Hot prospects -- How good can they be? (ESPN, tickets, games)
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It seems that there are a lot of prospects arriving with Hobbsian expectations and tons of hype before they even put on a MLB uni: Trout, Harper, Rizzo, Darvish, Strasburg. Is it possible that so many can be that good, reflecting maybe a sharp bend in the talent curve? Or is it just an unusual quantum leap in the hype?
It seems that there are a lot of prospects arriving with Hobbsian expectations and tons of hype before they even put on a MLB uni: Trout, Harper, Rizzo, Darvish, Strasburg. Is it possible that so many can be that good, reflecting maybe a sharp bend in the talent curve? Or is it just an unusual quantum leap in the hype?
I suppose that some sort of formal study would be required in order to know if we are truly in the golden age of prospect hype.
I would suspect that one factor is enhanced awareness of the minor leagues, a product of expanded coverage of sports teams via the internet, as well as expanded television coverage. (Before ESPN et al, your tv sports coverage was limited to the five minutes your local broadcaster was given on the late news. There wasn't time in such a broadcast to focus on minor leagues.)
Finally, Sabermetrics has influenced the dynamic by crafting the means to project ML performance based on minor league stats, that has made it more worthwhile to pay attention to the minors.
I propose the above as a factor, not the factor. It remains possible that this actually is the Golden Age of Highly Touted Prospects. It could occur just by coincidence, in the same manner that 1964 was such a fantastic year for rookies . (Dick Allen, Jim Ray Hart, Rico Carty, Tony Oliva and Wally Bunker..all among the top performers in the league that year, not just top rookie performers.)
It seems that there are a lot of prospects arriving with Hobbsian expectations and tons of hype before they even put on a MLB uni: Trout, Harper, Rizzo, Darvish, Strasburg. Is it possible that so many can be that good, reflecting maybe a sharp bend in the talent curve? Or is it just an unusual quantum leap in the hype?
I'd suggest 2 things (along with what Grandstander mentioned)
1) Rizzo doesn't belong with that group
2) An increased talent pool to draw from. It wasn't always that a player like Darvish would have had the opportunity to play in the major leagues.
FanGraphs' Dave Cameron ranks the most valuable players in baseball. Numbers 2 and 1
Bryce Harper
Quote:
Harper is still the premier young talent in the sport. Comparisons range from Josh Hamilton (with plate discipline) to Ken Griffey Jr, and outside of an injury or off the field issue, it’s hard to see any career trajectory for Harper that doesn’t end with him as the best player in baseball.
Mike Trout
Quote:
Since getting called up to the Majors, Trout has been the best player in baseball, and it hasn’t even been particularly close. At his current rate of performance, he’d average +10.3 WAR per 600 plate appearances. For his career, Babe Ruth averaged 10.0 WAR per 600 plate appearances.
What Mike Trout is doing right now is something we haven’t seen since Alex Rodriguez in 1996. 20-year-olds aren’t supposed to be the best player in baseball. Right now, Mike Trout probably is.
Trout’s performance this month was more valuable than Hank Aaron‘s entire age 20 season (+2.1 WAR). If he has a couple of more good games before the month ends, he’ll catch Ken Griffey Jr’s age 20 season (+2.8 WAR).
comparing Trout to other seasons by center fielders throughout history — Trout’s 188 wRC+ has only been equaled by five different players, each of whom you’ve probably heard of. Mickey Mantle (four times), Ty Cobb (seven times), Stan Musial (once), Tris Speaker (once), and Joe Jackson (once).
It's time to recalibrate, again. For this year, at least, Mike Trout has blown by Bryce Harper. He is in the midst of one of the greatest rookie seasons of all time. He's doing things virtually no one his age has done before. He might already be the best player in the game. And if he keeps up this pace, we might soon be able to say this: On a per-game basis, he's putting up one of the greatest performances by any player, of any age, ever.
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