No longer is Chipper Jones the face of the Braves, or Mannywood the place to be in LA. Instead it's Martin Prado and Jason Heyward in Atlanta and Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier and James Loney in LA.
It's a similar story all over the league. Elvis Andrus is batting over .300 for Texas and seems to add the perfect mix for the 1st place Rangers. Add in Ian Kinsler, Justin Smoak and Joaquin Arias and you have a bundle of talent at a very young age.
They're not just young and talented, they know how to win. Texas leads the AL West, albeit barely. Yet, these young guns may have more in their tank then the A's or Angels who are significantly older (especially in the Outfield).
In Seattle, the age has definitely had an impact. Griffey, Jr. recognized it and decided to get out of the way, retiring after a Hall of Fame career. The problem is Seattle can't seem to find the spark to get it moving up in the standings. They don't have that young superstar that ignites the team, the fans and the scoreboard.
So, where are the young superstars that light up the scoreboard, fan interest and drive their teams toward the top of the standings? Here's my top 5.
Austin Jackson - Detroit Tigers.
This guy is only 23, barely... and his presence is just what the Tigers need at the top of their lineup. They have all the power they could possibly want behind him. That's not his game. It's speed baby, speed. Get on, get over and get in. That's the Austin Jackson game. He's batting .318 with 17 doubles and has scored 36 times already. When he cuts down on the K ratio he'll be even more impressive.
Martin Prado - Atlanta Braves
I know.. he's not super young.. but, he's super good. At only 26 Prado is the catalyst for the Braves. He took over the job late in '08 and hasn't missed a beat since. This is another guy that is not about power and production, it's about table setting and average. Every team needs one (at least) and the better they are at doing their seemingly insignificant job, the higher the team rises in the standings. Prado is that guy. He leads the NL in average at .325 and is 2nd in runs scored with 44. There is more than enough fire power behind Martin, funny how that works huh? Just like Jackson in Detroit, Prado sets em up in Atlanta. Watch this team, they're exciting and fun to watch.
David Freese - St. Louis Cardinals
After getting a cup of coffee last year and showing he could handle the hot corner, the Cards bet on David as the cornerstone of the infield. They won, big time. This kid is real good. He's nothing flashy, all business... both at the plate and in the field. His .311 average is among the leaders and he's scored 35 times this year while knocking in 32. That's saying something when you have run producers like Ludwick, Pujols and Holliday in the lineup. Give him time and you could see something special here.
Jason Heyward - Atlanta Braves
No wonder the Braves lead the NL East. They have a supreme mix of youth and experience. The key is their youth is just other worldly. Jason came on with a bang and he has yet to flatten out. You can see that he's not perfect, with a horrendous 0 for 5 in LA with 5 K's! Yikes. Yet, despite that, he's among the leaders in RBIs with 40 and has 10 HRs already. And who can blame him for the 5K performance when he was facing a nasty young lefty (Kershaw) and a blazing bull (Broxton) in LA. There's been more than one good hitter go down to that pitching staff. He's only 20 and there's magic in this kid's bat. Just give it time to show off.
Andre Ethier - LA Dodgers
Stud. That about covers it. Had he not broken his pinky earlier in the year, this could have been (and may still be) an absolutely remarkable statistical year for Andre. The A's gave up on this kid after he was named Minor League player of the year. How do you do that? LA was glad to offer him a home. Man, has he taken advantage of it. THE clutch hitter in baseball, Andre is the Walk Off wizard. He's got a .360 average and 40 RBIs. I'm pretty sure we're just beginning to see the talent that Andre possesses. Watch his at bats, you'll definitely learn something.
