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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Prisoners in their own home How do you feel about new cell towers? Oregon Shakespeare Festival designer for a half-century says he's still learning Louie's to donate sales to Helman Hug Fund Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday Education Prisoners in their own home Louie's to donate sales to Helman Hug Fund Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday Ashland Kiwanis recognizes Samara Diab Hands-On work with robots at ScienceWorks Environment Wild Side: Selfish and other reasons for saving endangered species Mt. Ashland Ski Area: Low snow closes 'bunny hill' chairlift for beginning skiers With pre-season conditions worst in 25 years, catastrophic wildfires expected in region this summer Legislature might be divided on clean fuels bill, but these Ashlanders weren't Ashland Rowing Club members put their backs into Emigrant Lake clean-up Business Breaking ground on organic vineyard practices Southern Oregon University: Recent and pending projects at SOU total about $132 million Test Drive: 2015 Subaru Outback Limited Silvio Calabi: 2015 Cherokee is a modern Jeep Ride & Drive: 2015 Hyundai Genesis Politics and elections Short-term rental restrictions kept in some areas, loosened in others Arthur I. Cyr: South Korea represents long-term triumph – for them and for US Mark L. Hopkins: Looking for a political straight shooter Oregon's governor appoints new secretary of state Ballots on Jackson County marijuana tax go out today State News Oregon's governor appoints new secretary of state Kate Brown sworn in as Oregon's 38th governor Nation - World Leonard Nimoy, famous as Mr. Spock on 'Star Trek,' dies Obituaries Death Notices Shiela R. Ettlich Karen June Shaw Death Notices Death Notices Shareable Bank of America is predicting a massive Tesla collapse Mars One attracts science fiction geeks and people who hate society Sports Latest Stories Wade scores 32, Heat rally to beat Blazers AHS grad Bailey claims national wrestling title Ashland boys capture another Sato Cup snowboard title at Mt. Bachelor Fredrickson leads Grizzlies to season-opening romp Thompson, Weber to play in all-star game High school Ashland boys capture another Sato Cup snowboard title at Mt. Bachelor Fredrickson leads Grizzlies to season-opening romp Grizz alpine skiers finish strong at state Ashland High's Honsinger tops field in final nordic ski meet Grizz snowboard team heads to state with repeat potential Southern Oregon University AHS grad Bailey claims national wrestling title Thompson, Weber to play in all-star game Beavers get No. 3 seed, host NCAA games Young shoots Ducks into Pac-12 title game Raider softball team opens league play with split at Northwest Voices Latest Stories Landgren cartoon: Boston gets a ‘Frozen’ sequel Our View: SOU's economic clout Letters to the Editor, March 18 Letters to the Editor, March 17 Landgren cartoon: Sunshine Week Editorial Our View: SOU's economic clout Our view: Keep it simple in developing marijuana rules Our View: Ashland is at risk as a bad fire season looms Our View: Ashland backs residents over visitors in lodging decision Our View: No need for blame in Hannah Thomas-Garner case Letters Letters to the Editor, March 18 Letters to the Editor, March 17 Letters to the Editor, March 14 Letters to the Editor, March 12 Letters to the Editor, March 11 Guest opinions Guest Opinion: Ashland is asking for trouble with new room rental rules Guest Opinion: More reasons to oppose Jordan Cove Guest Opinion: It's Groundwater Awareness Week; test your well Guest Opinion: Ashland schools failed to protect my son from bullying Guest Opinion: There is nothing uniform about the Uniform Crime Report Columns Guest Opinion: Ashland is asking for trouble with new room rental rules Council Corner: City considers the sharing economy Herb Rothschild Jr.: Demonizing Putin makes case for war Guest Opinion: More reasons to oppose Jordan Cove Jeffrey Gillespie: The opaqueness of Hillary Clinton Chris Honore Council Corner Editor's Notes Jeffrey Gillespie Herb Rothschild Revels Latest Stories Community blog: Herzog scholarship for young writers Movie listings: March 13-18 Nitty Gritty Dirt Band co-founder John McEuen performs at the Unitarian Fellowship in Ashland Thanks for the Memories presents 'Anastasia' Community blog: Take a peek at poet Scott Wozniak Theater Oregon Shakespeare Festival designer for a half-century says he's still learning Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday Theater review: Thanks for the Memories pulls off challenging 'Anastasia' in Ashland Ticket availability Ticket Availability Music The Farr Side: Madonna — ever the trendsetter Nitty Gritty Dirt Band co-founder John McEuen performs at the Unitarian Fellowship in Ashland Alice DiMicele plays Unitarian Fellowship The Farr Side: Another career highlight for Kelly Clarkson Music on the Mountain: Ski area launching concert series Visual Art Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Movies 8 must-see spring films Movie review: ‘Wrecking Crew’ is a look at the people who really put the bomp Movie review: ‘Cinderella’ is an instant classic Shailene Woodley returns as Tris in ‘Insurgent’ Movie listings: March 13-18 Food and Drink Sammich does it Chicago-style Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Oregon Shakespeare Festival designer for a half-century says he's still learning Page H. Onorato: How food names came into being Tammy Kelly: Healthy leftover ham Lost in Suburbia: Top 10 reasons I like my dog better than my kids Dear Monty: Tips for checking out an existing septic system Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Rogues: Tales from the Valley Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs Business Business Services NEWS NOW Louie's to donate sales to Helman Hug Fund ... Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday ... Our View: SOU's economic clout ... Louie's to donate sales to Helman Hug Fund ... Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday ... Our View: SOU's economic clout ... Fantasy Sports: Mike Trout clear star of young outfield crop By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette DailyTidings.com By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette Posted Mar. 16, 2015 @ 9:27 am By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette Posted Mar. 16, 2015 @ 9:27 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2324,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> Mike Trout is only 23 years old. Yep, that’s it. I’m starting the column with a simple fact because my brain doesn’t know what to do with it. I mean, I am not even sure if we know what type of player Trout is yet — other than really, really good. In his 2012 rookie season, Trout batted .326 with 30 homers, 83 RBIs, 129 runs and 49 steals, putting up numbers that instantly put him into top-player-in-the game discussions. In 2013, he dipped a little bit, but a line of .323-27-97-109-33 isn’t going to take you out of that elite discussion. In 2014, his steals dropped off to only 16 (for he just didn’t attempt as many, he was only caught twice), and his average dipped to .287. He broke new ground with power numbers, though, swatting 36 homers, driving in 111 runs, scoring 115 of his own and won the American League MVP. If you can see a fall-off in some spots and still win an MVP award, that is a pretty good indication that a player is pretty good. And he is still only 23 years old. To find that type of all-around fantasy greatness is not rare in an outfielder; this is a position from which owners know they need to get a large dose of everything. Trout, however, is at the vanguard of a large number of young players who could provide an historic amount of offense from the position. Miami’s Giancarlo Stanton is only 25 years old and was probably on his way to the National League MVP until getting hit by a pitch in the face last September. He still finished at .288-37-105-89-13, which still sounds like it could have earned top-player honors. He may be battling for MVP honors for years with the Dodgers’ Yasiel Puig, who is only 24. They may need to wait a couple of years for the Pirates’ Andrew McCutchen to drop off, though, for he is still only 28 and already has an MVP on his résumé. But by then, they will have to deal with the Nationals’ Bryce Harper, still only 22, who reported to camp in better shape than he has in the past. Damn lazy teenagers. Arriving in the majors with less hullabaloo was the Rockies’ 25-year-old Corey Dickerson, who went .312-24-76-74-8 in only 436 at-bats last season. You can also look at the Cubs’ Jorge Soler, a 22-year-old who left the minor leagues after three seasons with a cumulative .934 OPS. Over on the American League side, the Indians’ Michael Brantley put up career numbers across the board with his .327-20-97-94-23 2014 season, and since he’s only 27, those numbers could prove more than an aberration. Then there is 25-year-old George Springer of the Astros, who only had 295 at-bats last season but was still able to turn them into 20 homers and 51 RBIs. And a question that is bound to be often spouted in these parts this season — just how good is Mookie Betts? It can’t be only youth that gives a player upside, though, so I will also offer a drug-addled piece of advice (no, not Josh Hamilton, whom we just wish well). Melky Cabrera, who had never stood out as a top player, started to get extra attention while batting .346 in 2012 with the Giants. That bit of notice turned into notoriety when that season was cut short by PED suspension, and his name later got involved with the Biogenesis scandal. Then he quietly put up a .301-16-73-81-6 season last year. It was the third time in four years that he had batted over .300. He is not an elite player, but he is probably better than you think. Another entry in the surprisingly good file is the Pirates’ Starling Marte. McCutchen rightfully gathers much of the attention in the Pittsburgh outfield, which means for two seasons as a starter Marte has averaged a .286 BA and 35 steals with minimal fanfare. Another benefit to the depth of the outfield position is being able to help yourself in weak rotisserie categories. You may not get help in all five stats from the Reds’ Billy Hamilton, but his 56 steals last year certainly helped owners rack up some points there. The Mariners’ Nelson Cruz, on the other hand, may never get you double-digit steals, but he did put 40 balls over the fence last year, driving in 108 runs along the way. Also don’t be afraid of a truly broken player, for they heal. Sure, the Giants’ Hunter Pence may currently have some issues swinging a bat since he has a broken forearm, but the team expects him back around May 1. If you have already lost your league in the first month so that the jolt of his return doesn’t help, then you don’t deserve to be playing. Unless, of course, you’re only 23, and we don’t even really know what type of player you will yet become. Josh Bousquet writes for The Worcester (Mass.) Telegram & Gazette. Contact Josh Bousquet at [email protected]. By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette DailyTidings.com By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette Posted Mar. 16, 2015 @ 9:27 am » Comment or view comments /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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