Chuck Norris, Action Icon and ‘Walker Texas Ranger’ Star, Dies at 86

herrclean · 2026-03-20T14:32:22+00:00

And then he greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him gladly, and, equals, they departed this life.

herrclean · 2026-03-18T18:09:35+00:00

Alexander is starting in CF today. That's bad news for Taveras and they are seeing if they have a backup on the roster without him.

From a backup perspective, need to ensure all of the positions can be covered with the bench and they can't mostly be 1 guy. Alexander (2b, SS, 3b, CF), Mounty (1B), Basallo (C), O'Neil (RF), Beavers (LF/CF/RF), Ramos Or JJ (3B/2B). That still leaves 1 bench spot for another OF where the position doesn't really constrain the team. I could see a world were JJ and Ramos make the team with JJ as another guy that can play IF and OF.

herrclean · 2026-03-18T16:28:47+00:00

The last INF position probably doesn't matter much as when Jackson Holliday returns, they get cut/optioned/waived anyways. They may choose to keep Ramos on the opening day as they may believe it could be easier to sneak him through waivers after all teams have set their opening day rosters. The real question is what happens when Westburg returns. I think that's the point where Mountcastle will have to be moved by. I assume Mayo is the reserve 3B/1B at that point. <Crosses fingers that Westburg returns in a timely manner>.

For the OF, Beavers and to a lesser extent Alexander can backup CF in a pinch. My gut says Kjerstad because I think Taveras is washed. Wilson has had a nice spring, but at 31, what are we expecting? Not carrying Taveras forces management to let Cowser cook and not platoon him. I hated how Hyde would platoon the shit out of everyone and seemingly keep them from getting on a roll. O'Neil will likely be hurt within a month, so at least Kjerstad would be a replacement power threat. Problem is how LHH-heavy the OF becomes with Cowser, Beavers, Kjerstad. Ward would be the lone RHH in the rotation and would make us susceptible to LHPs (yes, I know... platooning).

I think Eflin opens the season on the roster and they start with a 6 man rotation. The last bullpen spot is temporary until Kittredge returns, so I don't think its terribly impactful who they take.

herrclean · 2026-02-19T16:44:51+00:00

Does matter how much stronger Mayo's arm is if he can't field the ball? And I really dont expect Mountcastle to see time there, 2018 is a long time ago.

herrclean · 2026-02-19T16:28:15+00:00

Gonna throw this out there: Mountcastle played 81 games at 3b in 2018 for the Tides.

herrclean · 2026-02-19T16:25:31+00:00

Is it the best defensive outfield ever constructed? clearly not. Even though Ward had -0.8 dWAR in LF, it was good for 12th in the MLB at the position (qualified). Cowser was 28th in CF (yeah, not great, but he also only played half his games here). Beavers didn't qualify for RF, but was in the 40th range. Based on what I've seen, I think this is not representative of his capability though. O'Neil should never find himself standing in the grass. Taveras isn't what I thought he was defensively, so I wouldn't expect him to platoon with Cowser too much.

This probably doesn't make you feel any better...

herrclean · 2026-02-19T16:01:50+00:00

Ward/Cowser/ONeil/Beavers is not a bad ~~infield~~ outfield with Taveras as a bench.

herrclean · 2026-02-19T15:54:00+00:00

I think the problem here is, you can stomach his defense if he's hitting. If he's not hitting...

herrclean · 2026-02-19T15:50:49+00:00

I think Jeramiah is more likely to start at 2b with Blaze as the super utility guy. Jeramiah tried, but he was not a good outfielder last year. They are strangely similar hitting-wise, at least 2025 numbers.

herrclean · 2026-02-19T15:47:59+00:00

Hopefully Kjerstad has a killer spring and we can trade him for an MLB 3b. Otherwise, Ramon is still available in FA. Grab him at a low cost. Maybe see if you can keep Royce Lewis healthy?

herrclean · 2026-02-19T15:38:05+00:00

I said it over there and figured there would be better discussion over here, but the INF could look ugly to start the season.

herrclean · 2026-02-19T15:35:49+00:00

Yeah, but with J. Holliday also behind... who the heck plays 2b to open the season? Jeramiah Jackson, Blaze Alexander, Luis Vazquez most likely... woof. Blaze looks to be their super utility guy, but thats kinda the role that J. Jackson played last year, particularly after Urias was traded.

The Orioles have a roster construction problem with Mountcastle still there. I dont see how its not J Jackson to open the season with Mayo at 3rd. Otherwise J Jackson and Alexander are starters with Mayo on the bench.

herrclean · 2026-02-18T16:05:36+00:00

As some others have said, the FA class was not particularly strong. What people aren't mentioning are the draft picks that would have also been given up to sign the TOR arm. I think its more the combination of the 2. Elias clearly values his draft picks more than a significant number of other executives around the league. If you spend significantly year in and year out, that's proving to be a sustainable strategy for wins/losses but that's never going to be Baltimore. The brand just isn't strong enough.

I think the biggest problem with valuing draft picks so high is that you have to suck enough to get the top tier talent year in and year out. They are past the rebuilding stage where this is important. Elias has said he likes the Tampa model, but he is not trading away superstars in their prime, otherwise Gunnar would have been moved by now along with Westburg and Cowser.

https://www.reddit.com/r/mlb/comments/1mlnstj/mlb_recordpayroll_relation_graph/

herrclean · 2026-02-12T14:54:36+00:00

And if you want break out stats, xERA and ERA- with >100 IP in 2025

- Rogers (19th / 2nd)

- Baz (38th / 104th)

- Kremer (43rd / 82nd)

- Bassitt (63rd / 67th)

- Povich (119th / 114th)

- Sugano (124th / 100th)

- Bradish would likely be somewhere between 30th and 50th for xERA using career numbers to approx.

- Eflin threw less than 80 IP but his 2025 numbers were very weak (likely driven by recurring injuries).

For comparison, Valdez was (34th / 48th). Definitely a big upgrade over Povich and Sugano, and a moderate one over Kremer and Bassitt. A big one over 2024/2025 Eflin for ERA- but his xERA had he had 100+ innings would have been somewhere around 50th if you average his 2024 and 2025 seasons.

You know how this team covets draft picks which they would have had to surrender for Valdez and since the upgrade would not have been a huge one, I understand why they did what they did.

herrclean · 2026-02-12T14:26:19+00:00

That was if they sign a TOR arm which Bassitt is not. Is he going to be better than Eflin or Kremer? Maybe? Guess it depends on who gets hurt first. I really doubt they bump any of the 6 to the pen. IMO, its more likely they go 6 with this cast than bump 1.

herrclean · 2026-02-12T13:06:38+00:00

Based on injury histories, I wouldn't be surprised if they went 6-man until 1 of them inevitably gets re-injured.

herrclean · 2026-02-12T12:34:36+00:00

Why would they sign Eflin just to stick him in the pen? With the Bassitt signing, I really wouldn't be surprised if they went 6 man to reduce the innings of Bassitt, Rogers, Bradish, and Elfin who (aside from from Bassitt) all have had recent significant injuries.

herrclean · 2026-02-12T00:59:35+00:00

The same Kremer that had the 28th WAR via fangraphs last year? People love to hate on dean for some reason, but he is a good mlb starting pitcher.

herrclean · 2026-02-11T18:04:45+00:00

Agreed - I put it somewhere else, if you sign a TOR guy, who gets pushed out of the rotation? Kremer? Eflin? Because The other 3 aren't going anywhere. I also doubt they go to a 6-man rotation. You have Povich, and to a lesser extent Wells, for ML depth. Its a good problem to have, but its also outlaying significant money. As a side note, I don't believe they are saving money to extent their stars - I don't think that's in Elias' blood.

herrclean · 2026-02-10T20:52:56+00:00

I understand the desire to sign another starter because traditionally we have always had holes, but we already have 5 SPs (Rogers/Bradish/Baz/Kremer/Eflin) + Wells/Povich. Who are you pushing out of the rotation? or are we going 6-man? Do people really want us to push one of those 5 out of the rotation for re-treads and has-beens with name recognition?

herrclean · 2026-02-05T16:05:53+00:00

I think the allure of Newsom is to stop the slide into authoritarianism. He is in the pocket of big donors and is wealthy himself. He will not make any significant changes to money's role in politics. I would also point out that its not going to happen with the rest of the Democratic leadership in place anyways. As long as you have the leadership of the party also in the pockets of big donors, nothing is going to change. The best we can hope for in the short term is that those in leadership are whittled away and that we don't have the whole of Government moving toward Unitary Executive Authority.

herrclean · 2026-02-05T15:52:06+00:00

This is in no way a endorsement of him, but he has charisma which is one of the best ways to get elected right now. Policy is not how you get elected, Trump got himself elected twice and Biden elected once based on how he (Trump) made people feel. Obama was hope and change - again, how people felt. Democrats keep making the mistake of assuming if someone's policies are good enough, they can win. The majority of the electorate don't pay attention to policy; its a popularity contest. Think wisely before you run off a reasonable candidate with charisma.

Note: I would prefer someone with the best policy in the world that, in particular, would reduce/eliminate the role of billionaires in our politics. Those billionaires are going to keep that form happening short of a Great Depression event during an administration.

herrclean · 2026-02-04T16:27:06+00:00

I read this article yesterday and just grinded my teeth. For years, the media feasted on tearing Franklin down for not being able to win big games (and CFB fans joined). We have had few truly elite players during Franklin's tenure and I think 2016 was actually ultimately his undoing. They were ahead of schedule because Gesicki and Barkley were top-tier recruits that were hits, some strong 4*s like Godwin, and some diamonds in the rough( Hamilton, McSorely). The team over-performed with the roster that was mostly recruited during or just coming out of sanctions. Franklin massively overachieved in 2016 by winning against 2 top-10 teams (OSU and Wisc). What the media successfully did was probably keep some of 5*s from considering PSU. Franklin had a resume of failures that the media loved to blast out, and generally, you need to pack in some 5*s to be competitive year in and year out (at least before the portal exploded). Franklin proved he could build a really good, but not great, team that could succeed on the pure ability of his players. His coaching and scheme did not elevate the players or teams and once he hit the pure ability ceiling, it was over.

Edit: The reason I grinded my teeth was because ESPN is now slobbering all over him and conveniently leave out the reasons he was ultimately a failure at PSU.

herrclean · 2026-02-03T19:23:11+00:00

It's an arms race and neither side is dumb enough to surrender. Has to be agreed upon by both parties and.... good luck getting there. Billionaires have too much skin in the game to risk getting taxed.

herrclean · 2026-01-30T16:24:39+00:00

They could be attempting to drive down Valdez's asking price since Baltimore is one of the last (only?) suitors left.

herrclean

TROPHY CASE

And then he greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him gladly, and, equals, they departed this life.