Young players, whether they be mid-season call-ups or rookies who make the team out of spring training, tend to have a massive impact on their team’s success.
From players like Buster Posey and Jason Heyward to Neftali Feliz, more and more are young stars expected to produce immediately upon their arrival in the majors.
Let’s take a look at who we can expect to have some of the biggest impacts on their team’s success in the 2011 season…
As January comes to an end and pitchers and catchers embark on warmer weather down south, fantasy baseball draft boards and dreams of greatness will slowly come out of hibernation.
For those eager managers looking to get a leg up on the competition, here is a list of five young national league outfielders to target this spring.
Last season, the Atlanta Braves became the envy of the league, when MLB.com named Jason Heyward as the top prospect in their annual listing of the Top Prospects in Major League Baseball.
Heyward, who had been listed as the No. 28 overall prospect in 2008, leaped up to No. 5 in 2009 before hitting the jackpot in 2010. Following the No. 1 selection, the buzz on Heyward made it a no brainer when Atlanta invited Heyward to camp before the start of the 2010 season.
One year later, Atlanta follows the Heyward standing ranking three players in the Top 25 of MLB.com’s top 50 prospect list. The list includes:
Julio Teheran, Pitcher, ranked No. 10 overall
Freddie Freeman, first baseman, ranked No. 17 overall
Mike Minor, Pitcher, ranked No. 21 overall
Just 19 years old, Teheran started last season in Single-A ball at Rome before getting promotions to advanced Single-A and finally Double-A ball in Mississippi. In 19 total games, Teheran posted a 9-8 record with a 2.59 ERA and 159 strikeouts. Teheran’s fastball has been clocked at 98 miles per hour.
Fellow pitcher Mike Minor made his pro debut last season with Atlanta, going 3-2 with a 5.98 ERA in nine total appearances. Minor, the former first round 7th overall pick in 2009, had a 12-strikeout game against the Chicago Cubs back on August 22, 2010. He is expected to compete with the Braves to be the fifth man on their already deep rotation, which includes Derek Lowe, Tim Hudson, Tommy Hanson, and Jair Jurrjens.
Freeman like Minor, also made his starting debut last season with Atlanta. A September call up, Freeman had four hits and batted .167 in 20 games with one home run, one RBI and scored three runs. Freeman, a 2007 2nd round pick, is considered by many to be the future first baseman for the Braves, and with Atlanta not re-signing both Derek Lee and Troy Glaus, Freeman is a shoe in to start at first.
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The Atlanta Braves look like they are headed in a good direction after the signing of Dan Uggla, a scrappy power hitting right-handed second baseman. The Braves definitely need some right-handed power in the middle of their order. Someone like Uggla will increase production and also provide some protection for a youngster like Jason Heyward.
It looks like Uggla will bat fourth or fifth in the batting order, probably behind Brian McCann and Chipper Jones. He’s also been told that he will play second base this season despite Martin Prado’s excellent year last season. More than likely Prado will move to left field where last year the Braves needed some stability.
They have also acquired veteran pitchers Scott Linebrink and George Sherrill. These signings will sure up their bullpen after the departure of Billy Wagner. These veterans are going to have to be leaders in their bullpen and help lead young pitchers like Jonny Venters, Kris Medlen and Craig Kimbrel in the right direction.
It looks like the Braves won’t need to go out and get a fifth starter by the way Mike Minor pitched to finish the season, but if he struggles to produce in spring training, they also have a young pitcher by the name of Brandon Beachy that could steal the starting spot or could become a long reliever. The pitcher they need to cut ties with is Kenshin Kawakami who has been trouble for the Atlanta Braves and has a substantial contract for the upcoming season. They could use him to lure in a potential buyer willing to give up a good young outfielder in return.
The Braves need another outfielder to go along with Eric Hinske, Nate McLouth, Jason Heyward and Martin Prado. There is a slight possibility that Prado will have to play first base if Freddie Freeman doesn’t excel in spring training. There is a chance that the wrist he injured a while back may cut into the power production he had in the minors. So with that in mind, the Braves could send Freeman back to the minors for another season to sharpen his skills. If this happens, the Braves might be in the market for a first baseman but not as strongly as they will be for a fifth outfielder.
Also this off season the Braves hired former Marlins‘ coach Fredi Gonzalez to replace the great coach Bobby Cox after his retirement. This move will hopefully continue the success Cox had for several years in Atlanta. General Manager Frank Wren has expressed confidence in his new additions and new coach and feels the Braves should be able to compete not only with the Phillies but with other great teams. He feels that these additions will boost the Braves right to the World Series.
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The first thing I will forever remember about Jason Heyward was his very first at bat as a major leaguer.
Facing a 2-0 count against a veteran pitcher in Carlos Zambrano, Heyward’s first swing connected with Zambrano’s fastball and flew into orbit, as did every Braves fan’s expectations for the 20 year old rookie.
And the guy didn’t disappoint.
Heyward was leading the Braves in homers and RBI at the end of April and continued to produce at an extremely high level in May before he got a thumb injury sliding into third against the Arizona Diamondbacks, causing him to slump and lose power before going on the disabled list for 15 days in June.
He came back stronger than ever though, hitting .356 in July, .299 in August and .278 in September.
He raised his average from pre-All-Star break at .251 to hit .302 after, leaving him at a season average of .277.
Heyward possesses what will become plus-power (he hit 17 homers as a rookie), a great ability to get on base (.393 OBP), a stunning ability to come through in the clutch (several game-winning hits), a .976 fielding percentage and he will only get better.
Now to 2011, Heyward’s second year.
The age-old question for players who impress as rookies is: Do they continue to improve, or do they take a step back?
A sophomore slump, so to speak.
I don’t see this with Heyward. After getting three months of video and knowing what looked like weaknesses to go off of, Heyward truly came through for the Braves with his impressive second half. He made adjustments to the problems that developed from his troubles with his thumb and looks to be a scary player heading into the upcoming season.
Heyward should grow into a perennial .300, 30-homer, 100-RBI, 20-steal player.
He possesses what most would consider five tools, and nothing seems to have changed after his rookie year.
This year, I think Heyward will take the next step to put closer to those numbers.
If he hits in the No. 2 hole like he did most of last year, then his RBI total will be down, but I could see a .290, 25-homer, 100-runs-type of season out of that spot and possibly in the 80 RBI range if he gets put in the sixth spot.
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The 2010 season started off with a bang when Jason Heyward hit a home run in his first career at-bat. The Braves definitely had their ups and downs throughout the season but in the end the Braves and their fans couldn’t be all that upset with the results other than the fact that it marked the end of the Bobby Cox era.
Bobby Cox will go down in history as one of the greatest MLB coaches of all-time, Cox ended his career fourth on the all-time managerial win list with 2504 wins. Fredi Gonzàlez has some big shoes to fill and will take over as the Braves manager in 2011.
The end of the regular season was a little rough for the Braves as they were just 14-16 in their final 30 games which included a 1-5 record against their division rival the Philadelphia Phillies.
The Atlanta Braves completed the 2010 season with a 91-71 record and took second place in the NL East finishing six games behind the Phillies. Lucky enough, the Braves clinched a wild card berth and faced off against the San Francisco Giants in the NLDS.
As we all know the Braves season came to an end against the Giants after losing three of four in the NLDS. The Braves would have loved to send their long-time coach out with a World Series but it just was not meant to be.
Atlanta Braves tickets for regular season games at Turner Field averaged $36.57 per ticket on the secondary market which placed them toward the bottom of the league in terms of average ticket price.
The most expensive ticket on average to a Braves regular season home game was $54.65 per ticket for the October 2 game against the Philadelphia Phillies while the least expensive ticket on average was $19.73 per ticket for the August 19 game against the Washington Nationals. We expect that Braves home game ticket prices on the secondary market will remain toward the bottom of the league for the 2011 season.
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This past year presented Atlanta Braves fans with plenty of moments to relish.
This was the first time the Braves had reached the playoffs since 2005 and was the final season for venerable manager Bobby Cox.
But, I’m staying away from those topics for this slideshow.
Instead, I’m focusing on singular moments over the course of the calendar year that Braves fans will be talking about for years to come rather than events that involved a culmination of years/months of dedicated work to draw their fanfare.
So, without further adieu, my top-five moments for the Atlanta Braves for 2010.
Though it was mostly Jason Heyward grabbing all the rookie headlines this season for Atlanta, Jonny Venters was the team’s true freshmen MVP. Often times, the players that fly under the radar and have the least amount of pressure put on them become the major contributes to their team.
For Atlanta, an organization with so much depth, some of the least known prospects often become the ones that most contribute to the big league club. Who are some candidates to be the Jonny Venters of 2011? Take a look inside, where likely at least one of these players will have a chance to state their case in the coming campaign.
There are prospects, and then there are mega-prospects.
When each new baseball season rolls around, teams and fans evaluate the talent that each organization holds. Each organization has its gems, some of whom get compliments as the next Alex Rodriguez or Roger Clemens.
In recent years, players like Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, the Upton brothers, and Jason Heyward have been the league’s biggest attention-getters. Over the course of the last 30 or so years, there has been seemingly more and more attention given the apparent superstars of tomorrow.
Well hyped does not necessarily mean the future stars, just the players that were put under the microscope from a young age. Some players thrive in the spotlight and become superstars, while others wilt under the intense pressure and become busts.
But who are the most hyped prospects of the last three decades? And how does a mega-prospect from 20 years ago like Ben McDonald go up against a modern-day phenom like Stephen Strasburg? Take a look inside, where the most hyped prospects of recent memory are evaluated.
As a fan of the Atlanta Braves, we have had much to complain about for the past few years. However, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I believe we should also consider a few things that we can give thanks for as fans of this great franchise.
The fact is that 2010 was just a starting point for what should be a nice few years of success in Atlanta. I do predict the Braves should be very competitive in 2011 and battle the Phillies again for the NL East title. I honestly think this year the Braves should win the division as long as there are no major injuries.
On this great day of food, family, and football….let us consider just a few things that we as Braves fans can be thankful for looking back and looking forward to next year.