2 Tools Baseball Podcast

EP 139: Alex and Travis open with their thoughts on the exhilarating 2025 World Series and how the dominance of the back to back champ Dodgers are affecting MLB. They go on to breakdown the 2025 regular season award winners and discuss the consistent questionable decision-making from media award voters and fan voters alike.

EP 138: Alex and Travis open the episode by breaking down the exciting, back and forth ALCS where the Blue Jays edged out the Mariners, before going over the short yet explosive NLCS win by the Dodgers over the Brewers. They go on to give their analysis and predictions on the 2025 World Series matchup. Alex and Travis close with their thoughts on the Angels managerial search saga which has concluded with the hiring of Kurt Suzuki.

EP 137: Alex and Travis open the episode reacting to the Mets' late season collapse and the other meaningful game 162 matchups. Then, they get ready for the playoffs by breaking down each of the wild card matchups, looking at the odds that each team has to advance, and making their 2025 World Series predictions. They close the episode comparing the MVP cases for Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh.

EP 136: Alex breaks down the legendary career of Clayton Kershaw and puts his statistical resume into context among his all-time great peers. Then, Alex takes a look at the playoff races in each division as teams gear up for a final push with just three series left to play in the 2025 regular season.

EP 135: This episode, Alex selects six topics to breakdown for a six-pack, starting with the Dodgers and their lack of dominance compared to last season. Then, he covers Anthony Volpe's shortcomings and how they impact the Yankees' aspirations, before highlighting the bright spots in the Yankees offense that are keeping the team going. Alex discusses Luis Arraez's offensive nosedive which calls into question his hitting approach and the manager's decision to feature him prominently. This contrasts with how Roman Anthony has been a driving positive force at the top of the lineup for the Red Sox, as their season has U-turned since trading away Rafael Devers. Alex closes the episode with a discussion on how the savvy Brewers have developed their team into World Series contention, while the Angels have fallen short in player development for another consecutive season.

EP 134: This week, Alex and Travis open with a deep dive on the Orioles and try to figure out why they have started the season so poorly. They go on to discuss the drama surrounding Rafael Devers' position and Kyle Schwarber's surprising consistency, before closing with their thoughts on a potential Paul Skenes trade and a recap of the heating up Angels' winning streak.

EP 133: This week Alex and Travis open by putting Aaron Judge's current stretch of dominance into a historical context. Then, they review the biggest surprises teams, both good and bad, thus far in 2025, before shedding some light on some breakout Nationals stars that came from the 2022 Juan Soto trade.

EP 132: Alex opens with a discussion on the stacked crop of right fielders going into the new season, and then he previews the 2025 MLB season by breaking down the win-loss projections for each division on Fangraphs.

EP 131: This week, Alex and Travis open with a look back at Joey Votto's Hall of Fame-caliber career by going through his accomplishments and comparing him to other Hall of Fame greats. Then, they take a look at the tight standings across each division in MLB, before reacting to the viral "Greatest Living Players" list posted by MLB Network. Alex and Travis close with a discussion on Perry Minasian's new extension as Angels' GM and what it means for the future of his team.

EP 130: This episode, Alex and Travis open with a look back at the biggest moves of the trade deadline and try to anticipate how this will affect teams in the second half of the season. Then, they both present their current 2024 All-MLB Teams and debate the best players at each position this year with two months left in the season.

EP 129: Alex and Travis open with a discussion about how open the NL Wildcard race is with many surprising teams still in the mix. Then, they dive into Shohei Ohtani's stats to determine if he is at his peak the best Dodgers hitter ever. Alex and Travis debate who the All Star Game representative will be for an underwhelming Angels team and react to the first two 2024 All Star selections.

EP 128: This week Alex and Travis open by breaking down the underwhelming AL West. Then, they highlight the unexpected names on the top 10 ERA leaderboard to start the season, before diving into some teams that may be looking to sell key players sooner than later. Alex and Travis close by recapping and sharing their thoughts on the recent merging of statistical records between MLB and the Negro Leagues.

EP 127: Alex and Travis open with an icebreaker on which MLB player we would pick to start a franchise. Then, they discuss how the Luis Arraez trade has helped the Padres and what it means for the Marlins going forward. Alex and Travis go on to analyze the surprisingly poor offensive numbers by the Blue Jays to start the season, before breaking down everything going wrong with the Angels right now.

EP 126: Alex and Travis open with a conversation about the players who are stuck at zero home runs to start the MLB season. They analyze the first month for several different young players, including Spencer Torkelson, Vlad Guerrero Jr., Alec Bohm, Jo Adell, and Gunnar Henderson, to determine what trends have these players playing below or above expectations. Then, Alex and Travis try to determine who the best pitcher in baseball is right now given all of the major injuries.

EP 125: This week Alex and Travis open by taking a look at the worst hitters and pitchers in MLB so far this season and determining what their issues are and if there is real cause for concern. Then, they go through each division one by one to see how playoff odds have shifted since Opening Day for each team. Alex and Travis close by detailing their new project and complete the exercise of choosing 15 Angels players to keep safe from a potential expansion draft.

EP 124: This week, Alex and Travis open with a discussion about the growing concern around elbow injuries for pitchers in the league today. Then, they walk through several trends early in the MLB season and determine if they think these things are overreactions or legit: Trout in MVP conversation? Volpe is an all-star? Red Sox have the best rotation in baseball? Arenado is washed?! Elly de la Cruz needs a trip to the minors?!

EP 123: Alex and Travis start the episode by taking a look at each division one by one and discussing how they see each team performing in the 2024 season. They both pick a sleeper team that they think will do better than expected this year. Alex and Travis then take a look at the favorites for the MVP, Cy Young, and Rookie of the Year awards and discuss which players have favorable odds heading into the season. They close the episode with their way-too-early World Series predictions.

EP 122: Alex and Travis share their thoughts on the contract extensions of Bobby Witt Jr. and Jose Altuve, before diving into their analysis on recent free agency signings like Kershaw staying put, Liam Hendriks to Boston, Jorge Soler to the Giants, and more. Then, they break down the 5 biggest remaining free agents, Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery, Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman, and JD Martinez, and try to figure out where they might land as Spring Training ramps up.

EP 121: Alex and Travis open with their day 1 reaction to the Orioles trading for Corbin Burnes under new ownership. They discuss how this impacts the Orioles and how the Brewers will stack up in the NL Central after trading their ace. Alex and Travis break down what the Josh Hader signing means for the Astros, before recapping other big moves throughout the league: Polanco to Seattle, Justin Turner to Toronto, Pederson to Arizona, and the Angels adding depth. The close with their thoughts on the 3 new Hall of Famers along with the other ballot results and a bonus sneak preview at newcomers to the 2025 Hall of Fame Ballot.

EP 120: Alex and Travis review the Dodgers' busy offseason after they load up with Yamamoto, Glasnow, Margot, and Teoscar Hernandez. Then they breakdown the other big moves across MLB: Robbie Ray to the Giants, Chris Sale to Atlanta, Stroman to the Yankees, and much more. Alex and Travis recap and critique the official 2023 All-MLB Team, before closing with their thoughts on the 2024 Hall of Fame Ballot. They discuss the newcomers, the players they would vote for, and the players they think will be inducted to Cooperstown this year.