The Cleveland Indians are ready to embark on another season, and with this new season come high hopes. The team is relatively solid from top to bottom, and with a large chunk of last year's team returning, it's becoming difficult to fly under the radar.
However, the two player's we'll look at in this piece are in camp and relatively overlooked. Sometimes, flying under the radar can be a blessing though, as lukewarm expectations bring an opportunity to shine and excel without the pressure associated with being a high-profile player.
These two players—one newcomer and one returnee—have the opportunity to exceed expectations in 2015, so let's introduce them, and find out why they're ready to impress.
Gavin Floyd
Gavin Floyd's status as an offseason signing and sure thing for the No. 4 spot in the Tribe's rotation makes for a bit of a reach in labeling him an "under-the-radar" player. However, what's expected of Floyd is relative mediocrity, and there's reason to believe he could surpass the modest projections for his 2015 season.
Floyd's Steamer projections, linked just above, have him working to a stat line that looks like this: 19 GS, 6-7 W-L, 4.20 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 7.0 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and 2.59 K/BB.
Floyd's projections are not awful, but also not great. Especially when you consider the overall success the starting rotation experienced last season.
Floyd showed flashes last season of being a more effective pitcher than in years past, averaging a 2.65 ERA over 54.1 innings pitched with the Braves last season.
At 32 years old, Floyd showed improved control (2.2 BB/9 down from career average of 3.0 BB/9) and increased strikeout rates (7.5 K/9 up from 7.1 career average).
Floyd, who was working through his rehab progressions in 2014—he suffered a tear in his UCL, which required Tommy John surgery—also showed some improved velocity.
Floyd's average fastball velocities from 2011-14:
Floyd has never had much in the way of velocity, but his 92.87 mph fastball in 2014 is his highest single-season average since his age-24 season back in 2007.
With a slightly faster average fastball, and improved health, Floyd looks primed to surpass his Steamer projections for the 2015 season.
Jose Ramirez
For as well as he performed last season, a lot of what Jose Ramirez has done, and will be doing, is overshadowed by the presence of Francisco Lindor, who is loudly banging on the door behind him.
Ramirez played in 68 games with the Tribe last season and managed a .262/.300/.346 slash line with 14 extra-base hits, 17 RBI, 27 runs scored and 10 stolen bases. The 22-year-old managed respectable strikeout and walk rates of 13.2 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively.
Aside from his near-80-grade speed, Ramirez isn't going to blow you away with any of his tools. His bat is average, his power below-average, while his glove plays to a solid average/above-average level.
The question in Ramirez's game is whether or not he will hit enough to stick at the big league level. Hitting was never an issue for Ramirez in the minors, having logged a career batting average of .305.
However, the young infielder is aggressive at the plate and rarely looks to take a walk (7.2 percent minor league walk rate). This will be important to watch this spring and in the season's early going.
While it hasn't proven to be a problem yet (career 84.1 percent contact rate), one has to wonder how long Ramirez can survive when he has very little to speak of in the way of power (.353 career slugging percentage) and limited on-base skills.
This isn't an indictment on Ramirez, though, as his aggressive approach at the plate has proven incredibly successful to this point.
That said, if he's fixed, or is currently working on his ability to draw a walk, Ramirez can be a longtime fixture in the Indians organization, and his performance this spring deserves close attention.
All stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and Fangraphs.com unless otherwise noted.
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