8:02	David Laurila: Greetings all. Go Astros. Go Phillies. Go baseball.

8:04	David Laurila: I got both a flu shot and a Covid booster yesterday, and am really dragging today, but fortunately I have a few energetic colleagues joining the chat shortly.

8:04	Dan Szymborski: Greetings peoples!

8:05	Alex Sonty: Man, Justin. I remember us getting up with you in 2020 to play KBO DFS.

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Free agency begins five days after the end of the World Series. As in other recent seasons, FanGraphs is once again facilitating a contract crowdsourcing project, with the idea being to harness the wisdom of the crowd to better understand and project the 2022-23 free-agent market.

In recent years, we’ve added a few features to these ballots based on reader feedback. You now have the option to indicate that a player will only receive a minor-league contract, or won’t receive one at all. And new this year, if there is a player option, team option, or opt out in a player’s contract, you’ll be able to indicate whether you think he will remain with his current team or become a free agent. Numbers are prorated to full season where noted. The projected WAR figures are from the first cut of the 2023 Steamer600 projections.

Below are ballots for nine of this year’s free agents — in this case, a group of catchers and shortstops. Read the rest of this entry »

Free agency begins five days after the end of the World Series. As in other recent seasons, FanGraphs is once again facilitating a contract crowdsourcing project, with the idea being to harness the wisdom of the crowd to better understand and project the 2022-23 free-agent market.

In recent years, we’ve added a few features to these ballots based on reader feedback. You now have the option to indicate that a player will only receive a minor-league contract, or won’t receive one at all. And new this year, if there is a player option, team option, or opt out in a player’s contract, you’ll be able to indicate whether you think he will remain with his current team or become a free agent. Numbers are prorated to full season where noted. The projected WAR figures are from the first cut of the 2023 Steamer600 projections.

Below are ballots for eight of this year’s free agents — in this case, a group of infielders, some of whom occasionally see time in the outfield. Read the rest of this entry »

Read the rest of this entry »

SEATTLE – My train begins to fill with Mariners fans. Most are wearing jerseys, but others are outfitted in more home-made looking fare. A young woman sports a dress covered in the team’s logo; its skirt is puffed slightly by teal tulle, with navy bows on her shoulders holding the whole thing upright. Further down the car is a man in a 1995 Division Series shirt. His snowy goatee suggests that unlike the sweatshirt I own of similar vintage, his wasn’t a thrift store find; I wonder if the one he’s wearing smells musty like mine first did. Much of the chatter is about the day finally being here, and how long they’ve all waited, how many disappointments they’ve registered in the years since 2001. I’m surprised by how little I hear about Seattle’s chances today, as if no one dares to entertain the possibility of a tomorrow with baseball, or one potentially without it.

A few stops later, a member of the University of Washington marching band steps off the train; upon seeing his regalia, a couple near me wonders if the football game, which kicks off around 2:30 PM, will cause trouble for their ride back home from SODO. “These cars can get so crowded, you know.”

As I approach the media entrance, lines snake around the ballpark, and the coffee cups and puffy eyes make clear that some of these folks have been here a while. The gates don’t open for another hour and a half, but after almost 21 years, what’s a little more waiting? Read the rest of this entry »

7:34	David Laurila: Greetings all. Not sure tonight’s game can top what we just saw in Houston… but you never know.

7:36	David Laurila: The baseball has been good, and we have a lot more in front of us. October is fun. (Less so today if you’re a Mariners fan.)

7:37	David Laurila: No, but as that long ball reminded us, he’s on the short list.

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12:00

Jay Jaffe: Good afternoon, folks, and welcome to our Wild Card Game 1 chat-a-thon

12:01

Jay Jaffe: I’lll be joined here shortly by Dan Szymborski and David Laurila, and then at some point, the bullpen will open up and we’ll get some fresh arms in here as well

12:02

David Laurila: Greetings all. Happy postseason baseball.

12:03

Jay Jaffe: it’s time to play “Which Channel is That Game On Anyway,” and if  you’re asking about the Rays and Guardians opener about to begin, it’s on ESPN

12:04

Jay Jaffe: For me? Yes, but that’s because I’m working. you’re free to crack one open but I suggest pacing yourself

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The expanded playoff format might have put an end to Game 163 tiebreakers, but this postseason still promises to deliver some great matchups, featuring division rivals, electric starters, fearsome bats, and multiple teams that finally put an end to long playoff droughts. And though the field boasts four 100-plus-win clubs that seem poised for deep runs, a lot can happen in a short series. That makes it difficult to predict how October will unfold, but 30 of our writers from FanGraphs and RotoGraphs did their best.

Below are our predictions by league and round, as well as each writer’s full forecast (those tables are sortable). Happy playoffs! Read the rest of this entry »

In May, we put out an open call for contributing writers, and the response we received was overwhelming. We are very grateful that so many smart, passionate baseball writers wanted to be a part of what we do here. It made for some really difficult decisions (and a rather long hiring process), but we are very excited to welcome some talented new voices to our ranks.

A quick note to those who applied but weren’t hired: please keep writing. A number of people who have worked for the site weren’t hired on their first go but kept getting reps elsewhere on their way to making us regret having passed them by initially. Just because there wasn’t a home for you at FanGraphs this time around doesn’t mean that there won’t be one later, and in the meantime, public baseball analysis will be made better by your good words and good work.

And so, without further ado, allow me to introduce the writers whose work will soon be debuting here at the site. Read the rest of this entry »

Over the past two weeks, the FanGraphs staff has written nearly 60 pieces dedicated to analyzing the 2022 trade deadline, from preview posts to recaps of the deadline’s winners and losers, and a whole bunch of transaction analysis in between. It’s a lot to sort through, so to assist you in finding anything you may have missed during the flurry, I’ve rounded up all of our deadline pieces in one place. You’ll find the broader preview and summary pieces listed first, followed by a team-by-team listing of the transaction analyses that involved your favorite squad, either as buyers or sellers. In instances where we dissected a transaction across multiple pieces — hello, Juan Soto trade! — you’ll see them grouped together. I’ll add any other relevant pieces as they trickle in.

As always, all of the pieces linked below are free to read, but they took time and resources to produce. If you enjoyed our coverage of the trade deadline and are in a position to do so, we hope you’ll sign up for a FanGraphs Ad-Free Membership. It’s the best way to both support our work and experience the site. Now, on to the roundup! Read the rest of this entry »