You had to know it

[klaiggeb]

Of all the positions where we needed help this coming season. Third , base was not one of them.

So of course we went out and signed one.

Perfect.

Another signing to put fannies in the seats.

Another signing that thumbs its nose at the kids in the system.

I cannot be the only one that sees a pattern here.

[reedonly]

Greg Papa on KNBR was pushing for Chapman yesterday because he felt that Chapman could help them every day whereas Snell would only help on the days he pitches. Also, if they trade JD Davis, they will have cap room to sign Montgomery or Lorenzen but not Snell. My personal opinion is that it is not a good deal because we give up a draft choice and international bonus pool money since Chapman had a qualifying offer and its another one of those one and one and one deals with opt outs.  This doesn't really put butts into the seats any more than if they signed someone like Longoria.  

Papa also said that at this particular time, Chapman's defense is better than Crawford's defense, something also said by Matt Williams.  I don't hate the deal as much as you do but I don't like giving up the draft choice and pool money for a deal with opt outs after every season.  Supposedly the odds of the draft choice at that level making the majors is about 50-50 and the pool money is even less.  I prefer that they keep being re-stocked. 

[klaiggeb]

Wasn't Chapman a fan favorite when he played for Oakland?

I think he was, that's why I think it puts fannies in seats.

I do hope you're right, though. That a JD trade, especially with the way he's hitting right now, could get us Montgomery.


And I don't hate the deal, Reed, it just ticks me off because of Farhan's continual rhetoric about getting younger and more athletic.

[reedonly]

To be honest, if he was a fan favorite in Oakland, it might have been anywhere else in the country as far as Giants fans are considered. Giants fans don't care about the A's and vice versa. In fact, when A's leave Oakland, most A's fans will not automatically become Giants fans.  If I had to name an Oakland A's player in the last five years, the only guy I could name would be Chapman, but now I can say Stripling, Wood and LaStella.  I don't think they will be selling a lot of Chapman gear because of his one and one contract and to be honest, I wouldn't get out of the garlic fires line just to watch him hit.  Remember, Longoria was a declining superstar when he came over to the Giants and in a similar boat as Chapman but Longoria never seemed to be a #forevergiant and I don't he added more fannies into the seats. Longoria and Chapman feel like  Bobby "I was never a Giant" Murcer in the 70s but maybe Chapman has a little more local connection.

[reedonly]

I'm not sure if they're done if if they're just blowing smoke. It appears they will go with Black, Teng, Roupp, and Whisenhunt if the others cannot go.  Maybe Zaidi truly means it or he's trying to drive the price down for Snell and Montgomery.  Seems like a really risky strategy.  This is from an interview between Pavlovic and Zaidi:



"We have talked all offseason and been very consistent that our plan was to continue to graduate some of the young pitchers that we're really high on to the big leagues, particularly in the rotation …" Zaidi said before running through some of the prospects. "Our plan all along has been to give our young pitchers opportunities and to try to create a defense that would support them in their transition and that's one of the reasons Matt was such a priority.

"I'll say what I said last time we talked after we signed [Jorge] Soler -- the offseason is really over as far as we're concerned. We're more in in-season mode, which doesn't mean you can't make additions, but it's a different dynamic because we're really focused on the players that we have and how they're all going to fit together.""We want to elevate our young pitchers," he said. "There's uncertainty that comes from the fact that there's a lack of familiarity. Young pitchers are definitionally not household names, but we think that the more they get a chance to prove themselves, you sort of have to take the leap with them at some point and this is something we've been planning for a couple of years, to get younger in our rotation and give these guys the opportunity to win jobs.

"It's not really a question of whether we're prepared or comfortable. That's sort of been the plan all along."


After they signed Soler, they said they were "done", also.  Yet, it does not make sense to go into a season with Webb and four question marks.  Zaidi got Boras to cave on Chapman for a contract below market value so maybe he's trying to do the same for one of the remaining pitchers.  The other shoe that has to drop is to trade JD Davis but the market is soft for third basemen (why Chapman had difficulty getting a contract in the first place) so I don't expect a huge return for Davis. 

[reedonly]

On whenthegiantscometotown, Dr B (the lead blogger) posted that he felt that pitchers have a certain number of bullets in the arm and that there are three predictors of injury: 1. previous injury, 2. Velocity over 95, 3. Age or innings pitched. He feels that the pitchers' best years are the first years after they make the majors and decline later at about the time they would hit free agency. As such, Dr B thinks that if a pitcher works well in a given minor league level, they should be fast tracked so as not to waste bullets in meaningless minor league games. I get that but the current rotation looks really unbalanced especially with injury question marks for Winn and Teng and Hicks getting hammered in ST.

[klaiggeb]

Mar 4, 2024 9:34:11 GMT -5 reedonly said:

On whenthegiantscometotown, Dr B (the lead blogger) posted that he felt that pitchers have a certain number of bullets in the arm and that there are three predictors of injury: 1. previous injury, 2. Velocity over 95, 3. Age or innings pitched. He feels that the pitchers' best years are the first years after they make the majors and decline later at about the time they would hit free agency. As such, Dr B thinks that if a pitcher works well in a given minor league level, they should be fast tracked so as not to waste bullets in meaningless minor league games. I get that but the current rotation looks really unbalanced especially with injury question marks for Winn and Teng and Hicks getting hammered in ST.

Reed, who is Dr. B?

And did he ever really play ball?

I ask for this reason: No question a pitcher has so many bullets in his arm...but I'm going to re phrase what he said to make him more correct: A pitcher only has so many TOP QUALITY pitches in his arm.

Yes, his velocity may drop, BUT his knowledge of HOW TO PITCH increases proportionately.

Thus, much like Greag Maddux, though the velocity is not where it once was, the guy is actually better because he KNOWS better how to get the most of movement and location of his pitches.

Just a cursory read about what he said makes him sound like Rog; a total numbers guy who looks, likely, ONLY at velocity and NOT the other factors that make up a pitcher.



At the moment, I'm not concerned about pitchers getting hit hard in ST.

There are so many weeks still to go before the season begins.

I put a LOT more stock in a pitcher's final two or three outtings rather than how they do early on.

Why?

Because often, pitchers are working on stuff and/or experimenting with grips or movement.

Just my opinion.

[reedonly]

Dr B is nothing like Rog. He has run his own blog for about 10 years and specializes in knowing the minor league system, prospect rankings, and dabbles in fantasy. He knows how the roster games work and his pitch theory is a just something he was wondering about out loud after seeing certain patterns over the years and this discussion was started after another poster asked why the Giants were hesitant to get another FA pitcher. He knows his stuff well and his blog is whenthegiantscometotown.

[klaiggeb]

Mar 4, 2024 17:57:57 GMT -5 reedonly said:

Dr B is nothing like Rog. He has run his own blog for about 10 years and specializes in knowing the minor league system, prospect rankings, and dabbles in fantasy. He knows how the roster games work and his pitch theory is a just something he was wondering about out loud after seeing certain patterns over the years and this discussion was started after another poster asked why the Giants were hesitant to get another FA pitcher. He knows his stuff well and his blog is whenthegiantscometotown.

I think I've read it once or twice.

Glad to know he's NOT like Rog!



Thanks for the update!

[reedonly]

Come to think of it, if Rog wanted so badly to educate us, maybe he should have started his own blog or something like that.

[reedonly]

Mar 2, 2024 10:42:59 GMT -5 klaiggeb said:

Wasn't Chapman a fan favorite when he played for Oakland?

I think he was, that's why I think it puts fannies in seats.

I do hope you're right, though. That a JD trade, especially with the way he's hitting right now, could get us Montgomery.


And I don't hate the deal, Reed, it just ticks me off because of Farhan's continual rhetoric about getting younger and more athletic.

One thing Murphy brought up on KNBR today was that Chapman is an ass-kicker and won't be afraid to call out guys or jam another player up against a locker.  Every stop he's made, Chapman has been on a winning team.  

Also, Melvin announced that he will require players to stand for the national anthem before games.  Melvin said this had nothing to do with politics, but it is about perception.  He wants his players and the opposition to know they are ready to play.  I feel this is also probably a troll job on Kapler, but that's usually a good thing. 

[klaiggeb]

Those are two GREAT THINGS you just told us, Reed!!!!!!

As a Viet Nam vet, I resent people, any people from this country NOT standing for the Anthem.

My dad was in the Navy in WWII, and was off the coast of Okinawa when the first Kamakazi's hit.

My wife's father was in the 101st airborne. The guys who dropped on Normandy.

Not standing for our Anthem is spitting in their faces, IMHO.

And I LOVE what you said about Matt being a NO NONSENSE kind of guy!

All of a sudden, I LOVE this deal!

Thanks again!!!

[reedonly]

Logan Webb mentioned that there will be a change in the clubhouse culture. Players will be expected to greet each other (instead of looking at their phones) and be prompt for meetings and drills. It is not about being regimented but to be more socially engaged and more about readiness.

[klaiggeb]

I read that And I really liked it!

All these kinds of Things are Reinforcing my belief that the manager was the problem.

The leader sets the tone and if the tone the leader sets is not Solid and firm issues arise.

[reedonly]

I think Kapler was at least more than half the problem because the last couple of years and corresponds to his Philadelphia stint.

[reedonly]

Mar 5, 2024 14:34:54 GMT -5 klaiggeb said:

Those are two GREAT THINGS you just told us, Reed!!!!!!

As a Viet Nam vet, I resent people, any people from this country NOT standing for the Anthem.

My dad was in the Navy in WWII, and was off the coast of Okinawa when the first Kamakazi's hit.

My wife's father was in the 101st airborne. The guys who dropped on Normandy.

Not standing for our Anthem is spitting in their faces, IMHO.

And I LOVE what you said about Matt being a NO NONSENSE kind of guy!

All of a sudden, I LOVE this deal!

Thanks again!!!

Chapman was at the Play Ball luncheon the other day and he left a good impression.  With Boras clients, they seem to be just building their resume but he seems to want to assert his leadership in the clubhouse and not just play for the next contract.  Baseball-wise he adds defense over JD Davis but seems to add a lot of important intangibles.  The leadership group in 2023 tended to be quiet guys (Thairo, Yaz) but Chapman seems to be a guy that will hold other players accountable. 

[klaiggeb]

Mar 27, 2024 18:06:42 GMT -5 reedonly said:

I think Kapler was at least more than half the problem because the last couple of years and corresponds to his Philadelphia stint.

He may only have been half the problem, but his "half" contributed to things spiraling out of control.

Weak leadership allows "employees," in this case the players, to go about business unchecked and unmotivated.

Left to their own devices, IMHO, people, NOT ALL PEOPLE, are generally lazy.

People need to be pushed... to be motivated.

Kapler expected certain behaviors most people are not capable of.

Consider this; When you're working out, when do you work harder? With a coach pushing you, or on your own?

I would argue for the former.


And finally, woke attitude and ideas cause massive division.

Not always, but most of the time you are with it, or absolutely HATE it!

A team cannot have that.

A manage cannot allow his ideology get in the way of "team."

Kapler is woke to the core of his soul and THAT alienates people and not just a little bit.


Kapler and woke are a cancer; a disease that destroys the body.

Giants under Captain Ego, and the Phillies before him, were a perfect examples of that.

I like what Ron DeSantis always says: "Go woke, go broke."

The Giants and Phils went broke.

[reedonly]

When he was a player, the Red Sox did a straw poll among the players about political preferences. 24 were conservative, guess who was the one who wasn't.