MaxPower said:

---

CharleyKerfeld said:

---

Part of the grim truth of "tear it all down and rebuild" is that has a really low success rate. What happened from 2017-2022 is one of the greatest runs in modern-baseball history predicated by a fantastic combination of GM, manager(s), tremendous talent assessment, player development, trades/signees, and an enormous amount of luck.

We can rebuild with the best intentions, the best decision-makers, and pick the can't miss draft picks and still wind up much more like the Orioles than our run of a decade ago. It's one of my main reasons to go ahead and go for it this year while the playoffs are still in limbo.

---

The real question is whether a rebuild is avoidable. My answer is no it isn't. I look at the farm talent and the pending free agents and see no way this team isn't a "rebuilding" team by 2029 one way or another. Maybe there's a needle we thread where we extend all the right guys, sign the right free agents and have several consecutive unbelievable drafts but that seems like much more of a fantasy, head in the sand outlook than the group who says get ahead of the rebuild by getting started now.

BTW, I don't think you need to sell everyone. If all we traded was Pena I could get behind that. That, to me, is smarter than waiting until the 2027 offseason with Pena saying adios off a .500 season and staring at one more year remaining of HB and Yordan thinking, "Holy eff what are we gonna do?"

---

100% on all of this. And yes, Peña is the only one that needs to be traded at this deadline.

Depends...

If they want to punt this year and strike while the iron is hot (ok lukewarm maybe) I'd include Walker and Paredes in that as well.

If they want to sell but also not completely wave the white flag on this season I think that's doable by trading just Pena.

linkdude said:

---

Mariners putting out a lot of mixed signals for a team that won the division last year.

Emerson Hancock expected to be traded, per @JeffPassan.

— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) July 28, 2026

---

He's the 6th starter on a team that has one of the best (if not the best) starting pitching staffs in baseball along with the #1 overall pitching prospect in MLB ready to come up and the #3 overall pitcing prospect ready to go behind him. When Dana says they would like to trade from a position of depth/strength this is what he's acting like we have. The problem is we don't. They'll trade him (or another pitcher) for a bat I'd imagine.

I remember this game. I loved his nickname Luke Scottwalker

Houston Astros rookie Luke Scott just hit his first career home run.

It was a 3 run shot to tie the game 3-3. pic.twitter.com/DH5YcE8BFn

— 20 Years Ago Sports (@20YearsAgoSport) July 28, 2026

Still odd to me that we're less than a week out from the deadline and the hot stove has been anything but hot.

Ag_07 said:

---

Still odd to me that we're less than a week out from the deadline and the hot stove has been anything but hot.

---

It seems like it's always that way...a few one-off trades in the week leading up to it but most big trades go down the day of the deadline.

I know that but it seems way quieter than normal. Like in a weird way.

Maybe I'm just not following along as much I normally do.

Well there are 3 teams in the AL west who should be sellers but they are all under the same delusion that they can win the Division.

MaxPower said:

---

CharleyKerfeld said:

---

Part of the grim truth of "tear it all down and rebuild" is that has a really low success rate. What happened from 2017-2022 is one of the greatest runs in modern-baseball history predicated by a fantastic combination of GM, manager(s), tremendous talent assessment, player development, trades/signees, and an enormous amount of luck.

We can rebuild with the best intentions, the best decision-makers, and pick the can't miss draft picks and still wind up much more like the Orioles than our run of a decade ago. It's one of my main reasons to go ahead and go for it this year while the playoffs are still in limbo.

---

The real question is whether a rebuild is avoidable. My answer is no it isn't. I look at the farm talent and the pending free agents and see no way this team isn't a "rebuilding" team by 2029 one way or another. Maybe there's a needle we thread where we extend all the right guys, sign the right free agents and have several consecutive unbelievable drafts but that seems like much more of a fantasy, head in the sand outlook than the group who says get ahead of the rebuild by getting started now.

BTW, I don't think you need to sell everyone. If all we traded was Pena I could get behind that. That, to me, is smarter than waiting until the 2027 offseason with Pena saying adios off a .500 season and staring at one more year remaining of HB and Yordan thinking, "Holy eff what are we gonna do?"

---

That's assuming a lot goes wrong over the next 3 years to say that "a rebuild is unavoidable" by 2029. A farm system can look completely different in 3 years without a bunch of trades and using smart drafting and player development.

I'm assuming we're in the final days of Dana Brown/Joe Espada and I think Crane is a smart enough owner to recognize why the current direction is the wrong one after this season is over.

If either Brown or Espada are employed by the organization after the 2026 season, then I'm fully on-board with your hopelessness for the near future.

I think I'm less confident in Crane hiring a new GM than in Dana handling an offseason prior to a lockout.

The Beef01 said:

---

MaxPower said:

---

CharleyKerfeld said:

---

Part of the grim truth of "tear it all down and rebuild" is that has a really low success rate. What happened from 2017-2022 is one of the greatest runs in modern-baseball history predicated by a fantastic combination of GM, manager(s), tremendous talent assessment, player development, trades/signees, and an enormous amount of luck.

We can rebuild with the best intentions, the best decision-makers, and pick the can't miss draft picks and still wind up much more like the Orioles than our run of a decade ago. It's one of my main reasons to go ahead and go for it this year while the playoffs are still in limbo.

---

The real question is whether a rebuild is avoidable. My answer is no it isn't. I look at the farm talent and the pending free agents and see no way this team isn't a "rebuilding" team by 2029 one way or another. Maybe there's a needle we thread where we extend all the right guys, sign the right free agents and have several consecutive unbelievable drafts but that seems like much more of a fantasy, head in the sand outlook than the group who says get ahead of the rebuild by getting started now.

BTW, I don't think you need to sell everyone. If all we traded was Pena I could get behind that. That, to me, is smarter than waiting until the 2027 offseason with Pena saying adios off a .500 season and staring at one more year remaining of HB and Yordan thinking, "Holy eff what are we gonna do?"

---

That's assuming a lot goes wrong over the next 3 years to say that "a rebuild is unavoidable" by 2029. A farm system can look completely different in 3 years without a bunch of trades and using smart drafting and player development.

I'm assuming we're in the final days of Dana Brown/Joe Espada and I think Crane is a smart enough owner to recognize why the current direction is the wrong one after this season is over.

If either Brown or Espada are employed by the organization after the 2026 season, then I'm fully on-board with your hopelessness for the near future.

---

Based on what Ketch has offered up, I do not share your confidence in Crane's baseball intelligence or his ability and/or willingness to alter course. He needs some people who are not on his payroll to get in his ear and help him find the light before he consigns us to up to a half decade wandering in the darkness.

Mathguy64 said:

---

Well there are 3 teams in the AL west who should be sellers but they are all under the same delusion that they can win the Division.

---

The difference is Seattle has talent and a farm and just hasn't put it together this year. Us and the Rangerettes are just barely getting to where we are with old, ****ty rosters and no farms. I've got a buddy who is a Rangers fan and he feels the same as us. Shouldn't be buyers at all and should be sellers.

Don't make me chuck my phone come deadline day, Jim.

Albert Fermin was 2-3 today with a 2B, a HR and a BB.

On the year, Fermin is now slashing .343/.510/.566 with 13 XBH (5 HR), 38 BB to 28 K and is 17/19 in SB attempts.

Fermin has only a 43% GB rate, an all field approach, a sub 7% swstr rate and has played primarily SS, while…

— Alex “Juicy” Jensen (@jensen_juicy) July 28, 2026

Spence/Wade back to the bench against LHP Detmers.

Astros-Angels tonight: pic.twitter.com/RgGI2atRMi

— Matt Kawahara (@matthewkawahara) July 28, 2026

linkdude said:

---

Don't make me chuck my phone come deadline day, Jim.

Albert Fermin was 2-3 today with a 2B, a HR and a BB.

On the year, Fermin is now slashing .343/.510/.566 with 13 XBH (5 HR), 38 BB to 28 K and is 17/19 in SB attempts.

Fermin has only a 43% GB rate, an all field approach, a sub 7% swstr rate and has played primarily SS, while…

— Alex “Juicy” Jensen (@jensen_juicy) July 28, 2026

---

Trading any of our top 7 prospects should be a fireable offense

Thankfully he can't touch our draftees from this year

A team doesn't go from being one of the worst farms in the league to a good one in a couple seasons (unless they jumpstart it by trading vets for prospects) but even if that were to happen, it's unlikely most of those prospects will be ready to be major contributors in that first season. You will have several top guys who are 20 or 21 that are several years away and even the ones who are ready for a taste likely aren't guys you are counting on hitting in the middle of the order or leading a rotation. 2029 seems far away but by then the HS guys we just drafted will still only be 21, so even if they both look like studs they still almost certainly won't be ready. These are simply unrealistic expectations.

People seem to forget the very dynasty Crane built was built on the back of a bunch of 100 loss seasons with hits on a number of top 10 draft picks. The farm he inherited that was supposedly so bad he just had to tank was actually BETTER than the one we have now (prior regime drafted Springer).

Sox desperation is peaking at just the right time

Curtis Mead diagnosed with broken wrist, per @tommycassell44. https://t.co/aYohue4470

— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) July 28, 2026

Just get this guy and immediately call him up. Maybe he isn't such a downgrade and we can all giggle at giving the Sox the Josh Fields treatment?

FIRST TRIPLE-A HIT FOR BOSTON RED SOX PROSPECT FRANKLIN ARIAS IS A HOME RUN OFF CHRIS BASSITT pic.twitter.com/KcQqUjMQK6

— Hunter Noll (@Hunter_Noll) July 28, 2026

I was ready for more LaMonte in the 4-hole tonight

Cam better do something at the plate

He will PH against a RH reliever somewhere in 5-9 zone.

Pretty sweet pimp job on this homer.

Jadyn Fielder 2 run HR for the Woodpeckers! His first HR in the Astros organization! pic.twitter.com/VtrFJo44UR

— Astros Future (@AstrosFuture) July 28, 2026

Official.

Hayden Wesneski will be activated from the IL and start tomorrow

— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) July 28, 2026

linkdude said:

---

Pretty sweet pimp job on this homer.

Jadyn Fielder 2 run HR for the Woodpeckers! His first HR in the Astros organization! pic.twitter.com/VtrFJo44UR

— Astros Future (@AstrosFuture) July 28, 2026

---

Looked like daddy with that finish

Like some of yall have said I doubt the full truth about Ohtani comes out but the documentary will be interesting regardless

Ohtani was ducking hitter-friendly ballparks and ONLY took 1 day paternity leave to try to get the elusive Cy Young

The loser is literally Agamemnon. He protects his dreams at all cost, throws his bff Ippei off a cliff and does not care about his kids pic.twitter.com/JTnC8P2IO9

— Padres Burner (@Padres_Burner69) July 28, 2026

Someone email him this thread!

Big Bucks said:

---

Someone email him this thread!

---

I nominate Ketch.

Another must win. South OK beat TB.

Way to go Rays.

"Tanks for nuttin!"

Here we go...

Yordan!

oh yeah

#35

way outta the park

YORD

The big fella!!

YorDONGER. That ball was crushed.

That one just sounded different!