Evan Habeeb – USA Today Sports
Over the weekend, the 2013 MLB All-Star Game rosters were announced. Taking a deeper look inside the rosters, one thing stands out; the youngsters of MLB are taking over.
You won’t see Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, C.C. Sabathia or Cole Hamels on this year’s squads. What you will see is 20-year old Bryce Harper starting despite playing only 51 games. You’ll see Mike Trout making his second All-Star team before his 22nd birthday. You will see 21-year old Manny Machado and his ridiculous 39 doubles.
You might even see Yasiel Puig, who has been the talk of baseball with a .409 batting average in his first 32 career games. Another interesting fact about the 2013 All-Star rosters: 30 of the players selected are appearing in their first career All-Star game.
So what does all of this mean for the future of the game? For one, we are facing a youth movement. The stars of yesterday need to pass the torch to the newcomers, and the fans are proving they are ready for that by voting Harper and Trout in as starters. Also, some of the young arms like Matt Harvey, Jose Fernandez and Patrick Corbin are making a name for themselves as well.
The fans want to see the young players out on the field because they are providing the most entertainment value. It is a great sign for baseball that so many first time All-Stars will be heading to Citi Field next week. There are a lot of young players out there that have the potential to become superstars, and it couldn’t be better for the game of baseball.
Zach Slotter is a writer for Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @zslot6, Like his Facebook page or add him on Google.
