In this episode of PSP, host Nii Wallace-Bruce and guest Bryan Mcwilliam from The Score discuss the return of baseball, highlighting key off-season moves, including Juan Soto's record-breaking contract [2:32] and team changes for the Dodgers and Mets [0:38]. They discuss the challenges of repeating titles in Major League Baseball [1:10], the depth and competitiveness of the National League [4:45], and the uncertainties surrounding the Blue Jays' failure to extend Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s contract [6:48].

Bryan also talks about the impact of max effort pitching on injuries [17:17], the upcoming talent in Major League Baseball [23:25], and his bold prediction for the Red Sox in 2025.

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Bryan Mcwilliam:

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Opening and closing music courtesy of Jeremiah Alves - "Evermore".

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Welcome

into another episode of PSP.

2

I am your host, Mr.

3

Knee Wallace Bruce.

4

guess what?

5

Baseball's back.

6

Spring training is underway and . As

far as I'm concerned, winter's over.

7

Because when baseball's on, winter's done.

8

The reality is in Toronto, we

still have a few more weeks.

9

But seeing the ball being hit in

the sun down in Florida and Arizona,

10

it's a sign of good things to come.

11

And opening day is Not far away.

12

to take us through that and more, it's

a friend of the show joining us again.

13

It's Brian McWilliams from the school.

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brian, how you doing?

15

I'm good, Nii.

16

How are you?

17

I'm excited that baseball's back and

looking forward to this discussion.

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What have you seen in this offseason

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?

Bryan McWilliam: There's been a lot of excitement in baseball, from Juan

20

Soto signing a record breaking contract

to a lot of changeover on teams, the

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Soto signing in particular forced

the Yankees, for instance, to go in

22

a completely different direction.

23

The Dodgers are still the most exciting

team in baseball, in my opinion.

24

They did a lot.

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They had a busy winter, re

signing players, bringing in new

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players, doing everything they

can to, keep that momentum going.

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Title reign and maybe go for a dynasty.

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So a lot of excitement this offseason.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: Absolutely.

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The Dodgers have won a couple of

titles in the last five years.

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But no team has repeated since

the turn of the century, with the

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Yankees winning in 99 and 2000.

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Why is it so hard for teams to

repeat in Major League Baseball

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Bryan McWilliam: The

playoffs are a dice roll.

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So a lot of teams are setting

themselves up to get to the playoffs

36

and then just hoping for the best.

37

Obviously, if your team is

built well, you can go far.

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look at the Dodgers, last year,

They went into the playoffs with

39

an injured starting rotation and

still managed to win a World Series.

40

You never know what's gonna happen.

41

Two seasons ago, we had the

Texas Rangers and the Arizona

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Diamondbacks in the World Series.

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Nobody could have predicted that.

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So you never know what's gonna happen

once you get to the postseason.

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it's setting yourself up to make

the postseason and be deep enough

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and healthy enough to do well

but you never know what's gonna

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happen over a 162 game season.

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That is one of the, For some people

a struggle, but for some people, the

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excitement of a baseball season is

can a team stay healthy for 162 games?

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How deep is your organization?

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Will you be able to sustain health

and success over such a long period

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it's rare to see a team stay in

first place from beginning to end.

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And you'll see a lot of teams

collapse because of injuries or

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because of improvements of other

teams after the trade deadline.

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it's a long season.

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a grind, but exciting

from beginning to end.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: 100%.

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one of the names you

mentioned was Juan Soto.

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He signed the biggest contract in sports.

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He's on the Mets.

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joined by Sean Mania, Clay Holmes.

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Peter Lonzo's back.

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The Mets took the Dodgers deep

in the championship series.

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Can you see them being a team

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Bryan McWilliam: They're

capable, for sure.

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They have a lot of stars.

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Juan Soto is a generational hitter.

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Francisco Lindor, gets lost

sometimes considering how valuable

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he was to the Mets last year.

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They're deep, their lineup is deep,

but there's still question marks.

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Like the starting rotation

there's some dice rolls there.

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Frankie Montas was signed to be

a starter and he's already hurt.

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Clay Holmes, he's never been a

full time major league starter.

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Shawn Minaya resurrected his career

last year after dropping his arm slot.

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But hey, it's a new season.

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maybe teams have.

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Watched more video on him maybe he'll

fall back to what he used to be There's

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no way to predict that but the Mets have a

strong team they went to the championship

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series last year I'm a little mystified

about them not bringing back Jose Iglesias

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because From what I heard, he was like,

he was the, he turned everything around

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from them from a cultural standpoint.

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He made the team fun with

his single OMG, Oh My God.

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they vibed with him around and He

signed a minor league deal, it was

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interesting to see them not bring him

back because I feel like that was one

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of those missing pieces that they had,

One of those pieces they were missing

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last year until he was brought up.

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then everything started to click.

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It'll be interesting

culturally to see, how they do.

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they'll be fine, But

they're in a tough division.

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the Braves with Strider and

Acuna are gonna be tough to beat.

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And then the Phillies, even though it's

an aging roster, that's a very good team.

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And they added some pieces with Kepler

and Luzardo, it'll be interesting.

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The NL East is going to be

a fun, fun watch this year.

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And don't forget about the Nationals.

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They have a lot of young stars

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That's one of the teams I'm

most excited to watch this year.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: Yeah, Dave

Martinez, he's got a lot to work

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with And that division is very

tough, so they get forgotten.

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It's almost like the Arizona

Diamondbacks in the West when you

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consider that you have the Giants,

the Padres, and the Dodgers.

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Some people might forget

there's also the Diamondbacks.

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The National League overall

just seems quite strong.

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Would you agree?

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Bryan McWilliam: Oh, definitely.

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if you look at offseason signings, you

had Soto go from the Yankees to the Mets.

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Corbin Burns go from the

Orioles to the Diamondbacks.

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You had Kyle Tucker go from

the Astros to the Cubs.

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The National League is pretty

stacked, and very competitive.

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I'm not saying the AL isn't but, I

don't see the same tier of players,

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comparing the AL West to the NL West,

or the AL Central to the NL Central.

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The AL East is still a very good division,

but the NL East might be superior.

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The National League is, A very deep

league, which should make the All

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Star game interesting you saw a lot of

transition from players going from the

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American League to the National League.

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it just looks like a

deeper league this year.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: on the All

Star game, you just mentioned It

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used to count towards home foot

advantage in the World Series.

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Do you miss that aspect, or do you like

that it's more of an exhibition nowadays?

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Bryan McWilliam: I prefer when

players are playing for something.

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I'm not really into flag football events

and, in the NBA, like 160 points being

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scored in a game when that was happening.

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I prefer if they're

competing for something.

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But I understand that extra motivation

takes a toll on players even for one game.

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it does have an effect same

with the home run derby.

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They're going full tilt, swinging at

max effort to win a contest, And you've

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seen so many times where players,

walk out of a mid season contest.

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something's up, something

changes and they go into slumps.

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whether it's the extra effort, travel,

not getting that break to spend time with

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their families, you notice a difference

in some players, not all but some.

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as long as the players go have fun, and

make the event exciting, it's good for

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the fans and it's good for the players

and a lot of players choose not to go

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Whether it's to rest their bodies or they

need that time with their families or

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whatever it is or just a break in general

because like I said 162 game season is

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a grind as long as the players walk out

feeling alright about It doesn't really

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take a toll on their game too much and the

fans are happy I'm happy with the format

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: one of the mainstays

of the home run W over the last few

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seasons has been Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

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of the Toronto Blue Jays.

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You may have heard of him.

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He had a self imposed deadline

for the beginning of string

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training, which has passed.

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He and the Blue Jays were

unable to come to an agreement

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on an extended contract term.

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How do you see that situation and the Blue

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Bryan McWilliam: It's not a

good spot for the Blue Jays.

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Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

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is their franchise player.

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Bo Bichette's there.

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They have pieces in the rotation.

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But Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

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is their franchise player.

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He has been since he came up.

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He's, finished second

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sixth last year.

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He's a very good player.

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a slugger, hits for a high OPS,

hits home runs, drives in runs.

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He also is very popular in

Toronto, and he sells a lot of

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merchandise, and kids love him.

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entering a season with your franchise

player unsigned for beyond this season.

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when he's entering free agency, he'll be

26 when he enters free agency and 29 other

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teams now available to chat with them.

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Your chances are slimmer that you're

going to be able to resign him.

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Whereas they could have, they had

opportunities to extend him and just

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reading, like the tea leaves, reading the

writing on the wall here, it just seemed

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like they weren't valuing him properly.

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They reportedly made him an offer

earlier in the offseason of 340

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million and Guerrero said that wasn't

close to what he was looking for.

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Now, he's probably looking for more than,

many expect because of the Juan Soto deal.

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But you're talking about a 5 plus

win player who's, drives in a

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lot of runs, hits a lot of home

runs, and has won a gold glove.

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he's entering free

agency as a 26 year old.

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And you're gonna see teams

like the Yankees, Paul

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Goldschmidt's on a one year deal.

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Pete Alonso with the Mets, can opt out.

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Who knows what's gonna

happen with his contract.

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There's a lot of interest

in Vladimir Grigoro Jr.

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not being able to lock him up is putting

them in a bit of a tricky situation.

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Because They missed on Ohtani, Juan

Soto, Corbin Burns, and now you're

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not signing your franchise player.

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it's not giving the fan base a lot

of hope in the front office and

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in the future of the franchise.

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Now they did get some nice pieces.

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Anthony Santander, Max Scherzer,

Andres Jimenez, Jeff Hoffman.

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But Are these players franchise players?

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Max Scherzer was when he

was younger, but he's not.

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Andres Jimenez, he's an elite defender,

but hasn't hit well in a couple seasons.

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Anthony Santander is a slugger,

but aging and one dimensional.

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Santander and Jimenez signed

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And then the rotation Gossman,

Bassett, Scherzer, you're not going

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to have those guys in a few years.

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So I'm not sure the direction It looks

like they're putting all their eggs in

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one basket for a run this season and then

trying to figure it out, past this season.

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So it'll be interesting come July to

see where the Blue Jays are because

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if they're not in playoff contention,

I suspect Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

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Bo Bichette will be traded.

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We might see other pieces

like Chris Bassett traded.

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And if they are in contention, will

your is making it to the playoffs

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good enough for Vladi to stick around?

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For Bo to stick around?

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they haven't been able

to win in the playoffs.

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So precarious not being able

to sign Vladimir Grot Jr.

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Is a big miss they still have a chance

obviously to sign him, but they're

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going to have a lot of competition.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: it is ominous

when you consider Juan Soto was

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on the Yankees for a season.

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They went to the World Series.

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took the judges to five games.

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And he still Went to the Mets after that.

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Vladimir Guerrero Jr.,

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if I'm not mistaken, is the last

Canadian player on the Blue Jays.

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Is that also an important factor?

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The only Canadian team in the League, they

might be losing one of the best prospects

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and one of the best Canadian prospects?

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Bryan McWilliam: Vladi has said that he

loves Toronto and wants to stay here.

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There is a connection there with

him being born in this country.

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this is the team that signed

him when he was 16 years old.

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This is the only Major League

team that he has known.

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So there is definitely a connection there.

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The front office said that the

negotiations were emotional,

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but Vladdy has a price tag

that he feels that he's worth.

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He has a value that he feels

like he's worth, and that value

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wasn't met by the Blue Jays.

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I don't think the Canadian connection,

per se, is going to be enough to

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keep him around when his value is

not being met, the way that he sees.

225

Nii Wallace-Bruce: We'll see

how the season plays out.

226

I get some lost dance vibes, given

that Bo and Vlad might be walking out

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the door at the end of the season.

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These were two of the best,

prospects in the last five years.

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What's your thought on that?

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, Could this have been handled better

by the front office, Definitely.

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Bryan McWilliam: I think losing to

Seattle in that dramatic fashion a

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few years back, where They had the big

lead, and ended up losing the series.

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Had a major effect on the

thinking of the front office.

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the team was offensive

laden built around offense.

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It was exciting then the approach changed.

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The approach went into

run prevention, defense.

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They tried something new.

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And I understood.

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Because what they were

doing wasn't working.

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I understood the change in approach,

they valued players like Dalton Varsho,

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tremendously, someone who is an elite

defender, who's gonna help with run

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prevention, that's, they're gonna

have an elite pitching staff, but

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they didn't, they, they stuck to that.

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There were other essential

elements that were needed.

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That weren't really working out.

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You can't win baseball games

if you don't score runs.

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They weren't scoring enough to Benefit

from having the best defense and

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one of the top starting rotations.

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The bullpen was a mess they did a

better job addressing the bullpen

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this season But they let Jordan Romano

Leave, over a small amount of money

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and ended up signing Jeff Hoffman

who has a bit of an injury history.

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So there's just some strange

maneuvering that's been made

253

following the change in philosophy.

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But I will, I have to give

credit to the organization.

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They have stuck to the philosophy.

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They're like, they're valuing defense

and run prevention, which is why

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they traded for Andrés Jiménez.

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And that's why they tried

to improve the bullpen.

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That's why they got Max

Scherzer to join the rotation.

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So they're sticking to it and hoping

that Vlad, Vladdy and Bo and Anthony

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Santander and George Springer and

all of these guys do what they're

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capable of doing at the plate.

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And if they do what they're capable

of doing at the plate, combine that

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with the defensive approach, the

good pitching, good health, and an

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improved bullpen, they have a shot.

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They have a shot at that division

and at the postseason, but it's

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there's a lot of challenges.

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The Yankees are better.

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The Orioles are very good.

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The Red Sox are better.

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The Rays are, if they can stay healthy,

they have, their pitching is very good.

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So it's a tough division.

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And there are a lot of teams

contending for playoff spots, even

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if you get there, can you win?

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I just don't know if the approach

that they've taken is an approach

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that wins in the postseason.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: Watch this space.

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Do you feel like there's

still gaps to be filled?

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Do you feel like the roster is

complete as it stands, as of today?

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Bryan McWilliam: There's always

gaps to be filled from a depth

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perspective, but I don't expect

them to be making any other moves.

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I understand that Nolan Arenado is out

there and available and the Cardinals

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want to move them and the Blue Jays,

I'd say they have a need at third base.

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That's arguable because Ernie

Clement is a very solid defender

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who, has shown flashes with his bat.

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But is he an everyday third baseman?

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looks more like, in my opinion, more

of a utility player, like a strong

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utility player rather than your

starting, opening day third baseman.

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But is Nolan Arenado,

for instance, an upgrade?

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Not so sure.

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He had a really down year last year.

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But he's still a three win

player and an elite defender.

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I think this is the team you're

going to see going into opening day.

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I just don't see any real strong

moves out there for them to make

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that's really going to advance.

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What they have, presently.

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So yeah, I think this is a team that

you're going to see on opening day.

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Maybe there'll be some depth

additions, but nothing significant.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: You're listening to

PSP with Nii Wallace Bruce, and special

300

guest, Brian McWilliam from The Score.

301

Check out his work at thescore.

302

com.

303

Brian, you mentioned Nolan Aronado

as a potential trade candidate.

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Could you see any other names

being moved before opening day?

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Bryan McWilliam: A lot of notable

free agents are already signed, and so

306

as far as free agency is concerned, you

might see like Alex Verdugo, he's still

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unsigned, maybe he'll sign somewhere.

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He had a really down year with

the Yankees, so maybe a one

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year deal, a minor league deal.

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free agency, you're not going to

see anything significant because

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there isn't anybody out there.

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From a trade perspective, I mentioned

Arenado, but it just appears like

313

he's going to stay with the Cardinals.

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They haven't been able to

find anybody to take him.

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They did, they found,

the Astros were willing.

316

To, accept a trade and eat, actually, a

lot of Nolan Aranato's salary, but Aranato

317

had a full no trade and nixed the deal.

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Houston pivoted traded Kyle Tucker, and

got Isak Paredes, after Bregman walked,

319

there's a lot of maneuvering in Houston.

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I just don't see Aranato moving.

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the Padres have some ownership, changes

after Peter Seidler passed away.

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There, there are kind of payrolls

in a little bit of a weird spot.

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And there's been rumors that they

might trade Dylan Cease or Louisa Rise.

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to be honest, I just

don't see them moving.

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the Padres have been active lately.

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They've been, they haven't done

anything super significant with the

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exception of signing Nick Pivetta.

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But that's a really backloaded deal.

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I think he's only making a

million dollars this year.

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I don't see them trading two

stars, especially, a batting

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champion and a Cy Young contender.

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This early on, maybe it's a trade

deadline if they're not in contention.

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I don't see those two moving.

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And the only other person coming

to mind is Sandy Alcantara with the

335

Marlins he's a very good pitcher,

but he's coming off major surgery.

336

But the Marlins, they're definitely

trying to trade anything they can.

337

It's been their M.

338

O.

339

the past couple of years and

they did trade, Luis Araiz,

340

I think it was like May.

341

And, for prospects, just so

they could get a bigger return.

342

If Alcantara shows he's healthy in spring,

and, starts strong, I could see him

343

being dealt prior to the trade deadline.

344

Even a month or two before.

345

But yeah, currently I don't see any

big trades or free agents signing.

346

Fair enough.

347

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Ryan, you mentioned

the injury to Matt's starting pitcher.

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Frankie Monas.

349

He's out for six to eight weeks it also

reminds me of when Garrett Cole was

350

injured during spring training last year.

351

how much of this trend of pitches getting

hurt can be attributed to the pitch clock?

352

Bryan McWilliam: Personally, I

feel like the league and pitchers

353

have adapted to the pitch clock.

354

there are studies that show the amount

of elbow surgeries, such as Tommy

355

John or internal brace procedures,

haven't increased significantly

356

because of the pitch clock.

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my concern is pitchers are blowing out

their ligaments because of max effort,

358

They're trying to throw high velocity,

Spin the ball as hard as they can using

359

max effort deliveries, This is being

taught in major league organizations in

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college organizations all the way down

to youth baseball Players athletes are

361

being asked to throw and spin as hard

as you possibly can and get I don't

362

want to say get out of your delivery,

but Let's shape your delivery so that

363

we can get the most out of each pitch.

364

And that's putting a

large toll on ligaments.

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But, pitchers seem okay with it.

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Tyler Glasnow from the Dodgers, who, has

a history of arm problems has said it.

367

He's said it full, like he

said on foul territory, that

368

he is prioritizing velocity.

369

over everything.

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And he prioritizes velocity because

he ultimately knows that he's going

371

to get paid better throwing harder

and spinning the ball and going

372

max effort for five innings than

pitching, nine innings of soft toss.

373

he says it's worth the risk of

injury because there's no guarantee

374

that you're going to get injured.

375

the likelihood of you getting injured

and having You know, Tommy John surgery

376

are now an internal brace procedure are

higher if you're going max effort So he

377

is full on said That he prioritized the

velocity to improve his performance so

378

that he'll ultimately get paid better

and it's worth the risk of injury and

379

so and You I don't blame him if I was a

professional athlete And I thought, okay,

380

I'm going to get paid 50 million dollars

if I have these stat lines where I go

381

max effort and I end up wearing the scar

on my elbow for the rest of my life, or

382

I get paid 20 million dollars and I soft

toss and I don't end up with this scar

383

on my arm and teams, don't value me as

much because my canine isn't as high or

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my whiff rate isn't as high, et cetera.

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I'm 50 million dollar path too.

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I don't think a lot of, I think

pitchers athletes teams and fans

387

have adapted to the pitch clock.

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my concern about, elbow

ligaments and surgeries is

389

going max effort and max spin.

390

That's where I think the

damage is being done.

391

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Gleisner is interesting

coming from an organization like the Rays.

392

Historically doesn't pay big contracts,

and he did, better himself a little

393

bit, and he was able to get a

lucrative contract with the Dodgers.

394

Could we ever see a shift back

towards pitchers dotting the frame,

395

Bryan McWilliam: There

are pitchers who pitch.

396

Max Freed just got paid a ton of money.

397

He's a pitcher.

398

he doesn't throw 100 miles per hour.

399

He's dotting.

400

he just signed a lucrative deal.

401

There are pitchers that can succeed

do well and have long careers.

402

But the way things are now,

you need to strike people out.

403

Chris Bassett's of the world are terrific.

404

commanding, really throwing

people's timing off.

405

I love watching that stuff but is he

making the most money in baseball?

406

No, Will he make the

most money in baseball?

407

No.

408

in baseball, you need

to strike people out.

409

You need to get people to chase.

410

You need to get people to whiff.

411

this is what organizations

are looking for.

412

high strikeouts.

413

They don't even care about low

walk rates that much anymore.

414

Especially from a bullpen perspective.

415

It's like, how hard can you throw?

416

How hard can you spin?

417

Can you strike people out?

418

you're gonna get a chance,

and you're gonna get paid

419

Nii Wallace-Bruce: you do well.

420

another thing in baseball where you get

paid if you do well is fantasy, Brian.

421

It's fantasy season.

422

Draft time.

423

Give us some nuggets.

424

Bryan McWilliam: Sure, yeah.

425

Fantasy baseball.

426

I love fantasy baseball.

427

I head up the coverage at the score.

428

Our coverage is gonna be out real soon.

429

Just prepping it all now.

430

It's a lot of work.

431

I'm curious to see where Paul Skeens

goes in fantasy drafts this year.

432

We're talking about a generational

starting pitcher who, from a fantasy

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perspective, is just, you drool over

so many strikeouts, potential for a lot

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of wins although he is on the Pirates.

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It's a low ERA, depending on

what the categories are in

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your league, like a low whip.

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So I'm interesting to see where

he goes because he is still only

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entering his second full season

you never know if you want to use a

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first round pick on a pitcher because

you tend to shy away from that.

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But Paul Skeens has the tools and

could be the best pitcher available.

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First round, I could see it

happening, I think Bobby Wood Jr.

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is a sure thing.

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I have a bias towards him as

a player and fantasy player.

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But I feel like he's a sure bet.

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He's got all the tools.

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In fantasy, he puts up numbers in

every major 5x5, standard league.

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if you're looking for a first

round pick, And he's available.

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He's probably going to go in the top

one through three in most leagues.

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I'm interested to see where Eli De La

Cruz goes he could go as high as, four But

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there's risk There's a lot of strikeouts.

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You're not getting much

of a batting average.

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If your league has OBP, you're

not getting much of an OBP.

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But you're getting a lot of power.

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home runs, RBIs, and I expect

him to steal 60 to 70 bases.

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there's a lot of potential But if

Ellie struggles strikes out a lot,

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can't get on base, then he might not

end up being in the major leagues.

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Because he's still young,

maybe they'll send him down.

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you never really know

with a player like that,

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But I expect him to go in first rounds.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: yeah, great

young players coming through.

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You mentioned Witt, Ellie,

Polsky's on the mound.

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The future's looking bright

for baseball, I've got to say.

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Bryan McWilliam: I definitely agree.

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Those three names are some of the

brightest talent the league has.

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And the league, Major League Baseball,

you're seeing younger stars as well, I

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find the, there's younger stars coming

up, there's a lot more hype around them.

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The hype is terrific

around these young stars.

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You're seeing them like actively

making a difference early on.

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So it's not Mike Trout when he

came up in his rookie season and

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didn't do much and then turned into

a star, you're seeing these people

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becoming difference makers almost

immediately at 20, 21, 22 years old.

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And it's terrific

because they're exciting.

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the prime of a baseball player is

no longer 27 You're seeing 22 year

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old like young men coming up and

making huge difference differences

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on ball clubs and turning them

into contenders almost immediately.

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Bobby Witt turned the Kansas City

Royals into a playoff team last year.

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Yes, Salvador Perez had a good year.

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The pitching was better with Seth Lugo

and Michael Waka and Cole Reagan's.

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But Bobby Witt Jr.

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transform that franchise from a hundred

loss team into a playoff contender.

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It's insane that someone can

do that almost single handedly.

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So it's super exciting.

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I've always been a fan of young

players coming up through systems,

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watching them develop from, either

international players or college

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players into young, like prospects

into star players and the majors.

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And so seeing all this young talent

establish itself and change the

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game is terrific for baseball.

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Super entertaining.

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: we've

got the WBC 12 months away.

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before that, the Tokyo Series.

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spring training.

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so much baseball you'll be covering that.

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We can find your work at theScore.

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com.

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We can also find your

personal account on the X.

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It is at bmcwilliammlb.

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Brian, before we let you go,

give us a bold prediction for

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Bryan McWilliam: 2025.

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The Boston Red Sox are going to

win the American League East.

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There we go.

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That's my

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Nii Wallace-Bruce: bold one.

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And on that note, I've been your

host, Nii Wallace Bruce, and this

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has been another episode of PSP.