Season 4 Episode 02 - 2020 All-Stars

2020 All-Stars

Always something new for y’all on the 2020 Allstars. I (David) was homeless for the month of March. Instead of scrambling to find a place in Berlin, I decided to travel to Egypt. So this weeks episode comes to you from Cairo. As such the audio quality isn’t quite up to snuff, but you’re probably not here for that anyway.

We discuss the AJ Pollock injury and some guys that could put up “AJ Pollack”-like numbers. Or what you could do to make up the power and the steals, although there really isn’t a 20/40 guy just sitting out there. Names like Joey Rickard and Travis Shaw get bandied about.

But the purpose of this show is our bold predictions for 2016:

Socrates Brito! Looks like he will get a shot with AJ Pollack being injured. He’s shown double digit pop and 30+ steals in the minors. Tood sees a 15/20 season in 2016. We’re also hoping for this because we picked up Brito. Why not?

My first prediction is Pedro Alvarez as a top 7 1B with 35+ homers and an average north of .250. I did a little “analysis” and the park factors to lefties leans strongly in Alvarez’s favor. I also wanted to throw Jonathon Schoop into this one. Alvarez + Schoop over 60 homers?! They don’t call them bold predictions for nothing.

Justin Turner makes the leap to become a top 7 3B. He was on pace last year until he got injured so is it crazy? His ISO seemed a bit high last year and Todd thinks this power surge will continue. I like him too, but I’m not sure about the power numbers.

Trevor Bauer top 15 closer! He finally becomes the guy we thought he could be. Cody Allen’s spring numbers have me a little worried. The control is not there… if there are velo issues then this one could pay off. Todd suggests that he just needs the closer glasses and everything will be good.

Nick Williams wins the NL Rookie of the Year. I throw out the comparison to Adam Jones. He’s a swinger, but with some plate discipline so he doesn’t strike out at a crazy rate. 21/12 with a .275 average is what Todd likes on the high end as long as things fall into place.

Speaking of prospects, I’m way down on Bryon Buxton. He’s touted as the next big thing, but I just don’t see it. My bold prediction is that his bat forces the Twins to send him back to the minors. Todd counters that Buxton’s defense will keep him in the league. It’s a good point, but if Buxton keeps hitting .200 then he’s out of there. I wanted to compare him to Brandon Wood, but I forgot Wood’s name.

Ryan Madson gets 20 saves. Sean Doolittle is doing everything he can to lose the job.

Ryan Raburn, .300 average and 18hrs in like 250 ABs. He’s now in Colorado and he’ll mash lefties. I have been a Raburn fan for a long time so take this one with a LARGE grain of salt.

Todd’s final bold prediction… Zack Wheeler comes back strong after the AS break. Todd is looking for about a strikeout per inning and good ratios.

My final bold prediction is that Marcus Stroman is in the Cy Young discussion. Tons of wins, sub-3 ERA, 8.5 K/9. Plus Todd tweeted last year “Marcus Stroman, Cy Young 2016”, so I’ll run with it as well. Let’s see if Todd was prophetic.

As always, check us out on Twitter @2020AllStars, Instagram 2020AllStars, and iTunes.

Season 4 Episode 2 (49:58)