Welcome back to the Most Important Players in MLB Series, Volume III. In this edition we’ll cover the most important player for each of the American League Central teams. If you haven’t seen the AL East or NL East versions, just click on the respective links to get caught up.
The Most Important Players in 2015: AL Central
Looking towards 2015, the AL Central is a division filled with questions. How will the Detroit Tigers fare in the post-Scherzer era? Can the Kansas City Royals repeat their surprising 2014 performance? Are the Cleveland Indians ready to take the next step and become a serious threat in the division? Will the Chicago White Sox huge offseason payoff on the field? And how much longer will it be before the Minnesota Twins reap the benefits of a talented farm system? The answers to all these questions can only be answered on the field, but I’m guessing the following players will play a major role in answering them.
As defined in the previous articles, a team’s MIP is not the same as the team’s MVP. In some cases a team’s MIP will also be their MVP, but in most cases they will not. These are those players for the AL Central’s teams.
Minnesota Twins: 3B, Miguel Sano
This one may seem like a bit of a stretch. After all, it’s unlikely Sano will even begin the season on the MLB roster, especially after missing all of 2014 thanks to a Tommy John surgery. Never the less, Sano will likely see significant playing time in 2015 if for no other reason than the Twins really have nowhere else to turn. Sano, one of the most highly-touted prospects in the game over the last few years is still just 21, but his 6-4, 250 lbs frame would never let you know it (I mean he literally might not let you know, just read the article).
Jokes aside, if there is one thing the Twins desperately need it’s power, and Sano has plenty of it. In A and AA ball in 2013, Sano totaled 35 home runs while slashing .280/.382/.610. You read that right, Sano slugged .610 in 2013 with an OPS of .992 I might add. Sure this all occurred in minor league ball, but keep in mind Sano was 19 at the start of the 2013 season when he raked those numbers. If he’s able to translate any of his power to the MLB, the Twins will benefit greatly. An opening day roster spot is unlikely for him, but a June or July call-up is highly likely for the Twins’ MIP of 2015 and perhaps beyond.
Chicago White Sox: RP, Zach Duke
A relief pitcher, I’ve got to be kidding, right? Wrong, I’m dead serious. Sure I could’ve taken the easy way out and picked Jose Abreu or Jeff Samardzija but truthfully I think Duke will be the White Sox most important player for 2015. Hear me out on this one.
The White Sox invested 15 million dollars in Duke over the next three seasons. Being that he’s likely going to be the team’s 8th inning man, that’s not easy for a team whose average payroll over the past 3 seasons has been around $90 million. Given the White Sox atrocious bullpen last season, the move was likely money well spent (and that’s not even taking into account David Robertson’s four year 46 million dollar contract).
The big issue with Duke however is if can he repeat his success from last season with Milwaukee? Or if he’ll revert back to his 6.03 ERA 2013 version? The former of the two seems to be the more likely and is why Duke is the White Sox MIP. Given his tremendous 2014 which featured a 2.14 FIP, 11.4 K/9, and 155 ERA+, Duke’s recent success seems to be sustainable. Assuming he’s able to come close to replicating those numbers, the White Sox bullpen should be much improved, even if fellow free agent signee Robertson disappoints.
Cleveland Indians: SP, Carlos Carrasco
With Justin Masterson’s departure the Indians have a need to fill in their rotation. Carrasco, who finished last season as a starter for the Tribe is likely going to get the first shot at filling that void. And if he can pitch anywhere near as well as he did as a starter to finish 2014, the Indians rotation might be better than last season’s. But that’s just the problem, which version of Carrasco will the Indians get next season? Will it be the guy who held a 6.95 ERA in his first four starts of the season, resulting in him being pulled from the rotation? Or will it be the August/September version of Carrasco who collected a 1.45 ERA in his final 10 starts? The answer to that question could determine whether the Indians are a playoff contender or not.
Sure the Indians will be relying more heavily on youngsters Trevor Bauer and Danny Salazar next season; not to mention they still have reigning AL Cy Young Winner, Corey Kluber as their bona fide ace. But Carrasco is hands down the most important and pivotal starter and pitcher on this team. His final 2014 stat line which included a 2.44 FIP, 9.4 K/9, and 0.985 WHIP certainly suggest he can be an effective starter for this team. But if his finish to 2014 was more of an outlier than his start to 2014, the Indians will be forced to look elsewhere to round out their rotation.
Kansas City Royals: SP, Yordano Ventura
This is a very similar situation to the Indians. With James Shields off to San Diego, the Royals have a massive hole atop their rotation. Sure they picked up Edinson Volquez and Kris Medlen to add depth, but neither of those guys figures to replace Shields as the staff ace. That responsibility falls in the lap of Ventura, and that’s a very tall task for the talented 23 year old.
Ventura’s 2014 was a good one for a rookie pitcher, but there are lots of areas he needs to improve in if the Royals plan on making it back to the postseason. First and foremost is his K%. For a guy who routinely throws his fastball in the 97-99 mph range, Ventura doesn’t strike out as many hitters as he should. Much of that is due to his less than stellar command so that is something Ventura must improve on if he wants to become an ace. A 7.8 K/9 is just not going to get it done considering the stuff he has. His 3.74 xFIP suggests his ERA may rise a tad in 2015, but assuming he’s able to improve on a good rookie campaign, Ventura should be able to help the Royals stay near to the top of the AL Central.
Detroit Tigers: OF, Yoenis Cespedes
Detroit’s poor defense has been well documented the last few seasons. With Jose Iglesias’ return the issue should improve but problems are still likely to persist, particularly in the outfield. The addition of Cespedes should help correct this as his 12 Rdrs (defensive runs saved above average) looks superstar-esque in comparison to teammates Rajai Davis (-11) and J.D. Martinez (-1).
Beyond just Cespedes’ defensive contributions, the team will need his bat too. With Victor Martinez coming off a knee injury and Ian Kinsler and Miguel Cabrera slowly entering their declining years (albeit very slowly), the Tigers will need Cespedes to turn things around a bit with the bat. His 2014 was a bit disappointing, particularly his days with the Red Sox. His ISO of .190 was a career worst and his K/BB doesn’t seem to be improving anytime soon. For the Tigers to maintain their dominance atop the AL Central, they will need Cespedes to find his 2012 mojo, a season in which he batted .292 while also stealing a career high 16 bases. Batting in a potent Detroit lineup should help his numbers across the board, but whether or not Cespedes can hit the ball more consistently and with more power may determine where the Tigers finish in 2015.
There you have it folks, the 2015 MIP’s for the AL Central. Check back sometime next week for the NL Central edition!
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