Filed under: Rangers, Yankees, MLB Playoffs, American League Championship SeriesARLINGTON, Texas -- For the last decade or so, in many ways the American League headlines have belonged to a select group of hitters -- Alex Rodriguez and David Ortiz, Derek Jeter and Ichiro Suzuki, Vladimir Guerrero and (not counting a temporary move to the National League) Manny Ramirez.
As that group ages, it's time for a new group of headliners to move in, and the American League Championship Series is showcasing two of the best, New York second baseman Robinson Cano and Texas center fielder Josh Hamilton.
Hamilton, whose well-chronicled battles with substance abuse have held him back, is 29 and is at the end of his fourth full season. It was a year in which he led the AL with a .359 average, boosting his career average to .311, while hitting 32 homers and driving in 100 runs.
Cano is 18 months younger and has six years in the big leagues. He's a two-time All-Star, is coming off back-to-back seasons in which he's posted averages of .320 and .319, and is a major source of power -- 25 and 29 homers the last two seasons -- while twice scoring 103 runs and twice getting at least 200 hits. His career average is .309.
Pitching to these guys is a profile in courage. Hamilton and Cano both have four homers in the first five games of the 2010 ALCS, the first time in history opponents have done that in the same postseason series.
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