World Series Takeaways, Platinum Gloves and Free Agency Predictions | The Cycle Episode 58

Welcome back to another episode of The Cycle Podcast, the show where we cover four trending MLB topics in 20 minutes or less. We are back for the off season uh episodes every other week going forward. We took a little break after the World Series just, you know, for some free time um in sort of to adjust to the offseason mentality. We've got Caleb Williams joining us today. So, we're going to talk a little Red Sox free agency, of course. Caleb, how you doing today? Feeling great. Drake May looks great today. Oh, did he really? Because I didn't watch any football today. Did he actually look great? No. Three picks. Okay, so a typical uh Drake May game. Um, but this isn't a football podcast. So, without further ado, let's move on to some baseball. Our first topic is going to be just one takeaway from the World Series. We're not going to give a rundown of the whole thing. Um, just our thoughts after letting the series marinate for a while. And for me, it's that the Brewers are the model for a small market to have success. Don't go after the guys who hit 50 home runs. Spend that money on a handful of guys who can get on base with some speed. Um, keep your core together long enough for them all to develop. We're seeing guys like Sal Felic uh and Bryce Tang develop into solid players. Cooper Pratt, of course, Jackson Cheurio, the one guy they signed to a long-term extension from that group. Um the starting pitching good enough, not necessarily a top end rotation, but what they have is a bullpen that can shut almost anybody down from the sixth inning on. So, when you look at on a game-to-ame basis, they're a team who if they can score early, um, pretty much a guaranteed win once you go to that bullpen. Um, of course, the defense, a ton of top tier gloves in the field. Um, Bryce Tank potentially the best defensive player in baseball this year. So the main difference between them and a team like the 20145 Royals or some other small market teams we've seen have success is that the Brewers have been able to sustain it by drafting well and going out and finding guys like DL Hall who fit into their way of playing. Uh DL Hall of of course like Aaron Ashby a converted starter who is significantly more effective out of the bullpen and just top to bottom I look at the roster construction. I look at the way they're coached and I say anybody with a decent baseball mind can do this. Um and it just seems like a lot of the small market teams aren't really that focused on winning. They're focused on putting a a good enough product out on the field that fans will enjoy watching it and not making the jump to a World Series contender. Um Caleb, you have a really solid take though and I want to make sure you have some time for that. Yeah. Um, just basically that the Brewers were so well-rounded that they had multiple guys that had a case for World Series MVP and they're all young guys, homegrown guys. You had Cheerio, you had Contraras, uh, you Pratt, Trang, Freelick, even Christian Yelich, David Hamilton, Garrett Mitchell had some kind of some kind of case. Yeah, they had they had a a moment. They had a big hit and it was it was kind of a big uh come together of of guys that were homegrown with the Brewers organization. And I could see this kind of being almost a almost turning into a dynasty if the Brewers were to sign the right guys, trade for the right guys. U so I I think they have a really interesting core, really interesting group of young guys. Um, I guess you you kind of got to lock up guys that are on the verge of free agency like Contrarus and and uh I forget what Yelich's contract is on, but you've got a chance to really lock down a dynasty almost. Even if these guys aren't like bigname guys, they're just they're just strong guys. They're Yeah, they're strong competitive players. Yeah. Um, and I think we left off Aaron Ashby and Miserowski because Miserowski from his game five performance I think had a legitimate case and Ashby, how many innings did he pitch in the World Series? Um, too many for a normal reliever. I mean, he seemed every single time they needed a guy to shut it down, it was Aaron Ashby coming into the game. And that contribution, yeah, that contribution in a fivegame series can't be ignored when you're talking about who was most valuable in that series. Um, but with that, let's move on to a little bit of our platinum glove discussion. Our second topic is going to be our platinum glove winners. In the NL, you had PCA, the obvious take. I don't know if there's ever been a more obvious platinum glove outside of maybe uh Bobby Whit Jr. from last year. Um, but it's over in the American League that a lot of people are rightfully I'm not going to say upset, but sort of questioning um how a guy like Cody Bellinger, a left fielder, who by the way is a fantastic left fielder wins the Platinum Glove. Um, when you're talking about a guy that plays left field or second base, um, some of the positions that are not as important defensively to win platinum glove, I think you've got to be like Alex Gordon, a guy where you look at all the outfielders and you say he's the best outfielder in baseball. He just happens to play left field. My issue is, of course, that the fan vote, uh, according to the MLB and a lot of sources I've heard, it was the fan vote that swung it in Bellinger's favor. Um, I think Saddon Raphael was the clear platinum glove in the American League. Had Dylan Dingler won it, I'm not going to make a scene. Had Taylor Walls won it, uh, I'm not going to be that upset, even though I think Bobby Whit Jr. is still the better defensive shortstop. I think Cody Bellinger at best is the fifth best defender in the American League this year. Um the issue also you had two Red Sox players who had a case will Breu and Saddan Raphael and when you get to the fan vote you know it's going to get split because Saddan Raphael is the best defender in the American League. Uh will your Breu is a fan favorite in Boston so he stole a lot of the vote from Raphael. I don't think Platinum Glove is a fan vote kind of thing. The All-Star game starters I love the fan vote. let the fans pick who they want to see start the All-Star game. But when it's things like the Platinum Glove that are so analytics driven, um, in your average MLB fan, I don't know if they are able to sort of separate guys like Bellinger from guys like Taylor Walls and Saddan Raphaela. Obviously, Bellinger is the bigger name there, and that probably helped his case when it came to the fan vote. Uh, but Caleb, as a Boston Red Sox fan who also hates the Yankees, um, give me your biased take on the award. See, I want to be unbiased on it, but it's hard not to. Um, Son Raphaela had a 16 field run value, 98 percentile in the league. He had a 99th percentile OA in the league. Um, Cody Bellinger both in both of those stats trailed him. Willard Breu 98 percentile arm a five fielding run value. I Sadon had a better case, but just the fan vote in general is just what gets me going. Like you can't take this award seriously when giving it a fan vote when half of the fans voting probably don't really partake in defensive metrics, especially if it's a Yankees Yankeesheavy vote because I don't I don't think many Yankee fans really care about defensive value because they swear up and down that Derek Jeter is one of the greatest defensive shorts stops ever. So, um, can't take them seriously. Uh, no, but but Sadon Raphaela led led Cody Bellinger in every defensive metric. He was the best or second best center fielder defensively in baseball this year. He was kind of neck andneck with PCA and all the defensive metrics. I I I just can't take this award seriously. like will brau's metrics lacked a little bit compared to Sadon but even he deserved the award more than Cody Bellinger and and Yankee fans are going to come and tell me oh Cody Bellinger can play first base he he deserves that kind of Sedon Raphaela can play gold glove shorts stop if need be he didn't this year Cody Bellinger didn't play gold glove first base this year so I don't know where the argument is there but no it's it's just kind of a hope that that fan voting has anything to do with with an award that is as framed as big as the platinum glove award is. Yeah. And I mean Raphaela obviously plays a much more analyticsheavy position where he does get the favorability of it, but it it's rightfully so. It's a harder position to play, especially when he's playing his games in Fenway Park's sort of jigsaw puzzle center field field, whereas Cody Bellinger is playing left field in what is, you know, being nice here, a minor league stadium. It's a small left field in a small stadium. Um, and it's a team that is built on offense. I don't think they consider defense when they're building their uh their roster. I don't know. It was just a very strange thing. I had him maybe sixth overall in voting. Uh but alas, he is this year's platinum glove. And hopefully the MLB takes away from all of the conversation surrounding this award and what the fan vote did uh in this year in particular. I didn't even know there was fan voting before this year. I don't remember there being fan voting in the past because I would have spammed Bobby Wood Jr. uh every single year that he was eligible. But with that, let's move on to our free agency. Most publications only have one tier one free agent. That's TKO. For our tier one free agent predictions, I want to have at least two. And I think Terra Sodto is a tier one free agent just based on his numbers from the uh Japanese league. Scoo though, most people have him to the Mets. And for purposes of this discussion, we're not going to think about a possible salary cap um from the collective bargaining. We're just going to talk pure free agent needs and position or need positions of need and who can afford them. I don't think the Mets are the best fit for uh Scooble. You said off the podcast how they are not one elite free agent away from being a contender. They are multiple strong free agents away from even being in the conversation to win their division. That team is awful. I have Scooble as the best fit for the Cubs. They're losing Imanaga. They're losing Klay Holmes, who they traded for earlier in the year. And I think with the offense they have and how bad their pitching was last year, they do need a legitimate anchor, a legitimate ace on that team. And Scooble matches that. He is the best pitcher on the free agent market. The Cubs are a major market that can afford to sign a guy of his caliber. Um, and I don't think he is inclined to go to a team that isn't going to compete with him on the roster, which the Mets wouldn't, even though they could probably frame their roster as one that could compete in fridge discussions. If they met with him, they can point to, look at the names we have on our roster. Look at our payroll. uh we're set to win now. I don't know if he would fall for it. I think the Cubs are a better spot for him and I think there are two or three other teams that are a better match for him. I would love him see I would love to see him go to the Arizona Diamondbacks. I think they are a team that could compete with another legitimate uh top end starter. Uh they're a scrappy team who's always in the mix every year and I think they could make a push at it this year, especially since sort of the blood's in the water in that division. They just saw the Dodgers get the crap kicked out of him in the postseason. Um I think it's time for some people in that division to take a real shot. Troaki Sodto on the other hand, I think he's a perfect Yankee. Ryan McMahon is getting toward the end of his deal. They desperately need a third baseman. Um, and he's a guy with legitimate 40 to 50 home run power in that little tiny stadium. I think he hits 45 to 50. Uh, and the Yankees need that. They need another legitimate power hitter around Aaron Judge. But with the time remaining, Caleb, I'll give you your time. Give me your picks on both those. Um, in terms of school the Cubs, I kind of feel that in the same kind of light that I do. the Mets not not as strong whereas the Cubs have the offense, but I don't think they're one pitcher away from being uh legit World Series contenders. I think they're another kind of team that needs to build multiple bullpin arms, multiple rotation arms. I would put Scooble more in the camp of maybe the Braves or the Padres's whereas uh maybe sales trailing off into his older years. You need a solidified younger ace uh that he could fill in pretty well for. The Padres's are not afraid of spending money. They may be losing some guys in free agency this year. I could see Scooble as somebody that fills in. Yeah, I could see Scooble as somebody who fills in as the the solidified ace there. In terms of Sato, he can kind of go anywhere. He he kind of fits the Yankees with what they want. But I mean, I kind of like him for the the Red Sox. The Red Sox need a left hand and power back. Um they're looking to move off of Yoshida and Durant. They can add kind of a DH infielder type of guy with the versatility they have with guys like Son and uh and Caleb Durban. But if you if you make me predict, I could kind of see Sato going to the Giants. Giants need another power guy. I don't know how long team the the Japanese guys love to sign in on the West Coast teams. I don't see him projecting well, hitting in the Mariners ballpark. I could see him fitting a little bit better in Oracle, but his kind of deal, it's kind of iffy if he can play defense or not. they kind of project him more as a first baseman, which makes things a little weird with the the Denver situation in in San Francisco. I could see him going to San Fran on a short-term deal and playing third for a couple years almost almost like the Murami deal where he he gets a couple years at decent money and then really gets a shot at at signing for a long-term deal after that contract. And I wouldn't count the White Socks out on Sado either. Um, obviously Miguel Vargas plays third base, Murakami plays first base. You would have Sado as probably the everyday DH unless you want to move Murakami off to DH. Of course, Vargas has a lot of DH days as well. But if S is not a isn't a quality defender, you're not going to be bouncing it back and forth between third and first every day. though, you know, it we've seen in recent years the Japan connection and wanting to have another Japanese-speaking player on a team does weigh heavy for a lot of these guys. Um, so you're looking at the Dodgers, the Padres's, uh, the Red Sox of course have signed some Japanese players in the past. Um, and currently the White Socks as well. But with that, let's move on to a little bit of talk about your team. Since we're lucky enough to have Caleb on the show today, I want to make sure we fit in some more Red Sox talk. Um, not just to let you talk your team, but I do think the Red Sox have a very impactful free agency and offseason in general coming up because of how difficult the AL East is going to be once again this year. Um, and in order to win that division, it's going to take some pieces. And I have the Red Sox needing a legitimate number two or number three starter. Uh whether you project Holi as the number two or as the number three um that's up to interpretation. And then of course you do need another power bat. I think you need to go after Ellie Dea Cruz. Um but some kind of upgrade in the infield. If you do move off of Duran and uh Maki Yoshida, you're going to need another outfielder. I know that you are really high on Sea Suzuki. We've had our conversation. I don't like that move at all. Um, but I'm not going to argue with you because this is your segment. So, let's start. Let's say a Suzuki and then we'll talk some of your needs um on the pitching staff. So, one, two, three, go. Yeah, the dream is obviously Ellie de la Cruz. Um, we've seen kind of the the rumors circulating the Red Sox were interested in him at the deadline. Um, I obviously I would love that. I don't see that as realistic. Um, personally, my ideal off season, if it doesn't include Ellie, is signing Sea Suzuki, sign getting rid of Yoshida and Durant, get that money and that clubhouse cancer, whatever the [ __ ] Durant is, off the books, and then get Brandon Laauo to play second base. Um, obviously you'd have to throw in kind of a a a filler starter, maybe a Kevin Gossman or a Zack Gallon. Take a chance on somebody like that and throw him in the fourth spot in the rotation just so you don't have to start Brian Beeo in your fifth spot every fifth day. But I think the Red Sox focus needs to be power because your top power hitter was what Wilson Contrarus who had 26 27 bombs this year. you didn't have a 30 homer hitter, you kind of need that, especially in the ballpark you play in. A guy like Sea Suzuki fits really well with a monster. And um in terms of watching Brandon Laauo hit at Fenway the last seven, eight years. I mean, the dude can hit at Fenway. You got a good good left-handed power bat there on the market. I think those are the two guys you got to focus on. And then once the luxury tax slash money whatever situation got figures itself out then you go and look at a four or five starter like a Kevin Gosman or a Zack Allen. Those are kind of the guys I'm looking at. Yeah. I I mean I like a guy like Nick Martinez. Um though coming off the year he just had is probably going to be more expensive than he should be. Um a complete flyer. This is mentioned in the upcoming article on chaotically induct intolerant.com. I don't mind a guy like Chris Bouvich to the Red Sox. I mean, as recently as 2025, he's an all-star. He's had a lot of health problems, but he works as an outstanding swing arm. Uh, a guy who can operate out of the bullpen. Let's say they do move Brian Beao back to starter. Um, if he doesn't work out as a starter, move him back to the bullpen. Chris Bubich could go get take a shot as a starter because when he's healthy, he's been an outstandingly effective starter, but like you said earlier off the podcast, you guys need a right-handed arm and Chris Bubich is just another left-handed uh soft throwing guy with a lot of great breaking stuff. Um Kevin Gossman, it's sort of strange hearing his name as a number four starter because what three years ago he was a like a legitimate ace. Um how old is Kevin Gosman? Do you know off the top of your head? I would guess 35. Yeah, he's getting up there. Um, but yeah, like I said, I love Nick Martinez for that spot, but I think he ends up back with a with a raise. I think Freddy Peralta is a guy who is not going to get as much money as he's worth. He's 35. 35. Good job. I think Freddy Pearl is a guy who's not going to get as much money as he's worth because he only had seven or eight good starts this year after getting out of the Mets organization who just seems to love destroying starting pitchers. Um, I think he's a great fit on a lot of teams, but he's a guy who you could probably sign for number three starter money who could move into a role as the number two guy. And in the playoffs, we've seen what Freddy Peralta is. He's a monster in the postseason. But with that, we are out of time, so we'll wrap it up. Go check out the Chaotically intolerant podcast as well, where we talked a little bit of free agency stuff. Check out chaotically intolerant.com to see my upcoming article predicting some free agency moves. As always, make sure to subscribe, turn on notifications so you never miss an episode, and leave a comment if you have any topics you'd like us to cover during the offseason and our bi-weekly episodes. Caleb, thank you so much for coming on. Go Chiefs. Go Royals. You have anything to say to wrap us up? N go Pats, go socks. Let's get say Suzuki. We'll see you next time.