The finals of yesterday’s All Star Celebration Home Run Derby featured two second-year major leaguers – with the A’s Yeonis Cespedes topping the Nationals’ Bryce Harper. The fact that the two finalists have a combined 405 major league games and 73 career home runs to their credit underscores a positive trend – the emergence of a cadre of young, talented players who promise an exciting, new post-steroids (hopefully) era and aura for our national past time. Although BBRT often likes to reflect on baseball’s past glories, in this post, I’d like to take at some emerging young “stars” that BBRT looks forward to watching in the future. I’ve arbitrarily defined young as 24-years-old and under, and will start with a look at a few 2013 All Stars who meet the criteria.
Bryce Harper … An Exciting Future
Bryce Harper, Nationals’ outfielder, age 20.
Harper, the 2012 NL Rookie of the Year, is already on his second All Star team. He’s had some injury problems this season (58 games played), but still stands at .264, with 13 home runs, 29 RBI and six stolen bases. In 2012, as a 19-year-old, Harper (6’2”, 230 lbs.) hit .270, with 22 home runs, 59 RBI and 18 stolen bases.
Mike Trout, Angels’ outfielder, age 21.
Trout made his debut in July of 2011 (at age 19). In 2012, his first full MLB season, he won AL Rookie of the Year honors and made his first All Star team. He finished the season, with a .326 average, 30 home runs, 83 RBI, while leading the AL in runs scored (129) and stolen bases (49). Trout (6’2”, 230 lbs.) is again on the AL All Star squad, with 2013 stats that include a .322 average, 15 home runs, 59 RBI, 65 runs scored and 21 steals.
Manny Machado, Orioles’ third base, age 21.
Machado debuted with the Orioles in early August 2012, going .262-7-26 in 51 games. The 6’2”, 185-pound, 2013 All Star continues to show good power, leading the AL in doubles (39) at the All Star break – along with a .310 average, 7 homers and 45 RBI. It will be interesting to see if Machado can maintain his pace. In 219 minor league games, he hit .263, with 23 home runs and 114 RBI.
Jean Segura, Brewers’ rising star.
Jean Segura, Brewers’ shortstop, age 23.
Segura made his MLB debut last July 24 and hit just .259, with no homers, 14 RBI and seven steals in 45 games. A .313 hitter (with 139 steals) in 399 minor league games, Segura came into his own at the major league level this year, earning an All Star berth by leading the NL in hits (121) at the break. The 5’10”, 200-pounder’s 2013 line is: .325, 11 homers, 36 RBI, 54 runs and 27 steals in 92 games.
Pat Corbin, Diamondbacks’ LHP, age 23.
Corbin made his MLB debut last April and went 6-8, 2.54 in 2012. A 2013 All Star, Corbin stands at 11-1, 2.35 with 109 strikeouts in 130 1/3 innings pitched. Corbin’s (6’2”, 185-pounds) minor league stats (80 games, 79 starts) are 31-16, 3.78 with 404 strikeouts in 430 2/3 innings.
Matt Harvey, Met’s’ ace.
Matt Harvey, Mets RHP, age 24.
The 6’4”, 225-pound starter made his MLB debut in 2012, going 3-5, 2.73 with 156 strikeouts in 135 2/3 innings. This season, Harvey earned his way onto the All Star squad with a 7-2 record, a 2.35 ERA and an NL-leading 147 strikeouts in 130 innings pitched.
There are also some pretty exciting “under-25ers,” who did not make the 2013 All Star Game – but deserve watching going forward.
Yasiel Puig, Dodgers’ outfielder, age 22.
Puig, who defected from Cuba in 2012, came up to the Dodgers on June 3. In 38 games, Puig (6’3”, 240-pounds) has hit .391, with 8 home runs, 19 RBI and 5 steals.
Shelby Miller, Cardinals’ RHP, age 22.
The (6’3”, 215-pound) rookie – just six appearances in 2012 – has posted a 9-6 record with a .2.92 ERA, 29 walks and 112 strikeouts in 18 starts. In 78 minor league starts, Miller went 29-21, 3.73 and struck out 472 batters in 383 2/3 innings.
Jose Altuve, Astros’ second baseman, age 23.
At 23, Altuve is in his third major league season (called up in July 2011). The 5’5” 175-pound infielder was an All Star in 2012, when he hit .290, with seven homers, 37 RBI, 80 runs scored and 33 steals. He remains a steady and solid performer in 2013, with a .280 average, three homers, 28 RBI, 37 runs and 21 steals in 86 games.
There’s a look at some of the “under-25” players that should be exciting to watch in the future. Now, let’s briefly touch on a few players who fell just outside the “under-25” limitation, but also reflect baseball’s “changing of the guard.”
Aroldis Chapman – “bringing” excitement at 104 mph.
Aroldis Chapman, Red’s closer, age 25.
At 25, and in his fourth MLB season and second All Star game, Chapman (of the 104 mph fastball) took a 3-3 record, with a 2.79 ERA, 21 saves and 64 strikeouts in 38 2/3 innings into the break. In 2012, his first full year as closer, he notched 38 saves, with a 1.51 ERA and 122 strikeouts in 71 2/3 innings.
Paul Goldschmidt, Diamondbacks’ first baseman, age 25.
A 2013 All Star, Goldschmidt seems to just keep getting better. As a rookie, in 2011, he hit .250, with eight homers and 26 RBI in 48 games. In 2012, he played 145 games, with a .286-20-82 line (and 18 steals). This season, he is hitting .313 and already has 21 home runs and an NL-leading 77 RBI, along with nine stolen bases.
Pedro Alvarez, Pirates’ third baseman, age 26.
Another 2013 All Star, at 26 Alvarez is in his fourth MLB season. A .240 career hitter, Alvarez has shown tape-measure power. In 2012, he finished with 30 home runs and 85 RBI. At the break this year, he stands at 24 homers and 62 RBI.
Lance Lynn, Cardinals’ RHP, age 26.
Lynn made the All Star as a rookie in 2012, when he went 18-7, 3.78. Through the break in 2013, he is 11-4, 4.00.
Buster Posey, Giants’ catcher, age 26.
Hard to think of Posey as one of the up and coming youngsters, but – despite being in his fifth MLB season – he is only 26 (and already a Rookie of the Year, NL MVP, batting champ and two-time All Star). At the break, Posey (a .316 hitter in 398 MLB games) sits at .325-13-56.
Chris Davis, Orioles’ first baseman, age 27.
A 2013 All Star, Davis makes this list at age 27 because he only became a player to watch in 2012. In his first four MLB seasons, Davis averaged 74 games, a .251 batting average, 11 home runs and 34 RBI. In 2012, he broke out with .270-33-85 and, this year, he went into the All Star break leading all of baseball with 37 home runs, boasted a .315 average and was second only to Miguel Cabrera with 93 RBI.
So, there are some of the “youngsters” BBRT thinks will make for some pretty good baseball over the next five to ten years. There are others, of course (feel free to make suggestions in the comments), but these are a few that stand out for me.
BBRT tips its cap to the comeback (and then some) of Jason Grilli.
One final player, BBRT will be keeping an eye on is Pirates’ closer Jason Grilli, who seems to have found himself at age 36 (actually at age 34, but I’ll get to that). In his first 11 MLB seasons, Grilli had five saves and an ERA north of 4.00. The 2013 All Star, this year has an NL-leading 29 saves, 1.99 ERA, nine walks and 63 strikeouts in 40 2/3 innings.
Grilli’s is an interesting and inspiring story. He made his major league debut in 2000 (Florida Marlins) and between 2000 and 2009 spent time with the Marlins, White Sox, Tigers and Rockies. He suffered a severe knee injury during Spring Training 2010 (with the Indians), missed the entire season and ultimately filed for free agency. In January 2011, Grilli signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies and pitched well at Triple A before being released on July 20 (and signing a minor league deal with the Pirates the very next day). Since joining the Pirates, Grilli has pitched 135 games, with a 2.52 ERA and 190 strikeouts in 132 innings. BBRT will be watching for the Pirates to break their 20-year string losing seasons and make it to the playoffs – behind a league-leading performance in saves by Grilli.
