The New Era of Baseball

As we continue to move away from the troubling Steroid Era, we are looking for something to replace it. We as humans feel the need to label everything, and thus we're looking for the next era in baseball. Because of the rise of pitching that has happened in the past few years (16 no-hitters since 2010), it would be easy to say that this are the Year of the Pitcher 2.0. Now we might be able to say this about the past three years, but this is not a sign of things to come. It is merely a transition time in the offensive structures that rule baseball. Long gone are the 'roided sluggers and the pitchers are reaping the benefits. The TRUE new era of baseball is just beginning though, and it has nothing to do with the pitchers. It is becoming a hitters game once again, in the Smash and Dash Era.

All you need for evidence is to look at the game's "future," the rookies and the prospects. Out of the past four seasons, this years group of rookies had the most players with double digits of both stolen bases and homeruns (4), even though the group had the fewest number of rookies that played in 100+ games (12). The two players that epitomize this the most are Mike Trout (lock for AL ROY) and Bryce Harper (contender for NL ROY). Trout led all rookies with 30 homeruns and 49 stolen bases and had the second most triples (8). Harper finished fourth in both homers and stolen bases (22 and 18 respectively) while pacing rookies with nine triples.

Their talents didn't stop and the plate and on the basepaths. Night after night, both players made highlight reel plays in the field. A well-known player back in high school, where he would play catcher and throw 96 MPH fastballs on the mound, Harper attempted plays that no one with an ounce of self-preservation would ever dream of. He dove, crashed, and speed across the outfield every night. Trout became famous throughout this season (among other things) for his four spectacular homerun robberies, most notably against the Orioles.

But wait, are those the players that indicate this new era? Gosh, no! We do need to look a little further down into the professional baseball system. Out of MLB.com's top 53 position prospects, 21 had 10+ homeruns and stolen bases in the past season. Some of the players that stand out (and that you should be watching for in the coming years):

George Springer, OF, Astros Organization
.302/.383/.536, 128 G (split A/AA),109 R, 21 2B, 10 3B, 24 HR, 32 SB
A glimmer of hope remains in Houston with the promise of this kid, along with prime pitching prospects. If they can just figure out how to hang onto their good young talent after they blossom in the majors, we might see them as contenders in 5-7 years.

Jurickson Profar, SS, Rangers
.281/.368/.452, 126 G (AAA), 76 R, 26 2B, 7 3B, 14 HR, 16 SB
One of the prospects that actually got to show off his chops at the major league level, Profar did not disappoint. While he only had three hits in his short stint, they consisted of two doubles and a homer, not bad for a 19-year-old kid making his debut. Kind of makes you reminisce about a former young SS breaking out in the AL West...

Gary Sanchez, C, Yankees Organization
.290/.344/.485, 116 G (A/A+), 65 R, 29 2B, 1 3B, 18 HR, 15 SB
Sanchez is following in the footsteps of another catcher that used to be in the Yankees organization, Jesus Montero,. He is an offensive-minded catcher who will eventually learn the backstop position well enough to play in the majors. Unlike Montero, though, he still has a way to go before arriving, maybe 3-5 years.

Whether this is what baseball evolves into is still to be seen, but what is evident is that there is a new wave of players coming into the league that are more athletic than baseball players in any other time in history.