Google USS Alaska and USS Guam. Battlecruisers in all but name.
Those turkeys had less displacement dedicated to armor than even a battle cruiser.
Inadequate underwater protection and poor subdivision.
Lousy maneuverability. Read a quote that said put them in the Pacific, they need that much ocean to turn around.
They were mothballed after the war until they went to the breakers.
Maybe, but IMHO, it looks like that class was an attempt to up the ship-to-ship capabilities of the Atlanta class anti-aircraft cruiser.
The Alaska was around for three years and fired in 2 bombardments of the Home Islands.
Not exactly an effecicent use of materials.