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Hey, Hoynsie: Is there any Guardians minor leaguer you definitely would not trade? — Darren Donato, Reading, Pennsylvania.
Hey, Darren: If you’re running the baseball operations of a big league ballclub, you take every phone and listen to every potential deal. No one is untouchable.
Still, there are certain players more available than others. From what I saw of Chase DeLauter in spring training, I would have a hard time parting with him. I know he’s been hurt. I know he’s had trouble staying on the field, but it would take a lot to convince me to let him go.
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Hey, Hoynsie: With the trade deadline looming in a sellers market, how aggressive do you expect the Guards will be? — Jim Z., Durham, New Hampshire.
Hey, Jim: I expect them to be as aggressive as they need to be. They’re in an interesting position, especially concerning the rotation. Do they wait to see if/when Triston McKenzie or Logan Allen can find themselves at Class AAA Columbus? Or do they try to upgrade the rotation before the July 30 deadline? Stay tuned.
Hey, Hoynsie: The G’s position players who may be shopped fall into two groups. Gabriel Arias, Will Brennan, and Tyler Freeman each have over 500 career plate appearances. Five prospects in Jhonkensy Noel, Johnathan Rodriguez, Angel Martinez, Daniel Schneemann and Kyle Manzardo have each flashed promise. Where will the greatest trade interest be? — David England, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Hey, David: I think the biggest trade interest is in prospects. And I still think Arias, Brennan and Freeman are young enough and untested enough to fall into that category.
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Hey, Hoynsie: Why wasn’t Andres Gimenez shifted to shortstop in spring training to allow Brayan Rocchio to learn second base? — Bud, Arizona
Hey, Bud: I think Gimenez has stayed at second for the same reason Steven Kwan has stayed in left field instead of moving to center field. They dominate their position defensively.
The Guardians felt Rocchio could handle shortstop coming out of spring training. I’m sure he could play second as well, but there would have to be a learning curve. So why weaken your defense in the middle of the diamond, when you’re getting above-average defense at short and Gold/Platinum Glove defense at second?
Hey, Hoynsie: What is the average number of years for a first round pick to get to the big leagues? Can Travis Bazzana beat that timetable? — Marv, Phoenix.
Hey, Marv: A story in FanGraphs, written in 2015, calculated that it takes the first overall pick in the draft an average of 3.6 years to reach the big leagues.
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A story in Baseball America, following the 2023 draft, calculated that 81.3% of the pitchers taken in the first round will record at least one strikeout in the big leagues. But only 14.3% will strike out 1,000 batters in their careers.
Regarding hitters, 81% of the hitters taken in the first round will get at least one big league hit. But only 22.5% will reach 1,000 hits.
The Guardians are starting Bazzana at High A (Class A Lake County). We’ll have to see where this takes us. But this is not an organization that pushes its prospects.
The American League’s Jarren Duran, of the Boston Red Sox, holds the award for the Most Valuable Player in the MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. AP
Hey, Hoynsie: Those Walmart-style All-Star uniforms for the American and National League were an embarrassment. Can’t they just go back to players wearing their individual team uniforms? — Tom Koch.
Hey, Tom: I didn’t mind the NL uniforms, but the AL unis looked washed out and see through. I think they can do better.
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Hey, Hoynsie: Every time I see Jose Ramirez being interviewed on TV or read about him, he uses an interpreter. Does Jose speak English? Is he just not comfortable being interviewed on camera or in English? — Ed Wittenberg, Cleveland Heights.
Hey, Ed: Ramirez speaks English. He uses an interpreter so nothing is lost in translation. But with his teammates in the clubhouse, his conversations flow between Spanish and English.
Hey, Hoynsie: Why do people say it would be hard for the Guardians to make a trade with the White Sox because they’re in the same division and it would cost more? I understand that if the White Sox traded a front-line player to Cleveland that they may have to face him for an extended period of time. But wouldn’t the Guardians run the same risk with the prospects they send the White Sox? — Matt Kasza.
Hey, Matt: I see your point, but prospects are prospects for a reason. Some make it, some of them don’t.
If the Guardians acquired Erick Fende or Luis Robert Jr. from Chicago, they are both signed through 2025. Robert has club options for 2026 and 2027. Let’s say Fende continues his career revival and signs an extension with Cleveland. Or Robert stays healthy, rediscovers his power stroke and the Guardians exercise his club options. Meanwhile, all the White Sox have to show for the deal is a handful of magic beans/prospects.
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All executives make bad trades, but it’s worse when they’re reminded of them 13 times a year. That’s why it’s hard to make big trades within any division and that’s why the team selling assets always asks for more.
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