New Braves GM

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New Braves GM

Post by Cardinals »

Zalaski recommended a colleague who works for the Titans in sales.

His name is Jim Rice and he's interested in participating. This is what he said to me:
I’m in 5 baseball leagues, all of them keepers. I’m definitely one of those guys that will be attempting to do the stealing of players haha. I’ve done points leagues, category leagues, salary leagues and contract leagues, but I’ve never done a sim league. When Brett told me about it last week it peaked my interest. I’m confident I’m in, but want to look. I’ll shoot you an email tomorrow with any questions
It was a standard intro email from Z. I gave him credentials to play with the site and am having him gather some feedback/questions.

What do we want to ask of him? I've warned him of sharks trying to get the guys like Mazara, Swanson, etc., but with any new GM we're going to want to be vigilant and have sort of an ExCo-buddy system, I think, where one of us helps him through the site/trade offers/the league in general.

Let me know your thoughts regarding Jim himself and some sort of mentoring period.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Guardians »

This might seem a little lame and may take a little more time than we have, but since we basically treat these as a job interview, why don't we set up some mock scenarios? I think we can come up with 2-3 trade scenarios just to see how a guy values prospects and/or picks. We can set it up a little more generally without real players, but discuss ages of trade targets and pick ranges, etc. to gauge where they value players. I know that's tough if you haven't been in a league like this, but it may give us some insight other than "I've been in a bunch of leagues and I love baseball," which is going to be every candidate. We might also ask what their favorite/best trade in a league has been or their favorite move/non-move. Just some ideas. But I like the idea of standardizing it so we're consistent in what we ask.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Astros »

I like the job interview idea. It ain't like Brandon's team had a lot on it that people would want. Plus this way we see if he's good enough up front
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Guardians »

I have a co-worker who is interested as well. His name is Judson Freeman and he's been in a couple fantasy keeper leagues for several years looking for a new challenge. I've asked him to type up a short baseball bio for consideration.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Cardinals »

Here's what I asked Jim, and then his replies:


-- How do you value a top 100 prospect vs. somebody like Nelson Cruz or Shin-Soo Choo?
-- How would you work through a trade offer such as Profar and Heaney for Dansby Swanson?
-- What direction do you want to take your team in? Right now, the Braves are 36-56. You have access to the roster. Who do you put on the block?
-- In terms of your fantasy experience, what's your favorite trade you've made? Or DIDN'T make?


And here's his answer:
Looking over the roster, I would say the best way to turn this team around is to build for the future. I realize it’s going to be a process that takes a couple years before I start to contend. I feel like the only way to do that is to take top prospects over guys that are in the late stages of their careers like Cruz and Choo. Now obviously the strategy could change a bit once I start to contend, but being in keepers leagues the past 8 or 9 years I’m not willing to jeopardize future seasons for one championship.



Brett mentioned that defense plays a role in how things play out so I’d have to dive into the Profar/Heaney for Swanson deal a bit more. I know Swanson is great in the field, but can’t hit if his life depended on it. Profar has been stuck in the minors his entire career, but most of that has to do with injuries. Heaney is putting together a solid season so far.



I really like Whitley. I think he’s got ace potential. Outside of him and a few other top 100 prospects on the roster, I’m not sure there’s anyone else that would be considered untouchable. I’m a very active owner. You can ask guys from my other leagues and I trade more than probably most of the other teams in my leagues combined.



I’ve made so many trades over the years that it would be tough to pick just one, but it would probably be the one I pulled off for Mookie Betts prior to his rookie season. We were in the offseason and were only allowed to keep 6 guys. I managed to put a three-way trade together that sent Miggy from my team to a team that didn’t have 6 keepers, his first rounder went to a team that had too many keepers and I acquired Betts. Miggy hasn’t been the same since and Mookie is one of the best players in the game.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Guardians »

I don't have a Hall of Fame colleague like Z, but please consider my coworker Judson, who has a lot of interest in our league:

Good afternoon. I was recently approached by Pat Gillespie, who presented the possibility of joining the International Baseball Confederacy (IBC) SIM league. I’ve been a baseball enthusiast for over thirty-five years, actively played baseball throughout high school, and participated in a variety of local softball leagues in my mid-late twenties. I’m an annual subscriber to MLB Extra Innings and also subscribe to a couple of talk radio channels that focus on baseball.
I’m currently involved in two fantasy leagues, both of which focus on MLB and NFL (NFL just to pass time for the upcoming baseball season); however, my fantasy career began with college football, then progressed to baseball in 2013-2014. My friend and I joined an MLB fantasy league in 2013-2014, which dissolved after our first year. We enjoyed the comradery so much, we decided to create our own league the following year, “Sweet Chin Music.” Shortly after that, I was invited to join the “Gondola Keeper League” and really enjoy the twelve team format, with a far more aggressive host of team managers.
Both leagues consist of twenty-two man rosters with three DL slots and one NA slot. Both leagues allow for five keepers entering each season with a snake re-draft, last to first. Playoffs consist of six teams, with same day free agent adds, and a maximum of four transactions, per week. League managers vote on all trades. The only difference is that one league is a ten team, while the other is a twelve.
I’ve been honing my baseball intelligence for years and I’m intrigued by the opportunity to further my baseball knowledge. On top of being a data wonk, I’m sure it’s a ton of fun to watch a young player begin his career, then grow to prominence. I appreciate your consideration in joining the IBC and I hope to hear from you, soon.

Best regards,

Judson Freeman
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Dodgers »

Jim Rice being in 5 leagues already concerns me a bit, we’ve had terrible luck with guys like that. Can we get that same set of info/questions out to Judson to see what he has to say?

Maybe a stupid question, but anyone else in IBC that needs to go?
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Rangers »

Yeah would like to see everyone address the same stuff. It's tough because saying you'll sell off vets from your team raises a red flag because almost no one has been experienced enough to get good value right off the bat, but on the other hand, you certainly wouldn't look at that roster and say yeah I'd like to sell out to win right away.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Astros »

As for anyone else that needs to go, I'm going to bang the "It's time to boot Bren" drum again. He may have a great team, but he's got 2 DL violations from his 2 best players. He doesn't pay attention to the league anymore.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Guardians »

Not sure what my line is here since I've introduced one of the candidates. I'd like to see both answers to the questions before weighing in further.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Cardinals »

Judson is on vacation until Thursday and will respond then.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Dodgers »

Did we get a response from Judson?
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Cardinals »

We finally did today:
Sorry for the delay in my response, but here are my answers.

-- How do you value a top 100 prospect vs. somebody like Nelson Cruz or Shin-Soo Choo?
Well, Cruz and Choo are both capable of producing in a number of categories; however, their days are numbered. I have Cruz in one league and would certainly value Cruz over Choo, but a top 100 like Vlady, Jr. or Eloy would be my preference. I’ve never placed Choo on any team I’ve managed and I suppose that my preference would be tailored to the type of league I was competing in. I plan to keep top 100 prospects in both of the fantasy leagues I currently compete in (V. Robles and F. Mejia).


-- How would you work through a trade offer such as Profar and Heaney for Dansby Swanson?
Well, I wouldn’t part ways with Swanson for Profar and Heaney, but I might counter for a different pitcher or a strong future pic. I’d prefer Swanson over Profar in the long run (even given Swanson's K rate) and Heaney hasn’t given me enough reason to jump. Fifth year in the majors and has shown improvements; however, not enough to convince me. Yes, he’s amassed 102 Ks on the season, but can’t seem to break even on win/loss, with a team batting behind him. He’s in 2015 form with a stronger K rate, but can he find consistency and stay healthy?


-- What direction do you want to take your team in? Right now, the Braves are 36-56. You have access to the roster. Who do you put on the block?

It wouldn’t be a race to the finish line this year, but there’s decent talent on the team (Sano, Swanson, Zimmer, Mazara, Whitley, Gregorius), and also players (Mauer, Garcia, Maybin, Revere, Morrison, Tazawa) that I’d plan to replace. I’d move players off the active roster that are injured (Miller) and focus on building consistent production. There are a number of players that I would need to research, as I’m not accustom to the multi-league format, but I should catch on quickly.


-- In terms of your fantasy experience, what's your favorite trade you've made? Or DIDN'T make?
Tough question... Earlier this season I traded Tommy Pham and Willie Calhoun for J.D. Martinez and Victor Robles. Yes, I lost some youth, but my team is already stacked with young players (Correa, Olson, Benintendi, Andujar, Merrifield, Berrios, Peralta), and couldn’t pass on his production. He’s given my team what I expected in spades. Robles over Calhoun was a no brainer. Yes, Robles has been a bit injury prone, but I think he has a much better upside. Pham has potential, but hasn’t really blown me away.

Thanks for the consideration and I look forward to your reply.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Cardinals »

Given their answers, I am inclined to go with Rice. I think Judson's comment about Heaney's win/loss record is a big red flag.
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Re: New Braves GM

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It's a little tough for me to judge since I know Judson and not Jim. I'm not terribly concerned about the w/l thing considering he's used to fantasy and the rest of the analysis of the player seems fine. I think rising to the level of a "red flag" is a little silly. He's definitely green in this type of league, but it seems Jim is as well. To Shawn's point, Jim is involved in a lot of extensive leagues, which could be an attention issue. However, I do think Jim has more analysis experience. But he mentioned Whitley and only a couple other top 100 guys (Greene? Melendez/Kaprielian?) as the only guys he'd want to really keep and that he's very active in trades. I like that as an owner quality, but there's some decent young talent there that probably needs to become part of a core. I could see a sell off. I took Judson's approach of replacing vets (no one too great) as a little more measured, which probably makes sense given the difference in values in IBC vs. a traditional fantasy league. I see some things I like/don't love from both guys.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Cardinals »

Bump
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Re: New Braves GM

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Are we going to consider removing anyone else before we decide between these 2 guys?
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Re: New Braves GM

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Cardinals wrote: Thu Jul 26, 2018 5:13 pm Are we going to consider removing anyone else before we decide between these 2 guys?
I don't like the idea of turning over the keys to a playoff team in a playoff race to a newbie, despite Bren's poor excuse for being an owner. I would prefer we ride out SD through the offseason and then decide what to do. If we like these guys, maybe one gets Atlanta and one hits the jackpot, but I'm not sure these can't be separate conversations at separate times.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Padres »

The irony is that when Bren was the dictator, I mean Commissioner, he kicked guys for the exact same lackluster lackadaisical approach to the league and disrespectful behavior as an owner/GM that he has demonstrated all season.
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Re: New Braves GM

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So in the past, we have, when we had 2 vacancies, had a minidraft. I don't think that would be a bad idea here given how bad Brandon's roster was. Bren has gotten the benefit of the doubt from some people far more than anyone else every would have and for what reason I don't know. When Benedict Arnold tried to give the British West Point, George Washington didn't say well you know you really suck now but you did win Saratoga so I guess we'll let it slide and you can keep being a piece of shit for us.

My proposal is bring both these guys in, minidraft the teams once the season is finished. Don't let them do anything with the rosters right now except lineup changes and stuff so they can get the hang of DMB. We could even go so far as to prohibit San Diego from being in the postseason this year so a newbie isn't given a playoff team. There is precedent for this. In 2004 or 2005, when Josh Morgan had the best team in the league and him and Bren had a major blowup and Josh attempted to kill off the league (I like to think me, Pat G and JB were Calhoun, Clay and Webster during that) we didn't allow Josh's team to be in the playoffs even though it had 98 wins, as did I, so I was given the WC over a vacant team instead of there being a one game playoff.

I realize I have just opened a whole new can of worms but I think if we're getting rid of dead weight we need to remove Bren now. Elsewise he'll pay attention in late September, send in playoff lineups, God forbid win the title and that'll allow him another year or two grace period before we have this exact same conversation
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Cardinals »

Bren has been more active in terms of roster management and being responsive than Ropers. Nobody is clamoring to remove Ropers.

Yes, Bren is an ass. We’ve known that for 16 years. It’s dangerous to remove him because he’s had a pair of DL violations. If you send him a gchat message, he’s responsive.

Right now by being inactive, he’s only doing himself a disservice.

I would argue that Seattle playing short handed earlier this year is just as if not more disruptive to the league. Ropers got it together though and is fine now. Not at all saying get rid of him.

I think what we sort of forget is sometimes an inactive GM is better than a bad one. I’d much rather have Bren as the GM of San Diego than dave taylor. Dave’s an awesome guy. Really kind, and fun to talk to. But he’d ruin those assets in a second.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Dodgers »

These guys seem roughly equivalent to me. Rather than coin flip, I think we've operated on first-come basis in the past?
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Guardians »

Dodgers wrote: Sat Jul 28, 2018 3:07 pm These guys seem roughly equivalent to me. Rather than coin flip, I think we've operated on first-come basis in the past?
I don't know the history on that, but I was talking with Judson for a while before he eventually got in contact with JP. Seems a vote would make more sense.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Cardinals »

Yes let's just vote and get whomever to take over in. Any discussion on other members to remove can come after the season. The idea of having a team skipped from the postseason is also what I'd classify as a Very Bren Move. We want the best teams competing for the title. As much as it would benefit me to not have to face San Diego in the playoffs, I think it's ridiculous and a move that the IBC shouldn't have taken however many years ago it was.
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Re: New Braves GM

Post by Dodgers »

I vote for Jim. Judson's answers felt a bit too roto-centric.
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