5 NL Players to Watch in 2012

One thing I truly love about the game of baseball is the never- ending revolving door of new and upcoming talent the game has to offer.

Every few years, a new class of player comes in and takes the reigns from those that came before them. Often times we ignore their talent while still basking in the excellence of the previous class. Baseball is starting to catch up to the idea of drafting the young talent rather than paying for it at the end of its prime.

While I'm sure we will still see teams vastly overpaying for players as they head into the twilight years of their careers (much like the Yankees did with Alex Rodriguez; offering a 10-year contract that will take him into his 40's carrying an average annual salary of $27.5million) I'm certain that we will see other teams draft well and be competitive with their young crop of players. Here are five players to watch in 2012 in the National League:

Andrew McCutchen - Pittsburgh Pirates

The 25-year old center fielder for the Pirates has emerged as one of the finer young talents in the National League. He is currently pre-arbitration eligible and under team control through the 2016 season. He came in 4th in 2009 in Rookie of the Year voting and has made his first All-Star appearance in 2011, not too bad for someone making $453,000.

What I like a lot about McCutchen is his consistent production and tenacious play. While he has three years of Major League experience under his belt (420 games to be exact) he has managed to hit fairly consistently and see an increase in his power numbers. His career batting average is .276, taking a dip after a low 2011 season batting .259. However, his home run total in 2011 was 23, 7 more than in 2010 and 11 more than his rookie year in 2009. Defensively, in 2011 his range factor was a 2.73, first in the National League for outfielders .

Mike Stanton - Miami Marlins

The Marlins are making a lot of noise this Hot Stove season, but some of the largest grumblings could come from their existing outfield. Stanton is just 22 years old, pre-arbitration eligible earning $417,000 in 2011, and is under team control until 2017. Stanton has only played in 250 games in the Major Leagues, but I feel he is on the cusp of really breaking out in 2012.

Entering the Majors in 2010 at 20 years old, Stanton made an immediate impact, belting in 22 home runs and 59 RBI's in just 100 games. While his batting average was just .259 his OBP was .326 and he slugged .507, giving him an OPS of .833, pretty good numbers for a rookie, let alone one so wet behind the ears. In 150 games in 2011 his numbers increased across the board. His stat line looked like this: 34 HR, 87 RBI's, .262 AVG. His OBP increased to .356, SLG to .537 and his OPS to .893. I think he is positioned for a large breakout this season. If the Marlins miss out on Pujols or Fielder, but manage to bring in Reyes - the middle of their lineup will be scary, anchored by Stanton.

Hunter Pence - Philadelphia Phillies

When the Phillies pulled the trigger to land Pence in 2011 at the trade deadline, I thought the move was brilliant. They needed to get younger and managed to land a solid rightfielder in Pence. While he may not take the spotlight from the stars surrounding him on the Phillies, his contribution in 2012 will certainly be felt.

Pence is a 2-time all star and a career .292 hitter. He has a career OBP of .343 and SLG of .485 with a .828 OPS. In other words, you know exactly what you are getting from Pence. His numbers come from four and a half seasons in the Astros organization that really had no threats around him in the lineup. Being added to such a deep lineup as the Phillies, in a full season I feel that we are likely to see Pence's numbers go up across the board. Just looking at his splits from last season, in 54 games with the Phillies he hit as many HR's as he did in Houston (11 each) but his BA went from .308 to .324, his OBP from .356 to .394, his SLG from .471 to .560 and his OPS from .828 to .954. I think this trend is only going to continue with a full season in Philly. Pence is only 28 and is in the middle of his prime.

Freddie Freeman - Atlanta Braves

Obviously I am high on Freeman, he was my mid-season pick to be NL Rookie of the Year. The man can play and I firmly doubt we will see any type of sophomore slump from the Braves first baseman in 2012.

He is only 22 years old, making $414,000 in 2011 and in my opinion, is already a stud. He placed second in 2011 Rookie of the Year voting, losing out to his teammate, RP Craig Kimbrel. In 157 games for the Braves, Freeman's stat line looked like this: 161 hits, 21 home runs, 76 RBI's, .282 BA, .346 OBP, .448 SLG and a .795 OPS. Defensively, Freeman only committed 6 errors, posting a .996 fielding percentage. Solid numbers from your first year first baseman.

It appears he is quite comfortable facing Major League pitching. If his first full season was any indication of what may come from the man, 2012 should prove to be impressive.

Last, but not least...

Justin Upton - Arizona Diamondbacks

You can make the case that Upton is already a star, but I feel the younger Upton brother is just starting to show the flashes of brilliance he has to offer. At just 24 years old, the D'Backs were wise to lock Upton up with a 6-year/$50million contract to keep him in the desert through 2015. Upton is a 2 time All-Star and a Silver Slugger winner. In 2011 he finished 4th in NL MVP voting. In short, Upton is a beast.

In 2011, Upton posted career highs in HR's (31), RBI's (88) and OBP (.369); he also managed a .529 slugging and .898 OPS, both were the second highest numbers in his career. What I like about Upton as well is his speed, swiping 21 bags. I don't want to over-step any boundaries here, but looking at Upton's young career reminds me of Barry Bonds from 1987-1991. Now, before you harp on me for that, I am a huge Bonds fan, I am well aware of his numbers for that time, and while Bonds posted better numbers than Upton, I am just trying to point out the similarities between the two.

Who is to say that Upton, again just 24 years old, can't have an MVP caliber career from here on out? After all, Bonds didn't get his first MVP until he was 25 years old.

Who's Your Rookie of the Year?

In an effort NOT to talk about the Boston Red Sox or the Texas Rangers (no easy task today, considering they are about to embark on what I believe to be a very crucial series in Texas) I have decided to take a look at some of the rookies that have impressed me this year and give my two-cents as to whom (as of this point) I believe should be given the distinct honor of being Rookie of the Year.

In my last post I mentioned Atlanta's Freddie Freeman. Freeman would be a fine choice. He has played in 124 games thus far and is hitting for a nice .293 batting average. (134h/457ab) He has driven in 62 runs and has managed 45 extra base hits (17 of which being the long ball.) He leads all rookies in doubles, with 28. He is not just an offensive player though. This season his ranger factor is a 9.21 while his fielding percentage is at .995. What all of these statistics are telling me is that Atlanta has found their first baseman for many years to come.

For fielders, I find the (no pun intended) field to be a bit short. I look at Freeman's numbers and I am very impressed with what he has accomplished in his young career. There are a couple of other young studs that have played markedly well that deserve some mention here, and still may close out the season strong enough to change my mind. There is second baseman Danny Espinosa in Washington for example. He is more of a defensive liability than Freeman. He posts a 4.77 range factor with a .982 fielding percentage; by no means bad for a rookie, just not as good as Freeman's numbers. At bat, his average is low at .231 (which is still better than Jayson Werth) but he has pop in his swing. He's belted 18 homers this season with 57 RBI's. Needless to say, Washington fans would love to see that type of production coming from Werth.

One last individual that has caught my attention has to be Angels first baseman, Mark Trumbo. Offensively he is putting up the closest numbers of any rookie to Freddie Freeman. Currently he is batting .260 (110h/463 ab) with 23 home runs and 69 RBI's. It is clear to me now why the Angels were not big spenders in the off-season, or rather, felt they could take the hit. It is evident that Trumbo is a major league stud. At first base this season he has a range factor of 9.30 with a fielding percentage of .993 - pretty excellent numbers for a rookie as well.

Now, in case you didn't notice I had some criteria for those players that I felt were worthy above, and it was basic - games played. If a rookie had not played over 100 games this season, I did not even consider them... unless they were a pitcher. Which brings me to my final two names. Of all rookie pitchers, it would be very easy to point out that the New York Yankees, Ivan Nova leads the way with 13 wins and 4 losses. He is posting a 3.97 ERA in the toughest division in baseball and is a vital piece to that Yankee rotation right now. But the problem I have with him is that, well, other than the fact he is a Yankee, is the fact that he is a Yankee. Let me explain. If a rookie pitcher from the Yankees or Red Sox, the two deepest pockets in baseball, were posting those numbers, there is an obvious point that can be made - they have a superior team surrounding them. This idea does not fall deaf on me. I buy it. Which is why I think, though Nova is admittedly having a great season, there is one rookie that remains that I think absolutely deserves the American League Rookie of the Year honor.

The Seattle Mariners Michael Pineda has been dominant. That is a hard thing to be when you play in King Felix's park, but he has been. His 9-7 record with a 3.73 ERA is no indication of the type of pitcher he is. Much like Felix Hernandez - the body of work and the team you are on has to take some consideration. Pineda is in no-mans land, Seattle. He has started 24 games and has pitched 147 innings already - the most for any rookie pitcher. By the way, he also has 148 strikeouts, 28 more than the next rookie in that category. He also maintains a 1.11 WHIP, 15th in all of the majors, first for rookies. Pineda hs been a beast, pure and simple. It is a shame in my eyes to see such a talent on a ballclub that will not give him a shot of winning anything.

Given my argument, I think you already know, but my NL Rookie of the Year would have to be Freddie Freeman. AL Rookie of the Year would be Michael Pineda. Thoughts?