Atlanta Braves
Jace Peterson, Pulling away from the pack? - Okay, maybe it's too early to say he's pulling ahead in the Braves' second base competition but Peterson is off to an excellent start to spring training. He's hitting a crisp .417 with a .533 OBP through 14 at bats, much better than his call up to the majors in 2014. We still have a long, LONG, ways to go before any decision will be made but with Alberto Callaspo's slow start and managements' reluctance to let Jose Peraza start the season with Atlanta, Peterson's hot start should open some eyes. I wrote about him in my first post this spring when I wrote about all the Braves' second base options, but Peterson could be a surprise being a career .300 hitter throughout the minors with huge stolen base numbers in the lower minors.
Wandy Rodriguez, Back in Contention for the 5th Spot - Rodriguez bounced back from a shaky debut with his new team and turned in three shutout innings against the division rival Nationals. The Nats also had the majority of their projected opening day lineup, making the outing even more impressive. Wandy now has allowed four hits over his four innings with a pair of walks and three strikeouts. This battle still has a long way to go, but if Wandy can hold on to the fifth spot in the rotation he has a chance to be 2015's Aaron Harang for the Braves. With Mike Minor possibly being shelved into the start of the season, he gets two spots in the rotation to vie for this spring.
Cleveland Indians
Gavin Floyd and the #5 Spot - Floyd experienced some pain in his throwing elbow but was able to long toss yesterday (Sunday) without suffering any more of a setback. This is even more troubling for Floyd because last season he suffered a broken elbow, and has already undergone Tommy John surgery two years ago. Right now, Floyd is being penciled in as the #4 starter and the team is optimistic that he won't need more than just a little time off. Right now he's not draftable as we don't know yet how he will return after last year's elbow injury. With the Braves in 2014, he went 2-2 with a 2.69 ERA with a FIP of nearly a run higher over 54.1 innings. One positive trend for Floyd was he has seen a 2% increase in his swinging strike rate over the past two seasons, jumping from 9.8% in 2012 to over 11% in both 2013-14. Now granted he has only thrown less than 80 innings combined over those two years so it is a small sample size, but it's still an interesting stat to monitor.
Danny Salazar, Is this the year? - I'll admit it. I bit on the Salazar hype train and got burned pretty hard on it when he got sent to the minors midway through the season. Now he enters 2015 competing for the number five spot in the rotation, one that he likely would be the most talented pitch to fill. His first outing was filled with ups and downs as he allowed three runs in two innings but was able to strike out four. When looking at the final stat lines for Salazar in 2013 and '14, you see that he was a very similar pitcher when you see the big picture. Both years he had over 9 K/9 with a sub 3 BB/9, a mid-30% GB rate, and a reasonable FIP. The differences? His BABIP jumped nearly 50 points and his strand rate fell 12%, leading more baserunners who ultimately came around to score. Now that the hype has died down, he could be a nice sleeper option if he is able to make the Indians rotation.
Houston Astros
Closing Time, Who gets the last inning for Houston to start the year? It's unknown who is in the driver seat for the 9th inning spot, but it seems like any of Chad Qualls, Luke Gregerson, Pat Neshek, and Josh Fields may get a chance at nailing down the job. Qualls led the team in saves in 2014 with 19 with almost 8 strikeouts per walk with a 3.13 FIP. With those numbers, I'd guess that Qualls likely will be the leader but Fields notched four saves and struck out almost 12 batters per nine. While Fields' ERA left quite a bit to be desired at 4.45, his FIP was over two runs lower at 2.09. He was a bit lucky though with just a 31% GB rate but also turning in a HR/FB% of just 2.9%. Gregerson notched three saves with the A's in 2014, posting a 3.24 FIP over 72.1 innings. He had the highest SWST% of the four candidates at 13%, giving him a leg up on the other options. Lastly we have Neshek who was the best pitcher of the four last year in terms of WAR, posting a 9 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio and a sub 2.40 FIP. With no way to know for certain, here's my ROUGH rankings of the four and their pecking order for 2015: Qualls, Neshek, Gregerson, Fields. But let's face it, you probably aren't drafting any of these guys preseason anyways.
Jonathan Singleton off to hot start this spring - Singleton was terrible, scratch that, abysmal in his time in the majors posting a .283 wOBA and striking out at a rate somehow worse than teammate George Springer. He has come into 2015 without a clear starting spot in the Astros lineup and is playing that way as he has gotten off to a hot start. He's hit to the tune of a .500 average and four of his five hits have been doubles, while striking out and walking twice each. Singleton will never be a low strikeout guy but he does have a significantly better track record than the 31% he posted last year. A sign that bodes well for Singleton in 2015 is he did not chase many pitches in 2014, so if he is able to increase his contact rate he could climb closer to his minor league track record. He's someone to watch over the rest of spring, but he could still start the season in the minors after all the Astros' new acquisitions.
Michael Pineda, New York Yankees - Pineda had an excellent Grapefruit league debut tossing two scoreless innings Monday against the Rays. He allowed one hit and struck out two in his outing, looking to build off his spectacular 2014 season in the Bronx. Over 76.1 innings, Pineda posted a 2.71 FIP and walked less than one batter per nine innings. Seeing a two MPH drop in his fastball from 2011 to 2014 (and rightfully so with his shoulder imploding) he relied on his changeup much more heavily in 2014 (up to 10% from 6.3%). He end result was a much better overall performance at the expense of three strikeouts per nine. One stat that I'd bet isn't repeatable is his 5.4% HR/FB rate especially in Yankee Stadium. In 2011 his HR/FB was 9.4%, so I find it very hard to believe that he got that much better all while pitching in that much worse of a park than before.
Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies - Cargo went 0-for-1 with a walk in his first action of 2015. He said he felt pain free while running, his main concern, and made a running catch in the outfield. He likely will be limited this spring after playing just 70 games last season due to knee surgery, as the Rockies will do their best to keep their star healthy. When he is on the field though he is as good as anyone in the game, posting four straight 20/20 seasons despite topping out at just 145 games played in a single season. Like his teammate Tulo, you almost have to pencil in a DL trip for Cargo but he's still able to give elite production if he can reach the 125-30 game mark. I wouldn't be surprised to see a dip in his stolen base numbers simply because of his knee recovery, but as the season progresses (and he stays healthy) he may run more in the second half.
Denard Span, Washington Nationals - The Nationals likely will be without two of their starting three outfielders come Opening Day as Span underwent abdominal surgery Monday and will be sidelined for 6-to-8 weeks. This opens the door for their top position prospect Michael Taylor to likely get the centerfield job for the first week or two of the season. The five-tool player got a taste of the majors in September but didn't get a significant chance to show what he could do in the midst of the pennant race. Taylor should be a hot waiver commodity and may even move up a round or two in drafts because despite the strikeout totals, he does provide a nice power/speed combo and will get plate appearances for at least the first two weeks of the season.
Victor Martinez, Detroit Tigers - Martinez took batting practice Monday and reportedly finished his round with a few homeruns, a promising sight for fantasy owners who invested highly in him before his offseason knee surgery. Martinez had a career year by any standard in 2014 posting an elite .411 wOBA with 32 homers and 103 RBI. He posted a career high .335 AVG but did not have an extraordinarily high BABIP as most players do during career average seasons. His BABIP of .316 was exactly in line with his career average and the average boost was helped by the seven homerun spike from his previous career high. V-Mart is still an great fantasy option but if you're expecting a year like last year from the now 36 year-old, you will probably be disappointed.
Miguel Sano, Minnesota Twins - Sano, one of maybe three true 80 power prospects in the game, launched a towering homerun off Pirates' right-hander Gerrit Cole Monday. The Twins #2 prospect is hitting .250 this spring with the one homerun and two RBI. He missed all of 2014 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, otherwise we'd all be talking about where he was going in drafts and what he could do in his first full major league season. He's likely to start the year in the minors, especially having missed last year, but we will likely see Sano in Minnesota at some point this year. Over a full season he has easy 30 homerun power and won't kill you in batting average so he has huge upside at the third base position, just maybe not quite yet.
Hector Olivera, Free Agent - Olivera has been declared a free agent and is negotiating with a few teams on a contract, with the Braves, Dodgers, and Padres rumored to be among the front runners to sign him. He is widely viewed as the second best international talent in this signing period (behind Yoan Moncada) and he would likely be immediately added to the major league roster wherever he signs. Olivera, 30, is much older than the typical high priced Cuban players we've seen as of late and he also comes with a rumored health issue of a hurt UCL. He will be a nice source of power once he signs on with a team, and will be a hot waiver commodity once he does sign.
Daniel Norris, Toronto Blue Jays - Norris got shelled on Monday allowing three runs on four hits, while striking out three in two innings. This came after his first performance of 1.2 shutout innings with two strikeouts giving a taste of the lofty strikeout totals he posted in the minor leagues. He struggled in his MLB debut in 2014 walking more than he struck out in route to a 6.13 FIP. His numbers in the minors though show why he is so highly regarded, posting K/9 totals of 10, 13, and 15 at each of the three levels he pitched at in 2014. Unlike his fellow prospect mate Aaron Sanchez, Norris has no chance of making the bullpen for the big league club and will be sent to AAA to pitch if he can't crack the big league rotation.
Michael Wacha, St. Louis Cardinals - Wacha showed flashes back to his playoff run form Monday punching out four batters in two perfect innings on the hill. Wacha pitched well for St. Louis in 2014 despite his record of 5-6, recording a 3.17 FIP and 1.8 WAR in 107.0 innings. If he can return to his early 2014 form before the shoulder issues flared up, he could be a very nice value for teams and he surely has a spot in the Cardinals rotation.
Zack Wheeler, New York Mets - Wheeler was hammered by the Marlins Monday to the tune of six runs on two hits and two walks, but he did strikeout three batters in the outing. Wheeler is an itersting case because it's obviously the talent in there but in 2014 he only had 13 of his 32 starts where he pitched past the 6th inning (6.1 innings+) and only three starts where he completed at least seven. That's not the kind of reliability, or lack thereof, from a starting pitcher but his talent is hard to resist. He recorded 9.08 K/9 last season and was able to drop his walk rate to under 4.00, which still isn't good but it is at least progress in the right direction.
Yasiel Puig, Los Angeles Dodgers - Puig launched his first homerun of 2015 Monday, a two run homer to put the Dodgers ahead in the game. One of the most polarizing players in the game, Puig is also one of the best and looks to be improving each of the two years he's been in the majors. Puig upped his walk rate and cut down on his strikeouts and reportedly wants to steal more bases this season after swiping 11 in each of the past two seasons. Not that Matt Kemp was a threat to Puig's playing time, but with Kemp be moved it helps clear out the Dodgers crowed outfield scenario. Puig likely finishes as a top 10 outfielder in baseball this year, and maybe he can approach top five territory with increased steals.
