20 MLB bold predictions for 2020 season, including a big trade and the end of a World Series drought – CBS Sports

The 2020 Major League Baseball season is fast approaching. Summer camp is well underway and the mad dash 60-game season will soon begin. This season will be unlike any other season in MLB history -- it'll be the shortest season on record, there will be a universal DH, and there will be an extra-inning tiebreaker rule -- but it's baseball, and it'll be fun. It's OK to enjoy it.

To stick with the "20s" theme, here are 20 bold predictions for the 2020 baseball season. Come with me, won't you?

A record 6,776 home runs were hit in 2019, roughly 10 percent more than the previous record (6,105 in 2017). An independent committee attributed the homer spike to changes to the baseball itself, as well as hitters around the league buying into the launch angle craze. But mostly, it's the baseball. Pitchers complained it felt like a cue ball last season.

It seems crazy to suggest the baseball could be even more juiced next year, but a) these are bold predictions, and b) this has already happened once before. During that 2017 homer explosion, we all sat around and said, "wow, the ball can't possibly get more juiced than this," and then it was two years later. Baseball is a flat circle. Everythingthat's happened will happen again.

With an ultra-juiced baseball and MLB wanting to catch everyone's attention post-pandemic, we are boldly predicting 2,600 homers this season. That's a 7,000-homer pace in a full 162-game season. I feel good about this prediction because look at the ridiculous swing that led to Riley Greene's spectacular Endy Chavez style catch earlier in summer camp:

I know C.J. Cron has power, but good grief. That swing isn't supposed to produce a ball hit that far. The extra-juiced baseball will lead to several teams reaching the 120-homer plateau in 2020, or a record 324 home runs in a 162-game season. First bold prediction: dingers, and lots of 'em.

A late season groin injury sabotaged Ronald Acuna Jr.'s bid to become only the fifth 40/40 player in baseball history. The Braves wunderkind sat out the final four regular season games and finished with 41 home runs and 37 stolen bases. A National League leading 37 stolen bases, if you can believe it. It had been nearly 60 years since the NL leader stole that few bases.

For posterity's sake, here are the four 40/40 seasons in history:

Back in spring training Ozzie Albies toldFox Sports Souththat Acuna was "talking about 50/50" this season, though that won't happen in a 60-game season. Instead, our second bold prediction calls for Acuna to get to 20/20 in 2020. That's a 54/54 pace in a full 162-game season. It's doable. Likely? No, but doable, and I'm willing to bet on a player this talented.

If you give the Mets credit for the Johan Santana no-hitter, the Padres are the only MLB franchise without a no-hitter. The Marlins have been around roughly half as long as the Padres and they have six no-hitters. Six! Only five times in Padres history has the club completed eight no-hit innings in a game:

While there is something endearing about being the only MLB franchise not to do something cool like throw a no-hitter, our third bold prediction calls for the Padres to finally join the no-hit club this season. It's time. The San Diego franchise has played 8,136 regular season games and it's time to get through nine innings without allowing a base hit.

Specifically, I'll say slider specialist and personal fave Dinelson Lamet will start the historic game against the Mariners on Sept. 19 before giving way to relievers Drew Pomeranz and Kirby Yates. Lamet struck out 105 batters in 73 innings in his return from Tommy John surgery last season, you know. He's going to wake up one morning with no-hit stuff and, well, contribute to a no-hitter.

And order will be restored to the universe. Athletics slugger Khris Davis never seemed quite right last season -- he hurt his hip crashing into the wall in May and maybe that did it -- and he fought through a prolonged slump that saw him finish at .220/.293/.387. A's manager Bob Melvin even benched him at times. It was quite a fall for the 2018 American League home run leader.

The season-long slump put an end to one of the most fun streaks in recent baseball history. From 2015-18, Davis hit .247 in each season. Here are his batting averages carried out to an extra decimal place:

Davis hit .247 on the nose from 2015-18, because of course he did (OK fine, he really hit .2470081379). After a dreadful 2019, the bold prediction here is Davis will get back on the horse in 2020, and again hit a .247. (In case you're wondering, Khrush's batting average through 60 games last season was ... .241. So close!)

The five boroughs boast an impressive collection of power hitters. There's Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton (and Gary Sanchez and Gleyber Torres) in the Bronx, and reigning NL Rookie of the Year and rookie home run record holder Pete Alonso in Queens. Those players I just mentioned have combined for three 50-homer seasons in the last three years.

And yet, it will not be one of those players who leads the two New York teams in home runs in 2020. It'll be Yoenis Cespedes, who has not played in roughly two years now because of heel surgeries and a boar-related ankle injury, but is healthy and has been crushing the ball in Summer Camp.

Cespedes is on track to the Mets everyday DH when the season opens. He won't have to worry about playing the outfield and that will reduce wear and tear, and improve his chances of staying healthy. Cespedes hit nine homers in 38 games prior to his injuries in 2018, a 38-homer pace, and he's playing for a contract. Few things in this sport are as fun as a locked in Cespedes and I am boldly predicting we will see that guy in 2020.

MLB teams have been signing their best young players to long-term contracts for more than two decades now. The craze started with the John Hart-era Cleveland teams in the 1990s. Teams are so extension happy nowadays that they've started signing players before they even make their MLB debuts. A complete list of pre-MLB debut extensions:

White spent the entire 2019 season in Double-A, yet the Mariners were still compelled to lock him up. They believe in him that much and there's so much upside. If he becomes the player they expect, Seattle will save tens of millions during the life of the contract. And, if White busts, the Mariners are out $4 million a year for six years. Middle reliever money. No big deal.

The next player to sign a long-term extension before making his MLB debut will be Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman, the No. 1 pick in the 2019 draft. He is an elite prospect -- Rutschman was arguably the best draft prospect since Bryce Harper in 2010 and he was quite clearly the best catching prospect since Buster Posey in 2008 -- and Baltimore will lock him up and soon.

My boldly predicted contract terms: 7 years and $60 million (covering 2021-27) with two club options that could bring the total value to $90 million. That would be the richest deal for a player yet to make his MLB debut and allow the Orioles to bring Rutschman to the big leagues at any point with no worry about service time. He's a special player and he'll get a special contract.

Which Mariner? Either Jarred Kelenic or Julio Rodriguez. I'd bet on it being Kelenic because I like his chances of playing in the big leagues this season, and with no proper minor-league season, it'll hard for players to improve their prospect stock at the alternate training site. Kelenic will see game action and have a chance to wow.

For what it's worth, our R.J. Anderson ranked Kelenic the No. 8 prospect in baseball over the winter(and Rodriguez the No. 41 prospect). Here's what R.J. had to say about Kelenic:

The gem of the Robinson Cano trade, Jarred Kelenic asserted himself as the top prospect in Seattle's system with an impressive age-19 season that saw him hit .291/.364/.540 with 23 homers and 20 steals across three levels -- including 21 Double-A contests. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Kelenic is expected to be an above-average hitter at the big-league level. Kelenic is more than just a stick though. He can run, and for the time being he's likely to remain in center thanks to his footspeed and his big-time arm. There's a chance he has to move to a corner (likely right) down the road, but there's star potential if he can stick up the middle. Kelenic won't be able to legally drink until July. By then, he could be knocking on the big-league door. Whether Seattle chooses to answer it before the 2021 season rolls around is to be seen.

Kelenic is on the short list of the game's top prospects and I boldly predict he will get enough MLB playing time this year to impress onlookers and improve his stock, but not enough to exceed the 130 at-bat rookie limit. He'll remain prospect eligible in 2021 and we'll see him atop top 100 prospect lists.

Blasphemous, I know. Mike Trout is well on his way to the inner circle of the inner circle of the Hall of Fame, plus we can't forget about new free agent pickup Anthony Rendon either. He's quite good. The thing is, Ohtani might be the most talented baseball player on the planet. It's not just me saying that either. At least one former opponent believes it:

"I keep saying this, and people always laugh at me when I say this, but he's the best baseball player I've ever seen in my life," CC Sabathia said on his podcast a few months ago. "Are you kidding me? He can hit the ball 900 feet and throw 99 off the mound. Who else can do that? Who else is doing that, bro? There's nobody else is doing that at the big-league level."

Ohtani is wrapping up his Tommy John surgery rehab and is expected to be in the Opening Day rotation. He turned only 26 earlier this month and, before his elbow gave out in 2018, he threw 51 2/3 innings with a 3.31 ERA and 63 strikeouts. He's also a career .286/.351/.532 hitter with 40 homers in 792 MLB plate appearance. All-Star production on both sides.

The total package, pitching plus hitting, will make Ohtani the most valuable player on his team this season. Trout is expected to step away at some point to be with his wife when she gives birth to their first child, which will cut into his production, but mostly, I just think Ohtani is that damn good. I can see him being a 4 WAR player in 60 games. It'll happen. It has been foretold.

But it won't be Luis Robert. Instead, it'll be fellow White Sox prospect Nick Madrigal. The 5-foot-7 second baseman slashed .311/.377/.414 with only 16 strikeouts in 120 minor-league games at three levels last season, including Triple-A. His 3.0 percent strikeout rate and 2.2 percent swing-and-miss rate were, by far, the lowest in the minors.

Here's what our R.J. Anderson wrote about Mr. Madrigal over the winter:

The No. 4 pick in the 2018 draft, Nick Madrigal is unlike most any other player in baseball. He's small and unlikely to offer much power, yet he's a good defensive second baseman with absurd bat-to-ball skills who "runs like a [mother's intimate friend]," in the words of one source.

Madrigal could arrive at any point during the shortened season -- he'll need to spend only seven days at the alternate site to push back his free agency -- and he has the skill set to grab the attention of Rookie of the Year voters. He's a flashy defender, he steals bases, and he makes so much contact that there is a chance he dinks and dunks his way to a .350 batting average. That'll play.

Robert is awesome, don't get me wrong, and his new extension ensures he will be on the Opening Day roster. The extra playing time could factor into the Rookie of the Year race. I think Robert could be in for an adjustment period though -- his swing-and-miss rate jumped to 21.1 percent in Triple-A last year -- allowing Madrigal to sneak in and steal the award, boldly.

Game 3 of the 2019 ALDS was Minnesota's 16th consecutive postseason loss, tying the 1975-79 Chicago Blackhawks for the longest postseason losing streak in the history of the four major North American pro sports. The Twins have not won a postseason game since Game 1 of the 2004 ALDS against the Yankees. Johan Santana started the game. Minnesota's starting lineup:

Not a single active major leaguer has played in a Twins postseason win. The last active player to appear in a Twins postseason win was Red Sox legend David Ortiz. He started his career in Minnesota and played his final big-league game on Oct. 10, 2016 (Game 3 of the 2016 ALDS against Cleveland). Yeah, it's been a long time since the Twins won a postseason game.

Fortunately for you, Twins fans, we are boldly predicting your team ends the postseason losing streak this year and gets back in the win column. Will they win a postseason series? Let's not get greedy. Win one game first. The Twins are a solid bet to return to the playoffs this year, likely as the AL Central champs, and they'll win a game in the ALDS (assuming they don't play the Yankees).

... again. One team won 96 games last season and is viewed as an up-and-coming powerhouse. The other won 93 games last year and is generally considered to be trending down. Pull the curtain back a little bit, and you can see the Rays and Cleveland were near carbon copies in 2019:

Runs scored

769

Runs allowed

657

656

Defensive efficiency

.709

.710

Team OPS

.756

.757

Team ERA

3.76

3.65

Freaky! Neither team got dramatically better over the winter either. Cleveland traded Corey Kluber, who was mostly a non-factor last year because of injuries. The Rays traded Tommy Pham and Emilio Pagan, arguably their best hitter and reliever, but have the depth to replace them. Point is, these two teams were extremely similar last season.

And I expect them to be extremely similar again this season. They're both deep in pitching with a few questions on the offensive side. For all the chatter that the Rays are built for a 60-game sprint, I feel like the same logic applies to Cleveland as well. They're a pitching factory with a manager who knows how to use it. Terry Francona's team is the sleeper your father thinks the Rays are.

... to the Phillies. Consider this is a three-pronged bold prediction. First, the Cubs are going to be bad (or simply mediocre) enough to actually sell at the Aug. 31 trade deadline. Second, Theo Epstein & Co. will actually go through with the whole selling thing. It's one thing to be in position to sell. It's another to actually act on it and trade away that big name player.

Here's what Epstein told the New York Post's Joel Sherman in March:

"It puts us in a position in which we have to be very objective about what we have," Epstein said. "In the middle of this season, if we have a legit World Series contender, that is really meaningful. But if we don't, you can't be blind to the realities of the following 18 months."

And third, the Phillies will be the team to bite and make the trade for Kris Bryant. Bryant was reportedly on the trade block all winter, and Philadelphia was said to be involved at various points, so connecting the dots again here hardly qualifies as bold. I guess the bold part of this prediction is the Cubs actually being out of it, and the Phillies offering enough to get a deal done.

What is enough to get a deal done? I'm going to say a multi-player package that is headlined by 2018 No. 3 pick Alec Bohm. A near MLB ready pitching prospect like Adonis Medina and JoJo Romerowill be the second piece. Sound good? The Phillies get a big third base bat while the Cubs get young talent and that all important financial flexibility.

The August 31 trade deadline will be weird. It's only a month into the season, so teams won't have much time to evaluate their roster and plot changes, and clubs will be wary of paying too much given the risk COVID-19 forces the season to be shut down at some point. Also, the shutdown is going to ruin payrolls for the foreseeable future. Money is tight.

That said, the Rockies and Tigers are in position to control the pitching market at the deadline because they're loaded with pitchers that are controllable beyond 2020. Consider: Jon Gray is under control through 2021, Matthew Boyd and Michael Fulmer are under control through 2022, Kyle Freeland is under control through 2023, and German Marquez is signed through 2023. Some of those guys are more available than others, but I can see a scenario in which all five are on the market.

Detroit has a plethora of young pitching coming (Matt Manning, Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal) and can afford to trade Boyd and/or Fulmer for multiple pieces to address other organizational needs. The Rockies need all sorts of help and those pitchers are their best way to get at this point. A Nolan Arenado trade probably isn't happening. Moving a starter is the next best thing.

Because this is a bold predictions piece, let's make some actual predictions. I'll say Boyd goes to the Astros for a package built around outfielder Kyle Tucker and pitching prospect Cristian Javier, and Gray goes to the Yankees for outfielder Estevan Florial and righty Albert Abreu. Sound good? Good.

The first impression of the new Globe Life Field in Texas is that it is "playing big as hell," according to slugger Joey Gallo. He has taken batting practice at the team's new digs in recent weeks and, for a guy with his power to say a ballpark is playing big, it must be playing really big.

"It's playing big as hell," Gallo told Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in May. "It's definitely going to be a pitcher's park. We are trying to get those fences moved in a little bit. It's a little deep, I am not going to lie. It's a little deep out to center. Us hitters are getting a little nervous about that."

Globe Life Park, the team's old facility, was a notorious hitter's park, especially in the summer, when the ball flew in the Texas heat. The thing is, Globe Life Field's dimensions are generally cozier. Check it out:

Left field

332 feet

329 feet

Left-center

390 feet

372 feet

Center field

400 feet

407 feet

Right-center

377 feet

374 feet

Right field

325 feet

326 feet

The fence may be closer just about everywhere except dead center field, but there is more to how a ballpark plays than the outfield dimensions. The shape of the ballpark and how air moves through the structure matters, as does the retractable roof. It'll be nice and air conditioned now. Fans will love it. Alas, the cooler air means the ball will not travel quite as well.

Globe Life Park opened in 1994 and the park factors at FanGraphs say it inflated offense at least 3 percent every year of its existence, with most years in the 5-9 percent range. In Year 1 of Globe Life Field, I boldly predict the ballpark will suppress offense at least 3 percent below the league average. The Rangers will go from a bandbox to a cavern.

Toronto has been mired in fourth place since going to the ALCS in 2015 and 2016, so third place would represent their best finish in the standings in four years. The Blue Jays lost 95 games a year ago, but gosh, look at the young talent. Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. are elite cornerstone types, and others like Cavan Biggio and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. are great complementary pieces.

Clubs with a great young talent base have a tendency to arrive ahead of schedule. The Twins did it just last year. The Rays in 2008, the Pirates in 2013, the Cubs in 2015 ... all those clubs were loaded with young talent and they all emerged sooner than expected. The Blue Jays spent some money on pitching this winter and those young bats make them a budding powerhouse.

Finishing in third place is unlikely to get the Blue Jays back to the postseason, but it does represent progress. I reckon Toronto will be a real headache to play in 2020. They won't be a pushover like many other non-contenders. And, of course, the Blue Jays finishing third means someone has to finish fourth, and I boldly predict it will be the Red Sox. A quick recap of their situation:

SportsLine has the Red Sox as an 33-win team at the moment. With the Blue Jays beginning their breakout and some things going wrong for the Red Sox, a fourth place finish is very possible. When the Red Sox are bad, they tend to be very bad (three last place finishes from 2012-15). Toronto breaks out, Boston breaks down, and the Blue Jays earn a third place finish in 2020.

A season ago Zac Gallen went from breakout prospect to hotshot rookie pitcher to traded at the deadline. He went from the Marlins to the Diamondbacks in July and pitched to a 2.89 ERA in eight starts in Arizona. Gallen's final MLB numbers: 2.81 ERA with 96 strikeouts and 2.7 WAR in 80 innings. Heck of a rookie year for the 24-year-old.

It's hard to call a guy who had a 2.81 ERA a year ago a breakout candidate, but Gallen is one, and I boldly predict he will place in the top three of the Cy Young voting in 2020. Ahead of wealthy new teammate Madison Bumgarner. Gallen is a five-pitch pitcher with command, and he misses bats with all five pitches. The numbers:

Four-seam fastball

23.7%

21.8%

Sinker

33.3%

15.5%

Cutter

27.4%

24.9%