Keith Law: My friends are saying, “Shut up, Keith, just g?t in the car.” Klawchat.
Barbeach: Thanks as always for the Klawchat. I can’t see how the Yankees can consider promoting Spencer Jobes to majors given his triple A strike out rate. And I don’t understand why Jasson Dominguez isn’t getting more of a chance given his left handed OPS and good batting eye. Thoughts?
Keith Law: I agree completely on Jones, who was awful after that initial hot streak in AAA, when pitchers made a pretty clear adjustment. I didn’t put him on my midseason top 60, because I’m not a fucking goldfish, but a few commenters were aghast because at that moment Jones was homering every other game or something. From that date (7/27) to the end of the season, he struck out 41% of the time. Not sure how you can put that in the majors. As for Dominguez, I think they need to return him to CF. Playing left isn’t working out for him or the team, and maybe it’s carrying over to the plate?
Jon: Keith, was wondering if you had tried any of the new Stonemaier Games games this year, specifically Vantage. Never has seemed as though their games have been your bailiwick.
Keith Law: My review of Vantage went up yesterday. I didn’t like it. I did like Tapestry, Pendulum, and the Wingspan family of games, all of which are from Stonemaier, and I liked Expeditions enough in my one play of it. Never been a big Scythe fan.
JoeRo: Hi Keith. Look forward to your chats. Have you read any books by Edward Ashton? Mickey 17 was such a disappointment, very different from the novel, which was really funny and original. How about David Wong/Jason Pargin? Enjoyed his latest- I’m Starting To Worry About This Black Box Of Doom.
Keith Law: I’ve never read any of those authors, or seen Mickey 17 just because the reviews were pretty tepid.
davealden53: Chase Petty had an abysmal 2025 in both MiLB and MLB (small sample), but expectations seem to remain fairly high. How are those reconciled? Bad luck or growing pains?
Keith Law: Whose expectations remain high? Reds fans’? I had him as a fourth starter coming into the year, but you can’t be a sinker/slider guy with 45 control and 40 command, and now we’re back to concerns that he’s got too much effort in the delivery to last as a starter.
davealden53: In recent chats, you’ve responded to my questions about the impacts of reducing pitching staffs to 12 arms. Thank you for that. One final question: How much do you think runs per game would increase with 12-man staffs? You seem to think the increase will be fairly small and I fear something larger.
Keith Law: I’d just be pulling a number out of the air. I have no basis for an estimate here.
Guest: Thoughts on Braden Montgomery AFL seasons and prospects for next year?
Keith Law: Didn’t see him in the AFL – he was rehabbing a hamstring injury, I believe.
davealden53: What a remarkable four innings in Game 3 from Will Klein! Fluke or does he have a future?
Keith Law: He’s never thrown strikes consistently enough to have the kind of future you might be envisioning. It’s high-leverage stuff, and if he has a Kimbrel-like leap in control, he’ll be an elite closer or setup type. Very low odds of this happening.
Michael: I asked a question poorly to you about buy low candidates. I know a player like Hunter Brown wasn’t a free agent last year, but you could have gotten him on the (relatively) cheap in a trade. Same for someone like Maikel Garcia. Any thoughts on who might be an attainable future 4-6 WAR player that hasn’t broken out yet? Is Jo Adell finally ready?
Keith Law: I don’t believe for a second that you could have gotten Hunter Brown cheaply a year ago. Less certain on Maikel, but teams don’t let those guys go very easily.
Michael: Do most people not actually have real beliefs? For years I heard about the elite having a secret sex trafficking ring and QANON was a real thing. Now we discover elites did have a sex trafficking ring, they weren’t secret about it and people who claim to care about kids and sex trafficking are mostly yawning because their side is implicated. I’m liberal, but fuck Bill Clinton if he’s involved in this or anyone else too. Blows my mind that there isn’t universal calls to arrest all of these people.
Keith Law: Completely agree. Larry Summers was President of my alma mater and still works there at the Kennedy School. I have already emailed them as an alum to ask what the hell they’re doing with this guy still on staff. Someone asked on Bluesky if people would feel the same if Obama were in the files and … yeah, of course. No one is above the law, or basic morality.
DC51stState: Hi Keith—Baseball question, about two guys who rocketed through the minors. Jac Caglianone and Cam Smith (especially) were promoted so quickly that it wasn’t always clear to me how to evaluate them or set expectations, since their spring training/minor league performance seemed to outpace their rankings before midseason rankings could consider their overperformance. What are your expectations for those two players? Would you be willing to fit in an assessment of a guy like Cam Smith (maybe 2026’s JJ Weatherholt) in May/June if that guy does break camp with the major league club and doesn’t look back? I respect your opinion and experience a great deal so those assessments would be interesting to me.
Keith Law: I read this twice and I don’t understand the second question. On the first, I think Smith can take his first half from 2025 and hold that for a full season; he seemed to tire from the long season. (I can’t believe Dana Brown said Smith might start next year in triple A. Absolutely not. That’s malpractice.) Caglianone wasn’t ready for the majors when he came up, and it showed pretty quickly – his issues staying in the zone have been there since he was a college sophomore – but I buy the bat in the long run, for hit and power.
Michael: Is 4 WAR from a pitcher the same as 4 WAR from a hitter?
Keith Law: In the sense that both added four wins’ worth of value from their production relative to replacement level, yes.
Alec: What does a Mackenzie Gore trade package look like? I cant imagine as high as Crochet given he’s a boras guy and wont extend probably. Maybe one top 100 guy and 2 40+ FV dart throws?
Keith Law: Extensions should not be a factor in a trade – you are only acquiring the option to extend him, which is worth somewhere between nothing (my personal view) and a tiny fraction of the player’s value beyond his free agency date. I would expect him to return more than you say, because starting pitching is always so scarce in the offseason, and the top of the FA pitching market isn’t much better than Gore.
Michael: In the last few months we’ve watched Gavin and Stacey, The Inbetweeners, and Such Brave Girls. All three are better than any network comedy I’ve ever seen in the US. Any others you like?
Keith Law: I thought Derry Girls was brilliant. Helps a little that I grew up Catholic, I suppose.
Ken N.: Do you think Jasson Dominguez could be an above average starter for the Yankees if they give him regular playing time? Can he still play center field? Thank you.
Keith Law: Yes, and I don’t see why he couldn’t.
Ray Crittenden: I feel like Bichette to Boston is a really good fit that isn’t being discussed as much. With his age and the contract estimates being thrown out there, it just seems like a solid match, especially with Boston’s remaining infield prospects being further away.
Keith Law: If you’re saying to play 2b, then yes, it’s a good fit.
Pat: Connelly Early vs Payton Tolle – who, if either, starts the year on the mlb roster? And what do the sox do about the glut of back-end types like Crawford, Fitts, Harrison, etc.
Keith Law: I’m higher on Tolle, whose stuff just kept getting better as the season went on, assuming he can hold that velocity without injury.
Keith Law: Fitts is a 5th starter at most. Harrison needs a proper breaking pitch, even if it’s a cutter, which the Giants did try with him but without success.
The Rat King: So much talk about the Red Sox trading for a pitcher – of all the names bandied about, who would you personally push the hardest for? Or would you prefer to just go the FA route?
Keith Law: Why not try both? They have the prospect depth to acquire just about anyone, but if the prices are too high, they certainly have the cash to pay any free agent too.
Biffer: This may be a silly question because human beings are human beings and biases are impossible to avoid, but do you think there’s a bias in prospect analysis? By that I mean do you think that certain teams have players who are propped up because of the team they’re with and vice versa? This isn’t so much about the elite guys, but the fringe top-100 types and even guys in the middle of a team’s top 30.
Keith Law: I know there are biases within my rankings and writings, but I do not believe I have that particular one, primarily because a prospect can change teams at any time. Rating a guy higher because he’s with the Dodgers or Brewers (two very strong development orgs) could look ridiculous if he’s traded in July to a poor developing org.
Chris: Hi Keith! This will be my first year cooking a thanksgiving turkey and I want to go the spatchcock route. I did a search on your site and found a 2022 Twitter live stream you did, but do you have any go-to recipes or other resources you can share?
Keith Law: Serious Eats is probably the best bet. I don’t use baking powder, just salt, because the baking powder always left a bit of a weird texture on the skin. Also definitely make sure you have at least a cup of water in the sheet pan to prevent the rendered fat from hitting the hot pan and smoking.
Eric: Instead of just sighing and thinking we’re not going to get much baseball in 2027, I’ll ask: What are the odds Tony Clark is still in charge of the MLBPA when the collective bargaining agreement runs out? It’s not usually a good sign when a union leader is under federal investigation.
Keith Law: I have some questions about the timing of all of this. Seems rather convenient that that investigation would pop up on the eve of CBA talks, no?
Guest: Hey Keith…are Angel fans just shit out of luck until Arte sells the team? What a friggen disaster.
Keith Law: Probably.
B: Is it just me or is it odd that the only team in modern history with a sanctioned cheat code (Ohtani taking ABs after being pulled from the mound) keeps winning WS? It’s like if a team took, say, vintage Ronaldo out of the game but could still have him take free kicks and PKs. WTF baseball.
Keith Law: I think it’s just you. That’s not a “sanctioned cheat code.” Any team could do it if they had a player worthy of the role.
John: Where should the Red Sox be playing Kristian Campbell? Not “Worcester vs. Boston”, but what position? He looked extremely clueless at second base last year, and it kind of seemed like his bad defense started to affect other parts of his game. They said he was going to “learn” first base in the minors, but then moved him almost exclusively to the outfield by the middle of August. Outfield is the one place the big league club doesn’t need more bodies. I sense the organization doesn’t actually have a plan — the MLB version of “Obamacare sucks; we’ll dump it, and come up with something better later.”
Keith Law: If he’s in triple A, I’d probably work on his defense at second, where he has the most value, but LF may be the most likely long-term position. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see him moved this winter.
Matt: What would you do with Kevin Alcantara given the Cubs OF depth and the fact that he’s out of options? Trade him, open up room by trading another OF or stick him on the bench for a year knowing Happ and Suzuki are FAs after 2026?
Keith Law: I’m assuming they’ll apply for a fourth option on him. I believe he qualifies.
Crew: Do you think the Dodgers should go into another year of planning to use Rushing as a back up C/fourth OF?
Keith Law: Seems like a poor use of the player.
Josh: Can you explain where teams are really losing money? Because it’s not low level scouts where the cuts get made. It’s like if I owned a restaurant that I told you lost money every year because of food costs and we need to cap staff pay because the head chef makes too much and that’s why the food sucks…so we’re going to fire the dishwasher, but also if you want to buy it, it’s going to cost you $1.5B. I get the salary numbers get all the attention because they easy and tied to individual performance, but the math ain’t mathing.
Keith Law: They’re not losing money. Maybe one or two teams is, but I doubt that, because lower-revenue teams get a big fat socialist check from MLB. They’re just assuming you’re dumb, and the players are dumb, and they get help from some writers who are dumb enough to pass this stuff along uncritically.
Matt: Thoughts on Luis Morales’ debut with Oakland? Is he trending towards being a mid-rotation starter or do you still see a lot of relief risk?
Keith Law: I think you’ve identified his ceiling and floor there. Odds of starting are much higher now than they were a year or two ago. I’d bet on a starter outcome.
Patrick (WI): Thanks for taking time for us once again, Keith. How does a labor stoppage affect MiLB? Are teams shut down from any organized activities, or can they run minor league complexes?
Keith Law: In the past, teams could run their minor league operations for any players not on the 40-man – those were the only union members, and they were the only players who were locked out. In this case, now that minor leaguers are represented by the union (a different bargaining unit within MLBPA, I think), the owners could lock everyone out. I doubt they would but I think that is now possible.
Patrick (WI): Keith, show plans for the holidays/early new year? Being on the East Coast, a lot of the bands you’ve been highlighting have to be touring this winter.
Keith Law: Right now it’s just the Beths. I checked November schedules for the local spots and nobody I was really keen to see was playing.
Aaron C.: Ever ordered a sandwich that you still think about? I had a Korean fried chicken sandwich from a spot here in San Diego earlier this month and I might leave my wife for another.
Keith Law: Absolutely – many I’ve tried to replicate at home. A place I used to go to all the time outside Boston had a chicken cutlet sandwich on scali bread (a very Boston thing) with fresh mozzarella, basil leaves and red pepper flakes. The restaurant is gone but I try to make something similar all the time. I’ve had a few fried chicken sandwiches that would make the cut – Crack Shack & Nocawich come to mind. There’s a place in Charlottesville, I think it’s the Viceroy, that does a vegetarian sandwich with grilled broccoli & other veg + mozzarella that is also superb, and I try to get it any time I’m down there.
Geese: Klaw thanks for the chat…. Would you be against or for a salary cap and floor and would even be possible with the new CBA
Keith Law: I oppose a salary cap, period. It boosts the owners at the expense of the players and will not make a significant difference to parity or to the willingness of cheapass owners to compete.
Aaron C.: In the past, you’ve correctly scouted and assessed green bean casserole for the holiday slop that it is. Any other 20-grade sides to see on Thanksgiving?
Keith Law: I never do mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving. They don’t hold heat well and they don’t reheat well at all.
David: Obviously everyone is talking about the Rockies and their, um, nontraditional approach. Does DePodesta have a realistic shot at fixing this if ownership actually lets him run the show? Or was this hire ten years too late?
Keith Law: I don’t think we know – he’s been gone a long time, and the industry has changed a lot, but I don’t believe he’s completely forgotten baseball or ignored the revolution that’s taken place. I’m very curious to see who he hires – I was told he could only hire 1 or 2 new people – and if he hires some retread or goes for someone ‘new’, not necessarily young but someone who’s likely to have new ideas and complements what Depo brings.
Dee: I was going to ask how you liked the new Tame Impala, but you’ve already answered that!
Keith Law: Loved “Dracula” but I thought the back half of the album dragged badly. Nobody listens to techno, Kevin.
CB: Keith, is it time for some alarms to go off regarding Arjun Nimmala’s performance in the low minors the last two years?
Keith Law: No. He played through some injuries last year, and when healthy was among the best hitters in his league.
Matt: I came for the baseball and stayed for the music updates. Just want to say thanks for continuing to churn out those monthly playlists, I’ve found many of my favorite artists from them so cheers and I’m looking forward to the year-end lists
Keith Law: It’s funny, I only get a few comments on those, but people tell me all the time they found new songs or artists they like because I post those, including some scouts. That’s all the reason I need to keep going.
parlay: Is this the year the Orioles make an impact free agent signing?
Keith Law: Recent history says no. But they really need to.
MagicOriole: Can the Orioles pull a Blue Jays and go from last to World Series?
Keith Law: I don’t see why not, if they add some real pitching.
John Z.: Hi Keith. I know Anthony Volpe was rushed, but his offensive performance has been brutal. He’s still young, I know, but at what point do you consider pulling the plug (and I realize shortstops don’t grow on trees, which is why he’ll probably be their SS this season)?
Keith Law: Way too soon for that, unless they’re going to go acquire an All-Star SS.
Ben: If you were in charge of the Cubs, what would your offseason plan be? Upgrade to the rotation?
Keith Law: I’m not that worried about the rotation if Imanaga accepts the QO, but they are going to lose their second-best hitter from 2025 and none of their top hitting prospects (Ballesteros, Alcantara, Caissie) is going to replace that production right away.
Josh: Given the org is apparently not going anywhere…should the Twins go full tear down now that Bux has said he’s willing to wave his no trade clause.
Keith Law: I wonder how much of this is the ownership situation spinning in circles. Tearing it down isn’t going to help their sale value.
Henry: In thinking about the Dodgers robust baseball ops system, why haven’t other teams replicated their model of hiring as many top professional development staff as they have to support their players? Even if you were a small market team, that would probably be my biggest priority in developing talent.
Keith Law: I don’t understand why more teams haven’t replicated some of their org structure, or just hired away a Galen Carr or an Alex Slater to be a GM and bring their institutional knowledge.
Jason: Should the brewers trade Freddy Peralta or keep him for the 1 year $8m?
Keith Law: Unless they get blown away, I say keep him and compete, just as I said for the Tigers/Skubal.
Guest: What do you think of what the Nats are doing in their front office and MLB coaching staff. Their new President of Baseball Ops is 35, their new manager is 33, their new pitching coach is 30…is experience not as important in today’s game?
Keith Law: Their new manager is 33 and has at least four years of experience managing in the minors. Age <> experience.
Matt: I’m curious if you’ve started digging in on the 2026 draft class at all and what your thoughts are. From an outsider’s perspective it seems like one of the best crops of college position players in years (Cholowsky, Burress, Lebron, Gracia, etc.), but it’s always hard to separate hype from reality this far out.
Keith Law: It may rival the 2023 class for college bats, but the arms I don’t think are at that level and the HS class is very TBD beyond Grady Emerson. Tyler Bell and Eric Becker belong on your list, BTW.
Jason: What is the ceiling for Jesus Made and Luis Pena?
Keith Law: Made’s going to be a superstar. Pena could have an All-Star ceiling.
Darren: Cantillo, Genao, Stephen a good starting point for a Ketel Marte trade?
Keith Law: Is Ketel Marte available in trade? I wasn’t aware of that.
Keith Law: Also, LOL no it is not.
Will: I was a bit surprised by the Dillon Dingler gold glove win. Is he the catcher of our future in Detroit?
Keith Law: Gold Gloves are useless. Just ignore them. I would much rather start Dingler than Rogers, though.
Darren: Did you get a chance to see Espino and/or speak to anyone who did out in the AFL?
Keith Law: He threw one inning while I was out there, and I wasn’t at that game. Velocity was good, shockingly, but it was … one inning.
Jim: The more I read about Munetaka Murakami, I feel like a team is setting themselves up for a massive overpay. Is he a risk worth taking for a contender with a need at corner infield or DH?
Keith Law: Yes, but you have to think/believe you can help him adjust to MLB pitching – not just that it’s better, but that pitchers work differently here (e.g., throwing inside a lot more), and that the approach he used in NPB the last two years to sell out contact for maximum power is not going to work here.
Chris: Hey Keith, thanks for chatting. Do you think the Orioles got overconfident in their ability to improve (‘fix’) their prospects’ swings? From my limited perspective, it seems like they aren’t having much success recently, and it makes some of their draft pick choices look fairly foolish now.
Keith Law: Name one player whose swing they’ve fixed. I will give them partial credit on Gunnar Henderson, who did some himself and some with the team, so I guess let’s say beyond him.
JJ: Is Hurston Waldrep a SP long term with adjustments he made this year or is he still high risk of being only a reliever?
Keith Law: This time last year I was at 100% reliever. Now I’d say better than even chance he can start.
Jason: With the number of OF prospects the Dodgers, should they pursue Kyle Tucker given the term/salary required? Are they better off looking for a 1 to 2 year solution before their prospects are ready?
Keith Law: I know the Dodgers are just linked to every good FA, but I don’t think Tucker is a great investment for them. They do have a ton of OF depth coming, and I’m more concerned about the age of their infield.
Guest: What is the primary factor that most often pushes a prospect from a starting pitcher to reliever? Is it (a)No 3rd pitch so have platoon split or difficulty getting third time through order, (b)Bad command, (c)Injury/durability, (d)Other? Has this changed at all from when you started your career?
Keith Law: All of those things are true. I think (c) has changed a little because of the nature of the injuries we see, but you identified three of the main things I look at when trying to determine if I think a pitcher projects as a starter.
JR: How would you grade the first 5 years of the Mets/Cohen regime? Mets fans were happy to get rid of Wilpons. And there was lots of talk of turning the Mets into the Dodgers of the east. They’ve spent a ton of money and appear operate like a quality organization, but for whatever reason, can’t sustain consistent high level success.
They’ve made the playoffs twice since he took over, and one year was getting bounced in wild card with home field advantage. They haven’t won the division. They had a collapse this year. They were awful to start the season last year before turning it around. They sold at the trade deadline in 2023. Is it bad luck, poor front office personal, identifying the wrong players, playing in a very tough division, or something else?
Keith Law: Eh, I think you’re underselling them a little bit. I do have some concerns – they barely use pro scouting, which is the most pound-foolish thing I can imagine; and they went weirdly cheap when trying to build their rotation this year, which led to them relying on three rookies to save their season – but on the whole this is a much better-run organization than it was when the Wilpons owned it.
DW: What are your thoughts on the 3 “big” Japanese players who have been/will be posted?
Keith Law: They’re all in my top 50 FA rankings.
Chris: Keith, fair to assume you’ll be going to PAX Unplugged again this year?
I think last year was my final one, after going every year. I haven’t been enjoying it the past few years.
Keith Law: I’ll be there. That’s too bad that you haven’t enjoyed it – last year was maybe the best one I’d been to. For just playing new/upcoming games it is unbeatable. I wish it were four days!
Braydon: Not sure how easy this is to answer in hindsight, but what is the biggest rebuild you can remember in your time covering baseball? How closer are the current Rockies to that?
Keith Law: The Astros bottomed out pretty badly around 2012. Not just in terms of W-L, but the farm system was thin, with a lot of guys who didn’t develop much or at all.
Jon: Do you think the quick rise of Trey Yesavage through the Jays system will change approaches to player development? Do you see more pitchers being promoted as quickly or is he a special case?
Keith Law: We’ve seen a lot of guys like him already – Mike Leake, Michael Wacha – who were just super advanced as college pitchers with success at the highest level who were then able to jump to the big leagues in less than 18 months. Skenes too, although he is in his own league.
Darren: How excited should I be getting about Ralphy Velasquez?
Keith Law: Meh.
DS: If you were David Stearns, how would you go about fixing the Mets defense with an eye towards “run prevention”?
Keith Law: How about sliding Vientos to first and installing a capable 3b?
Wally: The annual Boras pun-filled presser is tired, right? Makes him seem doddering.
Keith Law: I’ve known Scott professionally for 20 years, and I can honestly say I think he’s better than that. He’s smart enough for a higher caliber of humor than the bad puns and dated references.
Chris: Do you think it’s time to re-evaluate the number of innings needed for pitchers to be qualified for official individual awards and leaderboards? Last season only 52 pitchers league-wide hit the minimum innings pitched number.
Keith Law: That’s enough pitchers to make it meaningful – and if you drop the threshold you do sever the continuity with MLB history. I wish there was some incentive there for teams to let guys reach the 162 IP number.
Guest: How do you rank Chase Burns, Trey Yesavage and Cam Schlittler?
Keith Law: The same way you did.
Michael: Are the Bluejays not catching enough grief for blowing the World Series? How does Kiner-Falefa, a pinch runner, get thrown out at home? Is that bad coaching that his lead was so short?
Keith Law: I mean, you don’t necessarily lose a playoff series on a single play. If you’re going to criticize Schneider, you have plenty of fodder from the entire series, including a fair bit of small ball, too many TOOTBLANs, and some suboptimal pitching choices.
Billy Ocean: Does Carter Jensen catch 100+ games next year? Power looks real but what’s your scouting on his plate approach?
Keith Law: He’s always had a good approach, going back to low A.
Bret S: Should I care at all about AFL results? If not results can anything happen there that would be notable either way? As a Cardinal fan I’m thinking specifically of Miguel Ugueto.
Keith Law: I would not say you should care, unless a hitter really struggles/shows a specific deficiency there. The pitching is weak overall and the ball carries well, so hitters’ #s are generally inflated.
Moose: You mentioned (on Seattle radio) during the 2025 deadline that you’d have dangled Cole Young in trade talks if you were the Mariners to land a bat — is it something they should still be considering this offseason considering the current holes at 1B/3B/DH, or was there enough/anything to like about his ~225 PA’s last season to think they can feel good about rolling with him at 2B to start 2026?
Keith Law: Yes, I would absolutely shop him. They have MIF coming with higher ceilings.
Jason: What are the odds that we miss games in 2027? Its so annoying to me that people just think its a foregone conclusion. Couldn’t they just start negotiations now??
Keith Law: How often did you start your homework two weeks before it was due?
Jacob: Thoughts on the Rays decision to release Fairbanks?
Keith Law: They didn’t release him.
Guest: After a disappointing season, what is Andrew Painter’s realistic upside? Is TOR still a plausible outcome?
Keith Law: I am worried I’m oversimplifying things here, but I think having him throw the slider so often contributed to the poor results. It’s not as good as his curveball and after a full year of it, maybe it’s time to push it back to fourth in his arsenal and let him go FB-CB-CH.
Guest: What are your expectations for Kyle Teel as a hitter going forward?
Alan: How did AJSS, Waldrep, and Baldwin all exceed industry expectations? Why does Atlanta’s farm system consistently rank in the bottom third of the league?
Keith Law: What you saw in 2025. His path to improvement comes with more reps vs LHP, whom he did not hit a lick last year.
Keith Law: AJSS didn’t, Waldrep was a first-rounder, and everybody had Baldwin as their top prospect coming into the year. What does that have to do with their system rankings, which are about the total talent in the systems rather than one or two guys?
John Z.: Keith, what are you cooking for Thanksgiving?
Keith Law: We haven’t settled on the menu yet but requests from the children include my pumpkin pie (yes) and “no gravy” (no).
Dave: Always love your turkey prep chats, Keith. Will we see one this year?
Keith Law: Planning on it!
Michael: Best food recommendations for NYC?
Keith Law: oh god, that could take me a week.
Moose: What do you make of The Jurrangelo Cijntje Experiment after his first professional season? Should he just transition to being a righty full-time?
Keith Law: Yes, he should.
Matt: Speaking of sandwiches, I believe you are a Smithtown guy. Ever venture to the Se-port deli in Long Island? Amazing sandwiches, especially the Boone!
Keith Law: Smithtown native, but I haven’t been to the Island in ten years.
Jon: Following up on the taters, I’m thinking of fixing Kenji’s Hasselback potato gratin. Ever try it?
Keith Law: I haven’t. Looks great, but that sounds like a lot of work.
Keith Law: Never been a big fan and I thought the latest album was a snooze.
Yuri: +1 to the music lists. I never comment, but listen every month and its one of the highlights of my music month for me every time!
Keith Law: Glad to hear it!
TomS: The tush push is cheating, right Keith? It’s like the lead runner taking out the shortstop three feet off the base in a double play attempt.
Keith Law: LOL. Any team can do it. And it’s not against the rules. How is that cheating?
JH: Do you think Jacob Reimer could be a big league regular at 3b or 1b? Is the bat good enough to be above average at 1b if he has to move there?
Keith Law: Not a 3b.
Darren: When are your org Top 20’s landing?
Keith Law: End of January/early February. Exact date isn’t my decision.
Ken: What do you make of Henry Bolte? He cut his K numbers some this past season.
Keith Law: And they’re still too high.
Woodsy: What are your Mount Rushmore espresso-based drinks? Or are you strictly a purist?
Keith Law: I’m a purist. I usually go with a traditional macchiatto, and a cortado is about as far as I go. When I’m in Italy, though, I’ll do a cappuccino in the morning, because that’s what one does there.
Keith Law: No sweetener, no cocoa or caramel or lavender or chai or tomato paste or whatever you sickos put in there.
Woodsy: Do you believe Mamdani’s win is a sea change toward a more progressive / populist brand of politics for the Dems, or will the old guard need to be gone for that to happen? I don’t know what the answer is to get them back on track nationally, but whatever this style of “leadership” is, it ain’t it.
Keith Law: I think it is. Mamdani is just the latest example of a younger, progressive candidate who has rallied voters in a way that traditional collaborators Democrats have not since Obama. I’m not saying he specifically is the future, but his model is one to emulate.
Keith Law: That’s all for this week – it had been a while since I’d done one of these and for once I had a good window. I’ll try to make them more regular during the offseason. Thanks as always for reading & for all of the questions!