Hot Stove 2023-2024

Good, if its not the Giants then I'm happy it's not the Dodgers either.

Blue Jays calling a presser for 6pm est

I've been monitoring the Toronto and national 24-hour new stations the past hour, and the coverage isn't as intense as you might expect--maybe some reservations about it actually happening, and that we're just a smokescreen for the inevitable L.A. signing.

What the fuck is going on

Can confirm Shohei Ohtani is not en route to Toronto and is home in SoCal @BNightengale on it

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 8, 2023

Exactly what I mean. I got sucked in today, but I generally try to stay clear of all this stuff.

He's such a drama queen, he just needs to make a decision so the rest of the league can get on with business.

Yeah it’s reminiscent of the Correa stuff from last year. Meanwhile…

Tyler O’Neill is being traded to Red Sox

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 8, 2023

He's such a drama queen, he just needs to make a decision so the rest of the league can get on with business.

He's such a drama queen, he just needs to make a decision so the rest of the league can get on with business.

― Bee OK, Friday, December 8, 2023 5:38 PM (six minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

sources close to him have said he's deciding this weekend. he literally hasn't said a word to the press. how is he being a drama queen?

Who is this guy
― mojo dojo casas house (gyac), Friday, December 8, 2023 5:38 PM (seven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

post-hype outfielder, had a pretty great season in 2021. someone in st. louis had to get squeezed out, guess they decided to keep nootbar and carlson over him.

I've seen enough:

Ohtani signs with Oakland.

new face of the Oakland Ballers

Don't say anything or else it will hurt your chances ect

Xxxpost

So basically he is saying because Dave Roberts said something he's not signing with the bums

Blue Jays calling a presser for 6pm est

All we've got is Jeff Blair in a studio, stammering about Twitter.

It’s honestly not his fault

Who is this guy
― mojo dojo casas house (gyac), Friday, December 8, 2023 5:38 PM (seven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

post-hype outfielder, had a pretty great season in 2021. someone in st. louis had to get squeezed out, guess they decided to keep nootbar and carlson over him.

Right-handed hitter barrels the last 3 seasons, min. 500 batted balls pic.twitter.com/OavrH58AoB

— Red Sox Stats (@redsoxstats) December 8, 2023

I've seen enough:

Ohtani signs with Oakland.

Today has been nuts. Tracking some random airplane and diner reservations going viral. Did not expect people to get this into it. Been getting texts all day from friends asking who this guy is and if we’re actually lending him etc

Does Dave Roberts speak Japanese?

He does not

Q. Have to brush up on your Japanese a little?

DAVE ROBERTS: I definitely need to brush up on my Japanese. I'm a momma's boy, self-admitted momma's boy. She's fluent in Japanese. Have to get home cooking and go back to mom and go back to Japanese 101.

Tyler O’Neill is also Canadian

Based on my extensive research (~4 mins of searching Japanese youtube), I can concur he does not. One Japanese reporter addressed him as Dave-san and he bowed a little awkwardly lol.

Also he shared a stage with Shohei at an ASG panel and commented on him pretty much to his face:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqZOyyAp_0w

Speaking of the ASG, Kenley Jansen says Shohei speaks perfect English. He uses his interpreter to make sure he doesn’t misspeak during professional stuff iirc.

Also true of Casey Stengel.

I'd say his translator speaks perfect English, while Shohei is working on it, maybe a 4-500 TOEIC? Kenley speaks like 5-6 languages though so respect to him.

That’s why I trust Kenley when he says it’s perfect. He’d know. Ichiro said in some old interview I watched that although he learned and spoke English - and Spanish - that he was very conscious of misusing English because it would be a huge story at home. So he used an interpreter too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtImIqR5neU

!!!!! Just realized I met Shohei's translator a long time ago when he was a fresh faced Red Sox employee... let me go dig up a picture lol.

You met Ippei? Wow!

I can't find it (my flickr account is now paywalled?). I sat next to him and Hideki Okajima at a sushi bar in SF when the Red Sox were in town to face the A's.

Today has been funny:

https://sports.yahoo.com/shohei-ohtani-free-agency-chaos-reigns-friday-with-flight-trackers-conflicting-reports-232934777.html

Now that Ohtani is delayed, I feel like it means he's going to be a Dodger. Or maybe back to the Angels.

Happy arson judge day to those who observe

As a Giants fan, I'm fine not landing Judge for that amount, Correa was the better choice but too bad about his ankle.

yeah, it's much better to never sign anyone

i don’t mind the tyler o’neill trade, he seems like numbers wise he’s like-for-like with duvall and a better glove but there was something nagging me about it that i couldn’t put my finger on.. and then i realised, he looks like a fuckin yankee

Another good summary of yesterday:

https://www.bleachernation.com/cubs/2023/12/09/obsessive-shohei-ohtani-watch-trying-to-reset-after-a-crazy-day/

Feel quite silly about getting drawn in.

i don’t mind the tyler o’neill trade, he seems like numbers wise he’s like-for-like with duvall and a better glove but there was something nagging me about it that i couldn’t put my finger on.. and then i realised, he looks like a fuckin yankee

Ohtani’s a Dodger. Details to follow, according to his Instagram. He apologised for taking so long!

Fucking hell!

Shohei Ohtani's deal with the Dodgers is for 10 years and $700 million.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 9, 2023

whhhat tf

Got da

Yes, that.

$70m a year is insane for a guy who’s going to be pitching less than half that time. Unless he did agree to learn to play the outfield in that eventuality. I guess we’ll find out at his press conference.

There are no opt-outs in Shohei Ohtani's deal.

— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) December 9, 2023

Anything anybody from Toronto says at this point obviously has an element of sour grapes, so I won't even try to argue that. But in all honesty, I can't imagine paying anyone that kind of money. And Ohtani is 29, with his future as a pitcher unclear. If you can afford it, like L.A. can, I guess it doesn't matter. Toronto could have afforded that kind of money, too,* but as a practical matter--baseball does not feel like it's at the top of the priority list--it would have boxed them in for the next few years.

*Rogers Communication gross profit for the twelve months ending September 30, 2023 was $7.120B, a 45.8% increase year-over-year. Rogers Communication annual gross profit for 2022 was $4.917B, a 4.69% increase from 2021. Rogers Communication annual gross profit for 2021 was $4.697B, a 47.43% decline from 2020.

I think Toronto has to have offered over 600 to get the Dodgers to go to 700. If he hadn’t been injured, I would understand that. 700 not knowing how he might pitch again for how long…it’s a lot.

That's the thing that really gives me pause, the injury. His age, too. There's a decent chance L.A. is really paying for two of the greatest seasons ever more than what he'll do from here. I'm sure he'll do very well, but going by this piece, he'd have to compile 100 WAR over the life of the contract, 10.0 a season, to break even...but I know that's a simplification of his real value, etc., etc. So who knows.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10063324-inside-the-rising-cost-of-winning-in-mlb-free-agency

Ohtani deal with Dodgers, per source, includes “unprecedented” deferrals - the majority of his salary. The deferrals were Ohtani’s idea to ease the Dodgers’ luxury-tax and cash flow burdens to give the team the flexibility needs to be as competitive as possible, the source said.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 9, 2023

That contract is insane. Ohtani is great but...that's insane.

Breaking my ilxor break to say: wtf????????????????