Bold (and some not so bold) predictions for the 2019 season

[Docwaukee]

let's get this party started

1. Felix Pena will put up #2 starter numbers.  He'll have an era around 3.00 with more k than innings and make 30 starts with 180 innings

2. Justin Bour will hit 35 hrs.  He'll solidify himself into the middle of the lineup and crush.  

3. Calhoun will have an above league average season.  He'll start out in the leadoff spot and do well....until he gets traded

4. Tyler Skaggs will pitch like an ace.....in the second half

5. Ohtani will have a slow start.  He'll do a very short rehab assignment and won't get his timing till june

6. Simmons will struggle at the plate in the first half.  

7. Cahill and Harvey will do well in the first half and get traded at the deadline

8. Lucroy will be solid both defensively and at the dish.  He'll get a 2 yr extension mid season.  An odd move that will leave people scratching their heads.  

9. Albert will have a solid season over 250 at bats but be on and off the IL.  He'll have a .770 ops and have some big clutch hits off the bench in the 2nd half. 

10. Allen will be terrible and end up getting released in mid july.   The pen will start out pretty bad until Key and Ramirez are healthy.  Luis Garcia will get released.  Taylor Cole will come up and help.  Cam will actually be decent and Freeman will be good.  Anderson will be just ok due to control issues.  Noe will actually do well.  

11. Chris Stratton will be a solid starter.  He'll start the year kinda meh and finish strong. 

12. Rengifo will take over 2b and leadoff sometime in late june.  He'll do well.  Not spectacular but good.  A .345 obp.  Cozart will get benched.  

13. Canning will come up and dominate but not till july.  Suarez will get some time and struggle.

14. Adell will have a nice season after coming back from injury but won't get called until August.  Just early enough to be part of a playoff roster

15. Ward will get a shot early in the season but struggle.  Rojas will come up and kill it.  

16. Barria will struggle and not end up on the major league team by years end

17. Thaiss will get a cup of coffee in September and have a couple clutch hits off the bench

18. People will give Ausmus crap early but like him by years end.  

19. Kevin Smith will get released in june and Kruger will take over. 

20. The Angels will win the 2nd wild card on the last day of the season.  They will start slow and be below .500 by a couple games at the ASB because of a deficient offense.  They will crush in the 2nd half with Rengifo at lead off.  

[BackUpTheTruck]

21. Trout hits 50 home runs.

[ten ocho recon scout]

No future for Upton?

As a doctor, what are you not telling us about his toe?

[stevestevens]

Winning the wild card while trading away Cahill, Calhoun and Harvey..... That would be probably the greatest scenario ever. 

[Broad Street]

10 minutes ago, stevestevens said:

Winning the wild card while trading away Cahill, Calhoun and Harvey..... That would be probably the greatest scenario ever. 

I had the same thought. If we're sniffing the playoffs we won't be trading 3 key players and hoping the rookies do well.

[jordan]

1.  I definitely think Allen will implode and won’t finish the season with the Angels.

2.  I think Angels Starting pitching will be top 5 in the league. 

3.  Buttery will take over as closer and Middleton will be set up man when he returns  

4.  Trout wins 3rd MVP.  

5. Pujols announces in August that this is his last season. 

6. Simmons will be an All-Star and win GG

7.  Bour will hit 30+ HRs and be primary 1B for majority of season. 

8.  Cozart will be primary 3B and finish in top 3 in GG. 

9. Ausmus wins manager of the year  

10.  Angels win wild card and division series and lose to Boston in ALCS. (I hate even saying this).

 

[Lou]

Both Cam and Allen will be lights out today. 

[Glen]

We will play a game today. Somebody unexpected will hit a HR. 

[zenmaster]

The first time we lose back to back games someone will post a thread asking if we miss Scioscia yet.

[eligrba]

1.  Upton will have a typical year and be under appreciated.

2.  Cahill is traded but not Harvey.

3.  Pujols does not retire.

4.  Calhoun is traded.

5.  Lucroy's defense will be an issue.

6.  Ward is traded. (Please.)

7.  Cozart is traded.

8.  September play will provide a glimpse of coming attractions for the Angels future.

 

Overall, Eppler will be more active with trading this season than in past seasons.  All of his trades will return prospects which will not immediately impact the major league roster.

[T.G.]

"Upton sucks" will be this season's tired narrative for certain AW regulars.

"Pujols will retire after this season" will continue to spewed on the site every day.

"Free David Fletcher" will be the new battle cry.

"Fire Ausmus" will rear its ugly head by mid-April.

 

 

[Angelsjunky]

Upton's turf toe is revealed to actually be camel toe.

 

[Jay]

I predict Trout will have a great year.

The rest of the team? Meh.

81 wins, give or take a couple.

[red321]

4 hours ago, stevestevens said:

Winning the wild card while trading away Cahill, Calhoun and Harvey..... That would be probably the greatest scenario ever. 

yeah...that scenario and winning the wild card don't seem to go hand in hand

[T.G.]

162-0.

[Second Base]

Bold.....got it. 

1. The Angels end up having one of the best bullpens in baseball. - Cody Allen will be alright, though clearly not dominant anymore.  Buttrey, Robles and Garcia will be completely "shut down" middle relievers.  Not having a lefty in the pen won't matter so much.  And the bullpen will also have some multi-inning depth to it.  Stratton will return there, as will Pena at some point, same with JC Ramirez.  Keynan Middleton will be a man on a mission in his return.  And the Angels will actually get some surprise appearances from John Curtiss and Alex Meyer out there.  I don't expect Cam Bedrosian or Noe Ramirez to hang in there too long. 

2. Griffin Canning will end up being the staff ace at the end of the season.   - Being introduced to many of the methods that Doug White has brought over with him, Canning, with his vamped up repertoire will begin to refine when and how to use those elite pitches of his.  He won't get a promotion until July, but once he does, he will have made it clear to the Angels that they can't in good standing send him back down. 

3. The prospects take over.  - This will be the year that the fruits of Eppler's labor begin to reshape the organization.  Ward will be taking AB's away from Cozart at 3B.  Rengifo will take over as the starting 2B.  Matt Thaiss will take over as the starting 1B.  Canning will be in the rotation, and Jones, Marsh, Adell, Suarez and Sandoval will have all progressed far enough within the year that their presence will be a forgone conclusion next season.

4. The offense REALLY struggles. - Upton will learn a hard lesson that Pujols has learned, it's hard to hit a baseball with no firm base.  His legs won't hold up through the season, and the Angels won't have him as a potent threat  for much of the year.  Ohtani won't be back unil May, and even then, his time in extended ST will be cut short, it may be June before he's anything resembling himself again.  Bour and Pujols simply aren't going to be consistent producers at 1B. Fletcher will certainly have his moments and remain a super utility player.  La Stella won't be the sort you want starting.  Calhoun will have a bounce back season, but bouts of inconsistency will still plague him.  Not until the youngsters are fully arrived and embraced in August will we see the Angels start scoring runs in a more dangerous manner. 

5. Andrelton Simmons has his best offensive season of his career.  - He muscled up a little bit, and has shown that when he puts the ball in the air, he can knock it out of the park.  I think he's reached a level where the game has slowed enough for him that he can experiment with loft, as he has.   .280/.320 30 DB 20 HR and another gold glove to put up on the mantle. 

6. The starting rotation performs brilliantly.  - Looking at last year, they didn't need to add two more aces to the rotation, they actually just needed a mid and back of the rotation starter, because last year, the mix of #5 starters we used weren't even adequate to be #5's.  Skaggs is an all-star this year and generates some CY votes.  Heaney has a remarkably similar season to last year, just with a slightly lower ERA and BB/9 rate.  Matt Harvey will be for the most part healthy and will be a legitimately decent #4 starter.  Lots of innings, lots of K's.  Some dominant outings, some duds.  Cahill is going to be steady out there, but will likely only make it 100 innings at this stage of his career. Pena is going to be pretty good, but teams will adjust, the results won't be there anymore and he'll move back to the pen where he'll thrive again.  Stratton will be ok as a fill in, but will spend most of the year in the bullpen.  So basically, we're going to have a crew handling the last two spots in the rotation.  Lots will get their opportunity, one will separate himself (Canning).

Barria will come up and be pretty similar to last year, which is to say that he'll come in, and limit damage for 5 innings.  Just don't ask him to go a third time through the order.  Suarez will be similar to Barria.  Canning will be very dynamic and run with one of the spots. 

7. The success of the rotation leads to a Jon Lucroy extension.  - He'll do what Maldonado couldn't, and get rewarded. 

8. The Angels will be involved in an usual blockbuster at the trade deadline.  - Most blockbusters include seasoned veterans, all-stars and lots of prospects and money being exchanged.  This trade however, will reshape the direction of two franchises, at two specific positions.  It will be a prospect blockbuster. 

The Angels will trade CL Cody Allen, RP Cam Bedorsian, IF Luis Rengifo, OF Brandon Marsh to the Atlanta Braves for 3B Austin Riley, C William Contreras and LHP Luiz Gohara. 

For the Braves, this will boost their beleaguered relief core ahead of their playoff push, and will signify the end of the Dansby Swanson era as the starting SS in Atlanta, will ultimately result in Josh Donalson being extended, and will put Brandon Marsh in as their starting RF for the foreseeable future.  Huge gain for them, definitely solves some issues. 

On the Angels end of things, Austin Riley will be the answer at 3B, the sort that plays a decent third base hits 25 HR's a year and has an OPS over .800.  William Contreras will be developed as the catcher of the future beyond Lucroy.  Contreras has big league bloodlines and figures to develop into a decent defensive catcher with plus athleticism and power.  Gohara will be yet another very hard thrower that Eppler can interchange between starting and relief, likely ultimately ending up in relief.  

[Stradling]

3 hours ago, zenmaster said:

The first time we lose back to back games someone will post a thread asking if we miss Scioscia yet.

This place is pretty predictable, there will be a post about missing Scioscia by the 6th inning of todays game.  

[Tank]

mike trout will finally win a gold glove.

[Hubs]

OPTIMISM.

1. Harvey regains 2012-2015 form. Is resigned after the season.

2. Bour, Cozart, Upton, Lucroy revert to 2017 form. Cozart eventually moves to 2nd, defensively because Ward is killing the ball in SLC.

3. Cahill is traded at the deadline, because the Angels have too many healthy competent starters. Canning gets called up August 1st but Suarez and Sandoval aren't called up this year.

4. Pujols shines in a part time role, hitting 25 HR and 25 2B in just 100 starts. His average also goes up to .270+ and OBP to .315+

5. Ohtani is back in May. Starts most 5+ days a week at DH. Leaving just 1-2 days for Pujols as the DH.

6. Middleton returns to the pen by June, JC Ramirez takes until Sept. Allen, Middleton, Buttrey, Anderson, Cole are the 5 best relievers.

7. Rengifo is not called up until after AAA playoffs.

8. Bourjos has a surprisingly solid year with the bat, not quite as good as 2011, but pushes Calhoun for starts in RF. Calhoun is pretty competent as well, so he's traded at the deadline to the Rockies, who need OF help to continue their division winning year. Adell is also called up August 1st.

9. LaStella is released by June 1st as they just simply do not need him. Fletcher assumes the super utility role, playing 4 times a week at 2nd / 3rd.

10. Angels win the AL West. Astros are the 2nd WC.

 

 

 

 

[bloodbrother]

This is kind of bold but what the hell....Angels only have 6 pitching injuries this season.

[NJHalo]

16 minutes ago, bloodbrother said:

This is kind of bold but what the hell....Angels only have 6 pitching injuries this season.

The over/under is 8, so put you down for $50 on the under?

Edited March 28, 2019 by NJHalo

[T.G.]

5 hours ago, True Grich said:

162-0.

161-1.

[Lou]

10 hours ago, Lou said:

Both Cam and Allen will be lights out today. 

I agree 

[DMVol]

7 hours ago, True Grich said:

162-0.

161-1

[John Taylor]

1.) Trout will win a batting title this year.

2.) Felix Pena will make the most starts of the Starting Pitchers.

3.) Skaggs will go on the IL for a prolonged period of time.

4.) Ohtani hits 30+ HRs

5.) @Chuckster70 will wear his Angels sombrero at Safeco Field (again)