Jay Jaffe: Good afternoon, folks, and welcome to the post-trade deadline edition of my weekly chat. While I wait for the queue to fill up, a bit of housekeeping:

Jay Jaffe: Here’s Craig Edwards on trade deadline winners and losers: https://blogs.fangraphs.com/the-trade-deadline-winners-losers-and-a-fe…

Jay Jaffe: Here’s Eric Longenhagen on the prospects traded: https://blogs.fangraphs.com/ranking-the-prospects-traded-during-the-20…

Jay Jaffe: Here’s my contribution to our coverage:

A’s Add to Rotation While Rangers Get Comparatively Minor Return
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/as-add-to-rotation-while-rangers-get-compa…

Phillies Upgrade Battered Bullpen with Phelps https://blogs.fangraphs.com/phillies-upgrade-battered-bullpen-with-phe…

Mets Add Three Players at Deadline, Though 2020 Impact Could Be Minimal
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/mets-add-three-players-at-deadline-though-…

Jay Jaffe: And now, on with the show…

JJ: The Padres currently have 2.6 more WAR from their position players than the Dodgers and just 0.6 less WAR from their staff. They just added Clevinger. How tight is the gap in the west?

Dan Szymborski: And welcome to the last SzymChat of August and the first-half of the season?

Dan Szymborski: “half” lol

RMR: White Sox second in BaseRuns.  Are they actually like really good?

Dan Szymborski: I think they’re a good team! The highs are very good. There’s a lot to like in the starting lineup except for RF

Dan Szymborski: EE still could get going

Dan Szymborski: And Danny Medwick has made things interesting!

Dan Szymborski: This is a chat.

ashtray: ZiPs really does not seem to like Andrew Vaughn despite all of the “most polished hitter” reputation he’s getting. What’s the issue?

Dan Szymborski: Well, ZiPS is not a scout and it’s going to be skeptical of most college players.

Dan Szymborski: Until they do stuff in the minors.

Dan Szymborski: And it wasn’t particularly enthralled by his minor league performance, which was largely walk-driven.

Blue Morpho: Any takeaways from Mize’s first start?

Jay Jaffe: Good afternoon, folks, and welcome to a slightly delayed edition of my weekly chat. I just walked in the door having pried a nearly-4-year-old away from water balloons on the playground and will need a few minutes to get settled

Jay Jaffe: I’m back, with a bit of housekeeping… here’s today’s story on Mookie Betts’ progress towards Cooperstown https://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/mookie-betts-is-building-a-case-for-co… and here’s yesterday’s story about the Yankees’ mounting injury concerns https://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/with-injuries-to-stanton-judge-and-lem…

Jay Jaffe: and now, on with the show

stever20: Should the Nats shut down Stras for the season?

Jay Jaffe: I’m not sure anyone knows enough to say that’s a necessity. He apparently has carpal tunnel neuritis but I have yet to see anybody offer a timeline for recovery. Obviously, the team shouldn’t push him to pitch if he’s not healthy, but if waiting a month and ramping up allows him to be ready to contribute in the postseason (assuming the Nationals make it; right now they’re tied for the eighth and final seed with the Mets), then that’s a reasonable course of action.

Estevão: How much the current struggles of the Red Sox pitching staff increase Dombrowski’s reputation as a winner but destroyer of farm systems or is that set in his legacy

Eric A Longenhagen: howdy howdy howdy

Eric A Longenhagen: Hope you’re all enjoying all the spoarts, I know I’m mainlining them basically all day, I’m even watching hockey for the first time in years.

Eric A Longenhagen: Baseball uber alles, of course

Eric A Longenhagen: let’s talk about it

Justin: Do you expect you will gain access to any of the tracking data from alternate workout sites that clubs are going to share to help along trades this year?

Eric A Longenhagen: I’m certainly going to try. I’ve been able to do it in years past, hopefully can swing it again.