would think

They badly needed an infusion of position players, particularly ones who are more advanced, and they seem to be accomplishing that while not reaching as well. I'll take it.

Any particular reason? I can't really say that I hate any of their picks thus far, although I'm not a massive draft follower

87th ranked player from MLB Pipeline, not bad for the 5th round

Luke Gold, 3B

Now that Jared McKenzie is gone, kinda hoping for Jace Grady for their 5th round pick (although guessing pitcher lol)

He got his Meltons mixed up lol

Ahh, my bad, got the numbers mixed up.

Correct. When Al gets 11 years like Randy Smith, we'll talk then.

I don't mind the strategy with Fulmer or even Chafin, because they are on more short term deals, but trading Alex Lange or even someone like Will Vest for a lottery ticket seems unwise from where I'm sitting. Theoretically, they are all available, but the price for guys that are controllable longer term should be higher.

On this score, Biden's problem is that he's old. That's it. And questions about whether we want a President who approaches 85-86 years old in his theoretical second term are fair. But people can age and have less stamina without having dementia. And it's crazy offensive when people spend so much time trivializing that condition all for political point scoring. Especially for those who have to deal with the condition within their family. And when they conflate aging with dementia, which is also wildly offensive and ageist.

Greene has played 27 games, and in that time Greene currently has a better wRC+ than what Tram or Lou finished with in their first year, plus, comparable OPS's. So it's fair to say that, with a full season of ABs (which he won't get this season because of his injury), he would have a chance to hold up his end of the bargain. I'm not saying that Tram and Lou weren't a better combo in their first year, obviously they were, I just think comparing Riley Greene to either Gabe Kapler or Robert Fick is kinda ridiculous at this point. And that he's probably more comparable to Tram or Lou than he's being given credit for with MCS' framing.

Tork? Sure But Greene currently has a better OPS than Tram in his first full season and about the same as Whitaker in his. It's ridiculous to call him Gabe Kapler or Robert Fick based on what we've seen thus far.

"But surely there's an exception for this though"

The bullpen can probably hold their own without Fulmer and/or Soto/Chafin, but the starting pitching concern is real. It would be nice to know if Manning/Wentz were anywhere near being available, as that would help in the whole keeping things afloat bit.

I agree with all of this. The resiliency of their pitching with all of the injuries is actually a great story, but for obvious reasons, that's overshadowed by the historically bad nature of the offensive production. Which is ultimately the reason they find themselves 18 games under .500. I would also clarify that, yes, as bad as the injuries have been, this does reflect on Avila and his ability to build the ballclub.