Future Projection

Ben and Carlos banter about MLB’s announcement requiring teams to provide housing for “certain” minor league players, once again fight over the pronunciation of “OPS” and also talk about the closely contested games the 2021 postseason has provided. After that, the two discuss Wander Franco’s impressive rookie campaign and whether or not they would vote for him as the Rookie of the Year. That turns...

Ben and Carlos talk about Bobby Witt Jr. being named the BA Minor League Player of the Year and how there seem to be no obvious flaws in his game. After that, the two discuss the 2022 draft order being set (at least for the time being) and talk a little bit about how Baltimore’s draft strategy in the past could line up with a 2022 draft class that looks strong on college bats, but lacks a clear 1-...

Ben and Carlos talk about the college pitching heavy Royals 2018 draft class and how that group recently accomplished an impressive feat. The two then discuss the #FairBall protest over the weekend and talk a bit about the depressing state of minor league pay and whether or not pitch clocks are effective without being disruptive to the game. After that, the two talk about a recent story about Brav...

Ben and Carlos dive into what they like and don’t like about various workouts in showcase environments before getting into some of the top players to know in the 2023 class. Outfielders like Max Clark and Walker Jenkins have impressed Ben for their hitting ability and toolsets, while lefthander Thomas White has long been a favorite and remains the top pitching prospect in the group. After that, th...

Ben and Carlos are joined by Josh for a podcast primarily centered on the minor leagues and our upcoming top 100 update. The trio talks about the process of updating the list before digging into plenty of player specific conversations. Josh explains why he—like Carlos—is infatuated with Bobby Witt Jr., the trio talks about the demographic strengths of the top 100 this year and digs into a few play...

After spending a few weeks traveling around the country watching players in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 draft classes, Ben and Carlos are back on the mic! The two have an overdue conversation about the 2021 draft results, talk through some of their favorite picks (Khalil Watson, Brady House, Marcelo Mayer) and classes before talking about the Kumar Rocker/Mets situation. After Ben proposes some tweaks...

Ben and Carlos are joined by Alexis Brudnicki to talk all things 2021 draft with just a few days to go before the Pirates are on the clock. If you haven't yet gotten started prepping for this year's draft, this is the show for you. After giving an overview of our thoughts on this year's class as a whole and the draft process in a unique year, all three give their 20-80 grades on each d...

Ben and Carlos return from a brief hiatus to talk about all sorts of prospect action. First, the two discuss some of the players they're most excited to see on the recently announced Futures Game rosters, including Yankees outfielder Jasson Dominguez, Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman and Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez—among others. After that, Ben and Carlos break down the inaugural MLB dr...

Ben and Carlos talk about the increased stolen base totals in the lower levels of the minors, and talk about whether or not rule changes incentivizing the steal would be good for the game. After that the two talk about "prospect hype" and how the notoriety of players can affect the way we think about them—whether we realize it or not. Among those prospects with no shortage of hype, they ex...

For the first time since the Future Projection Podcast has been around, Ben and Carlos are able to talk about actual minor league baseball. The two talk about a number of prospects who have gotten off to strong starts this season, including Wander Franco, Julio Rodriguez, Vidal Brujan, CJ Abrams, Alek Thomas and many others. Prior to that conversation, the two discuss why Oklahoma high school righ...

Ben and Carlos are joined by Josh and Kyle for a roundtable podcast in celebration of Minor League Opening Day. It's been quite a while since we've had minor league baseball in any capacity, but the group talks about everything they are excited for with the season finally starting. Before that conversation gets rolling, the group talks about a few catchers on our updated BA Draft 400 list,...

Ben and Carlos spend a lot of time talking about the value of scouting players through video. Since the Covid season, more and more teams are using video and video tools to amplify their draft coverage, which leads to plenty of benefits, but perhaps some downsides as well. The two talk about how that has changed the job for scouts and then talk about what exactly makes a pop-up player and how some...

Ronald Acuña Jr. makes a fool of the podcast by sitting at the top of the WAR leaderboard just weeks after Ben, Carlos and Josh chose to cut him instead of Juan Soto or Fernando Tatis Jr. After talking about Acuña’s torrid start to the season and improved plate discipline, Ben and Carlos discuss the play of both Byron Buxton and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. The two then talk about some of the most toolsy...

Ben and Carlos marvel at Shohei Ohtani’s early-season exploits on the mound and as a hitter, which leads to a conversation about the difficulties of being a two-way player at the pro level and the prospects who could be next in line to give it a try. The two then spend a lot of time talking about Louisiana State righthander Jaden Hill, who recently tore his UCL and who now faces an uncertain draft...

Ben and Carlos are joined by JJ Cooper for the sixth episode of the Future Projection Podcast. The three talk about what they are excited about for Opening Day before talking about New Jersey high school righthander Chase Petty touching 102 mph. Is throwing that hard that young awesome or scary? After that, the three talk about various sightlines for watching games, and how you can better scout pl...

On the fifth episode of the Future Projection Podcast, Ben and Carlos talk about the recently updated BA draft rankings and discuss how volatile this year’s draft class is. The two talk about the lack of a consensus No. 1 player in the class at this point and play “Sign One, Trade One, Cut One” with Vanderbilt righthanders Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter, and Dallas Jesuit High shortstop Jordan Lawla...

Ben and Carlos are joined by their first-ever guest on the podcast—fellow BA staffer Josh Norris. The three talk about how teams handle contrasting evaluations in scouting, whether that’s an area scout vs. a national crosschecker or an amateur scout vs. a pro scout. After talking about a few players who have had split opinions, the three play “Sign one, Trade one, Cut one” with baseball’s top thre...

Ben and Carlos spend most of the episode talking about shortstops—what scouts look for when evaluating the position, as well as some of the top young shortstop talents in the game. The two discuss an exciting 2021 draft class for the position on the high school side (highlighted by Jordan Lawlar and Marcelo Mayer) and then talk about the top shortstops in the 2020 international class. Ben raves ab...

Ben and Carlos spend some time talking about Ben's recently released International Big Board for the 2021-22 international class, before diving into why an international draft is likely on the horizon. Ben explains what an international draft could look like and why more sides are open to it now than they might have been previously. The two talk about why pick trading could be a good addition...

Baseball is back! On their debut episode, Ben Badler and Carlos Collazo talk about the challenges of scouting this spring, scouting philosophy when it comes to balancing new information with past history and the differences between amateur and pro looks in player evaluation. The two then express their excitement for 2022 high school draft prospect Elijah Green and go in-depth on Yankees prospect J...