As a kid, I grew up watching a lot of sports movies. Mostly they were inspirational, clichéd, formulaic joints about a team that was down-and-out, but with a little inspiration as well as an A-list actor as their coach they found a way to win (and learn a valuable lesson about life, too). Ladies and gentlemen, “Rookie of the Year” was even worse than all of those films.

The movie follows the story of Henry Rowengartner, a pre-teen baseball fan and “regular guy” with childish innocence and wonder. At one point Henry falls on his arm, and twists it in such a way that he is now capable of throwing an 100 mph fastball, and locate it perfectly (I’m guessing after this movie kids everywhere tried to re-create the injury, to no avail). He was then signed by his hometown Chicago Cubs, became an overnight sensation, and led them to a Division championship.

The 2010 major league baseball season, in all essence, is a less absurd version of “Rookie of the Year”. There won’t be any prepubescent children suiting up for the Cubs (although they could probably make the Nationals’ rotation), but nonetheless there is a youth movement spreading throughout the league. In particular, three rookies have been heralded as franchise-saviors, a single player that can lift their organization out of the cellar. In this article I’ll profile rookies Steven Strasburg, Aroldis Chapman, and Jason Heyward, and try to determine if they can really live up to their lofty expectations.

SP STEVEN STRASBURG, WASHINGTON NATIONALS. Instead of attempting to describe the depths of Strasburg’s potential with words, I’ll let his college statistics at San Diego State do most of the talking. As a sophomore in 2008, Strasburg recorded a 1.57 ERA and struck out 23 University of Utah hitters in a game on April 11th, 2008. And at that point, he was still getting his feet wet.

In his junior season, Strasburg went 13-1 with a 1.32 ERA, and averaged an astounding 16.1 strikeouts per 9 innings. In his last home game on May 8th, 2009 he recorded his first no-hitter against the Air Force Academy.

Yes, I would say those are some pretty gaudy statistics. The fact is that Steven Strasburg has absolutely devastating stuff. He features a fastball that routinely reaches triple digits, and changes pace with an outstanding slider. The ability to locate these pitches at will makes Strasburg the most intriguing prospect in at least a decade, and was the reason that the Nationals picked him with the 1st overall pick of the 2009 draft and signed him to a 4 year, 15 million dollar contract.

The Nationals are handling their phenom with caution this spring, and are leaning towards sending him down to the minors to begin the season before calling him up around June. Strasburg is their best pitcher already, but Washington wants him to develop and fine-tune his control before unleashing him on the NL East. The question isn’t “if” he will be a superstar as much as “when”.

SP AROLDIS CHAPMAN, CINCINNATI REDS. The word that best describes Aroldis Chapman is “mysterious”. The 22 year-old sensation just defected from Cuba in the offseason, so there is very little previous film of him to be seen. So obviously, the rumors are out there. Some have speculated that he can throw 160 with ease. Others say he has three arms and can jump buildings in a single bound. Obviously, these rumors have been proven untrue. But what we do know after watching him pitch this spring is that this kid has serious potential.

In 8.2 innings pitched this spring Chapman has given up only 1 earned run, while striking out 12. His fastball can hit 100, and he also has good off-speed stuff to go along with it. The question for Chapman going into camp was his ability to control his pitches, and the 4 walks he has given up in those 8.2 innings suggest he still has some work to do on that front.

Most likely, Chapman will not make the big club coming out of camp, and will start in the minors to get some seasoning and try to further develop his control. If he puts up solid numbers in the minors it is a possibility that he will be called up sometime in the summer, but it is more likely that he will not make a huge impact until 2011.

OF JASON HEYWARD, ATLANTA BRAVES. Allow me to introduce you to ESPN and mlb.com’s #1 ranked prospect for the 2010 season. Jason Heyward is only 21, but his size, tools, and raw power is practically unrivalled.

Heyward is a physical freak. He stands at 6’5”, 240 pounds and can run, throw, and has incredible power (as proven by his 457 foot homer in a spring game last week). So far in Spring Training he is hitting .387 with 5 RBIs in 13 games. Not only that, but he has amazing plate discipline, taking walks and refusing to chase balls outside of the zone.

Heyward was originally destined to start the season in AAA, but with each passing game it is getting harder and harder for Braves management to pass on their flourishing superstar. It now appears more likely that he will beat out veteran outfielder Melky Cabrera for the starting spot in right field, and probably challenge for Rookie of the Year consideration (luckily, he doesn’t have to go up against a guy like Henry Rowengartner).