Click on Prospect News: Bold Predictions For 2023 to see how I did last year.
Pirates SS Oneil Cruz hits 44 home runs. Minimum. They travel so fast and far the situation becomes perilous for passers by. Keep your head on a swivel, dear reader.
Reds SS Elly De La Cruz goes 30/50, proving he would survive the zombie apocalypse and carry the cure in his blood.
Angels 3B Anthony Rendon watches The Fan and feels deeply seen when Wesley Snipes tells Robert DeNiro that he broke out of his slump because he stopped caring. Rendon proceeds to care less than ever and starts playing well again, when he plays.
Giants SS Nick Ahmed is a problem for Marco Luciano. On a team that has become a lot more expensive over the past couple weeks, it makes sense to carry a veteran shortstop who’s hitting .500 in spring training.
Red Sox OF Ceddanne Rafaela goes 15/30. Cowabunga!
Atlanta OF Forrest Wall steals 20+ big league bases. I’ve said quite a bit about this one already because
Atlanta OF Jarred Kelenic still can’t hit.
Rays OF Richie Palacios becomes one of those Rays. Palace intrigue has been all the rage over these past few weeks while the world watches for signs of Princess Kate and Palacios produces stats that might be photoshopped (.300/.341/.550 w/ 3 HR). With Josh Lowe and Jonny DeLuca injured to open the season, Palacios is looking at green outfield pastures. Another little window opened Monday when Randy Arozarena played center field. He might be able to spot Jose Siri a day here or there.
Rays 1B Jonathan Aranda hits .300.
Guardians OF Chase DeLauter makes it hard for the club to send him down, which is a sentence I wrote Tuesday morning as a placeholder before I read a blurb saying that he’ll start the season in Double-A. That makes so little sense I’m dubious of the veracity, but sometimes that’s just life as a hitting prospect in Cleveland. *Cut to Will Benson and Nolan Jones nodding.
UPDATE: DeLauter responded to this news by going 3-for-4 with a home run. If they want to stop dropping the ball developing bats, they’ll either carry DeLauter out of camp or send him to Triple-A. And now we wait.
Marlins LHP AJ Puk records 200 strikeouts.
Mariners OF Lazaro Montes reduces his strikeouts again this season and checks in as a top ten overall prospect heading into 2025.
Rays 1B Xavier Isaac takes postseason at bats with the big league Rays.
Cubs RHP Cade Horton brings joy to Whos everywhere by helping push the Cubs to the postseason.
Cardinals SS Thomas Saggese is coming up early and taking someone’s job. Masyn Winn better hit. If everyone but him is hitting enough when Edman gets back, he’ll have problems.
Rangers OF Wyatt Langford bats third or fourth in that lineup all season.
Care to drop some bold predictions of your own in the comments?
Thanks for reading!
So my NL-only league is weird and we split our auction off from the reserve draft this year with two weeks in between. As a result, I’m choosing between Paul Skenes and Blake Snell with my first pick. I’m playing to contend this year, so Snell has to be the pick — or does he? Advice sought!
This one’s tricky. I’d have to look into the opt outs Snell has. The way I understand it, you get just one guaranteed year of Snell versus six or seven from Skenes. I’m goin Skenes.
Good point on the opt-out possibility — that could definitely sway me!
Horton $6 OR Shaw $10 (for the next 4 years).?
I get to pick one
Horton
Luis Gil Ks 200 wins 10 games
I so hope this turns out right : )
Mic Abel ends the season in the Phils starting rotation, bumping a healthy and ineffective T Walker.
Yeah I could see that
Great stuff! Hope you’re wrong on Kelenic, I got him cheeaaaap in a rebuild.
In a different dynasty (5×5 roto original cats) I was offered Colt Keith for my DeLauter. Keith is ranked higher, but dang!
Would you take Keith still?
Thanks, Sport!
I prefer DeLauter at this point. Still very close.
James woods love?
Diggstown?
If the first two happen, I win my league.
Sounds like a fun season
Great read Itch, thanks. Pease rank these young outfielders: Jenkins, J. Walker, k. Robinson. Thanks
Thanks!
Walker
Jenkins
K-Rob
Robert Gasser gets 10 wins for the Crew once called up
Makes sense to me
I went back and looked at 2023
You crushed it!!!
No victory lap or humble brag, classic.
Tho, none of those predictions seem as bold as these.
I insist you take some victory laps if Elly goes 30/50
Thank you kindly, Foxman!
I can’t make any promises on the Elly front : )
So, are you expecting Saggese to succeed or fail? Your blurb kinda confused me!!!!
Yep, I think he’s tough to get out of the lineup once you let him in.
With Spring Training coming to a close, any minor leaguers move in or out of the top 25 you posted earlier this off-season due to opportunity or performance?
Love the boldness of those predictions! Thanks for all you do.
Mayo and Cowser come to mind right away. Rafaela. I like what I’ve seen from Malloy.
Thanks, Shagging_flies!
@Itch What does your top ten prospects look like right now. Enquiring minds need to know :)
Working on a quick update of the top group for Opening Day : )
Keeper auction league where I have EDLC on his *rookie* deal. Cruz was back in the pool this year, and sometimes guys just get nominated in an auction league and you get away with a scorching deal. That’s me and Cruz this year. I have no idea what the season will bring, but I don’t know that I’ve ever been as excited to see what happens with one of my teams.
Makes sense. Doesn’t get more exciting than that. Well, I mean, toss a Langford in there, but yeah, good time to have a dynasty squad : )
Correa gets hurt and Brooks Lee comes up and wins ROY Goes 2020 his first season in the Majors
Lee and Aranda both going down within 24 hours of this is brutal
Victor Scott JR steals 90 bags. Tristan Casas leads the Majors in hrs. Edouard Julien hits .300 with 30 bombs and 120 runs scored
Sounds good to me!
Wood breaks camp and goes 30 20 in his first season winning RoY.
gettin’ spicy now!
Skubal = AL Cy Young
Casas = .290+, 40HR, 110 steaks
Agree with you on Oneal Cruz 40bombs…add in 30 steals.
Lastly, Snell is not a top 50 SP this year in fantasy;
I like em!
Snell one seems really sharp to me. He’s got an uphill battle to get ready on the fly, and he’s going to miss out on a pile of innings. He’s also typically taken a while to find his rhythm.
Plus I think we’re going to see a lot of good starters this year.
Hey Itch, can I get a bold prediction for Jackson Chourio?
Hey, LittleJerrySeinfeld,
Sure! I almost put him in for 20/30 here, but that felt kinda soft. That’s where I’m at though. The power and speed is going to play right away.
AJ Puk records 200 Ks?! T.I., that’s a heck of a prediction!
You really made bold predictions. All of these. Usually analysts don’t make them this bold.
All the best!
Jolt
You’re the best, Jolt!
Thanks!
That would require Puk to throw at least 67 innings. Bold, indeed.
Nice predictions, Itch. Wish I had more of your choice players.
Christian Scott or Chase Petty in a dynasty league. Is it close?
Thanks!
Thanks, Philip! And same : )
Yeah, it’s close, but I’ll take Scott.
70 SB for CJ Abrams
I second that emotion
LMAO, loved the kelenic one
Thanks : )