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Art Deco · 10-09-2023, 04:14 PM

It was a bitter disappointment to win 107 games and then be swept in the ALDS but those are the playoffs for you. Only thing to do is reload and get back in next season. And how will that reloading go?

It's a winter of transition in Tampa Bay as we lose two quality starting pitchers (Kevin DiCostanzo, Chris Ferguson) to free agency along with our primary catcher of the last three years (William Contreras) and our closer (Devon Williams). The good news is that we'll have a lot of money to spend to fill those holes, as we're promised a payroll of $160M and only have $114M in commitments:

Adkins will be a non-tender and there's a good chance Park is as well, freeing up a few million more. Also I'm not wedded to Jake Westfall and his $11M salary as he was a disappointment last year (0.9 WAR). Still we'd need someone who can play a decent CF to replace him; Alex Rivas might be capable.

A position-by-position outlook:

C-Willie Gutierrez was brought in last year to take over for Contreras, instead he flopped and Contreras ending up retaining his #1 catcher role. I'm hoping Gutierrez can hit more like the 287/315/457 like he did as a rookie with KC rather than the abominable 188/228/311 he did with us last year. We're still going to need a backup at a minimum and a job-share guy at best. Art Bing, our 2nd-round pick in 2030, regressed at Durham last year after a decent 2034 and our #1 pick that year, Juan Ozuna, still has developing to do as he's still not progressed beyond High-A ball. They both will likely be lapped by last year's #1 pick out of college, Billy Doughty, who made it to AA Montgomery after hitting 303/357/504 at Class-A Charleston. Doughty projects to be an elite hitter at the position (65 potential contact/55 potential power) and an elite fielder (65 potential).

1B-Joe Stack showed improvement in his sophomore year (33 HR/100 RBI).

2B-Wander Franco took the position like a duck to water and had his best season (according to WAR) at the age of 34.

SS-Justin Blackwell was the other guy we got from KC for Orlando Tosado and he fared much better, having a solid all-around (2.6 WAR) season.

3B-Danny Arroyave will be a fixture for years to come.

IF-Claus Hoppenbrouwers filledin nicely as a rookie in a utility role playing 2B,SS and some OF. If Wander opts out of his contract at season's end, Claus will be the heir apparent. ElsewhereMu-Sang Park is a fine glove but doesn't hit much and Agustin Lopez had a good bat but is a bit iffier in the field. Park is arb-eligible as mentioned and may or may not be non-tendered.

LF-Luis Berumen had an excellent rookie season and should be a middle-of-the-order force for years to come.

CF-See the discussion above - Westfall is borderline and Rivas could be the guy, or we could acquire someone.

RF-Bobby Marin had a somewhat disappointing sophomore season but still has stellar ratings (65 contact/70 potential and 60 power) so I'm counting on a bounceback.

OF-Duk-yoon Ko needs to figure in somewhere, at least against righties, given that he hit 30 homers and drew 93 walks last year in only 117 games. He could play right while Marin slides to center (a bit of a sacrifice on D) and essentially platoon with Rivas.

DH-Danny Charlton is the power-hitting monster you want at the position and his absence was felt in the playoffs.

Rotation: Joe Marlette, Joe Scheu and Danny Morales are a fine trio to top it, and there's a good chance we promote Nick Wallerstedt from the pen to join it. That would leave one spot for either Jeremy Brooks, rookie prospect Leo Gutierrez or an acquisition to fill. Gutierrez struggled a bit out of the pen before going back to Durham and then rupturing a finger tendon but assuming he's healthy without ill effects he provides the most upside.

Bullpen: We also take a hit here with the loss of our closer Williams. Our former closer Mike Moore will return but he was terribly inconsistent last year and lost the job. We'll definitely be signing a free agent or three here but not Williams at the 4/53 he's asking for. Setup guys Ruben Abeyta and Ajani Riddick will also be welcomed back as well as middle man Jeff Coblentz. Chris Ericson and Matt Cronin are also free agents, so there's no debating that we're really thin in this department.

Prospects: Not counting Gutierrez, there aren't really any prospects who are expected to make an impact next season so our holes will be have to filled from without. If Doughty continues his rapid ascent with a big first half in the high minors he could be a factor behind the plate but that's about it.

So the goals for the offseason are:

1) find a backup/job share catcher
2) trade Westfall and maybe find a good defensive CF
3) find a starter
4) beef up the bullpen with 2-3 signings/acquisitions

10-09-2023, 04:14 PM	#1281
Art Deco Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2020 Posts: 7,615	2035-36 Offseason: State of the Team It was a bitter disappointment to win 107 games and then be swept in the ALDS but those are the playoffs for you. Only thing to do is reload and get back in next season. And how will that reloading go? It's a winter of transition in Tampa Bay as we lose two quality starting pitchers (Kevin DiCostanzo, Chris Ferguson) to free agency along with our primary catcher of the last three years (William Contreras) and our closer (Devon Williams). The good news is that we'll have a lot of money to spend to fill those holes, as we're promised a payroll of $160M and only have $114M in commitments: Adkins will be a non-tender and there's a good chance Park is as well, freeing up a few million more. Also I'm not wedded to Jake Westfall and his $11M salary as he was a disappointment last year (0.9 WAR). Still we'd need someone who can play a decent CF to replace him; Alex Rivas might be capable. A position-by-position outlook: C-Willie Gutierrez was brought in last year to take over for Contreras, instead he flopped and Contreras ending up retaining his #1 catcher role. I'm hoping Gutierrez can hit more like the 287/315/457 like he did as a rookie with KC rather than the abominable 188/228/311 he did with us last year. We're still going to need a backup at a minimum and a job-share guy at best. Art Bing, our 2nd-round pick in 2030, regressed at Durham last year after a decent 2034 and our #1 pick that year, Juan Ozuna, still has developing to do as he's still not progressed beyond High-A ball. They both will likely be lapped by last year's #1 pick out of college, Billy Doughty, who made it to AA Montgomery after hitting 303/357/504 at Class-A Charleston. Doughty projects to be an elite hitter at the position (65 potential contact/55 potential power) and an elite fielder (65 potential). 1B-Joe Stack showed improvement in his sophomore year (33 HR/100 RBI). 2B-Wander Franco took the position like a duck to water and had his best season (according to WAR) at the age of 34. SS-Justin Blackwell was the other guy we got from KC for Orlando Tosado and he fared much better, having a solid all-around (2.6 WAR) season. 3B-Danny Arroyave will be a fixture for years to come. IF-Claus Hoppenbrouwers filledin nicely as a rookie in a utility role playing 2B,SS and some OF. If Wander opts out of his contract at season's end, Claus will be the heir apparent. ElsewhereMu-Sang Park is a fine glove but doesn't hit much and Agustin Lopez had a good bat but is a bit iffier in the field. Park is arb-eligible as mentioned and may or may not be non-tendered. LF-Luis Berumen had an excellent rookie season and should be a middle-of-the-order force for years to come. CF-See the discussion above - Westfall is borderline and Rivas could be the guy, or we could acquire someone. RF-Bobby Marin had a somewhat disappointing sophomore season but still has stellar ratings (65 contact/70 potential and 60 power) so I'm counting on a bounceback. OF-Duk-yoon Ko needs to figure in somewhere, at least against righties, given that he hit 30 homers and drew 93 walks last year in only 117 games. He could play right while Marin slides to center (a bit of a sacrifice on D) and essentially platoon with Rivas. DH-Danny Charlton is the power-hitting monster you want at the position and his absence was felt in the playoffs. Rotation: Joe Marlette, Joe Scheu and Danny Morales are a fine trio to top it, and there's a good chance we promote Nick Wallerstedt from the pen to join it. That would leave one spot for either Jeremy Brooks, rookie prospect Leo Gutierrez or an acquisition to fill. Gutierrez struggled a bit out of the pen before going back to Durham and then rupturing a finger tendon but assuming he's healthy without ill effects he provides the most upside. Bullpen: We also take a hit here with the loss of our closer Williams. Our former closer Mike Moore will return but he was terribly inconsistent last year and lost the job. We'll definitely be signing a free agent or three here but not Williams at the 4/53 he's asking for. Setup guys Ruben Abeyta and Ajani Riddick will also be welcomed back as well as middle man Jeff Coblentz. Chris Ericson and Matt Cronin are also free agents, so there's no debating that we're really thin in this department. Prospects: Not counting Gutierrez, there aren't really any prospects who are expected to make an impact next season so our holes will be have to filled from without. If Doughty continues his rapid ascent with a big first half in the high minors he could be a factor behind the plate but that's about it. So the goals for the offseason are: 1) find a backup/job share catcher 2) trade Westfall and maybe find a good defensive CF 3) find a starter 4) beef up the bullpen with 2-3 signings/acquisitions