It really is crazy.
In a division that features a 20 game winner (CC Sabathia), a Cy Young winner (Josh Beckett), and the 2008 ALCS MVP (Matt Garza), it's the kids who have been making the most noise.
Where would the New York Yankees be this year without Phil Hughes?
Where would the Boston Red Sox be without Clay Buchholz?
Where would the Tampa Bay Rays be without David Price?
These three pitchers have stepped up when their teams needed them the most—and not just that.
They've also been really, really, really good.
Their success is not surprising. There is a reason why Boston and New York never traded Hughes or Buchholz. There is a reason why Tampa drafted Price first overall in the 2007 draft.
But they have definitely had their bumps along the way. Hughes bounced around as he tried to learn how to pitch under the Bronx microscope.
Bucholz also needed time to develop as he bounced between AAA and the majors. After setting the world on fire in the 2008 playoffs, Price's star dimmed in his first full season in the majors.
But look at them now.
These three pitchers have shown it takes time and patience to develop young pitching.
But the moves can pay massive dividends if you put in the hard work.
Here's a closer look at the three new (f)aces their teams could not live without.
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