Dan Szymborski: And boom goes the dynamite.

Dan Szymborski: Programming note: I’m not answering any ZiPS spreadsheet release date info. I’m working on getting everyone on the right team, but am not going to commit to which day this week first go will be ready.

Comment From LaLoosh
My girlfriend wants me to unfollow you on Twitter because you are a pompous ass (her words not mine). Should I break up with her?

Dan Szymborski: Wait, she wants to control your unfollows? She needs to have some serious hotness to put up with that.

Dan Szymborski: Teller you followed me because I’m a pompous ass.

Comment From jocephus
how will you remember the jim hoey era?

Jason Collette:

Jason Collette: Happy Corporate-Created Holiday everyone! Let’s chat

Comment From KSSoxFan
Any hope for any of the vets in the Marlins infield? Late round fliers?

	Jason Collette: I actually like the youth best here in Hechevarria and Dietrich. This has a Major League movie type feel to this roster – Salty even resembles a younger Jake Taylor

Comment From Bill
Are you concerned about Encarnacion’s wrist? Feel like we’ve heard nothing about it recently.

	Jason Collette: Yes, a bit. Toronto hasn’t exactly had the best luck with health in recent seasons so any bit of injury news from there concerns me. Their lack of action on the free agent/trade market leads us to believe that all is well up there, but if Anthopoulous shows up to a presser in a ROTC uniform, be worried.

Comment From Brad
What are your thoughts on Kevin Gausman? Thanks.

	Jason Collette: I like him a ton. When he’s commanding his fastball and throwing his offspeed pitches, it can be NC-17 material.

Comment From Pale Hose
The Rays model is based on turning over expiring contracts for future talent. If they can’t do this with Price is it the beginning of the end for their competitive cycle?

	Jason Collette: The beginning of that cycle has happened in recent years with the restrictions on the international market and added rules to the draft process. The Rays are in a catch22 here as the current team, on paper, is arguably the best in franchise history. Trading Price now changes that dramatically. They are apparently comfortable with that they will lose in potential trade compensation by holding onto him another season will be offset by possible postseason glory. The recent deals of Torres, Hahn, Lobaton, Vettleson, and Rivero to add depth to the upper levels of the minor league depth chart in terms of pitching help offset poor drafts from a few seasons ago. They need to develop more young hitting to keep this thing going though.

Eno Sarris: Be here in 15

KEXP:

Eno Sarris: Cool. Song of the day embedded. Will serve as the elevator music while you wait.

Comment From David
Doesn’t Jose Lobaton, Felipe Rivero and a minor leaguer for Nate Karns get you excited?!?!?1

Eno Sarris: BABESELL

Comment From Brian
In a league that weights RBI/R/HR above everything else, how would you rank Beltre, Longoria and Wright?

Dave Cameron: I’m hunkering down for Apocalyptic Snowstorm 2014 — for those outside the south, that means we’re going to get a few inches of snow today — so let’s talk baseball for a bit. The queue is now open.

Dave Cameron: A.J. Burnett has signed with the Phillies, for those who haven’t seen it on Twitter.

Dave Cameron: Brief analysis: Still a good pitcher, one year deals are almost always a good risk, but the Phillies aren’t a good team, so he’s now probably mid-season trade bait. Don’t be surprised if you see him moved at the deadline once the Phillies realize they’re out of it.

Comment From Graham
Should fringe-y contenders like the Reds and O’s commit to rebuilding or go all-in? It seems to make the least sense to sit right in the middle.

Dave Cameron: This is far more true in other sports than in baseball, since the returns on a top pick in the NBA or NFL can be enormous and instantaneous. In MLB, there’s little practical difference between picking 8th and 14th, and the revenue losses associated with being a non-contender may actually outweigh any gains from picking higher. I think the idea that there is little or no marginal value in wins 70-85 in baseball is just entirely wrong.

Comment From Ted
Is it unreasonable to expect Trout to continue putting up numbers like his first two seasons? What should we be expecting from him going forward?

Paul Swydan: Hi everybody!

Jeff and I will be here at 9 pm ET to cram as much baseball into your thirsty little gullets as possible! While you wait, check out this new game that The Dark Overlord created:

http://www.fangraphs.com/fgplusgame.aspx

Oh, and read my post from earlier today:

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/hanson-hooks-on-with-rangers/

Maybe polls later. See you soon!

Jeff Zimmerman: For some pre-chat fantasy draft porn … LABR Draft: http://www.rtsports.com/LABR-Mixed-Draft

Paul Swydan: Oh yaaa.. Let’s do this thing.

Comment From Jaack
Tommy Hanson – now that’s an article topic I was legit looking forward to. I totally thought he was going to be the shit, which is weird because I don’t really care about the Braves.

Paul Swydan: Jaack approves! Good times.

Comment From Jaack
Roy Oswalt retiring reminds me of the first fangraphs chat question I ever had answered, where I asked who was better Oswalt or Jonathan Sanchez.

Jeff Sullivan: Stilllll getting the hang of this new CiL

Comment From jocephus
provide content!

Jeff Sullivan: I’m trying!

Comment From Dave
Definitely read that as ‘still getting over this hangover’

Jeff Sullivan: On a Tuesday?

Jeff Sullivan: I’m not Eno

Dan Szymborski: And boom goes the Danimite.

Comment From Jack
Better signing for the Nats: Burnett or Morales

Dan Szymborski: Morales probably better than Burnett – the Nats are one of the teams that have the least need for Burnett and I wouldn’t go after Morales in their position

Comment From Harjit
What do you think happens with Stephen Drew? This has to end at some point right?

Dan Szymborski: Have a little bit about Drew in an upcoming piece. I think that some of the QO decliners made a big tactical mistake.

Dan Szymborski: The cost of losing even a 2nd rounder is magnified when it’s a player of the type likely to be signed to a 1-or-2 year deal.

Jason Collette: I’m still battling walking pneumonia, but at least I’m not in Sochi. Let’s chat!

Comment From Perplexed Fantasy Owner
Hey Jason. Thanks for doing the chat today. I’m in an 11-team AL-only league, and I need your guidance. I own Brandon Morrow and Scott Kazmir on the cheap this year, but they both terrify me! What do you expect out of each of them in 2014? Should I hang on to them or cut bait before the season starts?

	Jason Collette: I have Kazmir myself and not terrified as I really liked what I saw from him as the season progressed. Morrow would terrify me as health is a problem that does not go away and Toronto, for whatever reason, seems to have more injury issues than most teams.

Comment From jesse
pneumonia, that sound like an excuse, man up and rub some dirt on hit!

	Jason Collette: I’ll paste what I said last week when someone else asked the same thing – I’ve been writing about fantasy baseball since 1999 where I got started at the old RotoJunkie.coom (now rjbullpen.com). In 2008, Fanball plucked me from there and then I was split between BP and Rotowire in 2011 when Fanball was shut down by Liberty Media. I’m still doing a lot of work at Rotowire and also do monthly contributions to BaseballHQ.com and guest spots on the ESPN Sweetspot blog. Lastly, I’ve been writing about the Rays since 2007 between time spent at DRaysBay, Dock of the Rays (now in the hands of the talented Jason Hanselman) and now write with R.J. Anderson & Tommy Rancel at TheProcessReport.net. I believe in the DH, roofed stadiums, fake grass, and yoga pants.

Comment From Zach
I see this is only your third chat and you’re a fairly new FG contributor. What’s your brief bio? What do you like to chat about?

	Jason Collette: well, this is the question I meant to reply to previously. I blame the meds

Comment From Brad
Pitcher keeper: Pick one: Bailey, A. Sanchez or Teheran and why? Thanks.

	Jason Collette: I’m a big Homer Bailey guy. You want my non-Kershaw pick for the NL CY, there it is.

Comment From Brian
I just traded for Mike Trout as a 15th round keeper for the rest of his career. I can’t come up with a way to celebrate that lives up to this moment.

	Jason Collette: Streaking in the quad while holding a large growler of a Russian River brew would work for me

Eno Sarris: Here at the top of the hour. WITH CHANGES

Comment From dude
David Bowie.

Eno Sarris: so instead of lyrics of the day, we’re going to do CLIP OF THE DAY because who knows lyrics anyway. and lest you mock my music taste, remember my mother named me after Brian Eno and my father met my mother because he was in Jamaica for The Grateful Dead playing at Sunsplash with Bob Marley, and I like so many different types of music that eventually I’ll like something you like.

That said, today’s CLIP is educational. As in, I never knew this guy sang!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCXhtfVc6oQ

Comment From juan pierres mustache
wait is that the lyrics of the day? it’s david bowie, “Changes”. My question is A) did you cut your hair and B) did you keep all the cut-off hair to make a sweet fake beard for your child?

Eno Sarris: I couldn’t do it. Same style, just shorter.

Comment From Fish
I HATE CHANGE

Dave Cameron: The queue is now open. Fire away.

Dave Cameron: Going to start a few minutes late today so I can finish this Freeman extension post.

Dave Cameron: Okay, Freeman post is up. Short version: it’s expensive, but Freeman is young enough that this is the rare eight year deal that probably won’t end with the player being an albatross.

Comment From Oren
What’s taking so long? (You know… with all the players not signing contracts and such)

Dave Cameron: Tanaka killed the pitching market for a month. It will get sorted out in the next week.

Comment From EC
Which Nats pitcher has the best chance for a Cy Young?