Kuzul

The magic number is 762, set by the great Barry Bonds.

He banged out 762 home runs over the course of 21 phenomenal seasons. And as soon as Bonds hit 756, baseball players all over the world aspired to be the one guy who “caught Bonds” the way Bonds “caught Hammerin Hank Aaron.”

While 762 may be a long, and I mean very long shot for almost everyone, there are a few chasers still going.

Many say Alex Rodriguez who sits at 35 years of age and has 613 homers will be the guy to do it. But he is going to need 150 more and how much longer can he keep up his 30 a year pace?

The next closest active guy is Jim Thome and he’s over 40 years-old, so he’s not exactly pushing Bonds.

Albert Pujols is only 30 and has 408 dingers over the course of his career, but still, that’s 354 more, which would mean over 35 a year until he’s 40…not looking likely.

So who will ever even come close to Bonds, with or without steroids? Probably no one.

But I feel that their are seven distinct young stars in the MLB who might have a shot at hitting at least 600, if not the famed 762.

Four are current major leaguers, and three are up-and-comers in the minor leagues.

Begin Slideshow

I know, its three seasons away, and with the money Jeffrey Loria has that he isn’t spending, it seems ridiculous that we’d even have to wait that long for a another playoff berth, and we might not, but by 2013 this team will be one of the most potent in all of baseball.

They will continue to compete this year and will have similar seasons for the next two years, be in it until middle of September but never really have a solid chance.

The Braves look like they might have a few years of power in them and the Phillies will continue to be a contender, but by 2013, look for the Fish to be a serious NL powerhouse.

By that time, they’ll have moved into their fancy new ballpark and maybe actually draw some fans to their games. This is my ideal roster for 2013. Granted, they make make moves and lose/bring in names that could shake this up but just using the current roster and prospects now, take a look:

Begin Slideshow