https://www.mlb.com/news/astros-owner-jim-crane-plans-long-gm-search

So many interesting comments.

JV wants mad max money.

He wants Yuli back and mentions 3rd & 2nd.

Waiting on Brantley to see how he recovers. Probably not until March.

Wants a lefty for the bullpen.

2 years is the max for a JV contract

gotta have him off the books after 2024

Farmer1906 said:

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This article has me really torn on Crane.

The optimist view.
-Not over spending on JV
-Mentions Yuli not at first so he knows we need to upgrade.
-Not going to rush and sign Brantley without being sure on his health.
-The bullpen did fine without a lefty but it sure would be nice to add one.

The pessimist view
-We don't need more pitching. He's going to blow our free agency budget on JV when he falls just short of the Scherzer money.
-Yuli isn't athletic enough to play first well at 38, why does he think he can play 2nd and 3rd at 39. Why do you want a 39 year old bench player who's fallen off anyway?
-Were going to wait on Brantley and completely miss out on other good left fielders.
-We already have a loaded (7 deep) and very highly paid bullpen. How exactly does a lefty fit in and with what money?

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The only way it works is with a trade of someone on the big league roster. I have no clue who would handle that.

Eso si, Que es said:

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Nino Brown said:

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Keeper of The Spirits said:

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If you are dodgers or the Stanks going after JV is all profit best case you over pay him and no one blames you. Worst case you blow up the Astros payroll whose budget is substantially less than yours

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I actually think if anyone tries to legitimately pull JV in it's going to be the Mets. They're right there and I think they're gonna make a run for it.

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aren't the mets on the hook for Cano next year at $20M, but I guess he doesn't go against the cap?

Can't forget about Bobby Bonilla, he is 60 this year and still getting his $1M+ check in July!!!

Just don't see the Mets having the space for 2/$80M or 3/$120M for JV.

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Lol...money is of no object when it comes to the Mets payroll. Sure Cohen wants to keep it under the tax threshold (at least the one they specifically made for him), but he realizes that is t going to happen and be competitive until he fixes all the damage the coupons left behind. With that being said, I don't think deGrom or Verlander are Mets next year.

I think

Rodon
Scherzer
Bassitt
Walker
Peterson

To start the season...then we will see

07ag said:

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Someone didn't like your predictions?

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I was 22 and vastly dumber (if that's possible). Jeff Granger pitched came into pitch in relief, walked a guy, and was promptly taken out, so I stood up and gave him a standing ovation. A Royals fan behind me thought I was being an a-hole, which is fair because I was, and shoved me in the back, and I turned around and started swinging.

We were both kicked out of the game and had to sign a waiver saying we wouldn't return to Kauffman that year. That was pretty funny because I was on a road trip and just stopped on a lark to see the game.

I'm gonna go with Crane gives JV a 2 year deal at 35mil, being his number all.

If he reaches a certain number of innings over 2 years and wins at least 2 more World Series games, he gets a player option for 61mil for his third year which tops Scherzer's deal by 1mil.

Ok, that sounder cooler and more realistic in my versus reading my thoughts.

Prosperdick said:

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Farmer1906 said:

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https://www.mlb.com/news/astros-owner-jim-crane-plans-long-gm-search

So many interesting comments.

JV wants mad max money.

He wants Yuli back and mentions 3rd & 2nd.

Waiting on Brantley to see how he recovers. Probably not until March.

Wants a lefty for the bullpen.

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This might not be a popular opinion but we paid Justin $66 million bucks to rehab for two years and we STILL bet on him again last year to the tune of $25 million. That's $91 million for one year of production. You would hope JV would take that into consideration but I know he won't.

I get it, injuries happen but I hope he would sign with us for 2 years with an option for a 3rd than go to NY/LA for guaranteed 3 years but sadly I could see it happen. Man it would really be hard rooting against him but if he goes to one of those ass hole teams I guess I won't have a choice.

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I agree. Somebody call Mark and tell him the Astros helped JV get two rings, you owe us a discount after sitting out so much.

https://www.forbes.com/profile/mark-pieper/?sh=28c80aa56a2d

Wabs said:

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No way in hell I'm giving JV a Scherzer type contract. 3 years at $43M per? LOL.

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Might as well go after deGrom if we're gonna get in that yearly ballpark.

The Porkchop Express said:

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07ag said:

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Someone didn't like your predictions?

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I was 22 and vastly dumber (if that's possible). Jeff Granger pitched came into pitch in relief, walked a guy, and was promptly taken out, so I stood up and gave him a standing ovation. A Royals fan behind me thought I was being an a-hole, which is fair because I was, and shoved me in the back, and I turned around and started swinging.

We were both kicked out of the game and had to sign a waiver saying we wouldn't return to Kauffman that year. That was pretty funny because I was on a road trip and just stopped on a lark to see the game.

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Talking about old stuff made me realize how bad I still hate Ben McDonald, thanks!

I can see an inflated 2 year deal for JV. He and Crane seem to have a good relationship, JV seems good for the locker room, and, oh yeah, he pitched very well this season.

I just don't really see anyone giving JV that kind of contract. There's just no team that needs him that badly that is going to spend like that imo.

The Dodgers are getting a lot of buzz, but I just can't see them having both Verlander and Kershaw in their rotation. Not a money thing, but those two guys are very similar in risk, and idk if you double your chances like that.

Mets have the money, but kinda similar to LAD, Verlander and Scherzer topping your rotation is risky with their age and injury history. Mets vs Dodgers for Rodon will be a bidding war.

The Yankees are the only other team that has the money and the motivation imo. They need to right the ship fast and the Yankee Way is to go out and get a high dollar big name to drum up the war machine.

Crane also mentioned that he's relying on TX's lack of income tax to be a factor, which if it's Houston vs NYY, that's a decent modifier to any deals

Does Garrit Cole factor in the decision for the Yankees at all? He's already played 2nd fiddle to JV once. Would he have a problem with doing it again especially after having a few below avg years ?

You could argue that Cole would be the 3rd starter for them if JV joins the team. Not sure that would sit well

Farmer1906 said:

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kegstand said:

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I just don't really see anyone giving JV that kind of contract. There's just no team that needs him that badly that is going to spend like that imo.

The Dodgers are getting a lot of buzz, but I just can't see them having both Verlander and Kershaw in their rotation. Not a money thing, but those two guys are very similar in risk, and idk if you double your chances like that.

Mets have the money, but kinda similar to LAD, Verlander and Scherzer topping your rotation is risky with their age and injury history. Mets vs Dodgers for Rodon will be a bidding war.

The Yankees are the only other team that has the money and the motivation imo. They need to right the ship fast and the Yankee Way is to go out and get a high dollar big name to drum up the war machine.

Crane also mentioned that he's relying on TX's lack of income tax to be a factor, which if it's Houston vs NYY, that's a decent modifier to any deals

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I agree. Which is why i said...

Quote:

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-We don't need more pitching. He's going to blow our free agency budget on JV when he falls just short of the Scherzer money.

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Once JV realizes he isn't getting 43 M a year for 3 years, Crane is going to pony up 70+ for 2 years.

That's 46.5 M in cap space to bring back two guys we could have lived without.

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I worry you are correct, unfortunately.

Keep an eye on the Rangers as a dark horse JV suitor.

They need pitching and are said to be in on DeGrom so they don't mind spending that kinda money, and kinda need a big splash signing to get butts in seats.

If he's going for the money grab as opposed to ring chasing and no one else wants to go that high then I could see that happening.

Agree but I think they may be the only the team that would check that one box.

Especially if they miss on or decide to pivot away from DeGrom.

JV wants money and stats. I think a WS is probably 3rd on that list. Just my opinion.

Wabs said:

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JDUB08AG said:

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JV wants money and stats. I think a WS is probably 3rd on that list. Just my opinion.

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The #1 stat he's looking at is Ws. The Rangers don't help him there.

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Disagree. I think he would like a WS, but he wants 300 wins and a contract that (in his opinion) is worthy of his stature.

It's kinda funny how the Tags article seems to contradict other recent reporting on Crane.

Tags article makes him sound more disciplined and measured about allocating free agent dollars. Similar to the "Astros-style" management we've become accustomed to during this run.

Other recent reporting paints Crane as a megalomaniac owner who wants to make big moves, take more control of baseball ops and make bigger splashes in free agency.

I'm still not fully convinced either way, which makes it hard to predict which direction we'll be headed over the next couple months.

***

The fact that he's in no rush at all to fill the GM position makes me think more and more that Stearns will be the guy. They're probably working on legal measures behind the scenes to get him out of his Brewers contract right now. And if they're unsuccessful, they can just wait til his contract is officially up after the 23 season.

This is obvious but if JV really does want a Scherzer deal, see ya. A small part of me was hoping he'd want to return on a two year deal at "market but team friendly" rate. The Astros are the best place for him to pad his HOF resume and lurch him up the ladder of all time pitching greats. Behind the scenes, maybe he does want to return but his agent is posturing to try and extract value. But if he wants the third year guaranteed at $40 mil plus, no thanks.

Nino Brown said:

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The Porkchop Express said:

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07ag said:

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Someone didn't like your predictions?

---

I was 22 and vastly dumber (if that's possible). Jeff Granger pitched came into pitch in relief, walked a guy, and was promptly taken out, so I stood up and gave him a standing ovation. A Royals fan behind me thought I was being an a-hole, which is fair because I was, and shoved me in the back, and I turned around and started swinging.

We were both kicked out of the game and had to sign a waiver saying we wouldn't return to Kauffman that year. That was pretty funny because I was on a road trip and just stopped on a lark to see the game.

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Talking about old stuff made me realize how bad I still hate Ben McDonald, thanks!

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Box score of my KC game

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/KCA/KCA199608200.shtml

Actually saw some really good players in a matchup of two ****ty teams. Blue Jays had Joe Carter, John Olerud, Carlos Delgado and a young SHawn Green.

Royals had a 22-year-old Johnny Damon in CF

Game ended up going 14 innings after I was asked to leave. There is no worse rabbit hole for me on work days than old box scores on baseball reference!