Regan's Rumblings: 2020 All-Rookie Team

Baseball in June?

As a fan, sign me up.

As a player, so you want me to play in 100-115 degree temperatures while being quarantined away from my family?

I know I make a lot of money, but yeah, hard pass.

Now maybe some adjustments will be made to accommodate players with families, but I'm still having a difficult time seeing a path to June baseball. Hopefully, I'm wrong.

Anyway, for this week's piece, I'm going to cover my projected 2020 all-rookie team. Some of these guys made their MLB debuts in 2019, while many others are projected to do so this year assuming there is a year.

Catcher

Sean Murphy, OAK

Sure, guys like Joey Bart and Adley Rutschman are higher-rated prospects, but I'd expect their 2020 contributions to be minimal at best. Murphy is expected to receive the lion's share of the catching duties after debuting briefly in 2019 with a .245/.333/.566 slash that included an impressive four home runs in 60 plate appearances. Murphy had been hitting .308/.386/.625 in 140 Triple-A plate appearances and his numbers were similarly impressive in 2018, so this is a player who can contribute offensively at a thin fantasy position. Knee and wrist injuries resulted in Murphy missing large chunks of the last two seasons, but in 478 minor league PA in last season, he hit a solid .288/.367/.520 with a 9.6 BB% and reasonable 18.2 K%. He was also 3-for-10 with a 2B and HR this spring before things shut down.

Backup – Tyler Stephenson, CIN – Should be up for the Reds this.  Above average offensive potential.

First Base

Evan White, SEA

This was a no-brainer after White signed a pre-debut six-year $24 million deal with three club options this offseason. He's yet to reach Triple-A, but after hitting .293/.350/.488 at the Double-A level, the Mariners appear to be set to make him their first baseman and let Daniel Vogelbach and Austin Nola handle DH. White's BB% regressed from 9.7 to 7.3 percent last year, but that's not expected to be a major concern. His minor league stolen base numbers are modest, but he does have some speed and athleticism to work with, so seeing above average SB production from his position would not be a surprise.  A 2017 first-round pick, White hit .320 this spring, so it would be a surprise to see him start in the minors.

Backup – Ryan Mountcastle, BAL - Won't be a superstar, but has enough power to be a regular, and may at least briefly give the Baltimore fans someone to cheer.

Second Base

Gavin Lux, LAD – An early favorite for NL Rookie of the Year. The main question with Lux is how much early slack the club gives him if he gets off to a slow start. Based on his prospect status as well as his obvious talent, Lux will be handed the everyday second base job to start the season. At the same time, what happens 20-30 games into the season and Lux is hitting .200/.250/.330? Perhaps Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernandez start looking pretty good to manager Dave Roberts. He'll have to prove he can hit lefties, but he destroyed them at Triple-A last year after a modest .738 OPS performance at Double-A.

Backup – Nick Madrigal, CHW (Is it just me, or the White Sox loaded?  Sure, not all of these guys are going to be superstars, but Madrigal should be an above-average performance sooner rather than later).

Shortstop

Carter Kieboom, WAS – Kieboom isn't going to see many shortstop reps with Trea Turner there, but he qualifies there from a fantasy perspective despite third base being his obvious long-term home. Kieboom had a modest debut in 2019, going 5-for-39 with a pair of home runs after batting .303/.409/.493 in Triple-A. Kieboom has consistently exhibited solid plate discipline, posting an 11.6 BB% throughout his minor league career while showing the potential to hit 20-25 home runs annually. He's never been a big stolen base guy, but there's still some potential here for a .300 hitter with 20-plus homers and 8-10 stolen bases. Obviously, that would be more valuable as a shortstop from a fantasy perspective, but for now, third base (or second?) appears to be his immediate home.

Backup - Nico Hoerner, CHC (Tops the Cubs depth chart at second base, though that's no guarantee. His current calling card is his plate discipline, but the power should come eventually).

Third Base

Ke'Bryan Hayes, PIT – Alec Bohm (below) has more upside offensively, but Hayes should top him in 2020 value. Son of former major leaguer Charlie Hayes, Ke'Bryan has an elite glove and a career 16.8 K%, so he's going to be a major leaguer in 2020 on that alone. The problem is, he's also yet to show adequate CI power with a .752 OPS and .120 ISO. Thinking ahead, though, with his pedigree and plate discipline along with a 6-foot-1, 210-pound frame, it's easy to dream about where he'll be in a couple years. Don't expect a lot of power before 2022, but I can see him winning Gold Gloves and in time, hitting .290/.360/.460.

Backup – Alec Bohm, PHI (2018's No. 3 overall pick has the most upside of any third base prospect, but it may not be his turn until 2021. As long as everyone is healthy in Philly, he doesn't have a spot).

Outfield 

Dylan Carlson, STL – He should be there from day one in 2020, though that's no guarantee should the Cardinals elect to manipulate his service time. Either way, he and Luis Robert will compete along with Gavin Lux for the 2020 NL ROY award. Carlson isn't exactly trying to beat out the 1980s Cardinals outfield of Vince Coleman, Willie McGee and Lonnie Smith, so as long as he hits (.873 OPS this spring), his time in the minors this year should be minimal. With 26 homers, 20 steals and a .914 OPS in the minors in 2019, his floor looks about as high as his ceiling.

Jo Adell, LAA – The big question with Adell surrounds how big of a percentage of his 2020 plate appearances come in the big leagues. Despite having turned just 21 on the day this article was written, Adell's talent is obvious, and, to some, it echoes that of Juan Soto's, which is a pretty high bar. That said, despite having just Brian Goodwin as a roadblock, Adell is no lock to come up right away and dominate as Soto did. First, he struck out in half of his 26 plate appearances this spring after posting a .676 OPS and 32.8 K% in 131 Triple-A PA last year. So why is he RotoWire's No. 4 overall prospect outside of his obvious raw ability? How about a .308/.390/.553 slash in Double-A? Adell and Mike Trout is a pretty enticing OF combo, along with eventually, Brandon Marsh. I am not sure he'll get enough 2020 playing time to be a ROY candidate, but I'll be watching his debut.

Luis Robert, CHW – Robert's $50 million contract guarantees an Opening Day roster spot, but it's still a question what we can expect from the leading AL ROY candidate. Robert's talent is obvious after a 2019 in which, across three levels, the Cuban sensation posted a 1.011 OPS with 32 homers and 36 steals. You do that in the big leagues and you're a first-round pick. Robert, though, also posted a 5.1 BB% and 23.4 K%, the latter of which is acceptable these days, but the former raises some red flags. It's easy to see him posting a 20/20 season as a rookie, but that could also come with a .250 BA and .300 OBP.

Backups – Sam Hilliard, COL (Man I hope they give this guy playing time. What do they have to lose?)  Austin Hays, BAL (Hays shouldn't have an issue getting an extended look this year, and could even lead off.); Monte Harrison, MIA (A ridiculous six steals and .481 OBP this spring).

Starting Pitchers 

Jesus Luzardo, OAK – With the shortened schedule (most likely), a large percentage of any 2020 innings he ends up throwing should be at the big-league level. We have him as the A's No. 4 starter, but should Luzardo end up starting Game 1 of a playoff series, it wouldn't be a huge surprise.

A.J. Puk, OAK – Another A's lefty with top-of-the-rotation upside, Puk is expected to begin the year in the rotation, especially with the shortened schedule. I've written about him recently, so I won't go into much detail here, but Puk was the sixth overall pick in 2016, is 6-7 and hit 97-98 upon his return late last year.

Nate Pearson, TOR – See the link in the Puk section, as I've written extensively this spring about how impressive Pearson has looked not only last year (2.30 ERA across three levels), but also this spring while hitting upward of 100 mph with his fastball. Young guys who throw that hard are always going to be Tommy John candidates, but Pearson is probably already the second-best starter in the entire organization behind Hyun-Jin Ryu.

Mitch Keller, PIT – Keller was two innings short of the rookie limit last year, posting 48 innings of 7.13 ERA ball in a disappointing debut. He did finish well with a 2.70 ERA in 10 innings with 14 strikeouts over his final two starts. Keller now gets a new pitching coach who will be tasked with making some tweaks and getting Keller back to his former status. That said, he did post an encouraging 3.18 FIP with a strong 12.2 K/9 and solid 12.2 K%. We're also pretty sure a .475 BABIP isn't happening again, so Keller looks to be in line for a solid 2020.

Spencer Howard, PHI – With a black hole in the No. 5 starter slot, Howard's name has been floated as a potential candidate, and with the shortened season, the club can still keep his innings down and have him pretty much out there every fifth day. Howard missed two months of 2019 due to shoulder soreness, and as a very hard thrower, the concerns are obvious. Overall, though, including the Arizona Fall League, Howard had a 1.99 ERA and 133:28 K:BB in 99.1 innings. He could vie for NL ROY honors.

Backups – Dustin May, LAD; Forrest Whitley, HOU; Clarke Schmidt, NYY; Jose Urquidy, HOU; Daniel Lynch, KC

Relief Pitchers 

Hunter Harvey, BAL – Now seemingly a full-time reliever, Harvey has probably more appeal now than he did as a starter, as he could never stay healthy in that role. Mychal Givens may be ahead of him now, but in early March, manager Brandon Hyde named Harvey as a candidate for saves. Harvey finally made it to the big leagues last year, allowing one run in 6.1 innings with an 11:4 K:BB while averaging 98.4 mph with his fastball. I expect him to lead the team in saves.

Emmanuel Clase, CLE – Clase is out until sometime in June with a back injury, but at this point, that may mean he's ready for whenever baseball starts back up. Clase has Brad Hand and perhaps James Karinchak ahead of him, but some of his numbers last year were crazy good: 99.4 mph average fastball, 60.6 GB% and a 2.31 ERA.

Backups – James Karinchak, CLE; Brusdar Graterol, LAD