Locked On Mariners - Daily Podcast On the Seattle Mariners - Mariners Make Pair of Expected Moves + Is Brent Rooker Worth the Likely Asking Price?

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Mariners have made a couple of expected moves official today. We'll talk about those and then look at the ALS for potential trade targets coming up here on the Locked-on Marrars podcast. Colby, hit it. You are Locked-on Mariners, your daily Seattle Mariners podcast. Part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. Ahoy, Sailors, it is Friday, November 1st, 2024. This is Taddy Gonzalez and Colby Patnaud for the Lockdown Mariner's podcast. part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team, every day.

Starting point is 00:00:37 Today we have some expected Mariners News to quickly go over. Then we'll be wrapping up our divisional trade preview series with a look at the rosters of the Mariners' division rivals. But before we do that, shout out to our title sponsor today. FanDuel, new customers can place a $5 bet, and you'll get started with $150 in bonus bets if you win your first $5 bet. Visit FanDuel.com to get started.

Starting point is 00:01:01 And if you want to hear from me and Colby even more, help support the show. Check out our Patreon. Sign up now to hear us create our 2025 Mariners off season plan, which we officially wrapped up on Wednesday. So if you want to hear that before we officially unveil it on this show, I believe next week, we're going to wait to be doing that. You can check that out. We also have a spreadsheet on there that lays everything out, breaks it all down, shows you how it all works. So yeah, check it out if you want. All right. So we have a couple of roster moves from the mayors this morning,

Starting point is 00:01:31 both of which very much expected. Luis Arias has been waived and has elected free agency. He was projected to make $5 million in arbitration. The Marrains obviously weren't going to pay that or anything close to that after the year that Arreus had. So that's expected. Arias now a free agent. And then Jorge Polanco, his club option, has been declined. The Marys will pay a $750,000 buyout because of that.

Starting point is 00:02:01 but they end up saving $12 million. So yeah, that's about it. Obviously, that move expected, because especially after the news of Polanco's Patelotendin surgery came out about a few weeks ago. Before that, it was a little bit more up in the air. After, obviously, a very disappointing year injury plagued season for Polanco. But 31 years old.

Starting point is 00:02:31 undergoing Patelotendin surgery obviously has track record of injuries as well. You know, spans beyond that. Writing was pretty much on the wall that the mirrors were going to move on, especially at that dollar figure. So, yeah, Colby, before we move on, any thoughts on today's moves? I mean, nothing at all unexpected. Urias maybe he comes back later in the winter as a minor league free agent. I guess it depends on how much he enjoyed his time in Seattle and Tacoma

Starting point is 00:03:03 and whether or not he can get a major league deal somewhere else. But yeah, it's not an impossibility that he comes back. So, yeah, there's no real surprises here. Polanco, again, the writing was on the wall. And then once we learn about the surgery and how it's probably going to wipe out his entire winter prep and all that stuff. And he may or may not be ready by opening day, it's very vague. and he probably won't be ready. And even if he is, it'll be on a really shortened, you know, prep schedule.

Starting point is 00:03:32 So at that point, no, he's not worth anywhere close to $12 million. So, yeah, I'm not surprised at all. It's to be expected. You know, there's a few other moves left that we're expecting. But the Mariners right now, their 40-man roster is at 36. That's not counting the three guys on the 60s still, who will need to be activated in the next few days. But that'll still keep them at 39. So they're under the 40 man.

Starting point is 00:04:00 Mark as Garcia falls off the 40 man. Justin Turner's falling off the 40 man. So yeah, it's no surprise there. The 40 man is in good shape. And if you're worried about, oh, you know, what are the Mariners going to do with it? Don't worry. Like, Austin Kitchens is still here.

Starting point is 00:04:17 Like, we're good. So. Yeah, we've gone over that. Yeah, there is no 40 man crunch yet. There are a lot of levers they can pull. in that regard. One name I'm watching over the next few days, Jackson CoR. The mayor has acquired him in the Kelnick deal.

Starting point is 00:04:35 They were very high on him in spring. And he did some really interesting things in like the first two weeks of spring training that raised a lot of eyebrows. And unfortunately, Tommy John. And so do they want to carry him all winter? Do they want to, you know, offer? I think he might be ARP eligible. I mean, he would only make the minimum. He's not.

Starting point is 00:04:54 He's not. Okay. But he was only going to make the minimum. either way. So do they want to carry them all winter? They probably should. So yeah, we'll see what they do. But the Mariners 40 man is in is in really good shape in terms of well, the mergers have plenty of options to, you know, move guys off the 40 man. I want to say it's in great shape because of that. But you guys know what I mean. So yeah, it's really just some some roster cleaning today. Yeah. And you know, with Polanco, I mean, that timeline that's clearly.

Starting point is 00:05:26 set by his camp. It's supposed to be optimistic, right? Because otherwise, you're talking about a 31-year-old having the surgery that he just did. And no matter what the severity of the injury is, Patelotentin injuries of any kind or pretty serious things. Yeah. He would be dead on arrival entering free agency. If teams already knew, like, yeah, he's not going to be ready to go by spring training.

Starting point is 00:05:50 Right. But even if he is, again, because it's going to undeniably take a significant chunk out of his off-season prep, what shape is he going to be in come spring training? Where is he going to be at really in terms of his just his build-up for the season, right? There's just so many questions with that.

Starting point is 00:06:10 Yeah, this was absolutely the right decision to make. And I think there was a pretty strong argument that even if there wasn't this surgery that obviously changes the picture even more so, that given the year that he just had, that this was still the right move to move on.

Starting point is 00:06:29 So yeah. Yeah, it's a bummer because obviously we had pretty high expectations for Polanco. And, you know, you saw that, hey, you have, you know, $12 million club option. You know, at the time of the trade, it was like, all right, that seems like I might actually work out. You might have a second base solution for not just 2024, but also 2025. But, yeah, we all know how that went, unfortunately. So, all right, we are going to get into our divisional trade preview series. covering the ALS.

Starting point is 00:06:57 We only have four teams to cover instead of five like we've done on every other one of these episodes because, of course, this is the Mariners Division. We'll be going over those teams in just a moment. But first, a reminder, this episode of the Lockdown Marries podcast is brought to you by Fandul. Get ready to tackle the NFL action with Fandul, America's number one sportsbook, because right now new customers can bet $5 and get $150 back in bonus bets if you win. The Fandul Sportsbook app gives you everything in your. to place live bets on the NFL all in one place.

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Starting point is 00:07:49 Never waste a hunch and make every moment more with Fandul, an official sportsbook partner of the NFL. And you're listening to the Lockdown Merritt podcast. So we've talked about the two Mariners roster moves made today. Now let's get into our divisional trade preview, which is the last in the series. We've saved the Mariners Division for last, the AL West. So we only have four teams to talk about today instead of five.

Starting point is 00:08:15 And as always, we're working in reverse order of the standings, which first brings us, funny enough, to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, who lost, what was it, Colby, 99 games this year? 99 problems, but the Mariners weren't won, unfortunately.

Starting point is 00:08:32 Unfortunately, unfortunately. Yes. One of the many unfortunate things about the Mariners struggling against the Angels is that they had the opportunity to deliver them their 100 loss, which I believe would have been the first time in their franchise's history. But they lost 100 games. So, yeah, it just. What a waste. What a waste. This is obviously a team that Jerry DePoto has never traded with.

Starting point is 00:08:59 in his time as Mariner's GM slash president of baseball operations. Don't necessarily think it's from a lack of effort on his part. It feels like it's the other way. But might have to, might have to do with, you know, his time as general manager of the Angels. But who knows?

Starting point is 00:09:17 But yeah, this is one of two teams. When he was the only guy to get them to the playoffs in the last 15 years. Yeah, what a, what a, what a, you know,

Starting point is 00:09:25 jerk. How dare he? Yeah. The only guy to get Mike Trout in the playoffs. How dare he? Can we start calling this drought that the angels are in? The depoto curse? Sure.

Starting point is 00:09:36 Are we at that point now? Sure. It's been like 10 years. Yeah. So obviously this is one of two teams that Jerry's never traded with as, you know, Marys GM slash president of baseball operations. So Rockies being the other. So it honestly kind of feels like a waste of time to talk about anyone on this roster.

Starting point is 00:09:55 But nevertheless, you know, for content purposes. If they did swing a trade somehow, some way, who would you like to see the Maris target? First things first, guys, a little trivia question for you. Let us know in the comments. What is the last trade, the Mariners and the Angels, actually made with each other? There have not been a lot in the history of these two clubs. So let us know. If you know, put it down in the comments section.

Starting point is 00:10:19 But Angels have been active already. They're too stubborn to actually rebuild. Not that they have a toned tautously trade, like to kickstarter rebuild. but yeah, they do finally, you know, open up and not completely cut themselves off from, you know, 129th of the other teams that they could trade with, especially one that has a pretty good farm system, one of like the five or six best farm systems in baseball, if they, you know, they're not that stubborn. There are a few guys on the roster that do make some sense. I've been a fan of Taylor Ward for the last few years.

Starting point is 00:10:50 There's a lot of Mitch Hanager vibes in how he plays. Not a very good year this year. he was hovering right around the league average mark but you know league average bad is your fourth outfielder do a lot worse uh doubles i mean he finished as a 11 w rc plus okay so he finished wrong uh i didn't i remember he was hovering around 100 around 246 323 426 25 bombs 75 ribs he was almost a 3-1 player this year it's very machinigree uh so yeah i like to have a word i think he's got two years left to club control if i remember correct uh or is he rb one i feel like he's Arb two.

Starting point is 00:11:27 He is, yeah, two years of clip control left. Right. Arb two. So because he might be a little too expensive for the Mariners, just because they have their three outfielders. But again, if you're talking Victor Robles Insurance, if you're talking about a guy who pushes a Rosarana to D.D.H. Some more than he had to last year.

Starting point is 00:11:44 Taylor Ward could be a guy there to keep an eye on. Luis Rangipo is another guy. He can play second. He can play third. So he kind of helps you in both of those spots, much better against left-handed pitching than he is right-handed pitching. So, you know, that's not ideal, but overall, the numbers are pretty good. He makes a lot of contact.

Starting point is 00:12:01 He's going to hit for a pretty good average. Got some pop. You guys know Rengifo. He's a good player. He's a good, solid player. He can help you. So he'd be interesting. I believe he is a one-year solution, if I'm not mistaken.

Starting point is 00:12:14 Rengifo, for some reason, I always feel like he's on the last year his contract, but then I look and he's always got like three. He's a year's club controller. Okay. So finally, he is in ARP 3. feels like I thought he was an R3 for the last four or five years. So yeah, Rangipo is pretty interesting. There's a few guys in the rotation that actually I think could be saved from the Angels.

Starting point is 00:12:36 You guys know what I mean. Patrick Sandoval is one of them. Reed Detmer's is another. I think there's more there in both of those guys than the angels have gotten out of them. Now, Sandoval had UCL surgery. It's not considered Tommy John, but it's UCL surgery. Right. So you're kind of sitting on him in 2025.

Starting point is 00:12:56 I assume that's the brace surgery. You're probably sitting on that in 2025. But when you come back in 2026, you know, when Luis Castillo's no trade clause expires, blah, blah, blah. Right. Yeah. Boom. So, yeah, there are a few guys here.

Starting point is 00:13:09 There's bullpen pieces. There's always bullfin pieces. But obviously, you know, Robert Stevenson, who we were very high on last year, he had the surgery. I don't know when he's coming back, probably middle of the year, but $10 million on a guy who might pitch half a year. If you're lucky, it doesn't really seem very marinery. Yeah, Hunter Strickland's a free agent.

Starting point is 00:13:28 Estevez was traded already. So not a ton here, but again, Ward. You're not getting Ben Joyce. No. But again, Ward, Rengifo could make some sense. Then obviously, you know, Sandival possibly. He might get non-tendered. Who knows?

Starting point is 00:13:44 Sandoval and Debtmer's also makes some sense. So there's a few guys here. You're not getting Netto. You're not getting no hoppy. you know, you're obviously, you don't want anything to do with Rendon or anybody like that. So, yeah, just a handful of guys, a couple of guys who are pretty much everyday players, Rangifo and Ward, and then a couple of really interesting arms here. You're kind of number fives right now.

Starting point is 00:14:09 Sandival's a little bit better than that, but he's hurt. But, yeah, there's some upside plays here on the Angels, and it is a team that could offer some solutions to the Mariners problems. Yeah. So the Oakland Athletics, obviously. there's a big name here that we've talked about quite a bit yeah and a har see even still all the damn oh i guess he is i don't know i see him i saw him you're a resource yeah uh but no brent rucker obviously uh favorite of ours um i just don't know how you're going to get him right and like he's coming off of an insane year uh and then you know the year prior he was

Starting point is 00:14:49 really good as well he wasn't as good as he wasn't as good as he was this year but still really good. But before that, you know, not really much to speak of and now he's 30 years old. Like is there some performance risk there? Maybe. And again, he's a,

Starting point is 00:15:05 he's a DH who's probably not going to play in the field. There's some roster limitations. Roster limitations. And if that's going to cost you Colt Emerson plus, potentially, then yeah, I, yeah, I'm probably out.

Starting point is 00:15:22 Yeah, I wouldn't trade Colt Emerson for Rooker. I would trade pretty much any other prospect as the headliner. I think I'd probably trade Lass, you know, young, whatever, pick your guy, right? I'd probably trade any of them except for Emerson. And then obviously I'm not training Wu or Miller. But let's be clear about this. The Oakland A's absolutely should trade Brent Rooker or sorry, the A's now.

Starting point is 00:15:48 They absolutely should trade Brent Rooker. He's got three years of club control left. he's still cheap. He's coming off of a career year, which came after a career year in which he was an All-Star. So two really good seasons back to back, including a great one this year. He's 30 years old.

Starting point is 00:16:03 He's never going to, by the time you get to Vegas, he's going to be a free agent, he's going to leave. You're not signing him to a long-term deal. This is the winter. This is when you trade Brentbroker. You absolutely should trade him this winter.

Starting point is 00:16:16 Will they? I don't know. Do they really care about drawing the 11,000 capacity crowd that the Sacramento minor league ballpark has. Like, I don't know. Like, are they even going to get that many anyways? Who knows? But they should absolutely trade burnt rucker this winter.

Starting point is 00:16:31 Are they going to? I kind of doubt it. Are they going to to the Mariners? I especially doubt it, but they absolutely should. It's a no-brainer. They should trade Brent Rooker this winter. Like, you should not get to camp with you. But I suspect there's a pretty decent chance he will.

Starting point is 00:16:50 but Rooker is a guy who not only is way up on my list of guys, but is also like way up on my, my like probably not going to happen like type of list, you know, where it's like, yeah, I'd love the guy, but.

Starting point is 00:17:04 Yeah, he's in the like, how do you get him? Yeah. Where it's like, we know the mayors are interested and they're probably going to call, but I just don't see how they're going to get them. Right.

Starting point is 00:17:14 Yeah. It's like, is it even worth really discussing that much this winter because the odds of it happening are so low. but yes, Rooker is definitely like a guy. And in terms of like guys who are should be available this winter, I should say, he's like in my top three. I would love to have Brent Rooker.

Starting point is 00:17:29 I just don't see how you get it done. Aside from Rooker, there are, you know, a handful of guys. There's a couple of flyers. Sure. I mean, like you're not like Lawrence Butler had an insane year. They're not trading him. He'll actually be there like when they actually get to Vegas and they can kind of build around him.

Starting point is 00:17:46 But yeah, I mean like Rooker is obviously the main prize here. but like J.P. Sears, if you're looking for some rotation, I like J.P. Sears quite a bit. I can tell you like a deep sleeper. I mean, if you're worried about injuries, it might not be the guy for you. But as Turrey Ruiz, as the 26 guy on the bench, fourth outfield type,

Starting point is 00:18:06 basically just there to steal bases, doesn't really do anything else that well. You know, he's basically a glorified Terrence Gore. But, yeah, you know, he's fast. And the Mariners like speed. So there are a few pieces. All 67 bags in 2023. Interestingly enough, I believe he's coming off of a Patelotent in surgery that he had earlier this year.

Starting point is 00:18:27 So, yeah. So, you know, but he's only 25, 26, I believe. So not quite the same as a 31 year old who was already a bad athlete having that injury. So we'll see how that goes. But that's just a name to watch. But yeah, it's mostly Rooker in this one. And then, you know, I'll just bring him up because it's tradition. I mean, to talk about Oakland-Age trade candidates.

Starting point is 00:18:49 not bring up this guy. It'd be like Christmas morning without presents. It's Seth Brown. Sure. Bring them up. Why not? It doesn't really fit all that well. But yeah, Seth Brown. I have to fulfill my quota. If you like him more than Domkan zone,

Starting point is 00:19:05 then sure. As like the left hand-a-million dollars more than Dom-Cans zone. As like the left-handed hitting fourth, fifth outfielder, right? Depending on what you do with Luke Rayleigh, of course. Yeah. All right. So we'll be going over the Rangers and the Astros here in just a moment. But first, a reminder of this episode of the Lockdown Marys podcast is brought to you by game time.

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Starting point is 00:21:04 here because they finished behind the Astros and the standings and behind the mirrors as well. This is a weird team. Obviously coming off of World Series championship in 2023 and then this year, very disappointing year. They are set to enter the offseason fifth and payroll. And they're one of the ballet sports teams. So are they going to be willing to add payroll? Are they going to look to shed payroll? Are they just going to basically stand pat?

Starting point is 00:21:34 What are the Rangers going to do? That's what I'm trying to figure out right now, personally. We've already had reports that they plan to cut payroll. Yeah. So how much of it? you know, how aggressive are they going to be to do that? I don't know. Those are the questions,

Starting point is 00:21:51 but we do have reports already that they're expected to cut some of their payroll this winter. So, you know, the easiest way to do that would be finding somebody to take Jacob de Grom's contract off your hands, but not going to happen. So, yeah, there are quite a few guys making money on this roster. So they do have options and levers to pull. It's just kind of about where do they think that they can repurpose some of the money that they save? to keep the rock because I don't think that they're going to look at this and be like, yeah, it's time for us to take a step back and,

Starting point is 00:22:21 and, you know, kind of reload or like reconfigure and maybe it'll take a year or two. Like I, I don't see them necessarily. Like, I'd be pretty surprised if they traded. For example,

Starting point is 00:22:32 Adola Garcia, who, you know, was making a good amount of money is in his 30s, but I think 29 now, but. No, he's,

Starting point is 00:22:42 he's almost 32. Oh, geez, really? Yeah. Wow, you learn something new. So yeah, Adola Garcia, I don't, I just, I think because they want to still be competitive, I think they look at and say, hey, if we can get rid of like Josh Gray or John Gray, sorry. John Gray.

Starting point is 00:22:58 They get rid of John Gray and his $13 million. Like, maybe then we could just replace that pitcher within and blah. You know, I think they're going to try and cut salary and still compete. And as we know, Major League Baseball, that's a very difficult thing to do. You have to be very careful with what you, like how you, who you spend money. on who you trade away because you may or may not have the options now the rangers do have white lankford they do have evan carter who they're expecting big things from so maybe they do trade somebody like uh dolis garcia that's certainly a possibility but i just fascinating one i mean

Starting point is 00:23:33 he's best friends with randy so there's already like a fit there sure and we know we know how fun garcia can be when he's on sure he also doesn't walk like at all he's coming up Oh, there's a lot of, there's a lot of, there's a lot of performance risk here. Yeah, like you said, he's 32 years old. So he also had a really bad year defensively this year. Yeah, he's not, he's not a good defender. So yeah, he'd be an interesting guy. But again, I think if the, the Rangers trade him, it's kind of signaling to their fan base.

Starting point is 00:24:03 Like, we're not really in it this year. And honestly, that should be fine. I mean, like, again, not to take anything away from the Rangers of 2023, a lot of things went right for them that year. A lot went right. And so it wasn't surprising to me at all that the Rangers had the season they did because basically the Rangers this year is who I thought the Rangers last year were going to be. Jonah Heim took a big step back. You guys know the story by now. But yeah, so the Rangers are a fascinating team because they're going to try and cut payroll.

Starting point is 00:24:33 But I also think they're still going to try and feel the team that they believe could win the American League West. And it's like, can you do that? Because I think you're pretty far behind the Mariners and the Astros still. So we'll see. But one name that stands out a little bit here, Nathaniel Lowe. Mariners can use some first base help. Low is a guy. This is a low, right?

Starting point is 00:24:54 Not a low. Yeah, yeah, he's a lot. You know, pretty good hitter, not an elite hitter. Kind of left-handed tie France a little bit. But he is making $10.7 million this year. That's pretty pricey. Especially when you have Luke Grayley, who's making $10 million less than that? Low gets on base, though.

Starting point is 00:25:12 He does. He's a good hitter. Like, he's a good, solid hitter, good player. But again, 10.7. The mayor's want to spend that on first base only when they have Luke Grayley who's going to make the minimum. Like maybe, maybe they do, but maybe they don't. It's a possibility, certainly, to look at. I know there's an outfielder you want to talk about, though, Ty, who's not Adolas Garcia.

Starting point is 00:25:35 Yeah, Leone Tavares is interesting. He's projected to make $4.3 million in arbitration. So there's a non-zero chance he gets non-tendered by the Rangers. there's also a pretty decent chance that the Marys are not interested at that dollar figure for a guy that's essentially going to be their fourth or fifth out outfielder again depending on what happens

Starting point is 00:25:55 with Luke Rayleigh and what his role is actually going to wind up being but Tavares 2023 was a league average bat 266, 312, 421 was a two and a half one player this year 82 WR plus but he has pop you can hit some home runs. We've seen that, unfortunately, against the mirrors.

Starting point is 00:26:19 But the value here is the glove. It's a really good defender. I can play all three spots. Yeah, I also feel like last year, Taviris, a lot of his offensive output came in the first half, and then he was pretty bad in the second half. So that would be 18 months now, where he's been a below average hitter.

Starting point is 00:26:37 So, you know, how much does that, how much does that won, you know, whatever, WRC Plus from 20, 23, How much does that really carry over? I don't know, but he's interesting, certainly. You kind of could use some speed and athleticism on your bench, some outfield defense on your bench. Wouldn't be the worst idea. So, yeah, I mean, Texas is interesting, to say the least.

Starting point is 00:26:58 They have some guys. One name, again, I don't think this is likely, but I'll just throw them out there just in case. Could they be talked in a movie Marcus Simeon? And could they be talking to eating some of his money to facilitate a trade? Because we know the Mariners were interested. in Simeon a couple years ago. They simply weren't willing to, you know, go seven years on the 30-year-old, which, you know, kind of makes sense.

Starting point is 00:27:23 Simian wasn't very good this year, offensively. So, you know, does he have a bounce back year next year at 33, 34 years old? Do you want to, I mean, he's still set to make. I think he's got, what, five years left on that deal, $125 million? The Mariners probably aren't interested at that price. Might they be interested at five? and 80, 5 and 70? Maybe, probably not, but maybe.

Starting point is 00:27:49 So, you know, just keep an eye on Simeon as well. There are some guys. One of the things I floated early on was this like John Gray for Mitch Garber contract swap. Gray has a lot of really fun like tools as a pitcher that nobody's really ever been able to get the best out of him. Maybe the Mariners could, but, you know, do you want to trade your backup? catcher for a sixth starter slash, you know, middle relief guy probably. Like, do you want to pay a middle reliever $13 million? I mean, in plus of your Texas, isn't the point to save money.

Starting point is 00:28:24 So, yeah, there are some guys here for the Rangers, but it's a really difficult club to kind of get your finger on the pulse of because they do want to cut payroll, but they also still want to compete. So, you know, if they're going to trade for prospects, they probably want prospects who are close to Major League ready. It's a weird kind of team, but there are some guys here that could help the Mariners for sure. The Mariners haven't been afraid to trade with the Astros in the past. This is another team that's, I mean, Dana Brown, their GM said they're going to have to get creative of payroll.

Starting point is 00:28:58 Obviously, Alex Breggman is hitting some. Yeah, Alex Breggman is hitting free agency. Are they going to bring them back? If so, is that all they can do? and if not, what are they going to do after that? I don't see a ton of options here for the Mariners. Like maybe Jake Myers, maybe Chas McCormick, maybe Maricio Dubon. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:29:27 I mean, even if it was available, they're not trading Kyle Tucker to the Mariners. That's not happening. So if you're like, oh, trade for Kyle Tucker guy, no. not going to happen, not this year. You know, they're not going to trade for Amber Valdez and the mayor. It's not that he makes much sense for Seattle anyways right now, but those two guys are both free agents after this year. We know, again, that the Astros are where we talked about payroll creativity. Is it so that they can afford Tucker?

Starting point is 00:29:55 Is that the plan? They're going to extend Tucker? I don't know. So I guess we'll see. But yeah, the Astros are at a bit of a crossroads right now. You know, it's almost like they shouldn't have given $100 million to Josh Hader. who would have guessed that that would be a bad idea but uh yeah there are there are some guys you know uh but a lot of them like the the big names they're not going to trade them to you

Starting point is 00:30:18 and then even kind of the the the secondary names or kind of like the you know the contributors but not stars that they do have available like you're not getting brian abray you uh chas mccormick how much does he really help you know uh so yeah they are an interesting team for sure but kind of like the, kind of like the Rangers, they're cutting payroll. It's really tough to cut payroll and get better. And as we just saw this last year,

Starting point is 00:30:46 the Astros, they're not the class of the American. They need help. They need help. Yeah. They're a severely flawed baseball team. And they said, took the Mariners literally collapsing

Starting point is 00:30:56 for them to make the playoffs, which I mean, good for them. They took advantage of. They played really good ball. Like, it's not just that the Mariners collapse. It's that the Astros played fantastic baseball

Starting point is 00:31:05 from like June until, September. So they're still a threat. Obviously, they're still very good at player development and all that stuff. But this is a roster that needs help. And if they're cutting payroll, they're probably going to lose Bregman. They might lose Tucker next year. They're kind of in this weird stage. So it's really tough to kind of pin down what they may or may not be willing to trade, particularly to you, a division rival and the biggest threat to their run of dominance in the American League West. So that is going to do it for our show. But before we get out of here, a reminder that lockdown has launched the first ever. national sports 24-7 streaming channel on YouTube. And now it's also available on Amazon Fire TV and the free Fire TV channels app. Lockdown Sports Today is here for you 24-7 covering the top sports stories of the day with the local experts of Lockedon. Plus our national shows covering every league by Lockdown Sports Today, now available on the free Fire TV channels app. Thank you so much for joining us here on the Lockdown Marrars podcast for Colby PetNode. I'm Tiding Azzalus.

Starting point is 00:32:00 Be sure to give us a follow on Twitter at LO underscore Marrars. You can follow me at Tiding Azalus. Colby at C-Pat-11. and that's CPAT 1-1. You can also find all that stuff in the description of this episode. Have yourself a beautiful baseball day, and we'll see you next time. Peace.

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