2 Tools Baseball Podcast

EP 89: Alex and Travis open the show with the only major free agency news: Michael Wacha signs with the Padres. Then, they debate who are the top 5 countries competing in this year's World Baseball Classic. Alex and Travis breakdown who they view as the top 10 players at each infield position and argue for who they think is better between notable players across MLB.

EP 88: Alex and Travis open by recapping the recent signings and trades as hot stove season transitions into Spring Training time. Then, they reveal their rankings for the top 10 catchers, starting pitchers, and relief pitchers in 2023, followed by debates at every position.

Alex and Travis react to the 2023 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot results, highlighted by the stunning announcement of Scott Rolen's Hall of Fame induction. Other key risers and fallers on this year's ballot, plus results and arguments for this year's newcomers and some first thoughts on the names that will be on the next Hall of Fame ballot.

EP 87: In a shocking turn of events, LA Angels owner Arte Moreno pulls out of all negotiations to sell the franchise as planned, citing the need to resolve unfinished business, despite interest from several bidders. Alex and Travis also breakdown some of the recent signings in MLB free agency plus a highly debated trade of Luis Arraez for Pablo Sandoval and prospects. Lastly, in preparation for Hall of Fame week, Alex and Travis dive into this years Hall of Fame ballot and discuss who think are worthy and unworthy of the historic honor.

EP 86: Alex and Travis open with biggest developing story of the offseason: Carlos Correa has signed with his third team of the offseason. Other teams across MLB reach deals with almost all of the remaining big name free agents, and young studs like Rafael Devers and Sean Murphy earn well-deserved extensions. Alex and Travis go on to break down which teams they think had the best and the worst offseasons in MLB this winter, before rounding things off with some brief well wishes to the tenacious closing pitcher Liam Hendriks given his recent cancer diagnosis.

EP 85: This week, Alex and Travis open with the most unbelievable switch up of the offseason: the Giants did not like his medical records so Carlos Correa is heading to the loaded New York Mets. The Mets are the clear favorites for the winner of the offseason award, and Alex and Travis have to decide how Correa stacks up against the other third basemen throughout baseball. Sluggers in free agency are finding new home teams throughout the AL and the NL this week, including top shortstop Dansby Swanson heading to the north side of Chicago. Now that the dust is settling in free agency: which team needs to make a push for Bryan Reynolds on the trade wire? And which remaining free agents still on the market would have the biggest impact if they signed with your favorite team? Alex and Travis breakdown all of this and more on this week's episode.

EP 84: Alex and Travis open with the huge spending from the two New York teams as they both try to build rosters that can get over the hump. Then, they break down the past week of free agency going deal by deal to see how teams are getting better or worse so far this offseason. The perennial NL favorite Dodgers have a slow start in comparison to their competition in San Diego, San Fran, Atlanta, and Philly, while the beasts of the AL just seem to re-tool.

EP 83: Alex and Travis open with the 2022 All-MLB first and second teams that were just announced, and they debate how deserving the selected players were of this honor. They breakdown all the biggest signings and trades, from deGrom heading West to Trea Turner heading East and everything in between. Alex and Travis go on to make the case of how the Dodgers proceed after having many of their free agents walk away to new teams, before getting into a discussion about the best arms in New York. The episode caps off with a tribute to the legend Gaylord Perry, a congratulations to new Hall of Famer Fred McGriff, and an update on the current status of the 2023 World Baseball Classic rosters.

EP 82: Alex and Travis open by recapping the 2022 season award winners and discussing their thoughts on the selections. They dive into all of the trades, free agency signings, and other transactions that have occurred since the offseason began, before going over the newly announced Hall of Fame ballot additions that will be voted on in January.

Alex and Travis open with their reactions to the Houston Astros winning the 2022 World Series and discuss what went wrong for the Phillies in the finals games of the postseason. As soon as the postseason ended, the offseason began, as seen in Edwin Diaz's record contract with the Mets, the announcement that Ohtani would remain an Angel, and betting odds on Judge's next team. Alex and Travis also breakdown the newly announced 2022 awards finalists for the AL and NL. They give their reactions and debate who they see going into the off-season with hardware.

Alex and Travis open by breaking down what the most recent iteration of the Yankees downfall at the hands of the Houston Astros means about these two teams, their construction, and their futures. They talk about what the big NLCS Game 5 homer by Bryce Harper means for his legacy and how the Padres just came up shy against a hotter opponent in the biggest spots. Then, Alex and Travis preview the 2022 World Series between an Astros team that finds itself in this spot time after time and a Phillies team that seems to have an unstoppable amount of momentum and support from the baseball gods. They debate how they see the matchup panning out and make their picks for who will come out on top.

EP 79: Alex and Travis open with their reactions to the shocking upset of the 111 win Dodgers at the hands of the Padres. They welcome on two callers as guests and representatives of Dodger Nation to give their responses to this unexpected failure. Then, Alex and Travis breakdown the Phillies' dominant performance against the defending champion Atlanta Braves. They recap the Astros eliminating the Mariners in the tightest 3 game sweep in recent memory. Then, Alex and Travis breakdown the split Yankees and Guardians series as they head into a game 5, before previewing and making predictions on the upcoming AL and NL Championship Series.

EP 78: Alex and Travis open with their reactions to the Wild Card round from last weekend. They discuss their biggest takeaways from the four Wild Card series and whether or not some big names from eliminated teams played their last games with their current teams. With the ALDS and NLDS matchups finalized, Alex and Travis talk about the final eight teams remaining and make their picks for each series.

EP 77: Alex and Travis open with their reactions to Judge's 62 home run milestone and Albert Pujols wrapping up his final regular season. Then they reveal their picks for the 2022 All-MLB team and debate who they would vote for as the 2022 MVPs, Cy Youngs, and other major awards. Alex and Travis transition into the postseason by previewing the new bracket format and breaking down how they see this weekend's Wild Card series shaping up.

EP 76: Albert Pujols reaches the historic 700 career home run milestones in LA, while Aaron Judge fails to reach 61 against Boston. The playoff picture solidifies with just a week of baseball left in the season. The Dodgers continue to impress, the Guardians clinch against all odds, and the wild card races begin to wrap up. And after nearly a full season of driving the MVP conversation, Paul Goldschmidt has company atop the NL leaderboards as several stars across the league end the season hot.

Alex and Travis start the weekly recap by announcing the Angels playoff elimination and praising the new Players of the Week. Judge and Pujols both inch closer in their pursuits of history, and MLB Insider Jon Heyman sparks heated online debate on the AL MVP award with his overwhelming praise of Aaron Judge. Alex and Travis react to a new MLB Power Rankings as the playoff picture starts to slowly solidify, and they breakdown what deGrom's latest hot streak could mean for the future of his career.

EP 74: Alex and Travis breakdown the significance of historic home run milestones being chased down by Mike Trout, Aaron Judge, and Albert Pujols. The wild card races couldn't be tighter, while the Dodgers remind MLB that no one is on their level. The 2023 season will also feature some rule changes, so Alex and Travis explain their thoughts on how these rules will affect the game of baseball.

EP 73: Angels owner Arte Moreno announces his desire to sell the team, and Angels fans react in a big way. Julio Rodriguez inks a monster extension that has the potential to break records. MLB announced the 2023 regular season schedule that features an all new structure with more interleague play than ever before. The wild card races clearly are beginning to tighten, and Josh Hader's jarring troubles on the mound has made things difficult as the Padres try to hang around in the NL playoff picture.

Johnny Cueto, Paul Goldschmidt, and Albert Pujols earn player of the week nods. The Brewers seem to be slipping away from the Cardinals in the NL Central, while the Dodgers' lead in the NL West grows larger. The Dodgers, Aaron Judge, and Albert Pujols all are on track to flirt with historic milestones by the end of the season. Cedric Mullins also announces he's joining Team USA in the WBC.

Hot slate of topics this week include the 80-game suspension of Fernando Tatis Jr. for testing positive for PEDs, the scorching hot streak the Dodgers are on, the unexpected spiral of the Yankees, and a new challenger in the AL Rookie of the Year race. Jacob deGrom also made his anticipated return to the mound, and this year's Field of Dreams game was not as special as MLB would have liked.

EP 70: New Padres outfielder Juan Soto headlines the biggest trade day of the MLB season. Alex and Travis breakdown the winners and losers between all the buyers, the sellers, and the teams in between.

A Mike Trout injury update filled headlines this week, and Aroldis Chapman has continued to perform poorly. The trade deadline is less than a week away so Alex and Travis give their breakdown on what to expect from contenders, tankers, and everyone in between.

Alex and Travis recap the Home Run Derby and breakdown their thoughts on the All-Star Game lineups, starting pitchers, rule changes, and more. Matt Carpenter gets his own segment since he's breaking all-time records for the 1st place Yankees. Trade talks for phenom Juan Soto seem to be becoming more realistic as the trade deadline approaches, and then Alex and Travis have a hypothetical discussion on how the Angels should handle a potential Shohei Ohtani extension/trade/free agency decision.

Alex and Travis open with the 2022 All-Star Game roster, breaking down deserving starters, biggest snubs, and everything in between. The 1st half of the season is officially over so Alex and Travis debate their updated All-MLB teams and 1st half award picks. They also reveal their power rankings for the 1st half and end on a breakdown of some of the most talented teams that will be featured in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

EP 66: Paul Goldschmidt and Vlad Guerrero Jr win Player of the Week nods, but Mike Trout threw his name in the conversation with a monster series in Seattle. All-Star voting numbers were released which started plenty of debates. Oneil Cruz came out of the gate hot following his season debut, and the new MLB Power Rankings display the big risers and fallers in the recent weeks of the season.

EP 65: Joe Girardi and Joe Maddon were relieved of their managerial duties in attempts to send their teams in a new direction this season. Disappointing times for the White Sox have fans wondering if Tony La Russa could be next. The 2022 All-Star Game ballot was released and some tough decisions and close calls are already coming to mind. The standings across MLB are shifting as teams like the Brewers, the Phillies, and the Braves have gone streaking.

EP 64: Alex and Travis open with the disastrous spiral that the Angels have been on over the last two weeks. Then they discuss the underrated first full season of Ke'Bryan Hayes' young career. Who is the best hitter in baseball right now? Best overall team? How about best and worst offseason signings so far? And how many young studs do the Cardinals have?! All these topics and more are debated on this week's episode.

EP 63: A Jose Trevino walk-off and a monster performance by Joc Pederson made for some of the biggest stories of the week. Trevor Story quickly turned around his rough start in the biggest way possible, and it has the Red sox trending in the right direction. The American League is heading straight for a 7 team race for 6 available playoff spots, and the Yankees pitching staff continues to make the case for being the best in baseball. And with the month of May coming to an end, Alex and Travis debate their picks for the current 2022 All-MLB team and then crown their Player of the Month.

EP 62: MLB Players of the Week Trevor Story and Sandy Alcantara get their credit at the top of the show, followed by a breakdown of Aaron Judge's recent power explosion. Other hot performers include more seasoned veterans like Mookie Betts and Paul Goldschmidt, while fresh rookies across the league continue to make an impact on key teams as MLB's top prospect Adley Rutschman makes his big league debut. The Red Sox and the Cardinals are both trending positively for different reasons, Mike Trout continues to break records, and Albert Pujols puts pressure on 700. A suspension for Josh Donaldson for inappropriate comments made headlines as the White Sox symbolically trounced the Yankees, leaving NYY with a tough decision about their closer.

EP 61: Alex and Travis discuss their thoughts on the players of the week: Reid Detmers for his historic no-hitter and reigning NL MVP Bryce Harper who looks like he is returning to 2021 form. The Angels had one of the wildest regular season games in recent memory, and the Reds fans witnessed an all-time stinger. Christian Yelich hit for the cycle, and Aaron Judge is making the case for a monster contract this offseason. Alex and Travis give with their reactions to the newest MLB Power Rankings and then close with a note on Ohtani's 100th homer coverage and Joe Maddon's head-scratching Manager of the Year case.

EP 60: Alex and Travis open with a discussion about how the two league-leading teams stack up against each other: the Yankees and the Mets. They go into other notable teams who have surprised in the first month of the season, from the rolling Angels to the letdown Red Sox, amongst others. MLB released a new Power Rankings for the teams in baseball, so Alex and Travis discuss what they agree and disagree with on these rankings.

EP 59: Taylor Ward and Willy Adames were announced as players of the week, and the MLB recently released their Team of the Month and an updated power rankings. After one month of play, Alex and Travis present their top 10 teams at this point in the season, and then they reveal their 2022 All-MLB teams through April. They close on the state of the MLB baseball, the trajectory of the league, and more.

Miguel Cabrera officially joins the 3000 hits club, so Alex and Travis explain what that means for his career and which active players could be next to join him. They transition into breaking down the hot topics of the last week including an elite start from Wander Franco, a Jesus Luzardo trade retrospective, and Kyle Wright's breakout. MLB also released their official power rankings as of this Monday, so Alex and Travis discussed how they see the top teams in baseball stacking up.

Alex and Travis open with the their thoughts on the retirement announcements of Jake Arrieta and Tony Watson. They discuss whether or not they think Yelich and Bellinger are truly returning to form so far this season before going through other players and teams who have started the season hot or cold. Storylines of the week go beyond player and team performances though as managers Dave Roberts and Joe Maddon catch serious heat from the media for decisions they made in critical moments of their games.

The first episode of the 2022 MLB regular season opens with Alex and Travis highlighting this year's first "players of the week(end)" before transitioning into some key storylines of the season like Judge's and deGrom's looming free agencies, breakouts of new faces such as Seiya Suzuki and Steven Kwan, and both good and bad performances by teams after one weekend of play. They also analyze Monday's new power rankings released by The Athletic and give their own takes on which teams and players have impressed or disappointed thus far.

This week, Alex and Travis begin by recapping the recent trades and signings that have unfolded in the final week before Opening Day. They give their full 2022 season preview by explaining how they see every division stacking up, and then they debate their most overrated and underrated teams based on the preseason narratives. Alex and Travis then go over all of their hottest betting picks for MVP, Cy Young, and Rookie of the Year awards that they made in Vegas last weekend, and they wrap up by rattling over their Opening Day top 10 power rankings for the 2022 season.

Alex and Travis open with their takes on the Albert Pujols signing and other signings and extension that have taken place in the last week. Then, they transition into completing their series of ranking the best players at every position by revealing their top 10 catchers, starting pitcher, and relief pitchers, followed by their rankings of the top 25 players in MLB for the 2022 season.

This week, Alex and Travis open by breaking down all the big moves that took place in the past week in the MLB world. They give their takes on who were the biggest winners and losers of the offseason and how certain teams have started out in Spring Training. Then Alex and Travis reveal their top 10 players at all three outfield positions and DH as they continue their player ranking series.

Alex and Travis open by going through all of the new deals that were made since the lockout ended a week ago. They explain how these new signings and trades affect the teams involved, and they discuss how the remaining big free agents fit into the needs of teams that are still looking to buy. Then, they unveil their top 10 lists for first base, second base, third base, and shortstop as they begin their series of ranking and debating the best players at every position.

Alex and Travis open with celebration regarding the surprising and relieving news that a new CBA has been ratified and the full 2022 MLB season will be played. They discuss some of the changes that will be implemented this season and beyond, and they go over some of their expectations as the MLB ramps back up, including free agency talk, their early thoughts on the current MVP odds, and much more.

Alex and Travis open with their reactions to the news of Derek Jeter stepping down from his role as CEO of the Marlins. Tragically, the MLB and MLBPA could not come to an agreement on a new CBA, and regular season games are officially being cancelled. Alex and Travis break this down and then try to cheer up by analyzing how every team is going to approach free agency as soon as the work stoppage ends.

On this week's episode, Alex and Travis open with the rumors of Seiya Suzuki being linked to the Boston Red Sox. Then, they recap the progress (or lack thereof) in the Collective Bargaining negotiations that are still going on between MLB and the MLB Players' Association. They follow this with a new discussion by dissecting the recently published Top 100 MLB Players of All-Time that was posted by ESPN.

Alex and Travis celebrate the selection of David Ortiz to become a Hall of Famer this year. They go over why this pick makes sense and give their takes on some of the controversial players that were not selected. Alex and Travis break down the players that made substantial gains in voting percentage, those who lost some favor from the voters, and those who are no longer on the ballot going forward. They wrap up by previewing the players that will be on the ballot in 2023.

This episode, Alex and Travis go through all the candidates on the 2022 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot and make their cases for who is worthy of Cooperstown and who falls just short. They also unveil their theoretical ballots if they had a Hall of Fame vote.

This week, Alex and Travis open by commemorating the great career of newly retired Jon Lester. They also give their thoughts on the current progress towards the new collective bargaining agreement. MLB Radio released their top 10 MLB player for 2022, so Alex and Travis broke down the list and explained their agreements and grievances. Then, they dove into their discussion about the biggest snubs that were never voted into the Hall of Fame throughout baseball history. In the spirit of Hall of Fame season, Alex and Travis detail the careers of many of these great players who deserve more credit than they've been given.

Alex and Travis analyze what the best MLB players who do not yet qualify for the Hall of Fame need to do to wind up in Cooperstown some day. They breakdown the cases for some of these young stars and explain just how much Hall of Fame talent exists in the Major Leagues right now.

Alex and Travis present the series finale of their All-Time Teams special. They open by ranking the best franchise teams of all-time and then the best divisions of all-time. They go on to present their All-Time AL, NL, and MLB teams, while debating some of the surprising disagreements that they have.

This episode, Alex and Travis cover the unexpected announcement of the retirement of Mariners' veteran Kyle Seager. They then unveil their all-time teams for the franchises in the NL East, as well as their all-time teams for the NL East division.

This episode Alex and Travis open with the new hiring of Buck Showalter to become the new Mets manager. Then they dive into their all-time teams for each franchise in the NL Central, followed by the all-time team for the historic division.

Alex and Travis walk through the NL West team by team and explain their all-time teams for each franchise. Filled with both deep history and active young superstars, these franchise teams and their all-time NL West team provides good content for their discussion this episode.