Hello everyone! Last off-season I wrote about my proposed plan for the D-backs, and I figured I’d take another crack at it this year. I went into this exercise deciding that my off-season plan would have to be at least somewhat realistic. As much as I would love Kendrick to go out and sign Yamamoto, Nola, Chapman, Hader, etc., there’s no way that’s happening. I’m sure none of the things I propose below will happen, either, but I also wouldn’t be surprised if they did, if that makes sense. My goal is to build a team that will win 90 or more games in 2024 and continue to do so for the next several seasons. In other words, I want controllable players, not just one year rentals.

We’ve all heard Kendrick’s infamous "windfall" quote already. I don’t think any of us know exactly how much payroll will increase. Fangraphs has their final payroll at $124 million, so I’m shooting for an increase of about 20 percent to $150 million. I find this exercise is more fun for myself to have a cap, anyway.

As for projected salaries, they’re purely a guess based on the player’s performance, position, etc. I’m sure I got absolutely zero of them right, but I hope I am at least in the ballpark on all of them. If I project someone to get a 2 year, $20 million deal, and he actually gets 2 year and $26 million, well, that’s close enough.

I’m trying to stay away from guys who come attached with qualifying offers; the team will have three picks around pick number 30 next year, and I’d like to keep them. I don’t think there’s anyone in the class who is worth giving up a pick, other than Ohtani, of course. Just about all of the free agents come with serious question marks (Snell’s walk rate and injury history, Nola’s inconsistency, Bellinger outperforming his batted ball data, etc.).

Finally, I analyzed the hell out of all the moves I propose, so please bear with me.

Here’s MLB Trade Rumor’s top free agents, for reference:

Here are the team’s biggest needs I see, in order of importance:

1. Two starting pitchers
2. Third baseman
3. Corner outfielder
4. Bench
5. Bullpen

I will discuss each area in order.

Starting Pitchers

SP trade options I could find (if I missed someone, please let me know):

• Angels- Tyler Anderson, Griffin Canning, Reid Detmers, Patrick Sandoval
• Mariners- Logan Gilbert
• Rays- their current rotation is very good, and they have a whole other rotation on the 60 day IL right now (Shane Baz, Shane McLanahan, Drew Rassmussen, Jeffrey Springs)
• Guardians- Cal Quantrill, Shane Bieber
• Pirates- Mitch Keller
• White Sox- Dylan Cease

I compiled a list of possible trade options for starting pitchers, which is above. The thing is that I’m not 100% confident that any of these pitchers will be traded. I’ll run through my thoughts on each team below:

Angels- This team sucks. They desperately need to blow the team up and start over, but they’ve already signaled they plan on competing next year. Perhaps they consolidate their lefties, but I’m not certain they’ll actually do that. Poor Mike Trout.

Mariners- Gilbert is one hell of a trade chip, and they have starter depth. They have position player holes all over the roster, so Gilbert being traded wouldn’t shock me. The problem is that the areas where they need a player (corner outfield, first base, second base) are positions the D-backs don’t necessarily have a lot of depth.

Rays- They had so many pitchers injured this year that I’m not sure if they’ll trade many of them away. Tyler Glasnow may get traded since he has one year left. The D-backs should be targeting controllable players, and Glasnow does not fit that bill.

Guardians- I would guess at least one of these two players gets traded. Neither had a great year this year, and their stuff isn’t the best. Bieber in particular has been in decline the past few years. Pass.

Pirates- They may trade Keller, but I think it makes more sense for them to try and extend him instead.

White Sox- They should trade everyone not named Luis Robert, Jr. I’m not positive they’ll actually trade Cease, though. I’m in wait-and-see mode with their new GM.

I’m left to look at the free agent market. I’ll quickly discuss thoughts on the top guys. Aaron Nola, Sonny Gray, and Blake Snell received qualifying offers. I’ve read Eduardo Rodriguez prefers the East Coast so I’m ruling him out. Julio Urias may not play baseball again, and good riddance to him. Jordan Montgomery is going to command a nine figure contract and be paid like a number one or two, but I’m not sure he’s more than a number three. Lucas Giolito is interesting, but his struggles in the last two months of the season worry me. Marcus Stroman is pretty good and under consideration. I wonder if he’d come here with Bob Brenly in the broadcast booth, though. Besides, I think there are better options, which I listed below:

Sign Shota Imanaga to a 5 year, $75 million deal

Sign Erick Fedde to a 3 year, $18 million deal

I’m sure Dbacks fans will want Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and the Dbacks have already been linked to him. I would absolutely love him on my team. I have a couple of reservations about signing him, though. First, I’m sure he will want to command a contract of at least 7 years. I hesitate to give a pitcher a contract of that length. Besides Max Scherzer, has there been a top of the rotation pitcher signed to a 7 year contract that has stayed healthy and good throughout the deal? I can’t think of any.

My second reservation is that I would guess he will sign with a big market team. Just thinking back on recent history, how many star Japanese players have signed with smaller market teams (so not the New Yorks, Los Angeleses, Chicagos, Boston, San Francisco, Texases, etc.)? Darvish signed with the Rangers, Maeda with the Dodgers, Ohtani with the Angels, Yoshida with the Red Sox, Suzuki with the Cubs, Tanaka with the Yankees, etc. I don’t know him personally, obviously, but I’m not holding my breath for him signing with a team like the Diamondbacks, although the World Series run may change the equation.

Imanaga and Fedde are no slouches themselves, and I think Imanaga in particular may be underrated. Eno Sarris Tweeted (X-ed?) that he had the highest Stuff+ in the WBC this year . Stuff+ absolutely isn’t everything, (Merrill Kelly had below average Stuff+ this year), but the fact that Imanaga was ranked the highest out of all those amazing arms at this year’s WBC is certainly telling. This article provides a good breakdown of Imanaga. The home run rate is concerning, but I’m not too worried, especially since he doesn’t give up many free passes. He wouldn’t be expected to perform like a number 1 anyway, especially in his first year.

The contract I gave him is the same as Kodai Senga’s from last year. I think that’s probably a good reference point for what he may receive, although if he received something like $18 million per year instead of $15 million I would not be surprised.

I think we all remember Erick Fedde; he’s a former first round pick by the Nationals who’s been pretty awful over his career. However, he’s a completely different pitcher now, as this Washington Post article details. He’s one of the many pitchers who have benefited from learning about pitching mechanics and pitch shapes. He actually won the Korean baseball equivalent of the Cy Young based on these insane stats. His stuff looks better, too, based on this highlight video I found. For reference, 150 km/hr is about 93 m/hr. Both his sweeper and change-up in particular look outstanding. I’m excited to see what he can bring next year.

I had a hard time figuring out the contract to give him. The three most recent KBO pitchers to come over here were Merrill Kelly (2 years, $5.5 million), Josh Lindblom (3 years, $9.125 million), and Chris Flexen (2 years, $4.75 million). I’m guessing Fedde exceeds those contracts just because of both inflation and his outstanding season this year. $6 million per year seems more than reasonable for him, in my opinion.

I realize these two signings are both from Asia, which presents some inherent risk. However, I believe both pitchers will be a bit "undervalued." Imanaga is overshadowed by Yamamoto, for good reason, but Imanaga’s stuff and command are both outstanding in their own right. In Fedde’s case, his improvements are drastic. I believe in the improved stuff he’s shown. He has experience with MLB pitching and the season’s schedule, and he just threw 180 innings this year. He can be a solid, innings eating starter, and if he’s the Dbacks’ number 4 or 5 starter in 2024, they could do a lot worse.

Third Base

The free agent third base market begins and ends with Matt Chapman and Jeimer Candelario. Justin Turner probably can't play third base every day anymore. Gio Urshela is more of a utility infielder than a legit starter.

Chapman’s defense is amazing and well documented. His power took a bit of a dip this year, which is a concern (although his exit velocities and hard hit rate were all excellent this year). Additionally, his low batting average, streakiness, and high strikeout numbers don’t really fit with the rest of the team’s dynamic. Combine all of these factors with a contract I expect to end up in the range of 6 years and $150 million, and I think I’ll pass on him.

Candelario concerns me because while his offense would fit in well on this team, the Cubs played him at first base a lot down the stretch even though they don’t have a competent third baseman on the roster. Baseball Savant has Candelario as an average defender this year, but awful the two years prior. He may soon have to move to first base permanently, but the bat probably doesn't profile as well over there.

With that in mind, I think the trade route makes the most sense. I have compiled a list of teams with either third base or infield depth, which is below:

• Dodgers- Max Muncy, Michael Busch, Miguel Vargas, Chris Taylor, Jorbit Vivas
• Twins- Royce Lewis, Brooks Lee, Jose Miranda, Eduardo Julien, Jorge Polanco
• Mets- Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, Ronny Mauricio
• Reds- Elly De La Cruz, Noelvi Marte, Spencer Steer, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Matt McLain, Jonathan India
• Cardinals- Nolan Arenado, Nolan Gorman, Thomas Saggese
• Orioles- Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg, Joey Ortiz, Jackson Holliday, Coby Mayo, Connor Norby
• Rays- Isaac Paredes, Yandy Diaz, Junior Caminero, Curtis Mead, Jonathan Aranda

I’ll quickly discuss the teams with depth at third base and why they may or may not be trade fits.

Dodgers- This obviously won’t happen.

Twins- Julien and Polanco are second basemen, and not especially great, so that would probably dissuade the Dbacks. Brooks Lee will probably be up at some point next year, but he’s not major league ready now. Royce Lewis is a stud and isn’t going anywhere. Jose Miranda had an awful year and isn’t great at third, either.

Mets- This all depends on what they think of Mark Vientos. I don’t think he’s very good, but if for some reason they think he’s a good player, Baty or Mauricio may be available. My best guess is they trade Pete Alonso and put Vientos at first, Mauricio at second, and Baty at third.

Reds- On paper, this seems to make a lot of sense. They seem to have way too many infielders. Looking further though, their only real third baseman going into next year is Marte. Elly had an awful rookie year, but he’s not going anywhere (and maybe fits better in center field than somewhere on the dirt). McLain has taken a huge jump and should be sticking around for a while, likely at short. Now that Votto is gone, India is the team’s only real veteran so I’d be surprised if he was traded. Steer is awful defensively and shouldn’t ever play third. Encarnacion-Strand played mostly at first base for a reason this year. Additionally, the Reds biggest need is starting pitching, which is what the D-backs also need.

Cardinals- This depends on their offseason plans. They’ve signaled they plan on competing next year, and in my opinion, trading away arguably their best player probably won’t make them any better. They’ve also moved two top prospects from third (Jordan Walker and Nolan Gorman) because of him. If they do plan on trading Arenado, possibly to free up salary to pursue a pitcher or three, then the Dbacks should be at the front of the line. I just don't see it happening.

Orioles- They seriously have an embarrassment of infield depth. Their future left side of the infield is going to be Holliday and Henderson. They could use one of their other top prospects to fill the hole at second. First base isn't 100% settled either, and they could probably use some depth there. That still leaves plenty of players to trade away, but I'm not sure if or how much they trade from their infield depth. However, I think they have freedom to trade from the outfield (see below). I do think Baltimore will make a blockbuster move for a top of the rotation starter, though.

Rays- I left them for last because I think a trade with them makes the most sense. Their depth at third is insane! Paredes just put up a 4.4 fWAR season. I think there are some flags in his game that imply he won't be this good next year, but even if he's "just" a 3 win player he's still really good. Diaz plays mostly first, but he's one hell of a backup third baseman. Caminero is their top prospect, top ten in the sport, and got a very brief cup of coffee at the end of the year. Mead and Aranda are both bat first prospects who have seen time all over the infield. Aranda looks like he'll have the least amount of defensive value of the two.

I'm not sure when Wander Franco will be returning, if ever. But the fact that the team has been removing his merchandise, posters, etc. tells me a lot about what they think his legal outcome will be. They don't really have a ton of options at shortstop to replace him. Caminero played some short in the minors, but mostly played at third, which tells me the Rays think that's his future home. Rays shortstops not named Franco produced 0.5 fWAR in 225 PAs. That's actually better than I expected when I started this exercise, but it's still not very good. Luckily, the Dbacks have a couple of viable, every day shortstops in Geraldo Perdomo and Jordan Lawlar. I think Lawlar is close to equal to Perdomo with the glove and has a superior bat, and I believe he is the long term shortstop. Therefore, Perdomo becomes a bench bat or a trade candidate.

I think this season is pretty much what Perdomo’s peak will be. He's a plus glove at a premium position with excellent strikeout, walk, and contact rates whose lack of power stifles an otherwise outstanding package. He's a 3-ish win player who will get on base at the bottom of the lineup. There's a ton of value in that, although not elite. He would fit in well on the Rays team, and I think they would find a way to maximize his skills.

I propose a trade of Geraldo Perdomo for Curtis Mead. The Rays can use their third base capital to plug their biggest need, and the Dbacks get a controllable top prospect to be their third baseman of the future.

This trade has a lot of parallels to the Daulton Varsho trade last year. Both Varsho and Perdomo came with four years of team control left, and they were both traded for a talented offensive player. They both have similar skills, too- plus defense at premium positions, and both players have outperformed their expected offensive stats. Perdomo is not quite the player that Varsho was at the time, and that's why the return is not at large (that's no knock on Mead. I think he's going to be an excellent hitter. He's just not a top 5 prospect like Gabriel Moreno was at the time).

I’ve been a huge fan of Mead’s for quite a while. His defense is nothing to write home about, but the bat has a chance to be really special. For a team has stated it needs a middle of the order, right handed bat, Mead can more than provide that for several years. I’d guess he will settle in as a number 3, 4, or 5 hitter at his peak. For those unfamiliar with Mead, here’s what The Athletic’s Keith Law said about him mid-season:

The Rays’ top two prospects were both acquired out of rookie ball in what appeared to be minor trades at the time — the Phillies traded Mead, who had only played in the Gulf Coast League, to Tampa for pitcher Cristopher Sánchez; while the Guardians traded Caminero, who had only played in the Dominican Summer League, for since-released pitcher Tobias Myers. Mead was hit by a pitch on his wrist on April 29 and missed two months, but since his return he’s hit .447/.500/.702 in 11 games, which is OK I guess. It’s probably a 60 hit tool with 50 power, which will play anywhere, but he hits the ball hard enough to think he could end up with more power than that, and his value will be higher if he shows he can stick at third rather than moving to first. I do sort of wish we could get him in a lineup with Seth Beer and Robbie Wine.

In a few years, he may become absolutely unplayable at third. Or he could grow into the position with the help of Tony Perezchica, who has helped so many young infielders over the years. If necessary, perhaps he can move to left field or first base. I think his bat will more than play at any position, though.

One note- a Jordan Lawlar for Junior Caminero trade would be interesting, seeing as they're both top 10 prospects. I'd be shocked if it happened though.

This trade does weaken the team's bench, but I'll address that below.

Corner Outfielder:

Lourdes Gurriel, Jr. and Tommy Pham are both free agents at the end of the year. This creates two huge holes in the lineup. There aren’t really answers in the farm system, especially not for next year. The top two answers on the free agent market are Cody Bellinger and Lourdes Gurriel, Jr. There are plenty of warning signs in Bellinger’s profile that he’s not as good as his 2023 season would indicate (outperformed his expected stats and his past few years were pretty awful). He’s also going to command a contract north fo $200 million. To me, that’s one hell of a risk, so I’d rather pass. Gurriel will probably command a contract of somewhere around 4 years and $60 million. To me, that’s a solid contract for an average to slightly above average player. However, I would like to shoot higher than that. Below are the teams who may be in a position to trade a controllable, power corner bat:

• Angels: Taylor Ward
• Astros: Chas McCormick
• Cardinals: Tyler O’Neill, Dylan Carlson
• Mariners: Jarred Kelenic
• Nationals: Lane Thomas
• Orioles: Anthony Santander, Austin Hays, Heston Kjerstad, Colton Cowser, Coby Mayo
• Rangers: Leody Taveras
• Rays: Harold Ramirez, Randy Arrozarena
• Red Sox: Alex Verdugo
• Twins: Max Kepler
• White Sox: Eloy Jimenez

I was surprised by how little options there were for possibly tradeable outfielders, especially when compared to the third base options above. I’ll run through all the above teams and discuss the options, while once again discussing the team that makes the most sense last:

Angels- for some reason, with Ohtani leaving, holes all over the roster, Mike Trout unable to stay healthy all year, and an awful farm system, they think they’re competing. I’d be surprised if Ward is traded.

Astros- for some reason, they don’t seem to like Chas McCormick, but I don’t entirely understand why. He’s above average offensively versus lefties and righties; that’s good for a 133 wRC+, although he’s stronger against lefties. He’s a plus defender in a corner. And yet, he only received 457 plate appearances this year. And it’s not just that he played seldomly early in the year, proved himself late in the year, and then played every day. From September 1 through the end of the year, he only started 21 of those 27 days, which is 78% of all games. It seems possible that this was entirely Dusty Baker’s doing, but the front office also needs to step in if a player should be playing more. If the organization has truly soured on him for some reason, the D-backs should absolutely be at the front of the line to trade for him.

Cardinals- O’Neill only has one more year of control left. He also has a recent injury history and couldn’t be guaranteed to play a full season. Carlson has three more years of control left. He’s also a former top prospect. However, he’s had several years to show he’s not very good. He’s a non-tender candidate.

Mariners- Jarred Kelenic is another former top prospect who hasn’t performed well. Between the underperformance, his high strikeout rate, and his hot-headed style of play, he seems too risky to trade for.

Nationals- Thomas had an excellent year, but he’s more of a platoon bat. He’s going to be way too expensive in a trade.

Rangers- Their future outfield of Wyatt Langford, Evan Carter, and Adolis Garcia is enviable, and this may make Taveras expendable. The D-backs don’t need another center fielder, but he’ll make one hell of a trade chip for Texas if they decide to trade him.

Rays- Ramirez is incredible against lefties and above average against righties. However, he’s not a good defender and is mainly a DH. Arrozarena is starting to make real money, and Tampa has a history of trading away players before they get expensive. However, as the current face of the franchise, I’d be shocked if they traded him away.

Red Sox- Verdugo may be traded, but he’s also a terrible person. Pass.

Twins- I read they want to cut payroll for next year. This may mean a trade of someone like Kepler. I think Kepler is an excellent player, but I’d be surprised if the Twins actually traded one of their best players. If they do decide to trade him, he should be under consideration for the team.

White Sox- Jimenez still has high potential in the bat, but he also has a lengthy injury history and is a DH at this point. He doesn’t fit in on the D-backs.

Orioles- Come on, this team is ridiculous. They have an absolutely insane amount of talented bats on or near the 40 man. Hays has two more years before free agency while Santander has one. I would imagine they will try to trade at least one of that duo to make room for one of their young outfielders. I'm sure they will trade other young players for starters, but they also need to clear the path for one or both of Cowser and Kjerstad. They also have a bit of a 40 man roster crunch this offseason.

I propose a trade of Austin Hays for Dylan Ray and AJ Vukovich. Hays gives the D-backs a new right fielder, someone with an outstanding arm and great range. He'll get on base at a league average rate and hit for roughly 20 homers per year (Baseball Savant shows his expected home run output was 20 this year. Camden Yards is death on right handed hitters now). He's a solid 2-3 win player.

The two players the Orioles receive in return do not need to be put in the 40 man roster this year. Ray is a solid depth arm with a shot to be a number 4 starter. Vukovich is a bit of a project, but as they've shown, Baltimore is excellent at getting the best out of hitters. Vukovich's power and athleticism are solid building blocks for their player development group. These two could also be used to acquire a top of the rotation starter.

Bench:

The bench for the 2023 D-backs was awful. Why were there three third basemen on the roster, and none of them are particularly good? Jose Herrera is a bad hitter and not good enough defensively to make up for that. There was no fourth outfielder since Pham had been DH-ing most games in the playoffs. Pavin Smith has proven he's terrible; the fact that he pinch hit multiple times in the playoffs, and was the go-to left handed hitter off the bench, is embarrassing. I was really tempted to put the bench up higher in my priority list, but I didn't think I could justify that. Here's how I would augment the bench.

I'd address the lack of left handed pop off the bench by signing Seth Brown to a 1 year, $4 million deal. He can play the corner outfield and first base, although not particularly well. He can mash though, which is exactly what this team needs late in games. He can also be the backup first baseman and DH once in a while.

To address the backup catcher, I'd swing for the fences and sign Mitch Garver to a 3 year, $39 million deal. He DHs most games nowadays, but when he is behind the plate, he's been roughly league average back there. He's a legit middle of the order bat who had a 160 OPS+ against lefties and a 128 OPS+ against righties. Unfortunately, he's been pretty banged up the past few seasons, especially last year, but when healthy, he's outstanding. And if he can find a way to stay healthier than he's been the past few years, he'll be a steal. He's an outstanding compliment to budding superstar Gabriel Moreno.

The final outfield spot can go to Jake McCarthy. He'd be a solid center fielder for a lot of teams, but there isn’t much room for him right now. The team wants him to begin hitting for more power, but his batted ball data doesn’t indicate there is much power to speak of. What he can do is get on base, slap the ball around, steal bags, and play good defense. Since he was recalled on 5/26, he hit .272/.342/.352. And if he has the bounce back season I think he’s capable of having, he’ll be an excellent trade chip. He’s very similar to Geraldo Perdomo.

I'm left to find a couple of backup infielder who can play short. Jace Peterson is still under contract for next year. He might not be a good hitter, but he's a good defender and is a competent 26th man on a roster. I'd complement him by signing Gio Urshela to a 1 year, $8 million deal. Urshela has been an above average offensive player as recently as last year, though he had a down year this year with injuries. He's capable of playing all four infield spots, and with two rookies on the left side of the infield, he'll get plenty of opportunities. Curtis Mead is certainly ready for a starting role, but there’s a chance Lawlar doesn’t make the team out of spring training. If he's not ready, Urshela can handle shortstop for a month or so until Lawlar is deemed ready. The one year deal is so he can reestablish his value next year in free agency. He's not likely to get a long term deal and be a starter for anyone right now.

Bullpen:

Relievers are so unpredictable that I have a hard time justifying spending big on a reliever. I think the bullpen can improve over last year just by virtue of the young pitchers growing for another year, and Mike Hazen seems to agree. I loved how Ryne Nelson looked coming out of the bullpen in the playoffs. I think he should get a shot at a long relief job next year with the hopes he can join the rotation the year after that. He still has enough weapons to be a good starting pitcher, but he looked completely over-matched this year. For now, he’s a depth starter.

Here’s how the 26 man roster will look after these moves.

Infield-

• Christian Walker
• Ketel Marte
• Jordan Lawlar
• Curtis Mead
• Gio Urshela
• Jace Peterson

Outfield-

• Corbin Carroll
• Alek Thomas
• Austin Hays
• Jake McCarthy
• Seth Brown

Catcher-

• Gabriel Moreno
• Mitch Garver

Starters-

• Zack Gallen
• Merrill Kelly
• Brandon Pfaadt
• Shota Imanaga
• Erick Fedde

Bullpen-

• Paul Sewald
• Kevin Ginkel
• Ryan Thompson
• Joe Mantiply
• Andrew Saalfrank
• Luis Frias
• Scott McGough
• Miguel Castro

The pitching depth would more than make up for any injuries and/or ineffectiveness in the group. Those pitchers include-

Starters-

• Ryne Nelson
• Bryce Jarvis
• Slade Cecconi
• Tommy Henry
• Yu-Min Lin
• Blake Walston

Relievers-

• Kyle Nelson
• Carlos Vargas
• Justin Martinez
• Peter Strzlecki

The starting lineup could look something like this:

1. Corbin Carroll, LF
2. Ketel Marte, 2B
3. Gabriel Moreno, C
4. Christian Walker, 1B
5. Mitch Garver, DH
6. Austin Hays, RF
7. Jordan Lawlar, SS
8. Curtis Mead, 3B
9. Alek Thomas, CF

Payroll Math. Salaries for Arbitration eligible players are taken from Fangraphs’ Roster Resource-

• ~$800k- Moreno, Lawlar, Mead, Thomas, McCarthy, Pfaadt, Saalfrank, Frias, Jameson
• $15M- Imanaga
• $14M- Bumgarner
• $13M- Garver
• $13M- Marte
• $12.7M- Walker
• $10.9M- Gallen
• $8M- Kelly
• $8M- Urshela
• $7.3M- Sewald
• $6.1M- Hays
• $6- Fedde
• $5M- Castro
• $4M- Brown
• $3M- Carroll
• $3M- Peterson (Oakland is paying $2 million of his salary)
• $3M- McGough
• $1.4M- Ginkel
• $1.3M- Thompson
• $1M- Mantiply
• Total- $142.1

I left a little bit of room for possible mid-season additions and players to come up from Reno because of injuries on the major league roster.

I would also love to see the team to explore extending Gabriel Moreno and Zac Gallen. I’d imagine a Moreno extension would look like 7 years and $100 million while Gallen’s would look like 5 years and $120 million. Every year that goes by makes me think more and more that Gallen is headed to free agency in two years. I think Moreno will sign, though. The core centered around superstars Carroll and Moreno is going to be so much fun for years to come.

I have some final thoughts about the trade market right now. With there now being 12 teams getting into the playoffs every year, it only takes a win total in roughly the mid-80s to get in. In my estimation, the list of teams who I cannot see achieving that number in 2024 includes the Royals, White Sox, Athletics, Angels, Nationals, and the Rockies. This makes it difficult for teams to do a MLB player-for-prospect swap. I think we’ll start to see less and less trade packages involving prospects and more major leaguer for major leaguer swaps as a result. I wonder if this means teams will start rushing players to either AAA or MLB with the intention of trading them soon after.

Anyway, what do you all think of my plan? I’d love to hear everyone’s thoughts.