CLEVELAND Oliver Pérez may be six months away from turning 40 years old with 18 Major League seasons under his belt, but he showed no signs of becoming less effective over the past three years with the Tribe. So, as the old adage goes, if it’s not broken, why
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Some hitters rake from pretty much their first day in the big leagues. In recent seasons, precocious talents such as Ronald Acuña Jr., Pete Alonso, Cody Bellinger and Juan Soto have immediately announced themselves as stars.
But more often, finding your footing against Major League pitching takes time. It requires players to adjust, and teams and fans to exercise patience. The rewards can be sweet, though.
So who might make that jump in 2021? MLB.com convened five reporters to draft 10 candidates five from the American League and five from the National League. While “breakout hitter” could have a number of definitions, we stuck to the following criteria:
These aces have MLB s deepest arsenals mlb.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from mlb.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The Astros signed free-agent outfielder Steven Souza Jr. to a Minor League deal with an invite to Spring Training on Monday.
The 31-year-old Souza hit .148 over 27 at-bats in 11 games for the Cubs last season, returning to action after missing all of 2019 while recovering from surgery to
For starters, the Phillies finished in the Top 5 in baseball in runs scored last year. They had a solid, if not spectacular, starting rotation that should be slightly improved in 2021 (more on that in a bit). And arguably their biggest addition (not counting players they re-signed like J.T. Realmuto and Didi Gregorius) was reliever Archie Bradley, who coupled with a few other additions to the bullpen should help correct what wound up being the worst relief unit in baseball history. They also have a new general manager in Sam Fuld and president of baseball operations in Dave Dombrowski who should be capable of adding a key piece here and there if necessary at the trade deadline.