Contracts For Imai And Okamoto, And Thoughts On The Pirates And Giants

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss what makes the World Baseball Classic so great, how Hunter Greene's elbow surgery will affect the Reds, if the Braves should address their roster holes by trading for Jarren Duran or signing Lucas Giolito, if Kevin McGonigle could break camp with the Tigers, and young Twins, Mariners and Cardinals pitchers who are turning heads in spring training.

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss Jesús Luzardo's five-year extension with Philadelphia, how the Phillies' outfield will look while Johan Rojas misses time due to a PED suspension, Jurickson Profar's second PED suspension in the past two years, if the Braves have enough depth to get through the season, Zack Littell signing with the Nationals, a trade that sent Kyle Nicolas to the Reds Tyler Callihan to the Pirates, Andrew McCutchen settling for a minor league deal with the Rangers, and whether Jeremy Pena's finger injury makes it less likely for the Astros to trade Issac Paredes.

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss how Max Scherzer fits into the Blue Jays' crowded rotation mix, some ways to increase parity other than a salary cap and floor system, if the Yankees have a tendency of holding on to their prospects for too long, whether Boston's lineup has enough power, if Masataka Yoshida could still get traded, and which players could get a contract extension before the season starts. baseball, MLB, Blue Jays, Yankees, Red Sox, Pirates, Athletics, White Sox, Brewers

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss Pablo Lopez's UCL injury and what it means for the Twins' roster, how the Orioles will deal with injuries to Jordan Westburg and Jackson Holliday, the Guardians signing Rhys Hoskins to a minor league deal and their surprising lack of offensive moves this offseason, Angels owner Arte Moreno's comments about how fans don't care about winning, Chris Sale's extension with the Braves, and the interesting details that led Tony Clark to resign as leader of the MLB Players Association. 

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss Tarik Skubal's landmark arbitration decision, the Tigers signing Framber Valdez and Justin Verlander, the six-player trade between the Red Sox and Brewers that included Caleb Durbin, the Orioles signing Chris Bassitt to a one-year deal, whether Jackson Holliday's hamate surgery will change the team's plans, Arizona re-signing Zac Gallen, some factors that could help the Diamondbacks get better as the season goes on, whether the Braves will make a rotation move on the heels of some pitching injuries, and the initial report that MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark resigned. 

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the surprising news that Twins President Derek Falvey and the team mutually parted ways, the three-team trade that sent Brendon Donovan to the Mariners, prospects and draft picks to the Cardinals, and Ben Williamson to the Rays. Also, Eugenio Suarez signing a one-year deal to return to Cincinnati, what hitters are still available for the Pirates to bring in, the Giants signing Luis Arraez and Harrison Bader, the White Sox taking on the contract of Jordan Hicks to get Boston to throw in a prospect, Jacob Wilson’s extension with the Athletics, and the insurance issues that are keeping some players from participating in the World Baseball Classic. 

MLBTR founder Tim Dierkes joins Darragh McDonald to discuss his recent post on the site and about whether a salary cap could be implemented, the potential of increasing revenue sharing, if deferrals should be limited, and how the players and owners could reach a compromise. Other topics include Cody Bellinger's five-year deal to stay in New York, the possibility of the Yankees trading Jasson Dominguez, the Mets acquiring Freddy Peralta from the Brewers and Luis Robert Jr. from the White Sox, the Rangers trading five prospects for MacKenzie Gore, and what moves the Nationals could make next. 

In the wake of the Dodgers signing Kyle Tucker and the Mets signing Bo Bichette, Steve Adams and Anthony Franco both join Darragh McDonald to discuss whether it will be a new trend for stars to seek out short-term deals and whether a salary cap is the best way to solve baseball's parity issues.They also talk about how Bichette fits on the Mets' roster, whether the team will now trade for outfield help, and how the front office seemingly doesn't care as much about defense as they previously stated. Other topics include the deal that sent Nolan Arenado to the Diamondbacks, whether Brandon Donovan and JoJo Romero could still get traded this offseason, the Red Sox pivoting to Ranger Suarez after Alex Bregman signed elsewhere, and whether Boston will trade for an infielder. 

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the Cubs trading the Marlins for Eduard Cabrera, signing Alex Bregman to a five-year deal, and whether they will now trade Nico Hoerner or Matt Shaw. Other topics include what the Red Sox will do after missing out on Bregman, where Kyle Tucker, Bo Bichette and Cody Bellinger could end up, the $13 million difference in the arbitration numbers filed by the Tigers and Tarik Skubal, what the ramifications will be of that outcome could be, and how the current CBA led Ryan Mountcastle to settle for a team-friendly deal to avoid arbitration.  

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss Tatsuya Imai signing with Houston on a deal with multiple opt outs, Kazuma Okamoto landing a big deal and how he will fit on the Blue Jays' roster, the Pirates signing Ryan O'Hearn and if they will still acquire a huge free agent, and whether the Giants are good enough to compete.