Atlanta Braves

Nate McLouth is currently penciled in as the Atlanta Braves' leadoff hitter for the 2010 season.

But following a poor 2009 season, during which he was traded from the Pirates to the Braves and battled vision problems, McLouth is starting extremely slow this spring.

All of this has many questioning whether or not he should bat first.

The main reason that McLouth is so firmly entrenched in the leadoff role is that the Braves lack a true leadoff hitter.

Major League Baseball has a rich history of nicknames, but not all nicknames are created equally. The league is currently flooded with lazy, uninspired nicknames that are, more accurately, abbreviations that hold no real meaning.

Some, for instance A-Rod (Alex Rodriguez) and Arm-Ram (Aramis Ramirez) are better left without meaning. Both monikers are better suited to something you would find in the adult section of the video store. Other nicknames are stretches or just sound ridiculous. Jimmy "J-Roll" Rollins comes to mind.

Every year, some unheralded rookies come out of nowhere and end up playing a big role in a team’s season. Be it due to injury, poor performance or a trade, it’s almost certain that some player who was expected to spend the year in the minors ends up helping the big league club.

Here, I have picked out 15 rookies who could potentially help the Atlanta Braves in 2010.

Before I start, let me say that Jason Heyward isn’t included in this list.

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In this day and age where hype overshadows pragmatism, dented cars mean more than practicality and age tends to mean more than relative production, it’s no wonder that Atlanta Braves centerfielder Nate McLouth is being glossed over.

The Atlanta Braves have a great tradition of drafting and developing players. No other team has had the international pressence or pre-draft scouting success that the Braves have had since the late 1980's

Chipper Jones, Tom Glavine, Andruw Jones, Javy Lopez, David Justice, Steve Avery, and Rafael Furcal are some names that the Braves have developed from the past.

Hank Aaron. Ken Griffey, Jr. Now, Albert Pujols.

Besides being three of the greatest baseball players in the history of the game, these three have been mentioned over the past month in connection with another subject.

Jason Heyward.

The Braves rookie phenom has drawn praise from all over.

Bobby Cox said the pop off his bat when he makes contact reminds him of Hank Aaron. Bobby Cox!  One of the most successful managers in baseball history does not normally throw words around like that.

Reporters have likened the 20-year-old to Ken Griffey, Jr.

Javier Vazquez struck out 239 batters in 2010, second in the National League. Vazquez actually struck out more batters than the number of grounders he forced, 237.

Javier was the definition of a big-time strikeout pitcher last year, and this takes a lot of pressure off a defense.

The man replacing him in the rotation this year, Tim Hudson, is a notorious ground ball pitcher. Hudson has had four seasons in which he forced 400 or more ground balls, and his season high for strikeouts with the Braves is 141.

He was arguably the Braves’ best player last season, hitting .299 with 14 homers and 76 RBI, all the while playing solid defense.

In his first three seasons in the majors, he’s already proven to be a consistent force, posting a .301 career average.

The Braves have always been known for their top notch pitching. John Smoltz, Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, Warren Spahn, Johnny Sain, and Phil Niekro are a few notable stars that have pitched for the Braves franchise, and they definitely pitched well in that Braves uniform.