With the end of the baseball season, it’s time to peek back at my Bold Predictions and marvel in how wrong I was.
1. Joe Biagini is a top 40 starting pitcher in 2018
This one never got off the ground. Biagini received a few spot starts but was never really given a chance in the rotation. To make matters worse, he pitched to a career-low K/9 and a career-high BABIP. WRONG 0/1
2. Carlos Correa wins his first MVP, ends up as the #2 SS going into 2019.
Another falter. Correa had an up-and-down beginning to his season before battling a back injury that lead to a dismal 2nd half. He may get drafted as the #2 SS off the board from the Astros, though. WRONG 0/2
3. Gary Sanchez slugs more home runs than Stanton and Judge
Not enough close. Sanchez was perhaps the largest bust of the 2018 season after being drafted as the first catcher off the board. Neither Judge nor Stanton repeated their fantastic 2017 season, but mediocrity and injuries kept Sanchez from even making this close. WRONG 0/3
4. Brandon Nimmo has the highest WAR of Met’s OFs
On the board! With Brandon Nimmo finally earning much deserved playing time he returned the highest fWAR of all Mets position players in 2018. I’m thrilled that this prediction held up despite Nimmo playing in fewer games than Conforto (who held the second highest fWAR of all Mets position players). CORRECT 1/4
5. Anthony Gose adds more value as a two-way player than Ohtani
Who is Anthony Gose? I still think there is a lot of value to be had here – a LOOGY/4th OF hybrid could help a majority of rosters considering the importance of bullpens and roster depth in today’s MLB. With that said, Gose did not have a strong season on the mound within the Rangers minor league system. Perhaps someone will take another chance on him in 2019. WRONG 1/5
6. Kazuhisa Makita finishes 2018 with a sub-2.00 ERA for the Padres
Ouch. Makita finished with a 5.40 ERA and I wasn’t even close on this one. WRONG 1/6
7. The MLB Walks record is broken
Not only was I wrong on this prediction, but I also guessed the incorrect direction of the trend. In 2000, 18,237 total walks occurred. In 2018, 15,686 walks occurred, falling short of 2017’s total of 15,829. WRONG 1/7
8. J.D. Martinez has a mediocre first year in Boston and finishes outside the top 20 OFs
Nope. Not even close. WRONG 1/8
9. Lance Lynn is a top 20 SP in 2018
Lance Lynn came in as the 149th SP on the ESPN Player Rater. I missed the mark here. WRONG 1/9
10. Ichiro Suzuki hits .300+ in SEA
Ichiro hit .205 over 15 games in Seattle before transitioning to the role of Special Assistant to the Chairman. Unfortunately, this prediction wasn’t close to coming true. WRONG 1/10
Wow.