We forget sometimes how difficult it is to become an established everyday player, one that is consistently good and capable of handling the physical and mental grinds that come with playing a three-hour game every day for six straight months. Guys like Mike Trout, Mookie Betts and Manny Machado make it look so easy that we don’t realize they are by far the exception rather than the rule.
Most major-leaguers must crawl before they walk and the majority fall flat on their face and disappear before they become solid big-leaguers, let alone all-stars or superstars. They come in full of hope and confidence.