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Do you blame Skubal for wanting to win with the Tigers?
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00:00Alright, so Will Birchfield, 97 on the ticket dot com. He's got an article up. It features a quote from
00:04Tarek Skubal after last night's Tigers win. Skubal went five innings, some longer innings. Nine strikeouts only gave up the
00:11one run. Right. Tigers are still five back in the wildcard. Didn't make up any ground, which is why we
00:15have focused more on 500 than games back. They're nine under 500. Well, they picked that game up on the
00:21A's. They did. And here's what Tarek. The athletics, I have to say now, right? Wait, why? I don't know.
00:26You can't say the A's. Everything that's always listed is athletics now.
00:30Okay. Greg and I made eye contact. We're just going to move past that. So Will Birchfield's article, Tarek Skubal
00:37wants the Tigers to buy at the deadline. And in Will's article, you will see the quote. It says, we've
00:44had some unlucky losses, beat up ourselves a bit, some injury stuff, including myself. Quote, hopefully the decision makers see
00:52that we're a very good team and it's not sell at the deadline. It's add.
00:58I think we're a really good team. And there's so many guys in this room that have proven we can
01:02go on a run like we did in 24. End quote.
01:06Sign Dylan Larkin. Yes, we have to add or I'm out of here. Well, yes, of course, you're a free
01:11agent.
01:12But Will actually does it. Will does a great job writing these articles, but there's a fun passage here and
01:16he says, you know, decision maker decision looms for Scott Harris.
01:23Will points out baseball is a strange sport. After 91 games, the Tigers are plus 15 and run scored.
01:32The A's are a minus 76 and run scored, and they're both 41 and 50.
01:38If you subscribe to such things and the Tigers and their analytically minded front office surely do Detroit's run differential
01:45equates to an expected record of 47 and 44.
01:50He writes, your eye rolling is understood. The Tigers did this to themselves.
01:54Right. When you what do you make a Scoobles message add at the deadline?
02:01I think he believed. Look, he said from the get go, and I do believe it. Every player, including himself,
02:07he wants to win.
02:08And even if he knows he's out of here or whatever, he doesn't care about that part of it.
02:13He doesn't care if this lays in waste afterwards.
02:16No, he wants to win. And, you know, good for him. His job, Tarek Scoobles job is not to worry
02:22about the future of this team while he's a free agent.
02:24That's Scott Harris's job. And if Tarek Scoobles thinks in his mind that this team could be awesome, then, yeah,
02:34he should feel that way.
02:35Well, OK, if he wants to cite 2024, I will, too. Let's trade him like we traded Jack Flaherty and
02:42go on a run anyway.
02:43We got enough starting pitching, right? Yeah. Right. I mean, when you look at the M's, you love the M's.
02:48Mize, Melton, Montero. Yes.
02:51If you can get anything down the stretch from Job, you have Valdez, a very expensive piece in this rotation.
02:58Flaherty. I mean, I don't know if you're dealing him, too.
03:00My point is, you could trade Scoobles and still be in this.
03:03Yes. And add.
03:05And add. Yeah.
03:07They could do both. You're correct.
03:09As Will writes, the Tigers will listen.
03:12They have to.
03:13It would be crippling.
03:15Some might say criminal to keep Scoobles for an outside shot at making the playoffs, only to fall short and
03:20lose him this winter for nothing more than draft pick compensation.
03:23Exactly.
03:23Just ask the Angels how that worked out with Shohei Otani.
03:26Correct. That's probably one of the reasons the general manager lost his job.
03:29Finally, although that was probably a more owner driven than anything else.
03:34But yeah.
03:34So there's a lot to break down.
03:35There's should the team add, which I still think they need to win more to justify.
03:39And then there's should they keep Scoobles, which I don't think there's really much justification for.
03:44No, there is none.
03:45They're not a World Series team.
03:46You trade.
03:46And if you want to buy separately because you feel like the team is rattling off enough wins.
03:51That's fine.
03:52I could I could be down with that.
03:53You got 8000 shortstops and middle infielders who are really good prospects.
03:58Yeah.
04:00Text.
04:00No, Tarek.
04:01Sell, sell, sell.
04:05You guys keep talking about 500 in the wildcard.
04:07All that matters is the division.
04:08There will not be two teams from this division that make the playoffs.
04:11Well, right now there are the playoffs started today.
04:13There'd be two teams from the American League Central in the playoffs.
04:16The White Sox and the Guardians.
04:19That's how bad this American League is.
04:21Yeah.
04:23But again, is the goal to get in the playoffs?
04:27Or is the goal to chase a World Series?
04:29The goal is to chase a World Series.
04:30But obviously, if you don't get in there, you can't even have a chance to do that.
04:35But yeah.
04:36Yeah.
04:37Look, we still.
04:38If they're in it, like let's hypothetically, you know, you said Benetti said last night that
04:45they go five and one on this thing.
04:47Suppose that after the All-Star break, it continues and they get hot.
04:50Yeah.
04:50Suppose by August 3rd, they're actually above 500 and maybe even leading the division.
04:56Do you still think of trading Scoobull?
04:58Well, I still do because they're not winning the World Series now in this awful American
05:06League.
05:07You're saying could they get there?
05:08They could get there.
05:10Their rotation is as formidable as anybody's.
05:12Any team could get any of the teams in the American League.
05:15How about this?
05:15If they get in the playoffs, they can make the World Series.
05:17Anyways, I'd put it to you this way.
05:20If they traded Tarek Scoobull at the deadline, that would be the logical thing to do.
05:27If they kept Tarek Scoobull at the deadline, I think they're taking a very big risk.
05:33And if they're going to do it, they need to help ensure their chances of winning the
05:35whole thing by making several trades.
05:38Yes.
05:38Pushing their chips in.
05:40I wouldn't want to keep Scoobull knowing how lofty it's going to be for this team to
05:44win a World Series.
05:45If they keep him, they better increase their chances by doing what they didn't do a year
05:49ago.
05:49It would be out of character, but I think I'd need to see it.
05:52Last year, they weren't willing to buy as a first place team.
05:55They'd have to be willing to buy as a team that's keeping Tarek Scoobull.
05:57Correct.
05:58And maybe recklessly keeping him.
06:00So you need to buy accordingly.
06:032, 4, 8, 5, 3, 9, 97, 97.
06:05Just something to chew on because that's a quote from last night.
06:07Scoobull talking about the deadline.
06:08We're counting down the days.
06:10By the way, second half of the bobblehead giveaway is tonight.
06:12Oh.
06:13Part one last night, part two tonight.
06:16Last night, Kevin McGonigal, two hits.
06:18Ho-hum.
06:19On base again.
06:20He just knows it.
06:20Multiple times.
06:21Yeah, absolutely.
06:22Just used to it at this point.
06:23I wonder what his longest 0 for streak is.
06:26Oh, man.
06:28I mean, I'll eventually dig it up for you, but it's probably not very high.
06:31No, I know.
06:33Obviously, he gets on base.
06:35I mean, setting a record last night for consecutive games with multiple.
06:41Not consecutive.
06:41Well, most games at the All-Star break by getting on base multiple times in a game.
06:49Yeah, it's kind of convoluted.
06:50The easiest way to describe it is this.
06:51He's been on base multiple times in 53 games.
06:54It's a record for rookies at the All-Star break.
06:56Like, um, and it's just, it's what he is.
07:00It's who he gets on base.
07:01His on-base percentage is almost 400.
07:03It's unbelievable.
07:04He is the, you know, I know they could, they've done both.
07:10I don't know the whole white life for Max Clark McGonigal.
07:13Supposedly, they couldn't have gotten McGonigal because of the slots that Langford went and
07:17whatever, whatever, but Kevin McGonigal is the poster child for what this organization
07:24is supposed to be all about when Scott Harris took over.
07:30Attack the zone, know the zone, own the zone, get on base and do things really good in the
07:38field.
07:39And a year ago, we were bitching about strikeouts, not putting a ball in play, too many platoon
07:46bats.
07:46McGonigal, at 21 years old, plays every day.
07:48Yes.
07:49He hits at the top of the order.
07:50He sees the pitches better than anybody in baseball.
07:53The number of guys who have walked more than they've struck out, you can count on two
07:57hands.
07:58Of those guys, nobody's walked more than Kevin McGonigal.
08:00You can make a strong case that at 21 years old, he has the best eye in baseball.
08:07And by the way, he plays two primo defensive positions.
08:10He can play short.
08:10He play 30s, the best base runner on the team.
08:12He leads them in stolen bases.
08:14He, by the way, fourth highest war in all of baseball.
08:17Number one in the American League ahead of somebody named Bobby Witt Jr.
08:20He is pacing to have an all-time rookie season.
08:24Like, Trouts will go down as the greatest rookie season, but he could end up in the
08:28short list of guys just behind that.
08:30I know Ichiro won MVP.
08:32Yeah, but Ichiro was not really a rookie.
08:34Not a traditional rookie.
08:35Yes.
08:35McGonigal will go down.
08:36This could be one of the 10 best rookie seasons of all time.
08:39By war, yes.
08:40But not by, you know, power numbers and things like that.
08:42I know.
08:43You got the people.
08:43He's not going to hit 40 bombs or steal 40 bases.
08:45But if you're trying to measure all the contributions of what he does to the team.
08:49The way baseball is valued now, absolutely.
08:52I mean, if this was, you know, Kevin McGonigal, you know, 1970, 1980, the same stats and all
09:00that, everybody would say, oh, he's good and all that.
09:01First of all, we wouldn't know what war was.
09:03Right.
09:04What's it good for?
09:05Yeah.
09:06Absolutely.
09:07Yeah.
09:08He would just be looked down and looked upon as a really good player.
09:12But we look at baseball a lot differently now.
09:14I mean, he's got four of the five tools right now playing like at a very high level with
09:21those four tools.
09:22Correct.
09:22Right.
09:22It is the fifth tool.
09:24It's slugging, I would say.
09:25Yeah.
09:26Like, look, I'm not looking for I'm looking around 20 homers, maybe a year.
09:3020, 25, seven.
09:32He's got some warning trackers.
09:33Yeah.
09:34But more extra base hits is what I'm really looking for.
09:37The triples in this ballpark.
09:38So he only has 28 extra base hits out of his 95.
09:40Five like Bobby Witt, for example, like is in the mid thirties.
09:46So, you know, that's going to be a fun debate in AL.
09:50It's starting to look like who's if he stays at shortstop, who's your starting shortstop
09:54in the AL?
09:55Well, the fans vote Bobby Witt.
09:57You're saying moving forward.
09:58Yeah.
09:59Yeah.
09:59Yeah.
09:59Yeah.
09:59Okay.
10:00Well, it was like Trammell and Ripken back in the day.
10:03Right.
10:05Look, I don't feel like, you know, some people might go, you guys are getting carried away.
10:09I actually feel like we haven't given McGonagall enough love as the season has gone on.
10:13Well, it's because the team has been so bad that we kind of like short shrifted him.
10:18You're correct.
10:19So I don't feel like we have to backpedal or pump the brakes.
10:23I think we should celebrate the player that we have.
10:25It's so rare to have a homegrown player do what he's doing and do it this quickly in
10:31his career.
10:32I'm so happy they paid this guy.
10:34Yeah.
10:34So happy he's locked up for a long time.
10:36And I think he's the best player on this team.
10:40I mean, you can argue Dingler if you'd like, but I think the difference would be McGonagall
10:44is that table setter on base guy.
10:45He's the identity piece.
10:47He plays more positions.
10:47The argument for Dingler is he's got more power and he plays a tougher position.
10:53And then if you expand it, where's McGonagall in the city of Detroit?
10:56As far as our stars go, I think we have, I'm in three.
10:59Yeah.
11:00There's only two you'd put ahead of him.
11:01Cade and Sewell.
11:02And I know people say, well, Sewell, how can an offensive tackle?
11:05Well, you know, it's like McGonagall.
11:06It's identity piece.
11:07It's critical cog.
11:09And Cade has to be number one.
11:11Cade has multiple seasons where he's received MVP votes.
11:14Correct.
11:14He has a postseason track record.
11:16Now he has the piston playoff record for most points in a game.
11:19And you know, you're really good when you're only called by one name.
11:22That's a good point, too.
11:26Two, four, eight, five, three, nine, 97, 97.
11:30Got some feedback coming in on the Scooble quotes.
11:34No trade, Tarek, sell, sell, sell, trade Scooble, then flip the prospects to get Buxton or Trout
11:40and a bullpen arm.
11:43Yeah, that would be, I would do that.
11:45Boys, the argument doesn't make sense.
11:47This could be the Tigers only shot at a World Series for the next 20 years.
11:50You can't suggest adding people and trading away Scooble.
11:52Who could you possibly add that would help more than having the best pitcher in the world
11:56on your team?
11:58Well, first of all, if this is their only chance to win a World Series in the next 20 years,
12:01we got bigger problems.
12:02Yes, exactly.
12:03But the thought would be we have pitching depth.
12:06That's the strength of the team, and you can't afford to lose them for nothing.
12:10So you'd get something for him, and then you'd add to the weaknesses of this team.
12:14Correct.
12:15Bullpen and bats, right-handed specifically.
12:17Right.
12:17And if you think you're going to keep them and sign them next year anyway, well, I don't
12:23think that would ever happen.
12:24But if you have that belief, then you can't trade them and then still sign them.
12:30Hey, if it's like 2024, that's exactly what happened, right?
12:33Yeah, right.
12:34I'm not holding my breath.
12:35No, me neither.
12:35If I believe I'm outbidding the Dodgers, I will keep them, and then I will outbid the
12:40Dodgers.
12:41Right.
12:41Right.
12:42I'm not going to trade them away and hopefully get them back.
12:45Well, if you think you're going to outbid the Dodgers, maybe you'd get some great stuff
12:52in return, and then you get them back.
12:54And if we are continuing this track of we are on the upswing, I will have him for this
13:00season to try to win this season.
13:03Isn't that the argument we're having?
13:05Buy or sell?
13:06Yeah.
13:06But can you buy while trading him?
13:08That's what this guy says.
13:09That's not logically consistent.
13:11And it sounds like you agree with them.
13:13I would agree with that.
13:14Yes.
13:16Incongruent.
13:19There's levels to this.
13:20Because if you're the World Series favorite, you keep everybody.
13:24Right.
13:24If you're barely a playoff team, I think you have to.
13:29Half wet is a weird thing to be.
13:31Yes.
13:32But they're kind of a half wet baseball team, are they not?
13:34Mm-hmm.
13:35Seriously, figure this team out.
13:37500 in the month of April.
13:38Mm-hmm.
13:39The worst month in 30 years in May.
13:42And now, what is this run?
13:44Like 19 and 12?
13:45Yeah.
13:45Since the start of June.
13:46Well, this is just, look, I don't think things carry over.
13:49But this is what we've had the last three seasons, including this year.
13:53You know, 2024, they were horrific.
13:56And then all of a sudden, they went on a run, and Minnesota helped out by losing all these
14:00games, and we're in the playoffs, and we win a series.
14:02Last year, as you all know, they got off to a great start, and then they blew the division.
14:08But what did they do in the playoffs?
14:09They won a series.
14:12All right.
14:12Coming up next, it is not a soccer topic.
14:15Some people get very upset at how much time we've dedicated to soccer, and to them, I
14:19say, come on, it's the World Cup.
14:20But our team's out, and I did promise we wouldn't dwell on soccer.
14:23Our next topic is not a soccer topic.
14:26It's 97-1.
14:27It's 97-1.
14:27It's 97-1.
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