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The Daily Gazette Company presents the parting Shots Podcast. Now here's your host, Daily Gazette sports editor Ken Shot.
[00:00:25] Speaker C: Welcome to My Christmas Song. I'd like to thank you for the year.
[00:00:34] Speaker B: Thank you, Scott Gezy and Elton John. Welcome to the Parting Shots podcast, available wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe today. Thanks for joining me from the Parting Shots Podcast Studio in Schenectady, New York. As we get ready for the holiday season Christmas coming up next Wednesday.
So we're getting having a good time celebrating Christmas and as I tape these opening we're having our holiday party here at the office. So and I'm taking I took this week off but I'm still giving you a podcast because I wanted to going to have talked with ESPN baseball analyst Tim Kirchen. We're going to talk a lot about the Juan Soto signing by the Mets. We'll talk other baseball topics. I was trying to get Tim on Around the World Series time but we were unable to do it. But he was happily did the interview on Tuesday. And I say that because shortly after we conclude our interview, the Yankees acquire Cody Bellinger from the Cubs. So there'll be no mention of that in my interview with Tim. So it's coming up. Here comes Tim Kirchen to talk Major Major League Baseball. You're listening to the Parting Shots podcast.
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[00:02:29] Speaker A: Hi, this is Daily Gazette News Editor Andrew Paglis. I would like to wish you a happy holiday season and a great 2025.
Hi, this is Daily Gazette Senior Writer Indiana Nash. I hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season and a Prosperous and Healthy 2025.
[00:02:48] Speaker D: Hi, this is Daily Gazette sports reporter Will Springstead. I would like to wish you a happy holiday season and a great 2025.
Welcome back to the podcast and the winter meeting for Major League Baseball, this included recently. And some big news came out of it. And Tim Kirchen of ESPN is happy to join us to talk about that. Tim, December 8th was a interesting news dump on late Sunday night, that December 8th, the Juan Soto deal. 15 years, $765 million. I mean, how shocking was that?
[00:03:23] Speaker A: Yeah, I'm still surprised by it. Look, three weeks before we got an idea that he's going over 6 and maybe we'll get close to.
But to get 765 million and with incentives could get over 800 million, I think. I think really surprised everyone in the industry. Now, let's keep in mind he's a generational hitter. He just turned 26 years old. He made an enormous difference in the Yankees the minute he showed up. He showed everyone on that team in every at bat. This is what a great at bat looks like. So he is a difference maker. But $765 million for 15 years is something that I certainly didn't see coming. Not, certainly not two weeks earlier.
[00:04:16] Speaker D: And some of the perks they heard, we heard in his contract, including a free suite, which may have been the deal breaker for the Mets.
[00:04:24] Speaker A: Yeah, it's incredible with the money that these guys get, the extra things that they ask for and in order to get the player, the team almost always gives in. You would think, well, with the money we're paying you, you can afford anything you want. We shouldn't have to give you extra. But this is how it works in today's day and age. And I'm not sure if it's really, really healthy for the game. But I guess it's good that there's enough money out there that teams are spending at an enormous rate this winter.
[00:05:00] Speaker D: Yeah, a lot of people, you know, are messaging me with this question, does this make the Mets favorites to not only win the NL east but to win the World Series for the first time since 1986?
[00:05:13] Speaker A: They're significantly better with him. Again, he will change the look of that entire offense because that's what he did with the Yankees. However, to make them the prohibitive favorites even in the division, I think, is a little bit tricky. The Phillies are good, really good. And the Phillies are going to make another move, a major move, I believe, before free agency is over. The Braves made the playoffs last year without their best player and without their best pitcher. So I fully expect them to be very dangerous. But this does put the Mets in a different category. It makes Them a clear contender to win the division and an equally clear contender to win the World Series. I don't know if it makes them the favorites, but they're way better with Juan Soto.
[00:06:05] Speaker D: How does this do you think, affects the talks with Pete Alonso?
[00:06:10] Speaker A: Well, I think it. I think it might even. Well, I hesitate. I might even help get them to sign Alonso because what Steve Cohen, that the owner of the. Of the. Of the Mets is thinking here is we're not just going to load up on one player. If we're going to win the World Series Series, we have to improve the whole team. That includes their starting pitching, and that includes bringing back Pete Alonso. Since his debut in 2019, only Aaron Judge has more home runs than Pete Alonso in the major leagues. He loves the Mets. The Mets love having him there. He loves playing in New York. And even though he's asking for an enormous amount of money, it's possible they'll say, all right, we can win the division, but we got to get Pete back at first here. So certainly not out of the question that the Mets get back him after signing Juan Soto.
[00:07:03] Speaker D: Yeah, he certainly had a great postseason for the Mets and, you know, got them within striking distance of the World Series. So, I mean, he. I think he may be as popular as David Wright was.
[00:07:16] Speaker A: Yeah, he is. He's so well liked there because his energy level is ridiculously high. He's made it clear from the beginning how much he loves the Mets. And as you know, Ken, there are a lot of players who can't play in New York. There are players who don't like to play in New York. It's too much for them. I see it and I understand it, but Pete Alonso is not one of those guys. And I think when you identify someone who loves playing in New York, you need to hang on to that player.
[00:07:46] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:07:47] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:07:47] Speaker D: When Steve Cohen bought the Mets, he was willing to spend money when the previous ownership group either was hesitant to spend money or they spent money the wrong way. I mean, how much has Cohen rejuvenated the Mets fan base?
[00:07:59] Speaker A: Yeah, I think. I think everyone's in now. I think he changed the direction of the franchise with this signing. And on a completely different level, this is what the Nationals did when they signed Jason Worth for 118 million. People across the industry said, what are you doing? Well, they did it to make a statement that were for real and we are going for it. And we needed a veteran player and we needed to show everyone we're out to spend money and we're willing to Spend money and the Nationals ended up winning the World Series. This is significantly more money. But I think it does change the subject. We knew Steve Cohen was going to make a huge play at some point, and Francisco Lindor was a really big play, but this was even bigger. And I think it alerts every free agent and every team out here that the Mets are not going to rest until they win the World series for the first time since 86.
[00:08:59] Speaker D: Tim, how do you think this contract transforms baseball and how soon will we see a player command a $1 billion contract?
[00:09:07] Speaker A: Well, it probably won't be that long because this is the way it works. You know, about 20 years ago I wrote something for Sports Illustrated and I quoted Gene Orza of the Players association about all the money that players were making. This is 20 years ago. And Gino I knew very well, looked at me and said, tim, you don't understand. There is no end to this story. Someday you're going to be asking, how is it possible we're playing paying a player $250 million a year? Now, I'm not sure that's ever going to happen, but I also didn't see anybody getting $765 million for 15 years. So anything is possible. And yes, a $1 billion contract is not that far out of reach. Although I will say Ohtani and Soto are in different categories given the age and hitting ability of Soto and the all round ability of Ohtani.
[00:10:06] Speaker D: Yeah, well, the Yankees reportedly offered a 16 year deal to Soto that Soto chose the Mets over the Yankees. Does this change the dynamic of baseball in New York City?
[00:10:17] Speaker A: Yeah, I think it does. You know, I remember talking to Bobby Valentine when Steve Cohen took over. Bobby knows him very well and is really impressed with all things Steve Cohen. The way he presents things, the way he reads people, the way he understands money. And he told me that Steve Cohen will not finish second to the Yankees. He will go toe to toe with them no matter what. And here he proved it. The Yankees made a remark offer, one that would be taken 99 times out of 100. But Steve Cohen came along and said, no, that's going to be our player and it doesn't matter what you offer, we're going to offer more. And that's precisely what happened.
[00:11:01] Speaker D: ESPN baseball analyst Tim Kirchen joining us here on the Parting Shots podcast. Soto was not the only player to change his New York address. Tim, pitcher Clay Holmes is moving from the Bronx of Flushing. Holmes, who was a closer for the Yankees before losing the job in September, is going to be A starter for the Mets. Is transitioning from a reliever to a closer to a starter going to work?
[00:11:24] Speaker A: Yeah, it's going to be really interesting for Clay Holmes, who's only made a few starts in his career and it's been a long time since now. His stuff is tremendous, it starter stuff because he doesn't have just one or two pitches. But I've always found it's that's a really difficult adjustment for a relief pitcher to become a starter. Now Garrett Crochet did it just recently with the White Sox and it worked out pretty well for him. Third pitcher ever to strike out 200 batters in a season of fewer than 150 innings. So I fully expect Clay Holmes to be a good pitcher, but you know, I'm going to reserve, I'm going to reserve thought on whether it's going to be as a starter or a reliever. I think he'll start out as a starter, but maybe he's better as a reliever and wherever they put him, I think he's going to help them.
[00:12:14] Speaker D: Yeah. Well, the Yankees did not come away empty handed. They signed left handed pitcher Max Freedom away from the Atlanta braves as an eight year, $218 million deal. How important was it for the Yankees to pivot to Freed after losing out on Soto?
[00:12:28] Speaker A: Yeah, it was really important because they're the Yankees and when they lose the premium free agent, they can't just sit there. They have to go do something and be aggressive. And they went out and got I believe the second best free agent pitcher out there beyond Corbin Burns. Max Freed is 73 and 36 lifetime. He has a 3.07 ERA. The only Braves since 1920 to have more starts than Max Freed with an ERA that low are Greg Maddox and Warren Spot. That's how good Max Freed has been. Now he's had injury issues, he's had blister issues, but I think once he gets through those, he's going to be a very, very effective pitcher for the Yankees. And to me losing Soto adding free tells me the Yankees are going to try to win next year pitching and defense than trying to out slug everyone because they just lost a great hitter.
[00:13:28] Speaker D: Does that make the Yankees starting rotation that that good and that tough?
[00:13:33] Speaker A: Yeah, I think it's really good. And then they took one of those starters because they had a surplus Nestor Cortez and sent him to the brewers for Devin Williams, who is really, really good too. The Yankees needed a closer even though they they really did well at the end of the season closing Games with all sorts of people, including Luke, who was tremendous. But now they have a real proven closer in Devin Williams. So I really like what the Yankees did with their pitching in the offseason.
[00:14:04] Speaker D: Well, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred floated the idea of a golden at bat where a team can allow teams to send any batter to the plate once per game, regardless of their batting order position. It was roundly criticized as gimmicky. And as someone who has covered Major League Baseball for a long time, what are your thoughts on Manfred's idea? You.
[00:14:24] Speaker A: Well, it's not going to happen, period. And look, I appreciate trying to bring more interest to the game, but this is not a good idea. This is not going to work. One of the great beauties of the game is that everyone has to bat. I mean, LeBron James touches it on every possession. So did Michael and Larry, and so does Steph Curry. That's what makes that game so great. But what makes baseball so great is the 25th guy on the team can be the last guy up and get the hit to win the game. The 12th guy on the NBA team is never even in the game to make take the final shot. And if he is in the game, he's not taking the final shot. LeBron is handling the ball. So I, I think this is a bad idea. And I think it's. It was floated and it didn't go very far and we won't see it anytime soon, that's for sure. And I'm thankful for that.
[00:15:21] Speaker D: Yeah, obviously we have the Ghost Runner now. Regular season play, I mean, I can live with that. But this goal, not bad. It's too gimmicky for me. So, as an old school baseball fan. So was there any other news from the winter meetings that caught your eye?
[00:15:39] Speaker A: It was really interesting winter meetings, but what caught my eye again was how how many guys are still out there after the winter meetings.
You know, a couple days after Kyle Tucker got traded from the Astros to the Cubs, and this is another reminder that the Cubs are going for it. But it's also a reminder that, you know, you can only afford so many guys. And the Astros are still trying to bring Alex Bregman back to play third base. And I think they made the decision with Tucker, a free agent after the 25 season, that they can't have both of them. So they traded a guy who they knew would be difficult to sign. And I think that did a little bit of damage to the brewers in the Central because I think the Cubs got a whole lot better when they got Kyle Tucker.
[00:16:30] Speaker D: Yeah. Well, in Baseball hall of Fame news, two prominent players finally got in. Dick Allen and Dave Parker and the Classic Baseball era Committee. Both the pair in they were both feared hitters. I mean, I saw Dave Parker growing up as a Phillies fan when he's with the Pirates and tormenting the Phillies. I never got to see Dick Allen in his prime. I saw him toward the end of his career when he rejoined the Phillies in 1975.
But you hear a lot how he was such a, you know, bashing the ball all over Connie Mack Stadium. Your thoughts on them getting in great.
[00:17:04] Speaker A: For Dave Parker, of course, MVP in 78, 10 year period, was a dominant player and not just a big slugger who hit the ball out of the ballpark. He won batting titles, he won an mvp. He was great defensive outfielder, one of the best throwing arms I've ever seen. And for a big man, he could run. So I'm so happy that Dave Parker is in. Dick Allen was the one guy that I said all along he should be in the hall of Fame. You go back and look at that 64 season, it's one of the greatest rookie seasons ever. And until Mike Trout came along in 2012, it might have been the best rookie season by any hitter ever. And then you look at the prime of his career, 64 to 74. And his, his war, his offensive war during that time was by far the highest of any major league player. And during the entire length of his career, the only player that had a higher slugging percentage and a higher on OPS was Hank Aaron. That's how great Dick Allen was. And I'm so happy he got in. It's about 20 years too late, but. But 20 years is better than ever.
[00:18:15] Speaker D: Yeah, unfortunately he passed away in late 2020, so he won't get. But his family members will be there. You mentioned Parker and his defense. I still see that 1979 All Star Game in Seattle, throwing out Brian Downing at the plate there and what a marvelous throw that was. That's still etched in my memory.
[00:18:34] Speaker A: Yeah, Gary Carter made a great play on that. But it was the Parker throw that reminded everyone just what a great defensive outfielder he was and what a great throwing arm he had.
[00:18:44] Speaker D: Well, talk more on the hall of Fame here. Pete Rose's death on September 30 reignited the debate of whether or not he should be inducted into the hall of fame. MLB's all time hits leader was banned from baseball in 1989 for gambling on the sport. Do you think it's time for Major League Baseball to lift the ban and posthumously the hall of Fame induct him into the. Is it time?
[00:19:05] Speaker A: I don't think that time is coming. As long as Rob Manfred is the commissioner now, it's possible the next commissioner will come in and say, all right, we need to revisit this. But it's not that simple. You have to get him on a ballot, and it's. I think it's going to be too late to put him on the writer's ballot, but you can get him on a special ballot. But it's going to take, I believe, a new commissioner to say, all right, we need to look at this again. Just keep in mind that, look, I would vote for Pete Rose if he were on the writer's ballot, and it would not be an easy decision, but I would vote for him. However, he broke the cardinal rule in baseball. You do not bet on the game while you wear a uniform or any other time. And he. He violated the cardinal rule, and that's why he is still not in the hall of Fame. And I think we'll. We'll not be in the hall of Fame for several more years to come.
[00:20:02] Speaker D: Now, he was never on the writer's ballot when he was eligible. Is that correct?
[00:20:07] Speaker A: That is correct.
[00:20:08] Speaker D: So if they do decide to, you know, left the band, could he be put on the writer's ballot for that? Because since he had not been on there previously.
[00:20:16] Speaker A: Right. Well, that would have to be discussed by. And my guess is he would not be put on the writer's ballot, but that would be a decision that the people at Cooperstown would make because it's their club, it's their museum. And if they say, you know, for whatever reason he's not going on, then he's not going on. That's just the way it works.
[00:20:37] Speaker D: I have a listener question from Brian Cohen. He asked, should there be an adjustment to the luxury tax formula to account for large, backloaded contracts?
[00:20:47] Speaker A: Yeah, I think it's time to look at the deferred money. Look, the deferred money is legal. What the Dodgers are doing is legal. A lot of teams, any team can do that if they want. The Dodgers, probably the only team in the position to do what they're doing. I'm not sure it's great for the health of the game that they can backload everything and then afford so many great players. Right now, I think it needs to be revisited, and I think this is something that will come up at the next labor negotiation to figure out, is there a better way to do this? I'M in favor of seeing if there's a better way. I don't know if there is, but it needs to be examined.
[00:21:27] Speaker D: Well, Bobby Bonita is still getting paired every July 1st.
[00:21:31] Speaker A: Yes, absolutely. And that's going to go on for several more years.
[00:21:35] Speaker D: We'll never see a salary cap in baseball, right?
[00:21:38] Speaker A: Well, it comes up every year and the union is going to fight it and fight it and fight it because that's their number one thing. And I covered the 81 strike and they were talking about it then, and here it is, you know, 43 years, 44 years later, and we're still talking about it. So that that will constantly be a fight between the owners and the players. And as of now, the players are just not going to give in on that.
[00:22:05] Speaker D: Well, Tim, as always, appreciate talking baseball with you. Have a great holiday and we'll talk in 2025.
[00:22:12] Speaker A: Okay, Ken, thanks very much.
[00:22:13] Speaker D: All right, that's Tim Kirk. She'll be back to wrap up the podcast.
[00:22:16] Speaker B: And I have the latest winner in.
[00:22:17] Speaker D: The delicate U pick a football contest in just a moment.
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[00:23:13] Speaker A: This is Daily Gazette Betsy Lind and Henry Lind. We hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season and the Prosperous and Healthy 2025.
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Back to wrap up the podcast the Week 15 winner in the Daily Gazettes you pick them football contest was Annie Shettyne of Schenectady With a 142 record, Annie wins a $100 Hannaford gift card. Congratulations, Annie. The VIP winner was my buddy John Keller of Katio burns with the 15 and 1 record. I won 142 I improved to 162 and 62. My Gazette colleague Adam Schinder was 12 4. He is 157 and 67.
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That wraps up another edition of the Parting Shots podcast. I want to thank Tim Kirkjian for coming on the show. On next week's podcast, we'll look back at the year in Capital region sports. In 2024, I'll be joined by my Gazette colleagues for the final podcast of the year. If you have questions or comments about the podcast, email them to me at shot. That's s c h o t
[email protected] follow me on X threads and bluesky Lapshots.
The views expressed on the Parting Shots podcast are not necessarily those of the Daily Gazette Company. The Parting Shots Podcast is a production of the Daily Gazette company. I'm Daily Gazette Sports Editor Ken Schatz. Thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time from the Parting Shots Podcast studio in Schenectady, New York. Good day, good sports, Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah and Darlene Love take us to Christmas.
[00:26:02] Speaker C: It sound the church what a happy sound maybe please down the hall they singing jack the hall but it's not like Christmas at all I remember the winner you are here and all the fun we had last year Pretty lights on the trees I watch you should be here with me baby please go.
