We're nearly done with our Bold Predictions, with Ben Pernick up with his ten for the season ahead. Baseball is a crazy sport, and part of what makes it so fun to watch is how hard it is to predict. So if you’re going to take up the fool’s errand of prognosticating the future, why not have fun with it and go all out? I do believe all these predictions are real possibilities, that just need the right circumstance and a little luck to come to fruition. Enjoy!
1. Byung-Ho Park makes a triumphant return, smacking 30+ longballs with a .240 AVG
I’m still gung-ho for Byung-Ho Park, and not just because he’s having a strong spring (but that does actually matter, since he can parlay this into playing time. He really improved his strikeout rate after a rough April, and he was 11th in the MLB in flyball/line drive exit velocity, and his late season slump was due to injury. But what's sexiest is his rank as 2nd best Barrel/Batted Ball% in baseball, and a 97.1 mph exit velocity on flyballs and liners. In other words, the power is massive, so if he can stay healthy even slightly improve his contact & plate discipline, he could be a power beast. For this to happen though, he'll have to beat out Kennys Vargas, who the organization likes, (since barring injury, Joe Mauer is not going anywhere). But Vargas has a spotty track record and has been below the Mendoza line in Spring Training, so the window of opportunity is there for Byung-Ho to Park balls in the outfield seats.
Holliday bats right
LOL came here to say the same thing
True, my bad!