There is an influx of young talent currently invading Major League Baseball. It’s time to appreciate these top players by naming them to our “Top Youngster’s Team.” As a criteria, I have decided to make 25 years old the age cut-off. That means the entire roster is currently 25 years of age or younger. Now, there will be some debate as to certain “prospects” that may have been left off the team, but it’s a difficult call at numerous positions, as we’ll see and explore. As always, our “Dream Teams” are open for debate, so feel free to make points for players who are omitted from the squad…

Starting Lineup:

1- Hanley Ramirez- SS
2- Russell Martin- C
3- Miguel Cabrera- DH
4- Prince Fielder- 1B
5- David Wright- 3B
6- Grady Sizemore- CF
7- Ryan Braun- LF
8- Nick Markakis- RF
9- Robinson Cano- 2B

Bench: SS Jose Reyes, C Joe Mauer, OF/2B B.J. Upton, SS Troy Tulowitzki, OF Jeff Francoeur

Starting Rotation:

#1- Justin Verlander
#2- Cole Hamels
#3- Felix Hernandez
#4- Scott Kazmir
#5- Matt Cain

Setup Man: Joba Chamberlain

Closer: Manny Corpas

Bullpen: Jonathan Broxton, Matt Capps, Carlos Marmol, Rafael Perez

                                                                                                                                                

Hanley Ramirez: I’ll catch a lot of flack here for starting Hanley over Jose Reyes, but at this point in time it had to be done. Make no mistake about it, Han-Ram is not the defensive player Jose is. On the flip side, Jose is not the offensive player Hanley is. Han-Ram has already developed a power stroke (17 HR in 2006, 29 in 2007). He also has two consecutive 50-steal seasons, so he has tremendous speed as well. Throw his .332 batting average in 2007 into the mix, and this guy wins the job. He has power, speed, batting average, and a quickly increasing on-base percentage (.386 in 2007). Unfortunately for Hanley, he has no one to protect him in 2008. Miguel Cabrera is now in Detroit, so Hanley is a one-man show in Florida this coming season. His numbers may dip a bit, but his overall talent is unquestioned.

Russell Martin: Another difficult decision, as Martin gets the nod over Joe Mauer, primarily due to Mauer’s bout with some nagging injuries the last few seasons. Martin has quickly developed into one of the game’s best behind the dish. In two seasons for the Dodgers, he has hit .288. In ‘07, Martin had 19 HR and 87 RBI. Throw 20+ steals in, and he’s an all-around star at the catcher position. He puts the ball in play for the most part, and he had a .374 OBP in 2007. He’ll slot in nicely as our #2 hitter.

Miguel Cabrera: Cabrera, at age 24, is one of the game’s best all-around hitters. He takes his lumber to Detroit this year, and he should slide into that potent lineup very nicely. He hits over .320 (and has hit as high as .339 in 2006), and consistently has shown the ability to bang-out 30+ dingers (although, he hit *only* 26 in 2006). These numbers could go through the roof now that he’ll have some significant protection hitting behind him.

Prince Fielder: Pure power. Now that we have our table-setters on base, let the Prince drive them in. His 2007 numbers speak volumes: 50 homers, 119 RBI, and a .288 batting average with a .395 OBP. He is not fleet of foot, but this guy can flat-out rake. Like many of our youngsters, he seemingly gets better each year.

David Wright: Wright fits into our “all-around” player category. He cracked the 30-homer mark for the first time in 2007, while compiling an impressive 34 steals as well. His batting average is getting better year-over-year, as is his OBP (.416 in 2007). He won a Gold Glove at third base last year as well. Wright could really hit anywhere #2-6 in this lineup, but to balance things out, we’ve slotted him down in the order a bit behind a more potent “bopper” in Fielder.

Grady Sizemore: Grady already has three full seasons under his belt, and he has not disappointed in any of those years. He has 20+ home-run power, and 30+ stolen base speed. He is a superior defensive center fielder, he’s a switch-hitter, and he knocks in runs too. His batting average slipped to .277 in 2007, and he can strike out a lot, but that’s fine by me. He’ll help you in so many ways. He’ll balance out the lineup by adding some speed to the middle of the order, and he’ll be more than capable in more frequent RBI situations.

Ryan Braun: Braun will be moved to the outfield in 2008, and Bill Hall will be making the move back to third base. This should help Braun, who had his defensive struggles at third base last year to say the least. Offensively, he did anything but struggle in his first year in the bigs. He crushed 34 homers, compiled 97 RBI, hit .324, posted an OBP of .370, and had 26 doubles too. This was all accomplished in just over 450 at-bats, too. He can flat-out rake.

Nick Markakis: Markakis doesn’t get the recognition he deserves as of yet, but it will come. The right-fielder has put up some stellar stats. In 2007, he hit .300 with 23 HR, 18 SB, and 112 RBI. His numbers will likely get better as gains more exposure. He plays a solid outfield too, but unfortunately for Markakis, he plays in Baltimore.

Robinson Cano: Cano, after playing three full seasons for the Bronx-Bombers, is one of the best second basemen in all of baseball. His power-stroke has slightly increased each season (14-15-19), while he’s managed to hit over 40 doubles and bat over .300 in each of the last two years. He’s 25 years old, and will be entrenched as one of the game’s best at the most shallow position.

That’s one heck of a starting lineup, and the bench makes the team even more impressive. Here are our bench players:

Jose Reyes: Would be starting on just about any other team, except for the fact that one of the two or three other young studs happened to be under 25 years of age as well. Guy has blazing speed (60-64-78 steals last three years). His power stroke has not yet developed, but the Mets’ prefer he concentrate on hitting grounders and line-drives anyways. After his September slump last year, he still managed to post a .280 batting average. The slump could have served as a wake-up call for Reyes, making him more determined than ever to prove he is one of the game’s premier players. He has a cannon for an arm, and fields his position very well.

Joe Mauer: Mauer would have beaten out Martin for the starting gig if it was not for some injury issues the last few seasons. Mauer has to be the most “feared” non-power hitter in the game, as he is such a difficult out. He hit .347 in 2006, which is unheard of from his position. His OBP has been over .380 the last two years as well, making him even more valuable. If he stays healthy, and plays an entire season without any injuries preventing him from being at his best, he could see an increase in his power numbers, his doubles, etc.

B.J. Upton: Upton had a vintage “break-through” year in 2007. While his strikeout totals are alarmingly high (154 in ‘07), we can hope he’ll cut down on those with experience. He hit .300, had 24 HR and 82 RBI for the Tampa Bay Rays. His OBP made a huge jump to .386 last year too (up from .302 in 2006). With Carl Crawford & Upton, the DRays have some exciting young talent. If Baldelli could ever make his way onto the field, joining first-baseman Carlos Pena as well, the DRays should have a more than reputable offense this coming season.

Troy Tulowitzki: OK, so we’re carrying two shortstops on our bench. Sue me. This guy was a large part of the special season the Rockies had last year. He hit .291 with 24 HR and 99 RBI. Consider these totals factoring in his .244 average in the month of April. He also plays in Colorado, so it is not out of the question to see even more pop out of Tulo in coming seasons.

Jeff Francoeur: Atlanta’s slugging outfielder has seemingly gotten better over the last two seasons. In each year, Francoeur has played in all 162 games, which is an accomplishment in itself. While his power numbers dipped from 2006-2007 (from 29-19 HR), he still managed to increase his RBI totals. He also improved from a .260 hitter to a more well-rounded .293 hitter in 2007. He hit 40 doubles, and posted an improved .338 OBP. He has a cannon for an arm, as well.

Our lineup and our bench are downright filthy. I’d love to go to battle with this team! Now, let’s analyze the pitching staff that has been compiled:

Justin Verlander: Verlander has been a starter for two seasons now for Detroit, and he’s managed 35 wins over that period of time. He’s posted a consistent 3.60-ish ERA in a very difficult A.L. Central division. His strikeout totals increased to 183 last year. He’ll be the ace of the Detroit staff heading into 2008 at just 25 years old.

Cole Hamels: Hamels is the # 1 starter for the defending N.L. East Champion Phillies in 2008. In 2007, he was dominating. He went 15-5 with a 3.39 ERA. He’s got a sick hook, and sets his pitches up nicely. The only question about Hamels has been his durability, as he’s been bit by the injury bug a bit. He did manage 28 starts last year and 183 1/3 IP, however, so the Phillies hope he can improve upon those numbers.

Felix Hernandez: “King Felix” will face a little less pressure this year as he will be the Mariners’ # 2 starter behind Erik Bedard. He’s made over 30 starts the last two years, with some up-and-downs, but his stuff is not in question. He has a 3.94 ERA over his first three years, but his 14-7 record last year was indeed impressive. He should only get better pitching out of the # 2 spot in the rotation in 2008.

Scott Kazmir: Kazmir is only 24, yet he’ll be pitching in his 5th big-league season this coming year. He put some durability issues to rest last year making 34 starts for the Rays. In each of the last three years, he’s posted a winning record for one of the worst teams in baseball. In each of these three seasons, his ERA has been well below 4.00, too. Last year, he struck our an amazing 239 batters while going 13-9. He’s filthy.

Matt Cain: Cain could be debated here, even in favor of his teammate Tim Lincecum. He showed me a lot last year, though. Not his 7-16 record, of course, but I blame his Giants’ teammates more for that than Cain himself. He lowered his ERA to 3.65, increased his innings pitched total to over 200, and only gave up 14 homers all year. He’s got excellent stuff, and if he was on a better team, his numbers would be better. He should be the ace of the Giants in 2008 ahead of Barry Zito, Tim Lincecum, and Noah Lowry.

Once our starters turn in 7 quality innings, we’ll need a bullpen to bring us home. Let’s check out our relievers:

Jonathan Broxton: Broxton has become a work-horse out of the Dodger bullpen. He has two years where his ERA has been under 3.00. He strikes out a ton of batters, and pitches well versus both righties and lefties.

Matt Capps: Capps posted a 2.28 ERA out of the Pirates’ pen in 2007. He also converted 18 of 21 saves for the Buccos. He’s pitched over 75 innings in each of the last two seasons, and will provide some mid-late inning stability.

Carlos Marmol: Marmol went 5-1 with a stunning 1.43 ERA in ‘07. He gave up just 41 hits in 69 IP, with an amazing 96 strikeouts as well. He is one of the relievers competing for the Cubs’ closing job in 2008, but Kerry Wood is currently viewed as the favorite. He’s one heck of a late-inning option for Piniella, however.

Rafael Perez: We saw Perez a lot in the playoffs last year, as he helped the Tribe defeat the Yankees in the divisional series. He may have been over-used, however, as he had totaled just 1 IP versus the Red Sox giving up 8 runs (5 earned). Noneteless, he was very effective last year. He had a 1.78 ERA (even though his ERA vs. lefties was 2.49). He’s got a quirky delivery, and he gets outs.

Joba Chamberlain: Will he start for the Yankees? Will he come out of the pen? Well, it appears as though it will be the latter, at least to start the year in an attempt to limit his total number of innings pitched. And that is a very wise decision by Yankees’ management. He’ll shut down the 8th inning, bumping the likes of Kyle Farnsworth and Latroy Hawkins to less-pressurized middle-relief roles. I know his sample was small, but we’ve made an exception here as that 0.38 ERA stares us in the face. 24 IP…12 hits…34 K’s…1 ER. That says it all.

Manny Corpas: Corpas will be our closer over Chamberlain because he has a little more experience, and his numbers aren’t half-bad either. He converted 19 out of 22 saves, with a 2.08 ERA for the N.L. Champs in 2007. He does well versus both righties and lefties, and should be a solid back-end stopper in 2008.

There’s our team. As you can see, baseball has a crop of superior young talent dominating all over the league. Hopefully, this group of players, with many others up-and-coming youngsters, will help the MLB get past the steroid ERA and move into a new, fresh direction in the coming years.

Many players were left off the list, it was not easy to pick this squad. Feel free to throw out any suggestions, or other players who “should” have made the cut.

Filed under: _ Dream Teams