MLBTR Chat Transcript

Tim, what are FA Predictions?

Pedroia is extremely overrated by the media. He's not even the best player on his team - Youk has been this season. If you are excited by the fact that he is on a playoff caliber team, then why not celebrate Jermaine Dye, who is having a better season. Both Mauer and Morneau are also good choices. I just don't understand how Pedroia is in that league. Yes he's having a good season, but there are plenty others having significantly better.

Thanks Adam.

Playing for a different team I think Napoli would be a welcome starter just about everywhere. His 800+ OPS every year tells you he can hit.

With the Angels though there is that extra emphasis from Mike S. (the ex-catcher) around handling the staff. Mathis is sporting an ERA of nearly half a run better than Napoli while catching. That extra half run isn't made up in the difference between Napoli's bat and that of Mathis.

I could definitely see Napoli sticking around and improving his BA. With an OPS of 850 or so he becomes a very viable option as a back-up catcher that DH's on his days off. Also, he isn't a bad catcher. I just think that Mathis is superior defensively as well as handling the sfaff.

One other note - Napoli has had injury issues. Having Napoli play 60% at DH and catch the other 40% would probably do wonders in terms of keeping him healthy. As an Angels fan I expect him to be much more than just a platoon player.

Tim - I have to respectfully disagree on the account of home field advantage. It is not to say that it is a huge difference, but there is certainly a difference. I looked up every playoff round since 1995 (when the divisional round came into play); the home field record is 224-192 for a .538 win%. That's about 8 extra wins over a 100 game span, not great, but certainly a difference.

"Playing for a different team I think Napoli would be a welcome starter just about everywhere. His 800+ OPS every year tells you he can hit."

The problem with Napoli's OPS is that it is largely driven by just the S part. He has the potential to take more walks, but he has to make a little bit better contact to make sense in the Angels' system. The fact that he can run, however, does help.

"One other note - Napoli has had injury issues. Having Napoli play 60% at DH and catch the other 40% would probably do wonders in terms of keeping him healthy."

The injury issues do worry me, especially since they have been of the nagging hamstring and shoulder type.

"With the Angels though there is that extra emphasis from Mike S. (the ex-catcher) around handling the staff. Mathis is sporting an ERA of nearly half a run better than Napoli while catching. That extra half run isn't made up in the difference between Napoli's bat and that of Mathis.

I could definitely see Napoli sticking around and improving his BA. With an OPS of 850 or so he becomes a very viable option as a back-up catcher that DH's on his days off. Also, he isn't a bad catcher. I just think that Mathis is superior defensively as well as handling the sfaff."

While I agree that overall, Mathis is the better defensive player, Napoli is far more steady with his throwing and has actually done a better job at gunning down runners this year, which is important with a staff that is pretty bad at holding runners on (Weaver might be the exception because he has one of the best RH moves around, but he is also very slow to the plate).

As for staff handling, you have to take a look at who each of them has handled this year. Mathis has essentially been the personal caddy for Ervin Santana, which has really helped drive down his CERA. On the other hand, Lackey, Garland and Saunders all have better numbers for BAA and OOPS with Napoli than Mathis.

I agree with the Cy young statements about 2 months of CC vs Lincecum, but what about Managers? I mean Cito Gaston has been amazing, altho now that I said it out loud I forgot about Madden.