Regan's Rumblings: Flying Under the Radar

I like to think I follow baseball more than the average guy. That said, there are still times where I watch a game or scan a box score and say, "who?". Of course, that happens all the time during the first half of spring training, as journeymen, lesser-hyped young players, and guys off the street get Cactus and Grapefruit League at-bats. This week, I'll highlight a handful of these "who?" type guys that could land larger-than-expected roles this season.

Chris Hermann (C-ARI)

I suppose any discussion of Arizona all-time great catchers starts at Miguel Montero, and while Hermann isn't close to prime-Montero levels, it appears that he currently tops the depth chart. I'm still puzzled why Wellington Castillo was not tendered a contract after hitting a respectable .264/.322/.423 with 14 home runs last season, but I guess the Diamondbacks needed to cut somewhere. Hermann batted a surprising .284/.352/.493 in 156 PA's for Arizona last year after posting no higher than a .611 OPS in four previous big league stints. He also went 3-for-28 for Triple-A Reno and he's 29. Unless Arizona deals for a guy like Derek Norris, he should lead the uninspiring trio of Arizona catches (Jeff Mathis, Chris Iannetta) in at-bats, and that alone makes him worthy of rostering in two-catcher leagues.

Carl Edwards Jr. (RP-CHC)

Edwards is a fairly well-known commodity after nearly (?) losing Game 7 of the World Series, but he's potentially in line to be the primary setup man ahead of new closer Wade Davis. Ideally for the Cubs, Edwards would finish with zero saves, but there are a few small red flags with Davis, including a drop in fastball velocity, missing time with an elbow injury last year, and a spike in his BB/9 from 2.7 to 3.3. Should Davis miss time, Edwards, Hector Rondon, and perhaps Pedro Strop would all be in line to take over, but Edwards may very well be the long-term solution at closer. He posted an impressive 13.0 K/9 last season for the Cubs and is a former top prospect who has made a seamless transition to the bullpen.

Rymer Liriano (OF-CHW)

A former top prospect (with the Padres) on a rebuilding squad, Liriano is going to get a very long look this spring. He currently projects as a Triple-A starter or MLB No. 4 outfielder, but when the guys ahead of him are named Melky Cabrera, Peter Bourjos, and Avisail Garcia, Liriano has a real shot this spring to win significant 2017 playing time. Liriano gained some attention in 2016 for an unfortunate scenario, getting hit in the face by Matt West of the Dodgers a year ago this month, forcing him to miss all of 2016. Liriano batted .292/.383/.460 with 14 homers and 18 stolen bases in 131 games at Triple-A last year, so he offers some intrigue as a potential 20/20 guy and former top prospect. Liriano swiped 66 bases once in the minors, though that was way back in 2011. Liriano is just 1-for-7 so far this spring, but he has a real shot at landing regular at-bats this year.

Tyler Collins (OF-DET)

Collins is a bit behind the competition this spring due to a strained lat muscle, but he still has plenty of time to win the job over Mikie Mahtook, JaCoby Jones, and Anthony Gose. Collins is a guy I knew very little about prior to ready some of the news report this spring that he could be a regular, and it's hard to be too excited about a guy who batted .214/.274/.323 in Triple-A and .235/.305/.382 in the big leagues last year. Collins has hit as many as 21 home runs in a year (2013) and stolen as many as 20 bases (2012), but that was several seasons ago. I'm not seeing much more than a platoon or fourth outfielder here.

Teoscar Hernandez (OF-HOU)

Hernandez is currently slated to be a backup outfielder behind Norichika Aoki, George Springer, and Josh Reddick, though Jake Marisnick could also factor into the mix. Hernandez batted a modest .230/.304/.420 in 112 PA's last season in his first taste of bit league pitching, but before that he batted a strong .307/.377/.459 with 10 homers and a whopping 34 stolen bases in the minors split between Double-A and Triple-A. Hernandez hit lefties to the tune of a .881 OPS last year, so he seems likely to win at least a platoon role, but given his upside, he could eventually steal at-bats from a guy like Aoki.

Tyler Skaggs (SP-LAA)

Skaggs isn't exactly unknown as a former top prospect who once headlined a trade for Mark Trumbo, but now through injuries and ineffectiveness, he's 25 with just one big league season of 50 or more innings and a career 4.60 ERA in 41 starts over four campaigns. Skaggs, though, exhibited the best velocity of his career in last year's 10 big league starts, finishing with a 9.1 K/9. Coming off Tommy John surgery, his BB/9 was a below-average 4.1, but that often happens coming off a long layoff. Maybe a breakout doesn't come until 2018 (if it ever does), but if he's 100 percent, I can see 150-170 innings with a 3.80 ERA and 140 strikeouts.

Keon Broxton (OF-MIL)

Broxton will get some attention coming off stealing 23 bases in just 75 games a year ago (41 combined including Triple-A), but he's still not getting a lot of respect as our No. 66 ranked outfielder. Broxton batted .242/.354/.430 for the Brewers last year, including nine home runs to go with those steals. He did that in just 207 at-bats, so if you extend that to a sample size of 550, that's 24 home runs and 61 steal over a full season. Those are probably unrealistic numbers, but let's say he gets to 15 homers and 35 stolen bases and raises his BA to .260. That's a top-20 outfielder.

Ryan Pressly (RP-MIN)

Brandon Kintzler appears to be first up to open as the closer given Glen Perkins' continued shoulder issues, but Kintzler posted an uncloser-like 5.8 K/9 in 54 games last season and finished poorly with a 9.00 ERA in his final 10 appearances. Should the Twins need a third man up, Pressly could figure his way into the mix. The 28-year-old's 2016 numbers were modest, including a 3.70 ERA and 1.35 WHIP, but he did average 95.1 mph with his fastball and his ratios were solid -- 8.0 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9. It's certainly possible he'll take another step forward this year.

Greg Bird (1B-NYY)

It seems like ages since Bird made his way to the big leagues and filled in for the injured (and now retired) Mark Teixeira. In those 46 games in 2015, Bird batted a solid .261/.343/.529 with 11 home runs in just 157 at-bats. We know about the shoulder surgery around this time last year that wiped out his 2016 season, but Bird is back and should be in line for the majority of the first base at-bats. Somewhat concerning is that Bird hit just .215 in 17 games in the Arizona Fall League, even though he still posted a .346 OBP and six of his 14 hits went for extra bases. The threat of Chris Carter looms, particularly versus LHP, but a solid spring from Bird should lead to 500-plus at-bats. Edit: Bird homered twice Tuesday, so he's off to a nice start.

Chad Green (SP-NYY)

Green came over last year in the Justin Wilson trade and immediately made the deal look good for the Pinstripes, posting a 1.52 ERA and 100:21 K:BB in 94.2 Triple-A innings before being promoted. Of course he found things in the big leagues a bit rougher and allowed a whopping 12 home runs in 45.2 innings to finish with a 4.73 ERA. Unfortunately, he suffered a sprained UCL but is competing for a rotation spot this spring. Tommy John surgery could hover as a possibility, but if he's 100 percent, Green could provide solid production at the back end of the rotation. He's competing with the likes of Bryan Mitchell, Luis Cessa, and former top prospect, Luis Severino for two spots, though Green looks to be the favorite to land one if he's healthy.

Matt Olson (1B-OAK)

For some reason, the A's are giving Yonder Alonso yet another shot despite Alonso failing to post double-digit home runs in any of his five full seasons. He also hasn't topped a .282 BA since a 47-game stint in 2011. Simply, he's far from starting-caliber. Meanwhile, Olson has hit as many as 37 home runs in the minors while posting a 15.2% BB%. Of course there are flaws, including a 24-26% K% and virtually no speed, but the A's may quickly realize they have nothing left to lose by playing him at first base and/or the outfield. Olson once posted (2014) a 47% true outcomes percentage (HR+BB+K divided by plate appearances). That's Adam Dunn territory, and even though Olson may never touch the type of production Dunn put up in his prime, I'd rather see what he can do in place of Alonso.

Hector Neris (RP-PHI)

When the competition is Joaquin Benoit and Jeanmar Gomez, there's a chance for Neris to land a plum role. The 28-year-old is coming off a breakout season in which he posted a 2.58 ERA, 11.4 K/9, and 3.4 BB/9 over 80.1 innings. He averaged 94.1 mph with his fastball, and in 2015 also posted a strong 9.2 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9. Gomez notched a surprising 37 saves last year, but he also allowed 14 runs in his final three innings to take his ERA from 3.66 to 4.85 by season's end. Benoit has been solid and seems to be next in line to close, but he also turns 40 in July and the Phillies are in full rebuild mode. That said, Neris could easily surprise and notch 30 saves this year.

Ty Blach (SP-SF)

Matt Cain is the odds-on favorite for the fifth starter job, but Cain has failed to top 100 innings since 2013, and the last time his ERA was under 4.00 was 2012. Cain did show an improve strikeout rate last year, but after eight seasons of 180-plus innings and many more postseason innings, Cain may be done. Should the Giants need to turn to Plan B, Blach appears to be the next man up. Blach impressed to the tune of a 1.06 ERA in 17 brief MLB innings last year after a 3.43 mark in 26 starts for Triple-A Sacramento that included a 6.3 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9. He's not the next Madison Bumgarner, but the southpaw could have a decent career as a back-end of the rotation guy.

Koda Glover (RP-WAS)

Shawn Kelly is the early favorite for saves, and the Nationals just added Joe Blanton and still have Blake Tiernan, but Glover's upside is the most intriguing of the bunch. I don't expect him to earn the closer job right away, but armed with a 95-98 mph fastball, he's certainly a guy worth keeping an eye on. Glover posted a 5.03 ERA in 19.2 innings for the Nationals in 2016, but in 56 minor league innings, Glover's ERA sat at 2.25 with a 66:14 K:BB. There's serious breakout potential here, and I can see him leading the team in saves.