Will 2013 be the breakout season Justin Upton and supporters have hoped for?(Image: Photographer Name, US Presswire)

The topic of Justin Upton and his prospects as a franchise cornerstone for a major league team, to this point in his career, have been polarizing. What happened to the days where players developed in the big leagues and fans, critics and organizations alike all shared a common patience? Those days are long gone and we have to look no further than this year’s AL and NL Rookies of the Year, Mike Trout and Bryce Harper.

Players seemed to have much more time to develop both at the minor and major league level as recently as the 90s. But with the influx of technology, coverage, scouting and just all around hype, the clock is ticking ever so quickly on highly touted prospects to grow into the players they are hoped and projected to be. Intensifying that topic and stifling the patience of teams and fans were the seasons turned in by both Trout and Harper.

As a 19 year old, Trout hit the majors in 2011 for the Angels as a highly touted prospect. After being drafted in the 2009 amateur draft, it took Trout almost exactly 2 years following the draft to reach the majors after absolutely tearing up the minor leagues and making the 24 teams that passed on him in the first round shake their heads with 20/20 regret. Trout wasn’t overwhelming in his 40 game stint at the end of the 2011 season, the polar opposite of what he was in his ROY 2012 season. Trout’s name was imbedded in the AL MVP conversation and his path from prospect to major league star was one of the quickest and most successful in recent memory.

Bryce Harper’s named has been bandied about since he was in high school, when he left early to make himself eligible for the 2010 amateur draft at the age of 17. Harper was the number one draft pick of the Nationals in the 2010 amateur draft and began his professional career in the Nationals farm system, not turning 19 until the end of his first professional season. Like Trout, Harper also had a quick path to the majors, arriving in Washington less than two years from being drafted. Harper played a significant role in propelling the Nationals to a division title and picking up the National League Rookie of the Year in the process.

Like both Trout and Harper, Justin Upton was also a highly touted draft pick being selected by the Diamondbacks number one overall in the 2005 amateur draft. Upton too had a quick path to the majors contributing to the team’s NL West championship season of 2007 in which Arizona fell to Colorado in the NLCS. The expectations and the microscope started from there.

From the perspective of many, Upton has still yet to live up to those expectations and has been firmly planted under that microscope since his debut in 2007. Most in baseball have preached patience with the faith that Upton has the tools and skills to be the player worthy of a franchise cornerstone first round pick. Others have begun to grow weary that Upton has peaked and is merely an above average, everyday major league outfielder. At this point in his career, it appears to be unclear whether or not Upton will live up to the expectations of a number one overall draft pick

What is clear is that Trout and Harper’s ROY seasons of 2012 aren’t doing Upton any favors and if anything, speeding up the clock on Upton and decreasing the patience of the franchise and fans alike. It could be said that Trout and Harper could be the very reason to maintain patience with Upton, believing that he is on the brink of realizing his potential. From a Diamondbacks fan perspective, here’s to hoping Arizona gives him a chance to validate himself before they decide to go in a different direction.

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Wade Miley (left) is congratulated by manager Kirk Gibson during a ceremony honoring him as an all star. Image: Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

As a Diamondbacks fan it was an easy choice for us to say Miley was the clear-cut winner as he was literally dominate in every month of play this season- September did see a drop off. Miley finished his season with a 16-11 record throwing 194.1 innings and posting a 3.33 ERA- all of which led N.L. rookie pitchers. His 16 wins tied Yu Darvish for the Major League lead and were the most by a N.L. rookie in over 25 years.

For a Diamondbacks rotation that was anything but consistent, Miley supplied his team with 18 quality starts while walking just 37 hitters. His strikeout-to-walk ratio also placed him first among all rookies and 10^th overall in MLB.

In comparison, Bryce Harper finished his season with a .270 average, 22 homeruns and 59 RBI’s. None which are really blowing my hair back but it is worth mentioning that the 22 homeruns are the most by a teenager since Tony Conigliaro hit 24 in 1964. He did strike out 120 times but also hit nine triples and led his club with 98 runs scored. And while Miley struggled in September, Harper was named rookie of the month in the final month- perhaps another case of the ‘what have you done for me lately.’

Still, the last time a position player won the N.L. ROY award with numbers comparable to Harper’s was back in 1992 when Eric Karros won with a .257 average, 20 homeruns and 88 RBI’s (still 29 more than Harper). Oakland’s Bobby Crosby won it in 2004 with a .239 average, 22 HR, 64 RBI’s in the American League.

The last starting pitcher to win the N.L. award was Dontrelle Willis (160.2 IP, 14 wins, 3.30 ERA)in 2003 while Jeremy Hellickson (189 IP, 13 wins, 2.95 ERA) was the last to win it in the A.L. in 2011. I know that people will argue the importance of wins as there are other factors that may skew the number; see Clayton Kershaw or Ivan Nova for the other side. However, it’s hard to deny the fact that Miley threw 194+ innings this season and posted an ERA in the low 3’s to complement his 16 wins. Those are top of the rotation numbers and the lone D’back All-Star deserved to be recognized with the award.

So, essentially I guess I’m just reiterating what we already know which is that Miley deserved to win this award. I assume that two big points among the voters were a) Harper was 19 years old and b) he was an everyday player. While neither one of these points are fair platforms to vote against Miley, that is the nature of subjective voting. Reminiscent of when Rickey Henderson was left off Arizona sports writer Corky Simpson’s Hall of Fame ballot stating he just “wasn’t a Rickey guy and that he would vote for him next time.” Next time will have to work for Miley too and while he did miss out on this award, a repeat of 2012 in the upcoming season would be a fine tradeoff for me. Congrats to Mr. Miley on a rookie season to remember.

Follow me on Twitter at @ndougherty313 and our team at @venomstrikes.

Washington got on the board first in the top of the third inning with a sacrifice fly to right field by Bryce Haper, scoring second baseman Stephen Lombardozzi and putting the Nats on top 1-0.

Arizona third baseman Chris Johnson would tie the score up at 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth inning with an RBI single to left field, scoring Justin Upton.

From that point on it would be an offensive show for the visiting Nationals as they would put up eight more runs over the final five innings.

Aug. 10, 2012; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper (34) hits a sacrifice fly to right during the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the ninth inning at Chase Field. The Nationals defeated the Diamondbacks 9-1. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Stewart-US PRESSWIRE

Ryan Zimmerman would add a two-run home run in the top of the fifth inning, while Michael Morse would pound a solo homer of his own an inning later in the sixth. Adam LaRoche would add two RBIs on a fielder’s choice in the top of the seventh and a double in the ninth. Harper would add another RBI on another sacrifice fly in the ninth and Jayson Werth would plate a pair of runs on an RBI double in the ninth to put the game out of reach at 9-1.

The story of the evening was Washington starter Stephen Strasburg who allowed only one run off one hit, while striking out six batters through six innings pitched. Strasburg more than likely could have gone deeper in the game, but with the game securely in hand, I’m certain the Nationals coaching staff wanted to rest his arm for the playoff stretch.

Arizona starter Trevor Cahill brought less than his best stuff, by allowing four earned runs off six hits through six innings pitched in earning his 10th loss of the season.

Wade Miley will take the mound tomorrow evening in game two of the series against former D-back and current Nationals pitcher Edwin Jackson.