What a nice pace of activity we have with this edition of GM meets in Carlsbad.

"WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections Angels PregameAngels PostgameGamethreadsHalos Heaven PodcastsShohei OhtaniMinor LeaguesInterviewsHALOLINKSHumpLinks: GM’s be a GM’ingNew Jason Motte Jersey ,54commentsWhat a nice pace of activity we have with this edition of GM meets in Carlsbad.system in 2018, his move is to blow up the big league roster now.....Well, all except Mitch Haniger, Edwin Diaz and Marco Gonzalez (you know, the guys you wanted)......Oh, and Robinson Cano. Nobody wants to take that one off of Dipoto’s hands.....In other words, tanking the MLB team ala Cubs and Astros. Color me crazy, but shouldn’t that happen before one tanks their farm?..........But the other side of the coin is that this makes for a good source of talent to be redistributed, something that MLB has been lacking since, well, since the Marlins did their dump just some number of months ago..........I would think that this would shut up Giants fans. They had to dive into the Dodgers Front Office to find their new President of Baseball Ops, hiring Farhan Zaidi. Does this mean that Kin Ng needs to take her resume back south to LA now that SFG has passed her by? Oh, wait, the Dodgers already have that one on file..........As if there really was any realistic outcome of anything different. Just because the Angels need pitching, it was always silly talk to think that CC Sabathia might do his final year out of Anaheim. Just days into the FA market, Sabathia re-upped with the Yankees for $8 million.........No, the guy you really WANT is Patrick Corbin. Technically, you want him BACK. Recall that we drafted him in that amazing 2009 LAA June draft class. But we shipped him off to Arizona along with Tyler Skaggs, Joe Saunders, and Rafael Rodriguez...all for Dan Haren. I should point out, as well, that Corbin is yet another LAA choice of recent vintage that had to undergo TJ surgery. At least it’s now behind him. Unelss we sign him. Then he would tear the UCL in his non-throwing arm..........This does not bode well for teams hankerin’ for Bryce Harper. Scott Boras and he apparently turned down a last-day offer from the Nationals supposedly between $300 and $400 million..........I wonder, when the full voting is revealed, how far down the stack was Jacob deGrom in NL MVP voting? Sure http://www.stlouiscardinalsteamshop.com/authentic-marcell-ozuna-jersey , he wasn’t a finalist, but that just means that he was not in the Top 3. He could have been 4th. His season was sick, although his team was shit. So I can see why this would not be one of those rare years when a pitcher takes MVP honors away from a guy who produced like Christian Yelich. But I can’t see deGrom legitimately being lower than 4th or 5th on the list..........On the AL side, Scott Boras is all up in arms because J.D. Martinez was “snubbed”. What a crock. (I did throw shade on this up above.) The three named finalists were legit multi-dimensional contributors. Martinez will get plenty of MVP love, just not enough to make him a Top 3. But Boras is gonna Boras, and pimping clients is what a Boras should be doing. It’s the job..........Oh, interesting. The GM’s are going to do something productive this week, after all. They will have a breakout session to discuss what to do about sign-stealing via electronic means..........Wow, that didn’t take long. Just days after the Angels hire away bullpen coach from the Astros, a guy who is also disciplined in pitcher development and health, but the Houston miracle run of good rotation luck comes to a screeching halt. Lance McCullers, Jr. is to undergo TJ surgery and will be lost for the entirety of 2019. For those not counting at home, McCullers is a Halo killer. In corollary news, ain’t it grand that Shohei Ohtani had that same surgery, will miss the same season, but because he is a two-way phenom he will still shine bright as DH all frikkin’ year!?!..........Dangit. Had it not been for Bryce Harper making a spectacle out of the idiocy of umpire Laz Diaz, Jaime Barria would have garnered Worst Called Strike for 2018, Second Half..........Be careful there, young whippersnappers taking over baseball. There are limits to all that power that comes from breathing the ether of an MLB Front Office. Age discrimination is a real thing..........If MLB were to expand, I can see why expanding to the Dakotas would not be a good idea. But why not the South?..........This slays me. It’s a chat with the Cardinals’ hitting coach, Jeff Albert. “When I was a younger, there was a DVD called Hitters on Hitting...” Albert goes on to discuss other things, but I stopped there for a long pause. When I was younger, by way of comparison Brett Cecil Jersey , it was long, long long before DVDs. Honest as all hell, back in the 60’s we had instructional books that looked a lot more like the DMV handbook, but in comic book form. THAT was how we studied the craft. Jeff Albert is only 38..........Sticking with coaches, it sure must feel good to be wanted when you are an MLB coach, especially with all the churn among the ranks of your bosses, MLB managers. And at this time of the year, especially so. So here com the Reds. Unable to beat ‘em, they are hiring ‘em. Not long after hiring away the playoff-Brewers pitching coach, the Reds have hired away the playoff-Dodgers hitting coach. I am following and linking to coaching changes because we do have some current interest in that market..........I’m so confused. Here is an excerpt from a book titled The Story of Baseball in 100 photographs, and the excerpt runs on for 1000 words, but only 1 photo..........Maybe that TV mega contract gravy train isn’t going to derail soon, after all..........And FOX is sticking around..........The Duffle BagNot a bad idea. A Minor League team in Santa Barbara..........(h/t reddit) Right after Bill Mazeroski walks off the Pittsburgh Pirates in Game 7 of the 1960 WS against the Yankees, these people celebrated the very definition of nosebleed seating...........Sorry, dude, but the Angels mascot should be an Angel, which is defined as the lightest thing in Creation. If not that, then The Rally Monkey. About 7 pounds in real life, but about 4 ounces as getting the stuffing shaken out of it in the hands of kids in the family section.........Mookie Betts is having a really, really good month..........Chicks still dig the long ball, which is why all these strikeouts are dispiriting.......... Starlin Castro’s career has been a model of consistency. In 2019, the Marlins can expect more of the same."WhiteFanposts Sections News & RumorsAnalysisPodcastsProspects & DraftGame CoverageFull ArchiveMasthead Social Marlins Players on TwitterFish Stripes on InstagramMarlins Media Members Fish Stripes Best of 2018 Marlins StoriesScheduleRosterStatsCommunity Guidelines StubHub 鉁昅iami Marlins Analysis2019 Marlins Season Preview2019 Marlins Season Preview: Starlin CastroStarlin Castro’s career has been a model of consistency. In 2019, the Marlins can expect more of the same.EST@YesWayJose23ShareTweetShareShare2019 Marlins Season Preview: Starlin CastroGregory Fisher-USA TODAY SportsGoing into Spring Training, there are a number of position battles to follow on the 2019 Marlins roster. Second base http://www.stlouiscardinalsteamshop.com/authentic-marcell-ozuna-jersey , however, should not be one of them.Even with the addition of consummate pro Neil Walker, the expectation is that Starlin Castro will pick up exactly where he left off last season.How did he get here? Traded from Yankees to Marlins last offseason2018 MLB Stats: .278/.329/.400, 12 HR, 107 OPS+ in 154 G2019 ZiPS Projections: .268/.310/.396 14 HR, 95 OPS+ in 149 GPhoto by @Marlins/TwitterLast offseason when their decision to build was made, the Marlins knew they’d have a young team on the field. They would need to add another veteran to join J.T. Realmuto and Mart铆n Prado while complementing the youth movement. Starlin Castro was that guy...or more precisely, he was “that guy” the New York Yankees insisted on moving in the Giancarlo Stanton trade in order to stay below the luxury-tax threshold. On Dec. 11, 2017, the Marlins officially said goodbye to their reigning NL MVP, receiving Castro and prospects Jorge Guzman and Jos茅 Devers in return.Despite his initially reported discontent about being stranded in a non-competitive situation and speculation that he would be flipped for more prospects, Castro did in fact lace them up for the Marlins in 2018. He wound up playing in 154 games, starting 149 of them at second base. The 28-year-old led the team in both batting average (.278) and hits (165) along with playing very solid defense at second (.981 Fielding %). Your browser does not support HTML5 video.And he even showed a knack for some clutch hitting, such as this walk-off back in July:Your browser does not support HTML5 video.So what can we expect from Castro in 2019? Well, his career track record would say he’s consistently an average MLB everyday player. With Realmuto now out of the picture, Castro is a serious candidate to represent the Fish in the All-Star Game.Starlin Castro Career 162-Game AverageBaseball-ReferenceThe most critical question surrounding Castro is whether or not he will actually finish the season with the Marlins. This is the final guaranteed year of his contract ($11.86 million salary), which includes a $16 million team option for 2020 and $1 million buyout. It’s difficult to imagine a trade unless the Marlins take some of the financial responsibility. At the 2019 trade deadline, it would be wise of the Marlins to leverage a team in the playoff hunt with a need for a veteran bat or second baseman, and seek more young talent for their build. This would then allow for Castro’s successor, Isan D铆az, currently among the Marlins’ Top 10 prospects, to get his first taste of The Show.Castro’s professionalism and steady bat will be greatly appreciated considering that his time in the Marlins organization has been mostly spent in the roles of mentor and stopgap. Whether it ends through a trade or the declining of that team option, 2019 is likely to be his final year with the Fish.