Warfarin

Yeah, he has some utility. It's a shame he can't hit better as a RH though, as that would fit perfectly into our current team. I'd prefer to keep Cowart over Marte, and would be fine having him platoon with Valbuena at 3B, but his RH offense just isn't sufficient right now.

One thing is for certain, they aren't BOTH needed. With Pujols playing 1B 1-2 times a week, we already somewhat have a RH hitting first baseman. If we did indeed sign a third baseman, then I'd say we don't need Cron at all. We can stick Valbuena at first to platoon and probably hold onto Marte to serve as a RH 3B/1B backup. I'd ideally like a utility IF to cover SS/2B/3B. Does Cowart have options remaining? Not sure he really has a role on this team currently, but would provide good depth in the minors.

No way should we overpay. Yeah, Hernandez would be a great fit, but again, there are tons of options available. A buyer who overpays in a buyer's market is a poor buyer. Eppler is disciplined and will take the whole picture into account.

I'm sure they'll bring him along slowly and stick with the plan. If he comes out blasting a 950+ OPS, then yeah, perhaps he forces his way into the lineup on an almost daily basis. But that said, I am sure they have a developmental plan with him and will bring him along slowly. His value to us almost assuredly will be his pitching, so they are going to prioritize the preservation of his arm over the utilization of his bat, I imagine.

Well, it's a buyer's market at 2B. There are tons of options. Hernandez is the most ideal in that he's young and cost-controlled, but if the Phillies are asking too much, then move along and pick from one of the cheaper trade targets. Hernandez, Kipnis, Castro, Kinsler, Walker, Dozier, etc.. there are lots of players available and few teams looking for one. Laws of supply and demand

I'd say no. We have Valbuena already as a LH power hitting corner infielder. Assuming Pujols plays 1B 1-2 times a week this year, we can somewhat platoon him with Morrison, who would be quite a bit cheaper than Moose and wouldn't cost us a draft pick, either. Valbuena can play 3B and platoon over there.

Right, exactly. I think if we sign Sabathia, it means we're probably shipping one of our younger starters in a deal for someone, most likely a 2B.

Don't you think the Reds are going to want a LOT more for Suarez than that?

Right. I expect a full season of Upton + healthy Trout will help quite a bit. Moreover, if we do acquire Hernandez or another solid 2B, that'll go a long way to helping too. Ohtani getting ABs, Pujols resting more (twice/week?) .. all of those things should help bring us to at least the middle of the pack, if not better.

I agree. Valbuena had a down year last year, but I'm betting he rebounds heading into his free agency year. He's a pretty decent player. Nothing spectacular, but I think he can hold down either 1B/3B for us and be serviceable. Again, as long as we allocate the money for other holes (2B, SP), then I'm fine having Valbuena occupy one of the corners.

Hernandez is the top priority, IMO. He's young and will be cost-controlled for the next 3 years, which corresponds nicely with Trout's timeline. I go back and forth on Moose. I can see the benefits he'd provide - LH power bat, not old for a FA, won't be in high demand and can be reasonably had, etc. I think if we had to live with a combo of Valbuena/Pujols/Marte/Cron at DH/1B/3B, it wouldn't be the worst thing, as long as we allocated our dollars to upgrade 2B, SP, and maybe a lefty reliever.

Basically, we need to "map out the season" for our rotation. We have 162 games, and we hope our starters can average between 5-6 innings per game. Projecting that over the season means we need roughly 900 innings out of our starters. Richards: 140 Ohtani: 120 Sabathia: 150 Shoemaker: 120 Heaney: 100 Bridwell: 120 Tropeano: 70 Others: 80 I left Skaggs out, because I am optimistically thinking if we sign Sabathia, then we're flipping Skaggs in a deal for Hernandez. Sabathia has been a pretty good workhorse throughout his career, and he'd probably be one of the surest health bets we had in our rotation. If we can snag him to a one year deal to help absorb innings and provide fairly decent results, I'd be happy with that.

This would be a solid move. We aren't signing him to be our ace. We need a LH starter who can give us innings and serve as a mid-rotation starter. He'd fit the bill for sure. As long as we can secure him on a one year deal, or a one-year deal with a 2nd that vests based on reaching an IP milestone, then I'm fine with that.

No way should we go for 6 years. If we can sign him to, say, a 5/100 deal, that could be worthwhile. We’d be asking for about 2-3 WAR per year out of him at that rate, which isn’t necessarily outside the realm of possibility. I’m sure someone gives him a bigger contract than that, and if so, that’s fine. It’s all about finding value and not overbidding.

Right, and it's the value that has me excited. I said it in another thread, but I don't think we're there yet as a team. We have another offseason to go before we become true legitimate title threats. Ohtani needs time to adapt to the league and further hone his craft. He's only 23 and coming off an injury-plagued season. I'd love to shock the world and win it all this year, but I try to be realistic and realize we still have some significant holes to address. That said, if you compare where we are now vs where we were when Eppler just came aboard, and we are in WAY better shape. I have faith Eppler will continue this trajectory. My goal is for us to reach the playoffs as a WC this year and see how far we go. Next season though, with Ohtani having gained a year of experience in the big leagues, and a few more shrewd Eppler moves down the line, I expect we'll take the whole thing

Great question my friend. It is not that I see Ohtani as a top 10 player in this game. But realistically, we have just acquired a top 50-100 player (or so)-ish player in the game who will be earning pennies on the dollar for 6 years. That, to me, is WAY more valuable than acquiring a slightly discounted Stanton. We have just acquired a #3 or maybe #2 starter and a part-time average DH for a minimum contract. So basically, we spent nothing and just addressed two problems at once. That, to me, is what is so incredibly valuable with Ohtani. We have just as much free cash now as we did before and solved one to two problems all at once. Now we can allocate our money towards other holes, like 2B, possibly 3B, possibly SP, etc. This is why it's such a huge pickup.

There are a lot of 2B options and not a lot of teams looking for one. It’s a buyer’s market, and I’m thankful we have Billy at the helm. I trust he’ll make a strong move and get us a good second baseman at a reasonable cost.

Yeah, honestly, my ideal offseason is to find another top tier SP and a 2B. Hernandez and Darvish are ideal. Trade Skaggs and some middle-tier prospects for Hernandez. Having Darvish, Richards, and Ohtani at the top of the rotation makes us legitimate. Hernandez is our new leadoff hitter and 2B for the next 3 years. Those two moves make us wild card favorites for sure.

All of this aside, it's nice that we are quibbling over who to pursue for a backup CF. Gone are the days where we have massive holes everywhere and no farm system to help us. All hail Billy Eppler!

Ah, but that is just this upcoming year, right? What kind of commitment do you think it'll take to secure Cain? 4 years at least, maybe even 5. At his age (31 currently, turning 32 by the start of the season), he's also at the point where it's likely to expect his defense to start declining, too. So that said, I'd much rather pass on someone like Cain and just keep Calhoun.

This sounds pretty reasonable. I'd be cool with Kipnis as well, but would probably prefer Hernandez. Eppler is extremely shrewd and makes a lot of savvy deals. I'm excited too see what happens.

Agreed. It's important to be fiscally prudent and look at the entire roster/farm system.

Rome was not built in a day. DiPoto destroyed this team. It's been a gradual rebuilding process. I am cool with making systematic steps and not trying to force fit things. We're getting close now.

We do, but we don't need to spend 15+ million on one (Cain) in addition to our current one.

It's possible. I'm not positive it is, but we'll see.