FanGraphs Weekly Mailbag: November 29, 2025

As Members of our website, you most likely know by now that FanGraphs goes darkish on most nationwide holidays, as we have been the previous two days. We imagine our employees deserves to get pleasure from holidays with out having to fret about working, and our readers are inclined to have plans that don’t contain studying about baseball or looking at statistics on a display. The exception is when information breaks that will immediate our readers to cease what they’re doing and rush to the positioning for evaluation, resembling a serious transaction involving a star participant. So for a couple of hours on Wednesday afternoon, as chatter picked up that Dylan Stop was nearing a cope with the Blue Jays, Meg and I each ready for the chance that we would have to work a bit on Thanksgiving, particularly as a result of the group in query performs in a rustic that doesn’t observe the vacation on the identical day Individuals do. Fortuitously — ahem, fortunately — Stop agreed to a seven-year, $210 million contract with Toronto in time for Michael Baumann to jot down up the information and for us to edit and publish it Wednesday evening.

The Stop signing was the most recent transfer in what has already been a reasonably lively offseason. The Cardinals traded beginning pitcher Sonny Grey to the Crimson Sox on Tuesday, two days after the Mets and Rangers made a one-for-one swap of former All-Stars. I discovered of the Brandon Nimmo-for-Marcus Semien change round 2 AM Central European Normal Time on Monday, after I made the chaotic determination to get up and watch the Rams-Buccaneers sport earlier than what turned out to be a roughly 24-hour journey day from Italy to New York. Following my preliminary shock, I couldn’t assist however marvel if Nimmo’s former teammate Matt Harvey would as soon as once more pitch for Staff Italy within the upcoming World Baseball Traditional.

We received’t be overlaying any of those strikes on this week’s mailbag. As an alternative, we’ll be answering your questions on the most effective unmade baseball film, JJ Wetherholt, the marginal worth of group runs scored and particular person offensive manufacturing, and extra. Earlier than we do, although, I’d prefer to remind you that this mailbag is unique to FanGraphs Members. When you aren’t but a Member and wish to maintain studying, you’ll be able to join a Membership right here. It’s one of the best ways to each expertise the positioning and assist our employees, and it comes with a bunch of different nice advantages. Additionally, should you’d prefer to ask a query for an upcoming mailbag, ship me an e-mail at mailbag@fangraphs.com.