A Youth Movement

For baseball fans that can't get enough of reading about top prospects, the months of May and June (aside from September), are among the most exciting of the season. Contrary to September call-ups, teams bringing up top prospects in the months of May and June often have much more hope for their respective seasons. The year is young, and often times teams will hope a young player can provide the spark to keep them in the postseason race (see Buster Posey).

This year there are several big-time prospects who have either punched their ticket to the Show or will be on their way in the very near future. Here's a look at a few of the biggest names that have recently made their way on to a big league roster:

Eric Hosmer, 1B, Kansas City Royals

Hosmer was called up on May 5th and figures to be just the first of a flurry of top-flight Royals prospects headed to Kansas City. At the time of his promotion, Hosmer had already posted a ridiculous line of .439/.525/.589 for Triple-A Omaha. Clearly, Hosmer had become too talented for the minors and even though you can make an argument that the Royals called him up too early because of service time/arbitration/all that other garbage, it seemed that he was ready. He's been steady so far at the big league level, posting a .262 average with three home runs. Out of all the Royals big-time prospects that will see time with the major league club this season, Hosmer is likely to have the biggest impact.

Julio Teheran, RHP, Atlanta Braves

After Rays righty Jeremy Hellickson, the 20-year-old Teheran was tabbed by many as the second-best pitching prospect in all the major leagues at the start of the season. The Braves brought Teheran up from Triple-A Gwinett on May 7th for an emergency start, and just yesterday recalled him for what is likely to be a more permanent stay. After fellow rookie Brandon Beachy hit the DL, it appears that Teheran could make his case to cement a spot in the Atlanta rotation for the rest of the season. Teheran currently features a good fastball that sits in the low-to-mid 90s, a hard breaking ball and a developing changeup. Despite struggling thus far at the major league level and probably not having as high of an upside as fellow rookie hurlers like Hellickson and Michael Pineda, Teheran still has the chance to be a reliable starter once he gets settled in.

Jose Iglesias, SS, Boston Red Sox

Do a quick Google search of Jose Iglesias and the first thing you'll likely find is something along the lines of "one of the best defensive talents we have ever seen." These accounts are certainly not exaggerated, although Iglesias likely won't be able to showcase his talents on a regular basis until 2012. With Jed Lowrie establishing himself this season and Marco Scutaro due to be back from the disabled list, Iglesias will more than likely head back to Triple-A to get regular playing time. The only question for Iglesias will be whether or not he can handle the bat, as some scouts believe his defense is already Gold Glove-caliber. He was hitting .253 in Pawtucket at the time of his promotion, but had just two walks in 92 at-bats (he had just eight in 236 in 2010). The Red Sox will be able to handle a low average, particularly with the good group of hitters surrounding him, but Iglesias will have to improve his plate discipline to make his regular presence in the lineup worthwhile.

Danny Duffy, LHP, Kansas City Royals

By the time this season is over, I may run out of space on this website simply from talking about all of the Royals' young talent. Duffy was the latest to make his debut for Kansas City, making his first career start against the Rangers last night. Duffy is one-third of the trio of intriguing southpaw prospects in the Royals system (the others being John Lamb and Mike Montgomery) but is the first to make his major league debut. He features a good fastball that can reach the high 90s, a good curveball and changeup that at times has good tailing movement to right-handers. For more on Duffy, you can check out a great, full scouting report on him from Project Prospect here. He lasted just four innings against the Rangers, and despite walking six, Duffy still showed flashes of his potential that included striking out the side in the second. He'll obviously need to improve his command, particularly of his secondary pitches, and once he does that he should be a mainstay in the Kansas City rotation. I never thought I'd say it, but it's undoubtedly an exciting time to be Royals fan.

Keep an eye on:

Dustin Ackley, 2B, Seattle Mariners

Anthony Rizzo, 1B, San Diego Padres

Jesus Montero, C, New York Yankees