 |
| Dustin Pedroia: Key to Red Sox future. Chris O'Meara/AP |
For baseball's rookies, postseason a chance to shine
Major league teams are increasingly relying on the likes of Dustin Pedroia and Joba Chamberlain to bolster veteran lineups.
By Erik Spanberg | Contributor to The Christian Science Monitorfrom the October 5, 2007 edition
Page 1 of 2
The start of the playoffs this week signals the intense pressure of high-stakes baseball, a time when battle-scarred veterans – think Derek Jeter and Curt Schilling – put their wiles to the test.
Or does it?
As more and more teams have demonstrated this season, a combination of expensive contracts and an ever-faster track for prospects has convinced general managers and team executives to use younger players more often – and in more demanding situations.
Evidence abounds. Start with the American League's dominant, cash-rich rivals, the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. Both teams reached the playoffs with significant late-season heroics from rookies and other fresh-faced youngsters.
"There are a lot of issues at play," says Charley Steiner, an XM Satellite Radio baseball host and broadcaster for the Los Angeles Dodgers. "It is so expensive to bring in [veteran players]. General managers and owners are looking at how much bang they can get for their buck. Young talent makes sense."
The Yankees got a jolt from 22-year-old relief pitcher Joba Chamberlain, who surrendered just one earned run in 24 innings by baffling hitters with a 100-mile-an-hour heater and a devastating slider. New York veterans such as Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, and Roger Clemens basked in Chamberlain's infectious enthusiasm late in the season. Other home-grown Yankees include pitcher Phil Hughes, second baseman Robinson Cano, and outfielder Melky Cabrera, all of whom played key roles during 2007.
"It's great when you hear the Yankees talk about Joba Chamberlain," says Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr., who is an analyst on TBS during the playoffs. "That's a breath of fresh air to an older team."
Boston boasts its own generation next. Several key pitchers are big-league babies, including second-year reliever Jonathan Papelbon, who, at 26, already ranks among the most dominant closers in the game. In 2007, he posted 37 saves and snagged an All-Star roster spot.
Papelbon hardly ranks as the Red Sox's biggest success story when it comes to young players. In fact, he's not even the biggest name among the team's young pitchers. That distinction belongs to Japanese import Daisuke Matsuzaka, who won 15 games as a 26-year-old rookie. Starters Jon Lester, who returned after a cancer scare, and Clay Buchholz, who threw a no-hitter on Sept. 1, also made key contributions.
RSS feed