Brendan Gawlowski: Hello everybody. I’ve been told that in this chat, only folks with an account are able to ask questions. It’s a new system. DA has invited us all to share the following statement about that: “We’re trying out a new system where you’re required to log in to FanGraphs to ask a question. You don’t need to be a Member, but you do need to have an account, just like you need an account to comment on any article. We’ll see how it goes. If you have feedback, feel free to just leave it as a question, or you can send a note to support@fangraphs.com.”

Brendan Gawlowski: Looks like a lot of you aren’t having problems, but perhaps it’s a better day than normal for you regulars to submit a few questions. We’ll see!

Brendan Gawlowski: Housekeeping: I’m working furiously on Giants, Eric is almost done with Pirates, James is battling on a Twins list.

Brendan Gawlowski: our milb.tv game of the day is Springfield-Frisco. I’ve got my eye on Rafe Perich in particular, a guy I kinda liked on the backfields in ’25. He crushed High-A this year and is now up in AA.

Brendan Gawlowski: And away we go

P: You and Eric both talked about the the ball possibly being juiced at Double A and below on your chats last week.  Have pitching prospects across the board performed worse this season because of it?  I’ve been wondering why the Braves hitters seem to be raking this year, but the pitchers don’t seem to be.

Jay Jaffe: Good afternoon, folks! Welcome to my first chat of June — it’s lovely here in Brooklyn and I wish I could take this outside. I … probably could except I’m not sure how strong the wifi is in the back yard. Hmmm.

Jay Jaffe: Anyway, yesterday I wrote about the myriad issues that have led to the Tigers bottoming out. At 23-38, they’re still tied for the majors’ worst record, but last night they did win 10-9, scoring more than 6 runs for the first time since May 3 and at least 10 runs for the first time since April 16. The Jaffe Reverse Jinx strikes again!

Jay Jaffe: https://blogs.fangraphs.com/the-tigers-have-collapsed-but-not-because-…

Daniel Bergman: I know this is a lofty comparison but the Yankees rotation right now has me thinking of ’98, with every starter having ace level upside.

Jay Jaffe: whoa whoa whoa, that’s a bit too lofty, I think. We’ve seen Cole and Schlittler pitch like aces, and Rodón’s been reasonably close at his peak but right now is dealing with significant command issues that make it very difficult to imagine him getting back to his 2021–22 form. Warren has taken a big step forward, and I like Weathers but don’t see him as having the stuff to be more than a mid-rotation guy.

Russell: Could it be beneficial for a pitcher to randomly pull out a knuckleball every like 200 pitches

Eric A Longenhagen: Good morning from Tempe on a gorgeous Friday, I’m excited to overeat baseball today. I’ve got Squeeze Play on but the Kentucky/Wake game is the big one starting shortly, so if you have to pick one I suggest that.

YardGoat: Hey Eric, do you have a prediction for who makes it to Omaha?

Eric A Longenhagen: Last week I mentioned Georgia Tech, UCLA, Auburn. Auburn’s path was made easier by the way the brackets shook out. If I’m looking for a deeper seed to sneak in it’s coming from the Chapel Hill and Lincoln regionals.

Justin Krupp: Have you seen Luis Hernandez in person this year or heard anything from scouts to lend context (good or bad) to what hes done so far this year?

Eric A Longenhagen: Yeah, like six times. I like him, I don’t think he has the enormous physical tools of a guy who we eventually rank 3rd or anything like that. He’s a skilled, smaller player who gets a lot out of his body because of how well he rotates.

Eric A Longenhagen: Do they not have velos in Morgantown? Lemme crack the trackman real quick…

Dan Szymborski: And heeeere we go

InsertWittyNameHere: Are there rules about player walk up songs?  Could someone just have spoken word slam poetry or a Rodney Dangerfield No Respect joke?

Dan Szymborski: There are some rules, though I’m not sure precisely WHERE they’re written down

Dan Szymborski: 15 seconds, no inappropriate lyrics, themes, etc.

Dan Szymborski: and it has to be licensed

Guest: With Jared Jones expected to return this weekend are the Pirates better off running a 6 man rotation to help limit innings for Ashcraft, Mlodzinksi etc.. or send Chandler to AAA for his control issues.

Brendan Gawlowski: Hello everybody

Brendan Gawlowski: I need a couple minutes before we get going, finishing up something real quick. Sorry about the delay.

Brendan Gawlowski: Okay, sorry about thaaaat

Brendan Gawlowski: As I’m sure you saw, we did our Red Sox last week, fun system. Big thanks to Eric for swooping in on complex stuff so I could be fully present while covering the B12 tourney.

Brendan Gawlowski: He’s tackling Pirates right now, I’ll be pivoting to… Giants? I think the Giants.

Brendan Gawlowski: But for now away we go

Jay Jaffe: Good afternoon! I hope you all enjoyed the three-day weekend.

Jay Jaffe: I flew solo while my wife and daughter drove upstate to visit my father-in-law (I had to stay behind to dog-sit). Did a lot of dad-puttering around the house, some repair projects, some yardwork, and a trek to Jersey City to see the 50th-anniversary celebration — and perhaps the final show ever — of The Feelies.

Jay Jaffe: Anyway, back to baseball. Before we get started, I need to note that as with last week, we’re trying a new system with our chats, where you’re required to log in to FanGraphs to ask a question. You don’t need to be a Member, but you do need to have an account, just like you need an account to comment on any article. This is still something we’re evaluationg. If you have feedback, feel free to just leave it as a question, or you can send a note to support@fangraphs.com.

John Tereniak: Would Phils have been better off signing Machado than Harper when they were looking at both way back when?

Jay Jaffe: Eh, I’m not sure. Yes, it’s harder to come up with a great third baseman, and the Phillies have had their problems there since then (Alec Bohm has had one season above 2.0 WAR) but I think Harper was the better fit for the city and the culture, as Machado has been for the city and culture in San Diego

Jay Jaffe: the two are almost dead even in fWAR 27.9 to 27.7 for Harper, and that’s with an additional 107 games missed due to injuries

Eric A Longenhagen: Hey from the shade at Scottsdale Stadium as the Zags and Dons stretch for this morning’s elimination game. I’m here to see Karsten Sweum and Mikey Bell, among others. Sorry my attention will be divided but it’s conference tourney time and we’ve all just gotta do what we’ve gotta.

liljebbie10: One other question, with Esmerlyn Valdez coming up today, what are you thoughts on him? What is his upside for the Pirates?

Eric A Longenhagen: I updated his tool grades and report on The Board and on his player page. Here is a brief version:

Eric A Longenhagen: Selectivity, power, less pull ability than last year, really late on a lot of heaters so far. Bad defense. 45. Nice piece, 5-thru-7 hole bat with OBP and power. I don’t believe in the year over year improvement in his K% and still think he’s a 40 contact hitter and barely playable on defense, so not a true “everyday” guy, but still a contributing piece.

Surplus Valuez = Profits = Stolen Wages: Happy Friday. When yous were doing the Cubs list, was there any feedback that Juan Cabada may end up in the OF? Or is there high confidence for the IF?

Eric A Longenhagen: Second base but not great there.

Dan Szymborski: Since there is a time to every purpose under heaven, so to there is one for SzymChat

WonderWall: Is Zips buying what Kyle Harrison has been doing so far?

Dan Szymborski: Mostly-ish?

Dan Szymborski: He’s “down” about three tens of a run in the ZiPS ROS basic model

Dan Szymborski: and right now, his 2027-2029 ERA+ projections are 103, 107, 109

Dan Szymborski: So it’s at least confident he’s a 2/3 dude