Klawchat 9/27/18.

My annual awards picks and ballots for the six major player awards (MVP, Cy, ROY) are up now for ESPN+ subscribers.

Keith Law: Like a crown of thorns, it’s all who you know. It’s Klawchat.

Aaron G: No question, just that tHe mVp cAn’T CoMe FrOm A lOsInG tEaM oR bE a PiTcHeR!!!!!!!

(Even though objectively deGrom was the best player in the NL this season.)
Keith Law: Getting that a lot today, which shows that there is a segment of the fan base that hasn’t matured intellectually since the late ’90s.

Arnold: Poor contract decisions, poor trades, and poor draft picks have cost Bobby Evans and Brian Sabean their positions in the Giants’ hierarchy. Who should the Giants be looking at to take their place?
Keith Law: I think it’s fair to say they should look outside; many of the names you’re hearing for the Mets, like Porter, Lacava, Heck, Elias, should all be on the Giants’ list. I argued on the BBTN pod today that they really need to explore trading Bumgarner, as it’s the fastest way to reboot the farm system, and the odds that Bumgarner is still healthy and effective the next time the Giants are good – in an extremely competitive division – are very slim.

Fangraphs Frank: Will we ever have pre-2002 advanced statistics (i.e. UZR) on sites like Fangraphs? I want to compare Ozzie Smith to the greatest defensive shortstop of all time — ANDRELTON SIMMONS!
Keith Law: We don’t have the raw data for that.

addoeh: Is this the right room for an argument?
Keith Law: I’ve told you once.

Darren: Thoughts on Garrett Hampson and Ryan Vilade. Both were top 10 Rox prospects and had good seasons. They didn’t show much in game power but the strike zone judgement and swing looked good. Are you as concerned when scouting minor league power with the change in the MLB and MiLB baseballs. Many guys are showing power when they get to the majors. I agree Vilade defense will not keep him at SS, do you expect 3B, 2B, or OF to be his final spot?
Keith Law: I don’t think Hampson has enough power to profile as a regular – never mind HR power, but ability to make hard enough contact to sustain the walk rate (that is, why wouldn’t pitchers attack him inside given the lack of hand strength). Vilade will, I think. 3b likely, a regular or more.

Pizza: What was the worst pizza you’ve ever had, and why was it the worst?
Keith Law: Tough call between Papa John’s or Domino’s. The whole cardboard taste is tough to get past.

Jo-Nathan: Do you like what the Brewers have done with Corbin Burnes, or would you rather have seen him come up as a starter?
Keith Law: I like seeing future starters break in as relievers, in general, as long as they’re handled appropriately given that they’ve never been used back-to-back days before. Counsell’s been doing that more with Burnes – twice in the last three weeks – and that’s where I diverge with the Brewers’ plans for him.

Jon: Buying stock in Tyler Glasnow? He has a 4.11 ERA and over a K/inning since joining the Rays. If you take away the one bad start it’s a 2.90 ERA in 50 innings. Take away his best outing after that and it’s still a 3.30. Looks like he’s more calm and relaxed since going to Tampa.
Keith Law: Need to see a lot more than a good month-plus from a guy with that much history of poor performance.

Evan: Am I wrong to think Baez is closer to Trevor Story in MVP voting than Yelich? I get the positional flexibility but that OBP is not MVP-level. Yelich has 68 points on him! (almost nice)
Keith Law: The OBP isn’t, but Baez plays average or better defense at shortstop, and gets a huge boost to any stat that compares him to R-level as a result.

Mike: Do you think the accusations against Kavanaugh are sufficient grounds for his nomination to be voted down? And do any Republicans have the guts to do so?
Keith Law: They are – but frankly there was sufficient grounds beforehand and nobody cared.

Thad: Is Jameson Taillon a GUY? Dude’s been electric.
Keith Law: He is. My breakouts column this year was very much a mixed bag but I’m glad I had Taillon and Snell on it, at least.

Sean: If the Mets gave Dom Smith 550 AB at 1B next season, over/under on: .262/.346/.459
Keith Law: Over. I don’t think they’ll give him that, though.

Victoria: Biggest disappointment this year – Kingery, Bell, Mazara, Margot? Some belief in these guys heading into next season?
Keith Law: I’m most disappointed in Mazara – he looked great in March, lot of talk around AZ about his approach improving, then performed accordingly in April and May, but has totally regressed since then. .218/.279/.403 in the second half. Still young, but that’s now three full seasons of essentially the same thing.

Nate: I’m going to go out on a limb, and say that Mike Trout will get zero first place votes for MVP this year. Does this make you much smarter than everyone else, or out of touch?
Keith Law: I think he’ll get a few, and I think you’ve nicely demonstrated the concept of the false dichotomy.

Jeff: Ian Anderson best upstate NY prospect since…? Corbin ever that high? Jason Grilli?
Keith Law: Highest I can remember.

Jackie: I’m guessing the Red Sox let Craig Kimbrel hit the FA market this winter — gotta save money for Mookie, Sale, et al. What kind of contract do you think Kimbrel gets? I feel like Kimbrel might be in for a bit of a surprise; he probably won’t get the Aroldis Chapman 5 year/$86 million deal, or close to it.
Keith Law: I don’t think the market is going to support paying closers that kind of money now. Could be wrong, just seems like more teams have wised up about overpaying for the save stat, but are just generally focused on getting guys who miss bats for late-inning work, spending the same or more money in total but spreading it over more guys (including pitchers without saves).

Rob D: My friends and I unwittingly planned our Arizona Fall League trip the same week as the stupid skills competition. Are there any other baseball options on Saturdays like instructional league games? How does one access that stuff?
Keith Law: The skills competition is the single worst thing about the AFL and I wish they’d either cancel it completely or do what they did last year and schedule it before the season starts. It is totally fan-unfriendly to shorten the first week to four days. I think instructs are done by then. I’m not going till the second week for this exact reason.

Joe Don: Any thoughts you’d care to share on the Jeff Banister firing?
Keith Law: Nope.

dhakadabay: The Brewers have used a model for Corbin Burnes’ rookie season that you’ve espoused in the past–mostly middle relief, gradually increasing the leverage of the situations over the course of the season–and it seems to have paid off. What’s his upside as a starter going forward?
Keith Law: I think he’s a 3, chance to be a 2 if the command is better than we thought.

silvpak: urias has looked shockingly good in his brief appearances since returning (41 pitches, 31 for strikes, touched ~97[!] in his last appearance). he has no place on the postseason roster, imho (assuming they make it), but any thoughts on the early returns, more from a health/ability perspective than any stats?
Keith Law: I have no idea what’s going on in his shoulder, so no, sorry.

Dr. Andrews: With Morton suffering from the dreaded “shoulder stiffness,” is the Verlander-Cole-Keuchel combo plus a multi-headed super reliever (McCullers?) going to be enough to make it out of the AL?
Keith Law: I think so.

Darren: As a vegetarian I am thankful for all the other options today to help the average person find delicious healthy food. Have you tried the Impossible burger or Beyond Meat burgers? Those two are so far ahead of all other veggie burgers on the market. The impossible meatballs and beyond meat sausages are also great products.
Keith Law: I’ve had the Beyond burgers and was very impressed. They’re meat-like enough that I would say they’re a good substitute (granted, I don’t eat beef any more, but have had it hundreds of times). My only complaint is that their burgers are pre-formed and quite small for a single portion.

JJ: Unless Chris Sale pitches this weekend, he won’t have enough IP to qualify for the ERA title. Should a starting pitcher who throws fewer than 162 total innings in a season be a viable Cy Young candidate (I’d give it to Snell, regardless)?
Keith Law: If he’d pitched well enough, sure – 150 innings of a 1.50 ERA/FIP would probably do it. Verlander is my pick though.

James: I was watching a game on TV and the scroll along the bottom said that Bryce Harper just had his first 100 rbi season. I had to look it up. Dumb question and not some jerk question, what makes him a $300 million dollar player? 2015 was a great year for him but he hasn’t achieved that again in the three years after. Is it ok to say he Is going to be in the 2-4 WAR range per year with maybe a great year mixed in?
Keith Law: RBI are a terrible, useless measure of individual performance. He was worth about 5 WAR last year, and was only below 4 WAR this year because of poor defensive metrics, some of which came from playing out of position in CF. He’s shown himself to be a star hitter when healthy, but has had at least two years wrecked by injuries. The upside is clearly there, though.

Nate: Where do the Orioles go from here? I look at that roster, and I see nobody with any trade value at all. So it will probably be a quiet off-season. Do Orioles fans just sit back, and hope the O’s draft well for the next three years, and tune back in around 2021?
Keith Law: Hope they draft well and do more internationally (after years of avoiding the market) and change up their development processes for pitchers (of which Buck was a part) and find some value on the scrap heap. It’s a long road back to respectability. I have no objection at all to Duquette getting an extension – the reality is he’s done that job with one hand tied behind his back for years – but has any GM kept his job after a 110 loss season before? I guess Dombrowski sort of counts in Detroit, but that thing was on fire when he sat down on it.

Moe Mentum: Favorite rock drummer of all time?
Keith Law: Always was a fan of Barrett Martin of the Screaming Trees, Tuatara, and a bunch of other acts.

Moe Mentum: Besides Italy, which European country do you (or would you) most enjoy visiting?
Keith Law: I’d love to go east – seeing Dubrovnik and the Dalmatian coast of Croatia is a bucket-list item for me, as is spending time in Amsterdam.

Dante: If you were Klentak, would you sign Machado or Harper, assuming the price is readonable enough on either one?
Keith Law: I’d sign either one; I think Machado is the clearer upgrade for them.

Owen: Is Logan Shore a guy?
Keith Law: Back-end starter, maybe.

Kyle KS: How do the Angels get the most value out of Ohtani moving forward? Full starter’s workload and fill in DH ABs, Full time OF with ~600 ABs or a mix of both like they perused this season?
Keith Law: Well he’s not pitching next year, but if we’re talking 2020 and beyond, I would aim to use him as much as a starter as his arm health allows, and mix in part time DH at bats like this year.

mark: Hi Klaw,
Last week you responded to a question about Mejia and Hedges by saying “Hedges is just not a good enough hitter to push Mejia off to another position”… but is he a good enough defender to at least make the Pads attempt to convert Mejia into a guy who plays multiple positions (OF/C/3B) during the season? If not, should they just trade Hedges now?
Keith Law: Sorry, implicit in my response was that Hedges’ defense, while good, isn’t enough to mitigate how bad his bat is.

Joe Cleveland: I have heard great things about Brayan Rocchio. Is he a candidate for the back end of your top 100 list?
Keith Law: A candidate, no real idea what the back of my list will look like until I start working on it in earnest.

JD: If you were the new GM of the Giants, would you trade Bumgarner during the Winter Meetings or at the deadline? And what type of package would you expect to get?
Keith Law: You’ll always get more of a market in the winter, when just about every team has room in its budget to add a major piece, than in July, when only a handful of teams do.

Skip: True or False: The hearing today isn’t going to change the mind of one single person with regard to whether they think Judge Kavanaugh should be confirmed.
Keith Law: True. I think it’s all theater, personally.

Joe: Fair to be a bit disappointed in Gleyber’s season? His approach has been quite poor at times and he has struck out a lot.
Keith Law: Not fair. He’s a kid who was in A-ball two years ago.

squeeze bunt: bold to hold a chat considering what’s going on. Small chatrrom today?
Keith Law: Nope, seems jammed as usual.

Jerry: Should Keuchel and Marwin get qualifying offers? What’s the negative for the Astros if they do give them?
Keith Law: Keuchel yes, Marwin no.

Mark: Do you see the improvement from Zack Wheeler this year as sustainable ?
Keith Law: If he’s able to stay healthy, and maintain this kind of workload, yes.

squeeze bunt: Have you started any draft coverage for next year? Any thoughts on the class after the summer showcases?
Keith Law: I won’t rank guys probably until February, but every single scout or exec I’ve talked to agrees that the class is very down. The college crop is especially poor.

Jax: Will Basabe get consideration for being in your top 100?
Keith Law: The question doesn’t really mean anything – I’ll consider 150-200 players from the start and work down from there.

Anne: Please hold forth on the extreme overshift. Good or bad?
Keith Law: Good as long as it works. Bad when any player starts trying to hit against it.

Dr. Bob: You may have muted him, but the guy who was asking about deGrom’s value was sincerely asking about value. His brusqueness masked that. I think I was able to convince him.
Keith Law: Not sure who that was, but I’m surprised to hear someone changed their mind via a Twitter discussion.

Manuel: What you tell us about Vidal Brujan’s plate discipline? Walk-rate looks awesome, reports say he’s a free swinger.
Keith Law: Not a free swinger, certainly.

James: I’m on a Euro-trip right now seeing: Copenhagen, Stockholm, Lithuania, Prague, Warsaw, Budapest and Dublin. Have you been to any of these places ? Can you rank ?
Keith Law: Been to Dublin, Budapest, Stockholm. Loved them all. Budapest was the most striking visually and the food was the most different. Stockholm was the best for just walking around.

MATT K: Thoughts on Michael King and his performance this season?
Keith Law: He was in my minor league players of the year piece.

section 34: How are you able to chat with these hearings going on? I can only type this during a break.
Keith Law: Why in God’s name would I watch that shit? A bunch of old white men interrogating a rape victim like she’s a damn criminal? Insinuating that she made this story up, subjecting herself and her family to doxing, relentless press coverage, and death threats? And all of this so they can vote as they were going to the entire time? Really? I have more self-respect than that.

carson: Going forward, would you rather have Benintendi or Moncada?
Keith Law: Benintendi. That’s always been my answer – I said Moncada would have trouble with contact and he has.

Joshua: Love Andrew Wood…..that is all. Please continue.
Keith Law: It’s pointless speculation but I think he would have become a superstar between his lyrics and his personality on stage.

Stephen: So can Mondesi be a star?
Keith Law: Not with a 3% walk rate and fringy power.

Mike: What do you think of NSNG diets?
Keith Law: I don’t see the point of eliminating any specific item or ingredient from your diet for non-medical reasons – sugar is bad for you in moderate to large quantities, but in small quantities, it’s fine. Eliminating grains is probably a terrible idea.

Jax: Fried has to be trade bait this winter right?
Keith Law: I think he’s in the mix of starters they’ll peddle because they can’t keep them all, between a 40-man crunch and the fact that they only have so many starts to hand out next year.

Jerry: I’m almost the exact same age as Kavanaugh. I didn’t go to an elite prep school but there were a lot of rich (almost all white) boys at my HS who thought they could do whatever they wanted with no consequences. Why is it so hard for other (mostly white men) to comprehend and accept this?
Keith Law: I have no idea, especially with copious data on the prevalence of such behavior among American teenagers.

Jesse: Your insinuation that Hawk is a racist was a cowardly act intended to raise your own profile. You should be ashamed of yourself and
Keith Law: I quoted Harrelson. If his own words make him sound like a racist, well, quack quack, motherfucker.

Monty: Do you think Kris Bryant gets back to his normal self this season or is it too late?
Keith Law: He hasn’t looked completely healthy since he came back (and just got hurt again on an HBP the other night). I have no idea at what point he’ll feel close to 100%, but he doesn’t look it right now.

kbrown: What is your preferred stat when looking at offensive contribution? I like OPS+ but lots of smart people I know put more stock in wRC+. Why would one be better than the other?
Keith Law: I think wRC+ weights the components better.

Matt: Who is mostly to blame for the Dodger’s failure this season? Friedman? Roberts? Players?
Keith Law: They did lose their best player to injury pretty early on. If they have Seager, they’re probably 2-3 games better, and in first place, and then there isn’t a question.

A Reds Fan in Search of Hope: Trammell had a really nice first half followed by a pretty ordinary second with more Ks and lower power numbers. Any reason to think he wont reach that above avg regular/occasional all-star?
Keith Law: I’m not terribly worried. High IQ player with a good mix of skills and tools, including bat speed.

Anthony: What did you make of Lucchesi’s season? Any reason to think his weird repertoire can work long-term as a starter?
Keith Law: Back-end starter. Dude repeats his delivery like a machine. That’ll make it tough for hitters even seeing him twice through.

Mac: Do you think Maikel Franco would be a good change of scenery target?
Keith Law: Yes. His year has been better than the WAR would imply – he’s had some better results at the plate, and the guy is strong AF, so if he just continues to make better decisions at the plate, he’s going to accidentally slug .480 or so.

Jack: Genuinely curious to hear your opinion on the deadspin Jace Fry story: It’s obvious that Addison Russell should be disciplined for his actions, but where would you land on MLB discipline for somebody like Fry, whose transgressions seem to be constantly cheating on his wife and potentially giving her an STD from it?
Keith Law: Giving someone an STD intentionally or recklessly is a crime in some states. If he’s committed such a crime, then MLB *might* have cause to act, but I also think the union would argue it’s not covered anywhere in existing policies like domestic violence is.

Erin: Nats should let Harper walk, and play a Soto-Robles-Eaton OF next year right? (Then use the savings to lock up Rendon long term and address pitching, 2b, and C? )
Keith Law: I think that’s the right strategy – they can better use that money to fill other spots because the difference between Harper and Robles next year will not be as much as Harper will cost in free agency.

Jim: You play guitar exactly the way I would expect a baseball writer to play.
Keith Law: I’m sure I play it better than you do, sparky.

Josh: Hi Keith, can you give me your quick thoughts on DBax Blaze Alexander, Kristian Robinson and Geraldo Perdomo? Are they good prospects?
Keith Law: Robinson certainly is. Alexander is very TBD for me – great summer after a lot of spring reports that he couldn’t hit.

Mac: Do you think Quinn Priester will be on your spring hit list?
Keith Law: On my long list, so to speak, yes. Depends on lots of things like weather and how well these kids play when their seasons start (and thus if scouts tell me I do/don’t have to see someone).

Jim: Maybe if you cut back on the pizza you wouldn’t be a bloated fat loser.
Keith Law: Yeah, I’m many things, short among them, perhaps a loser, but fat I am not.

Monty: Do you think America is the greatest country in the world? I’ve been raised with all of that rah rah stuff and yes we have so many great qualities, but from guns to medicine to academics to the shit show in DC, so much logical evidence says no.
Keith Law: I’ve never believed that, nor do I believe it is important or patriotic to believe it. I’d rather see the country for what it is, good and bad, and advocate for change where I think it’s needed.

Guest: Always been a big fan of Gibby. What are the chances he lands another manager job in the MLB? Is Texas a realistic possibility?
Keith Law: He was a good tactical manager and handler of players, and if he was forced out – I haven’t heard anything on that situation – that’s not great, Bob. I’d love to see him get another chance but I don’t know if that’s realistic.

Ridley Kemp: If you didn’t see the thread on the official Steak-umm twitter account last night, it’s worth checking out. Also, we live in really strange times when the Steak-umm twitter account is a source of empathy and hard truths.
Keith Law: It was tremendous. At first I was wondering if they were hacked but I guess they just do real talk on their feed.

JT: Has their ever been a year during which Trout wasn’t the deserving, rightful AL MVP? Can you think of another baseball player whose career was similar–even A-Rod wasn’t clearly the MVP every single year, right?
Keith Law: Bonds had that stretch – I know, I know – where no one could touch him, but he wasn’t that way every year from the start of his career.

Scott: Sale was productive last night despite a severe down-tick in velo (also, it was against the Orioles, so large grain of salt). Can that work in the playoffs, or do the Sox need to be sit him for fear of injury?
Keith Law: You have to start him, right? Their odds of advancing are higher if he starts once per series.

JR: Wasn’t Addison Russell already previously suspended for domestic violence? Are these new allegations or is his ex-wife just sharing new details about past abuse? Either way, can he just be DFA’d and go away?
Keith Law: He was never suspended the first time, and the investigation was still open, pending his ex-wife talking to MLB and perhaps additional information.

John: Biggest self own so far is Hatch calling Dr. Ford attractive in a press gaggle. Bets on “What were you wearing?” as a question if he hadn’t surrendered his time to Mitchell?
Keith Law: Calling a rape or sexual assault victim “attractive” is perfectly fine if in your head it’s still 1947.

James: Pollock and Corbin are now free agents so I think the Dbacks should trade Goldy and start the rebuild. What you say Klaw ?
Keith Law: Are they really non-competitive without those two? The division is tough but I don’t think they’re out of it without Pollock. Corbin is the bigger loss. If they do rebuild, Greinke is the first name I’d trade. But I’m not giving up on them even if they lose both free agents. Core is still good enough to make them a 90-win team.

Frank: I know you’re a big fan of board games but do you play any computer games? If so, have you played Out of the Park Baseball (a management sim)?
Keith Law: Very few computer games, just because of time. OotP is excellent but way too time-consuming for me.

Joe: If you’re the Braves: Newcomb or Teheran for game 4? Do you just go with one of them and have Touki ready to go at a moments notice?
Keith Law: Or start Touki and expect him to go twice through the order.

Jax: So Conforto’s been on a terror the past several weeks. He should have a big 2019, no?
Keith Law: I hope so. Love watching him hit, been a big believer in him since the Mets took him.

Mick: Thoughts Kyle Wright vs Gore?
Keith Law: Mackenzie Gore? Better in just about every respect other than FB velocity.

addoeh: There were many reasons to reject Gorsuch’s SC confirmation, but none of them were due to a history of sexual assault like for Kavanaugh. So these fears that anyone and everyone will start to make them up going forward are way overblown.
Keith Law: Right – look at how many people with questionable or minority views on topics sailed through the Senate under this Administration without four women coming out and accusing them of sex crimes.

AGirlHasNoName: I know this is wrong, but I am not angry with you about not having Baez as your MVP. I don’t think you hate the Cubs. I can see why DeGrom has been better. I hope it’s ok that I still think Javy is more fun to root for than anyone and as such I am giving him my fake vote for MFP, an award MLB desperately needs more qualified candidates to compete for.
Keith Law: I’ve said that Baez is my favorite player to watch right now, so no, nothing wrong with that. The tagging, the swagger, the pop-up slide, the enthusiasm – give me 25 more of him across baseball. And let’s stop trying to beat that energy and willingness to display it out of players while they’re young.

Andrew: Should I still be optimistic heading into the offseason that Josh Bell is the immediate answer at 1B for the Pirates?
Keith Law: I’ve asked this question before but don’t have an answer: Why do the Pirates’ young hitters not hit for power in games? Just about every one of their recent hitting prospects back to Polanco’s arrival has hit for less power in the majors than expected in an era where even guys without much power hit 11-20 homers and guys who might have had average raw hit 30+. Bad luck? Coincidence? Are they pushing contact over loft?

Chris: I’m getting really excited about Touki Toussaint after watching him pitch a few times. Walks are high, yeah, but his stuff is unreal. Any reason for me to tap the brakes on my Touki hype train?
Keith Law: Nah, he’s super athletic and his delivery works, so I believe he’ll continue to improve his control and command in a way that I didn’t (don’t) believe Newcomb will.

Doug: I know the draft class is not good, but should I still root for the Padres to be swept so they can try for the 3rd pick?
Keith Law: More money is always better in this draft system.

Mike: What’s the best BlueJays can hope from David Paulino?
Keith Law: High-end reliever. Not sure he gets to that.

Chris: Now that he’s lined up to pitch Sun (and not the WC game), would Sevy be the first guy out of the pen in the WC if it’s before 5th inn, knowing that means neither he nor the starter could pitch until Game 3 of ALDS?
Keith Law: Yeah, because you have to win that game, but it really hurts them in the DS if they have to do it.

Patrick: As a person who lives with anxiety, does it drive you nuts when a sufferer is questioned as to why they aren’t ALWAYS anxiety laden?
Keith Law: People who don’t have anxiety are welcome to ask me about it. They are not welcome to tell me how I should feel, or ask why I don’t do X given that I have it, or to mock it when they wouldn’t mock someone with diabetes or MS or another medical condition.

David: To me, the most disappointing aspect of the Brett Kavanaugh fiasco, is that people are fighting for the win, rather than fighting to find out the truth.
Keith Law: I’d like to agree, but 1) discerning truth beyond a reasonable doubt for something that happened 30 years ago is difficult if not impossible, and 2) the relevant base rate here is that false reports of sexual assault are extremely rare. We probably know the truth. 51 Senators just don’t like it.

Todd: Has Severino regressed due to a lack of confidence in Sanchez catching? Or is it more than that?
Keith Law: He hasn’t looked right to me at all in the second half. Fastball command way down. Fastball and slider both a little worse.

Scott: Learn anything new on the guitar lately? I was impressed with your periscope performance.
Keith Law: Thank you. I try to do a new song or two a day. Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns was one from earlier this week (it’s just a few chords, the intro is the only tricky part) so I made it my intro quote.

Tony O: Everyone is looking for the latest market inefficiency. First it was D and OBP and lately fly ball hitters. Could high contact, low launch angle hitters be the next trend, along with fast position versatile players?
Keith Law: I believe teams have already explored that to some extent. If your speed/athleticism isn’t elite, though, it’s probably not enough of an efficiency – unless MLB changes the baseball and tweaks the strike zone.

Owen: Hi, Keith! If you are the Nationals and legitimately interested in keeping Bryce Harper (it’s hard to tell, but I think they are?), do you help relieve the glut of outfielders by using either Harper or Soto (preferably the latter as he is the worse fielder) as your first baseman next year against tough righties and during the inevitable Zimmerman DL stint, then move one of them there full-time after Zim’s contract is up next winter? That would be a way to maximize ABs for all the OF talent, am I right?
Keith Law: If they re-sign Harper, they should explore trading Robles or Eaton. Moving any of those guys to 1b is a waste of their value and they do have Zimmerman in the way.

David: After the severity of the shoulder injury, would it be shocking if Julio Urias was able to carve out a solid career as a SP?
Keith Law: The base rate here is based on a small sample but it is zero – no pitcher has had that surgery and had any kind of solid career as a starter.

Darren: I always find myself wanting more with the Beyond meat burgers too, they need multiple sizes. I usually cook 1 extra for the family and it usually is split.
Keith Law: Glad it’s not just me.

Abe: Hi Keith – Always been a big fan of yours. I’m sure you’ve addressed this before, but is there any reason why you started doing your chats here and not ESPN (which was well before ESPN moved away from them all together)? Just curious to know!
Keith Law: That’s not accurate – I moved here when ESPN spiked their chats.

Scooter: How would you evaluate Gabe Kapler’s first season as an MLB manager? Think there is anything to the rumblings that free agents may not want to play for him?
Keith Law: I think he did a great job and it’s reflected in the standings and in the way several young players improved this year. I don’t believe those rumblings at all.

Greg: Curious how the Sale Snell debate compares to the Carpenter Vasquez voting in 2009
Keith Law: I’m triggered.

Grant: Do you expect all 30 teams to be represented at the Mesa brothers’ workout in Miami next month, considering VVM’s upside isn’t considered to be that of those such as Moncada, Lazarito, etc.?
Keith Law: There’s no reason for a team to skip it. Go see what they are, and if you don’t sign him, you still have information that might be useful later on.

Lemming: You want to go to Amsterdam… have you ever smoked? Would you consume if it was legal? Do you know of any benefits it would have for anxiety?
Keith Law: Never smoked weed or consumed it (or CBD) in any form. No objection to folks who want to. I asked Kathy Jennings, the Delaware candidate for Attorney General, for her view on decriminalization of marijuana possession and was pleased to hear her say she supported it as part of a larger criminal justice reform package.

Matt: A woman went up to Lindsay Graham and told him she had been raped when she was younger. He just shrugged and said “Go tell the cops.” How on earth do these monsters get voted into important jobs?
Keith Law: I mistakenly thought in 2016 that he was a relative voice of reason in that party. He has proven me more wrong than I was on Sale and Goldschmidt combined.

DuffMann: A few days ago I saw you post your appreciation of Evolution’s Lot No. 3 on Twitter. When you’re traveling around the country and decide to have a beer are you usually an IPA guy?
Keith Law: I’m not. That is my favorite IPA though.

Jace: Surprised at how well Ohtani has hit? I thought you said he wasn’t a MLB ready bat
Keith Law: In half a season of judicious usage. I’m more surprised how often I see him get pitches out over the plate, since he’s got such a weakness inside (and a 30% K rate).

Steve: Looks like Duquette is going, Buck is staying. Thoughts?
Keith Law: Keeping Showalter, given their problems developing pitching under his watch, and thus saying the new GM doesn’t get to pick his manager, would be a big concern if I were an O’s fan.

Lumin: BP has Trout ahead of Betts in WARP, so a Trout vote is by no means wrong. However, that difference is not explained defensively – all 3 sites say that Betts has been roughly 1 win better in the field.

But I found your reasoning for putting Trout over Betts interesting, and it’s basically that KLawWAR is constructed differently than bWAR or fWAR, right? With high skepticism of current defensive quantification and high emphasis on TAv (true average)?
Keith Law: I try not to be too slavish to any single WAR because they all impart useful information, and some of the component stats (like defensive metrics) are still a little noisy. I don’t use the BP stats, though.

Kevin: Believer in Marquez? Should Colorado lock him up? Reminds me of the second half Arrieta had a few years ago
Keith Law: His year has been outstanding. I think he’s going to still have trouble with LHB and if he has a bad-luck year in that regard he’s going to lose a lot of value quickly.

Tracy: The Name of the Rose vs. The Hound of the Baskervilles. Go.
Keith Law: I’m in the tank for Sherlock Holmes. Sorry.

Skip: Any chance that Renato Nunez could be the long term answer at 3B for the Orioles? Defense was a real question mark but he’s looked pretty good there since he’s started playing every day.
Keith Law: Seen him a lot as a prospect and he was never close to playable at third for me.

Joshua: Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns is a masterpiece. And yes, the chat has now ended.
Keith Law: Let us go in peace to love and serve the WAR. Thank you all for all of your questions, as always. I’ll chat next week as well, likely Thursday again. Enjoy this final weekend and let’s hope we get a game 163 on Monday.