Breaking out is hard to do- American League

2008 could be the year of the break out for a number of players. On that note, there are a number of players that should live up to their potential. First up is a Kansas City phenom named Alex Gordon. Gordon is arguably the Royals biggest prospect, but he was somewhat disappointing last year. His line from last year was .247/.411/.314. The hype would suggest that his numbers would have to improve this year and for him to be considered one of the top third baseman in the AL. With other competitors in the AL Central at the hot corner, his outlook is good, but his production needs improvement at the major league level.



Then there is Adam Jones of the Baltimore Orioles. His name was swirled around this winter with trade rumors when he was a Mariner. He was ultimately traded to Baltimore for Erik Bedard, in one of the biggest offseason trades. Jones will have to fill the hole in center left by Corey Patterson. He also has large hype to live up to; while he is short on major league experience he has unlimited potential. When the season progresses he'll either be a big story or a big bust.



In the pitching department there are a number of hot prospects. A few come to mind:

Notables
Red Sox: Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz
Yankees: Ian Kennedy, Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes
Orioles: Adam Loewen, Jeremy Guthrie
Rays: Matt Garza, David Price
Royals: Brian Bannister
Twins: Kevin Slowey, Nick Blackburn, Phil Humber, Glen Perkins
White Sox: John Danks, Gavin Floyd
Angels: Nick Adenhart, Dustin Moseley
Athletics: Fautino De Los Santos , Gio Gonzalez

The deepest young talent comes from the AL East and Central, with the Twins, Rays and Yankees have a surplus of young pitching either in the majors or waiting in the wings. While the Indians and Red Sox have a combination of veterans, 3rd-4th year players and young pitchers aboard their big league staffs. Youth brings inexperience for the present, but also an upside for the future.

Who will breakthrough?

Pitching is always hard to predict in the respect of success. As a Yankees fan I'm hoping the triple threat of top prospects (Ian Kennedy, Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain) will succeed. Hughes showed his worth at the end of August through September and into the playoffs. He will have to live up the hype this year, after posting below a 2.25 ERA in his last six appearances last year. Joba Chamberlain will be in a familiar role from last year and he is appearing to be just as dominant as he was last year. I wouldn't say it's a lock, but Chamberlain could be a double threat if he can do well as a starter. And Kennedy had limited experience in the majors during the 2007 season, but if his minor league stats are any indication, this young right-hander should give us Yankee fans something to cheer about for years to come.

The Rays already have a very young staff with the barely 25 year old ace Scott Kazmir, and 27-year-old James Shields a solid # 2 and the rest of the rotation still isn't old enough to save money on their car insurance by switching to Geico. With that said, the face of baseball will change, league wide, with new faces replacing the old ones (Clemens, Maddux, Mussina, Randy Johnson, Tom Glavine). Only time will tell who will end up on the next Wheaties box.