Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

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mikechamp
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Mark Polishuk's NL Central comments

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These comments came from a chat with MLB Trade Rumors' Mark Polishuk that occurred on November 26. Yep, Thanksgiving night. He had one poll, and almost 400 people participated. I don't know about you, but I was nowhere near a MLB chat on Thanksgiving. No bonus Q&A this time.

The link to the entire chat can be found here: https://www.jotcast.com/chat/mlbtr-live-chat-9351.html

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Cubs are stuck in the middle. Do another tear-down or try to patch it up and try again?

Mark Polishuk
There's too much talent on hand for them to blow things up entirely, unless their financial situation is more dire than we're aware. The Cubs need to break the logjam and deal SOMEONE, however, just to get some kind of roster shakeup happening.
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Andrew Benintendi for Sonny Gray... Who says no? Both have 2 years remaining with Benny $4 million cheaper per year.

Mark Polishuk
Cincinnati says no and quickly, since Benintendi was very mediocre last season.
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Lynn vs Gray vs Snell - who is most likely to get traded?

Mark Polishuk
From most likely to least, I'd go Lynn, Snell, Gray. Texas has Lynn for only one more season and they're in a mini-rebuild, so he is most likely to go.
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Springer and Wong seem like the ideal combo for the Jays to address their hitting, wouldn't you agree?

Mark Polishuk
Wong not so much on the hitting, but he'd be an immense upgrade to Toronto's defense.
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What are the odds the Cardinals do nothing and come back with exactly the same team as last year (minus wainwright and Molina)? Follow up - is that a playoff team?

Mark Polishuk
Low, and no.

The Cards might not be super-active, since they can rightly see themselves as a team that could have been even better were it not for their COVID outbreak. But, they're certainly going to have to do something, even if it's just an infielder addition to replace Wong.
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Nats have apparently checked in on Bryant. I think a deal is unlikely, but is the Nats' interest at least an indication that the Nats are willing to spend ~$20m/yr on a bat?

Mark Polishuk
Possibly, though I would suspect the Nats would send some money back Chicago's way in such a trade.

Wait, that is to say, the Nats wouldn't absorb all of Bryant's contract.
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You really think the Reds cut payroll?

Mark Polishuk
The Reds are in a tough spot, since a lot of their highest-paid players underachieved last season, thus lowering their trade values.

After making such a big push to contend, I can't entirely see the Reds pivot to shedding money and possibly going into a mini-rebuild, pandemic notwithstanding.
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Will Lester sign for a year in SF? Should he?

Mark Polishuk
In San Francisco? There's certainly rotation room, and if Lester likes what he hears from the front office (and if the money is right, of course), I can see a deal taking place. I do wonder if Lester would prefer to sign with a team that is more of a clear-cut contender, however.
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What would the Reds have to give up to trade for Story?

Mark Polishuk
Quite a bit in the way of young talent, in theory.

But, it occurs to me that this could be a creative way for the Reds and Rockies to swap some contracts and maybe make the money work out a bit better on either end. Maybe get Ian Desmond thrown in there too, and the Reds can get a notable salary back Colorado's way.
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Where does Ryan Braun end up?

Mark Polishuk
My guess is either a return to Milwaukee on a cheap one-year deal, or retirement.
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This offseason, what one thing can the Pirates do to positively influence their future?

Mark Polishuk
This is a broad answer, and it seems they're already doing this to some extent, but it seems like the Pirates are open to trading almost anyone on the roster. I don't think there's any equivocation about "we have to see what we have" any more, even granted the weird nature of the 2020 season and the lack of proper evaluation.
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