Each person’s definition of a well-kept secret is different.
For the purposes of this piece, the criteria has been kept wide-ranging. A player could be a best-kept secret because they are a productive up-and-comer who’s outshined by more established veterans. They could be a veteran coming off a down year, specifically one who has changed teams this offseason with little or no fanfare. In some cases, a prospect is a well-kept secret because, outside spring training, they’ve had little exposure to the average fan.
It should be noted that this list is written from a national perspective. If you follow a specific team for 162 games, there’s a good chance the player listed for that squad won’t be a revelation.
With all that acknowledged, here’s every MLB team’s best-kept secret entering the 2024 season.
Arizona Diamondbacks: RHP Brandon Pfaadt
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Elsa/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 25
2023 Stats: 3-9, 96 IP, 5.72 ERA, 5.18 FIP, 94 K’s, 0.3 WAR
While the Arizona Diamondbacks have one of the better one-two punches atop their starting rotation in Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly, they entered last postseason without a clear No. 3 starter, which seemed to make them a team destined to be exposed when they reached a seven-game series.
Instead, Brandon Pfaadt—a fifth-round pick in the 2020 MLB draft—emerged as a legitimate third starter in the postseason after a pretty underwhelming rookie season. Pfaadt finished Arizona’s playoff run with a 3.27 ERA over 22 innings.
His most impressive postseason performance came in Game 3 of the NLCS. While the series had shifted back to Chase Field, the Diamondbacks looked to have little chance to capture the NL pennant after falling down 2-0 to the Philadelphia Phillies, getting outscored 15-3 over the two games at Citizens Bank Park.
But Pfaadt limited the Phillies to two hits while striking out nine batters in 5.2 innings. Arizona won Game 3 of the NLCS, eventually winning four of the final five games of the series to shock the Phillies.
Arizona added Eduardo Rodríguez in free agency—and will return both Gallen and Kelly—so its playoff hopes don’t depend on Pfaadt’s ability to carry a brief run of success on the sport’s highest stage into 2024. But if he does, the Diamondbacks will have one of the better rotations in baseball.
Atlanta Braves: INF Luis Guillorme
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Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 29
2023 Stats: .224/.288/.327, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 10 BB, .615 OPS, -0.3 WAR
When a team—particularly a well-run one—swoops in and signs a long-time division-rival, it’s usually a pretty good sign that the player can make an impact. After all, they’ve had the chance to face said player on a pretty frequent basis.
The latest example of that came when the Braves signed Luis Guillorme to a one-year, $1.1 million deal in January, a couple of months after the New York Mets non-tendered the versatile infielder.
Guillorme doesn’t provide much pop, with just five homers across six seasons with the Mets. However, he has a .344 career on-base percentage, with experience playing second base, shortstop and third base. Second base is where he’s received the best marks, with four defensive runs saved and six outs above average for his career.
Signing bench players often isn’t sexy, especially when they’re joining a star-studded team that includes Ronald Acuña Jr., Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley. But Guillorme could prove to be a nice addition by GM Alex Anthopoulos, particularly if he has a bounce-back season offensively.
Baltimore Orioles: 3B/2B Jordan Westburg
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Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 25
2023 Stats: .260/.311/.404, 3 HR, 23 RBI, 16 BB, .715 OPS, 1.1 WAR
Mike Elias was one of the architects of the Houston Astros’ run of success (dynasty?), and may have built an even deeper crop of young talent in his role as the general manager of the Baltimore Orioles.
Jackson Holliday is the latest potential superstar to emerge from an organization that almost seems to have too many young position players, if such a thing is possible.
Jordan Westburg is a former first-round pick himself—No. 30 in 2020—but seems to be overlooked in an organization so flush with young talent.
By the end of 2024, Westburg might be entirely out of the shadows, particularly if the Orioles make a deep playoff run, as many anticipate. He posted a 1.1 WAR over his first 68 MLB games a season ago, which came after he hit 18 home runs and posted a .939 OPS in 67 games for Triple-A Norfolk.
Additionally, Westburg has experience playing both second base and third base, the latter of which he’s projected to be the Opening Day starter at. With Brooks Robinson, (late-career) Cal Ripken Jr. and Manny Machado, the Orioles have a decorated history at third base.
Westburg might not be the next in that line, but he had three outs above average in just 164 innings at third base a season ago, and could become a household name in 2024.
Boston Red Sox: 1B/DH C.J. Cron
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Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 34
2023 Stats: .248/.295/.434, 12 HR, 37 RBI, 17 BB, .729 OPS, -0.5 WAR
Again, this list isn’t just meant to be players who the average fan hasn’t heard of. It also includes those who changed teams this offseason in relative obscurity. C.J. Cron fits that to a tee.
An All-Star in 2022, Cron was limited to 71 games a season ago, a campaign that he split between the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Angels. Despite hitting 116 home runs and posting an .821 OPS between 2018 and 2022, Cron had to settle for a minor league deal with an invite to MLB spring training from the Red Sox after his injury-riddled 2023 season, not landing in Boston until early March.
While Cron has had success hitting both left-handed and right-handed pitchers, his niche in Boston might come as someone who plays against southpaws. Cron has an .814 career OPS against left-handed pitching, which may set him up to spell Masataka Yoshida at DH against tough lefties and occasionally Triston Casas at first base as well.
Who knows, perhaps multiple injured-list stints with lower-back inflammation a year ago is a sign of things to come for Cron, who turned 34 in January. But if he’s healthy, he’ll end up being a tremendous bargain addition, and possible trade candidate if the Red Sox aren’t contenders this summer.
Chicago White Sox: RHP Erick Fedde
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Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 31
2023 Stats (in KBO): 20-6, 180.1 IP, 2.00 ERA, 209 K’s
With Dylan Cease traded to the San Diego Padres, Erick Fedde will likely become the top starting pitching option for manager Pedro Grifol.
A first-round pick in 2014, Fedde was a well below-average pitcher during parts of six seasons with the Washington Nationals, posting a 5.41 ERA and 77 ERA+ (100 is the league average).
However, he dominated for the NC Dinos in the Korean Baseball Organization in 2023, leading the league in wins (20), ERA (2.00) and strikeouts (209). In addition to grabbing the KBO’s pitching triple crown, he ended up winning what amount to the Cy Young and MVP Awards in South Korea.
Fedde returned stateside, landing a two-year, $15 million deal with the White Sox. It feels like a low-risk, high-reward signing for new general manager Chris Getz. If Fedde is just a competent No. 3 starter, this deal will be a steal. If Fedde becomes a top-of-the-rotation arm after his gap year in the KBO, this will be one of the most team-friendly deals in the sport.
And if not, the White Sox will hardly be hamstrung by this contract.
Chicago Cubs: 1B/DH Garrett Cooper
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Matt Dirksen/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 33
2023 Stats: .251/.304/.419, 17 HR, 61 RBI, 31 BB, .724 OPS, 0.3 WAR
Cody Bellinger is back with the Chicago Cubs on a three-year, $80 million deal and may very well get the largest chunk of his starts at first base in 2024. But his ability to play in the outfield—center field, specifically—is part of what makes the 2019 NL MVP so valuable. And you can bet that new manager Craig Counsell will utilize Bellinger in center field at times in 2024.
In the event that he does, someone else will need to play first base. And Cooper, who is in camp with the Cubs as a non-roster invitee, might be who gets the most looks at first base when Bellinger is in center field.
Cooper was an All-Star with the Miami Marlins in 2022, although that perhaps gives you an overinflated sense of how good he is. Still, he hit 17 home runs with 61 RBI in 2023, a campaign that he split with the Marlins and San Diego Padres. Getting him on a minor league deal was tremendous value for the Cubs.
Counsell might be best served doing a kind of platoon between Cooper and center fielder Mike Tauchman. When facing left-handed pitching, Cooper—who had a .904 OPS against southpaws a season ago—can play first base, with Bellinger in center field. Against right-handed pitching, Tauchman can play center field with Bellinger at first base.
Cincinnati Reds: LHP Nick Lodolo
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Quinn Harris/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 26
2023 Stats: 2-1, 34.1 IP, 6.29 ERA, 5.79 FIP, 47 K, 0.0 WAR
The Cincinnati Reds have a boom-or-bust starting rotation, which may decide whether they’re a playoff team in 2024. Frankie Montas and Hunter Greene are at the forefront of it, but Nick Lodolo is very much an X-factor as well.
A former first-round pick, Lodolo looked like a budding star in his rookie season, posting a 3.66 ERA and 3.90 FIP across 103.1 innings in 2022. However, a stress fracture to his left tibia limited him to seven starts in what was essentially a lost campaign a season ago. But, if healthy, he could be a tremendous option in manager David Bell’s rotation.
Between Montas, Green, Lodolo and Graham Ashcraft, the ceiling of Cincinnati’s rotation is very high. But there’s just not a lot of certainty, and that extends to Lodolo.
What’s interesting is if the Reds view themselves this summer as a team that’s a veteran pitcher away from being able to make a deep playoff run, Lodolo could be a young, controllable player rebuilding clubs are interested in.
Obviously, if he has a breakout season, the Reds won’t be parting with him. But if Lodolo isn’t ready to be a starter in a playoff series in 2024, would the Reds give him up—he can’t become a free agent until after 2027—if it guaranteed them two playoff runs with a front-line starter?
Cleveland Guardians: 1B Kyle Manzardo
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David Durochik/Diamond Images via Getty Images
Age in 2024: 23
2023 Stats (at Triple-A): .236/.337/.464, 17 HR, 55 RBI, 55 BB, .801 OPS
It’s not hard to figure out why Cleveland Guardians players were frustrated by the team’s trade-deadline approach last summer.
Cleveland traded struggling first baseman Josh Bell, who went on to homer 13 times in 68 games for the Miami Marlins. They also dealt pitcher Aaron Civale to the Tampa Bay Rays. All of this came while they were still in contention in the AL Central, during what turned out to be the final year of Terry Francona’s run as their skipper.
Critiques of the approach that president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti—likely feeling the pressure of an ownership group that seems allergic to spending money—utilized are fair. But, it’s possible that in dealing Civale and acquiring first base prospect Kyle Manzardo, the Guardians may have acquired an eventual answer to replace the thump they lost when trading Bell.
The 23-year-old has had a strong spring for the Guardians after posting an .801 OPS a season ago in a season largely spent at Triple-A. The team’s No. 2 overall prospect would need to be added to the 40-man roster before making his MLB debut, but there’s a good chance he finds his way into rookie manager Stephen Vogt’s lineup, whether it’s at first base or DH, quite a few times this season.
Colorado Rockies: LF Nolan Jones
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Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 26
2023 Stats: .297/.389/.542, 20 HR, 62 RBI, 53 BB, .931 OPS, 3.7 WAR
The Colorado Rockies acquired Nolan Jones in a trade that sent minor league infielder Juan Brito to the Guardians in November 2022, and it increasingly looks like a heist by the Rockies.
En route to finishing fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting, Jones homered 20 times, drove in 62 runs and posted a 138 OPS+ in 106 games a season ago. On top of his offensive output, Jones posted nine defensive runs saved for Colorado in 2023.
After such a strong debut, is Jones overqualified to be on this list? Perhaps. But he did so for a team that won an NL-worst 59 games a season ago and is often forgotten nationally. While it’s hard to anticipate the Rockies being much more competitive in 2024, it will be impossible to ignore Jones if he puts together a similar campaign over the course of 162 games.
And let’s face it: The Rockies have a pretty good track record with players who have the first name Nolan.
Detroit Tigers: INF/OF Matt Vierling
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Nic Antaya/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 27
2023 Stats: .261/.329/.388, 10 HR, 44 RBI, 44 BB, .717 OPS, 1.2 WAR
Acquired in the trade that sent Gregory Soto and Kody Clemens to the Philadelphia Phillies, Matt Vierling had a strong first half with the Tigers, posting a .763 OPS before tapering off after the All-Star break. Still, Vierling’s positional flexibility makes him very valuable, even if he is performing at just a league average level offensively.
Vierling platooned with Brandon Marsh in center field with the Phillies during their 2022 run to the World Series and is capable of playing all three spots in the outfield. He saw his largest chunk of time in right field during his first season with the Tigers, posting two defensive runs saved in 429.2 innings.
In addition to being able to play all three outfield positions, Vierling has experience playing first, second and third base. With the offseason additions of Mark Canha and Gio Urshela, Vierling figures to open the season in a Swiss-Army knife role on the bench for manager A.J. Hinch. If someone needs a day off at any position or underwhelms, Vierling will likely be pushing them for playing time.
Given that Nick Maton is already out of the Tigers organization, it’s fair to wonder whether Detroit has any chance of winning the January 2023 trade that sent Soto—a frustrating, but durable reliever—to the Phillies. The trade, though, won’t be a complete wash for the Tigers if they properly utilize Vierling’s positional flexibility.
Houston Astros: INF/OF Mauricio Dubón
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Steph Chambers/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 29
2023 Stats: .278/.309/.411, 10 HR, 46 RBI, 19 BB, .720 OPS, 1.9 WAR
Acquired in a trade with the San Francisco Giants in May 2022, Mauricio Dubón struggled so much offensively in his first half season with the Houston Astros—he posted a .548 OPS in 83 games—that he really wasn’t able to make a positive impact.
However, Dubón had his finest offensive season in 2023, homering 10 times, driving in 46 runs and posting a .720 OPS. And that allowed him to really show off his meal ticket, which is his defense.
Dubón saw time at every defensive position except catcher a season ago, winning the Gold Glove among AL utility players. He racked up his most defensive runs saved (five) at second base, but it’s just hard to overstate the value of a player who’s a legitimate option to play every position on the field outside catcher. His being above average at second base and in center field is just icing on the cake.
When you consider how much money super-utility players like Ben Zobrist, Chris Taylor, Whit Merrifield and Kiké Hernández have made in their careers, the Astros are in a very advantageous position having control of Dubón through the 2026 season.
Kansas City Royals: RHP John Schreiber
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Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 30
2023 Stats: 2-1, 46.2 IP, 3.86 ERA, 4.52 FIP, 53 K, 0.1 WAR
In an attempt to drastically improve a roster that produced just 56 wins a season ago, the Kansas City Royals added a slew of veterans this offseason. Reliever John Schreiber was part of a group of additions this offseason that included Hunter Renfroe, Adam Frazier, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, Will Smith, Nick Anderson and Chris Stratton.
Perhaps that won’t take them from the AL Central cellar to the playoffs, but general manager J.J. Picollo certainly didn’t sit on his hands this offseason.
Schreiber was acquired from the Boston Red Sox in February, and the Royals will be hoping for a bounce-back campaign after he posted a 3.86 ERA and 4.52 FIP over 46 appearances a season ago. In 2022, though, Schreiber had a strong campaign with a 190 ERA+ (100 is league average) over 64 games for the Red Sox.
If Schreiber does indeed bounce back, the Royals will be in a great position with him regardless of their overall team success, or lack thereof. He has two remaining years of arbitration eligibility after 2023, which would make him an appealing trade candidate, or someone the Royals could have as a bullpen anchor for a few seasons.
Los Angeles Angels: RHP Luis García
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Steph Chambers/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 37
2023 Stats: 2-3, 59.2 IP, 4.07 ERA, 4.29 FIP, 53 K, 0.1 WAR
Luis García is the oldest player on this list, and given that this is his second stint with the Los Angeles Angels—and he’s played for four other franchises—he’s hardly an unknown.
Still, following a down season in 2023, the Angels signed García for $4.25 million. That will prove to be extremely team-friendly if the veteran righty bounces back. Between 2021 and 2022, Garcia posted a 3.34 ERA and 2.64 FIP between the St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Padres.
Regardless of his effectiveness, García has typically been durable. He’s made 60 or more appearances out of the bullpen five times in his career, including during each of the last two seasons.
Two-time AL MVP Shohei Ohtani departed in the offseason, and there just isn’t much to get excited about with the Halos in 2024. If you’re looking for a silver lining, they did make three solid veteran additions to their bullpen with Robert Stephenson, Matt Moore and García.
Los Angeles Dodgers: OF Andy Pages
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Steph Chambers/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 23
2023 Stats (between Double-A and Triple-A): .277/.425/.482, 3 HR, 25 RBI, 26 BB, .907 OPS
Quite a bit of attention has been paid to how the Los Angeles Dodgers will navigate the first half of the 2024 season with almost a full starting rotation’s worth of pitchers on the injured list. But the team’s outfield depth is also an area worth exploring.
Mookie Betts is the “permanent, for now” shortstop, and it appears he’ll spend the bulk of his time in the middle infield this season. James Outman is seemingly entrenched in center field, and Teoscar Hernández should prove to be a strong addition in left field.
But 34-year-old Jason Heyward is penciled in as the Opening Day right fielder, and while Chris Taylor and Kiké Hernández can fill some gaps, the Dodgers are an injury or underperformance away from being really thin on outfield depth.
That makes Andy Pages—the organization’s No. 3 overall prospect—a key figure, even if he’s unlikely to be on the Opening Day roster. A torn labrum in his left shoulder limited Pages to 34 games a season ago, but he has a cannon right arm and an .898 OPS in parts of five minor league seasons since the Dodgers signed him as an international free agent.
Pages could become the latest reminder of what’s made the Dodgers so special during the Andrew Friedman era. Even as they continue to win and sign top-tier free agents—both of which, theoretically, limit their ability to land talented young players via the draft or international free agency—the Dodgers continue to churn out impact contributors.
Miami Marlins: LHP Andrew Nardi
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Kevin D. Liles/Atlanta Braves/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 25
2023 Stats: 8-1, 57.1 IP, 2.67 ERA, 3.60 FIP, 73 K, 0.8 WAR
Perhaps his 8-1 record and 3.60 FIP—nearly 100 points higher than his 2.67 ERA—suggest Andrew Nardi was in the right place at the right time quite a bit in 2023, but he was definitely a key bullpen piece for a Skip Schumaker-led Miami Marlins club that claimed a wild-card spot.
With Tanner Scott set to open the 2023 campaign as Miami’s closer, Nardi not only projects as Miami’s top setup man, but also the bullpen’s only left-handed option between the starter exiting the game and the closer taking the ball in the ninth inning.
ZiPS projects that Nardi will post a 3.90 ERA over 57 appearances in 2024, which would represent a disappointing output relative to what he did a season ago. If the Marlins are going to make the playoffs in consecutive years for the first time in franchise history, they’ll need Nardi to pitch 60+ games in 2024, and have his ERA around the 2.67 mark he posted a year ago, if not better.
Milwaukee Brewers: INF Joey Ortiz
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Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 25
2023 Stats (at Triple-A): .321/.378/.507, 9 HR, 58 RBI, 32 BB, .885 OPS
The Milwaukee Brewers acquired Joey Ortiz in the February trade that sent former NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes to the Baltimore Orioles. One of the most appealing parts of Ortiz is that at 25, he’s ready to go. And the former fourth-round pick projects to be a key part of first-year manager Pat Murphy’s infield.
Ortiz hit just .212 in his first 33 MLB at-bats a year ago with the Orioles, but that’s too small of a sample size to draw conclusions from. What we know is that Ortiz hit the cover off the ball for the Triple-A Norfolk Tides a season ago, and his defensive flexibility is likely to pay immediate dividends for the Brewers.
On a loaded Orioles team, Ortiz probably would have been looking at either returning to Triple-A to begin the season or coming off the bench. In Milwaukee, he projects as the team’s Opening Day third baseman.
Former first-round pick Brice Turang is going to be the starter at second base to open the season and likely given the entirety of the year to sink or swim at the position.
However, while Willy Adames is going to be the starting shortstop on Opening Day most likely, he’s in a walk year and is seemingly always mentioned as a trade candidate. If the Brewers move Adams at some point in 2024, Ortiz could shift over to shortstop, which is actually his natural position. Or if Milwaukee acquires another shortstop prospect in return for Adams or someone else, Ortiz could be the long-term answer at third base.
Minnesota Twins: LF Matt Wallner
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Brace Hemmelgarn/Minnesota Twins/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 26
2023 Stats: .249/.370/.507, 14 HR, 41 RBI, 28 BB, .877 OPS, 1.9 WAR
Matt Wallner is another example of a player who doesn’t play on one of the coasts but showed enough promise over a small sample size in 2023 that he should be on everyone’s radar entering this season.
In 94 games at the MLB level over the past two seasons—76 of which came in 2023—Wallner has 16 home runs, 51 RBI, 34 walks and an .842 OPS. If you project that type of output over a full season, you’re talking about a borderline All-Star-level player.
Wallner can play both corner outfield positions, and some defensive metrics suggest he might actually be better in right field than left field. Nonetheless, with Max Kepler entrenched in right field, Wallner projects to be the primary left fielder for manager Rocco Baldelli this upcoming season.
Whether the Twins will be able to make up for the loss of AL Cy Young runner-up Sonny Gray is a legitimate question. But even with Byron Buxton’s inability to stay healthy factored in, Minnesota’s lineup could improve in 2024. The Twins will get a full season of Wallner, added veteran first baseman Carlos Santana in free agency and should get a bounce-back year from Carlos Correa.
New York Yankees: OF Trent Grisham
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Rich Storry/Getty Images
Age in 2023: 27
2024 Stats: .198/.315/.352, 13 HR, 50 RBI, 75 BB, .666 OPS, 1.7 WAR
Periodic disclaimer: Not every player on this list is going to be someone the average fan is unfamiliar with. But the New York Yankees acquired Trent Grisham from the San Diego Padres in the December trade that also netted them Juan Soto, and even if he isn’t in manager Aaron Boone’s Opening Day lineup, he’ll probably have a key role for New York this season.
Aaron Judge is going to be the primary center fielder for the Yankees, but it still feels like a dangerous game to have the face of your franchise—a 31-year-old with a spotty injury history who’s in the second season of a nine-year deal—playing too much at such a strenuous position.
Grisham—who has 34 career outs above average in center field—gives the Yankees an insurance option that would be starting on most teams.
If Boone wants to give Judge a day off, he can have Grisham play center field. If there comes a point in the season when the Yankees decide to shift Judge to a corner outfield spot on a regular basis, they have someone who can be plugged in as the starting center fielder.
Additionally, while Grisham has never hit for a high batting average (he’s a .216 career hitter), he does still provide offensive value. Grisham has walked at least 50 times in each of the last three seasons, including a career-high 75 in 2023. He also has some pop, and could get a boost from playing his home games at Yankee Stadium with the short right field porch.
New York Mets: RHP Tylor Megill
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Alex Slitz/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 28
2023 Stats: 9-8, 126.1 IP, 4.70 ERA, 4.96 FIP, 105 K, 0.6 WAR
The New York Mets’ rotation depth already projected to be pretty thin, and then projected ace Kodai Senga had to be shut down with a shoulder injury that will see him open the 2024 season on the injured list.
With all due respect to José Quintana, who has had a very solid career, any team with him at the top of its rotation is going to need some other arms to outperform preseason expectations to make a playoff run.
Maybe the Mets will get a bounce-back season from Luis Severino and/or Sean Manaea, but there’s something about Tylor Megill that continues to be intriguing.
Megill utilizes a four-pitch mix, headlined by a mid-90s fastball and a slider. He’s shown some flashes of putting it all together at the MLB level, such as when he went 4-0 with a 1.93 ERA across five starts in April of 2022. However, a shoulder injury derailed Megill’s 2022 season, and a few blowups really made his 2023 numbers look bad.
But the door has been cracked for the 28-year-old to open the season in the starting rotation following Senga’s injury. Megill has had a strong spring, and if he’s able to stay healthy, what he showed early in the 2022 campaign is still hard to get out of your mind.
Oakland Athletics: RHP Mason Miller
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Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 25
2023 Stats: 0-3, 33.1 IP, 3.78 ERA, 3.47 FIP, 38 K, 0.7 WAR
It needs to be said every time the Oakland Athletics are discussed in 2024: Owner John Fisher is trying to build a team so bad that fans don’t come out to the badly outdated Oakland Coliseum and make it easier for him and MLB to move the team to Las Vegas.
With that said, the A’s are still going to be participating in 2024, even if they have few players for fans to get excited about. One of the few potential silver linings is Mason Miller, who had some impressive moments during his rookie season and will likely be thrust into being manager Mark Kotsay’s closer this year.
Miller utilizes a four-pitch mix, with a fastball, cutter, slider and changeup. His fastball averaged 98.6 mph a year ago, while his cutter sat at a crisp 94.5 mph. Yeah, that’s the type of juice you need to pitch late in ballgames.
Again, it’s hard to tell A’s fans to get excited about any players, because there’s a very real possibility 2024 is the last year the franchise plays their home games in Oakland. But if you’re inclined to follow the team wherever it plays at, Miller could become a potential building block.
Philadelphia Phillies: RHP Jeff Hoffman
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Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images
Age in 2024: 31
2023 Stats: 5-2, 52.1 IP, 2.41 ERA, 2.57 FIP, 69 K, 1.5 WAR
Jeff Hoffman’s story is one that’s familiar to Philadelphia Phillies fans by now, but it deserves national attention.
The former first-round pick didn’t make the Minnesota Twins Opening Day roster a year ago and signed a minor league deal with the Phillies organization, beginning the season at Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
He then parlayed an opportunity to pitch to a rehabbing Bryce Harper in a simulated game into getting a shot with the team and becoming one of manager Rob Thomson’s most trusted relievers.
Hoffman has developed a nasty slider, which he regularly used to get himself out of precarious situations. His ability to come into dirty innings and often escape unscathed earned him the nickname “the Garbage Man” from Harper.
In total, Hoffman was quietly one of the more effective middle relievers a season ago, posting a 180 ERA+ (100 is the league average) over 54 games. In a contract year, Hoffman will likely step into an even higher-leverage role in the Phillies bullpen this season.
Pittsburgh Pirates: CF Jack Suwinski
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Jamie Sabau/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 25
2023 Stats: .224/.339/.454, 26 HR, 74 RBI, 75 BB, .793 OPS, 2.8 WAR
This is more geared toward a national audience, because a breakout 2023 season by Jack Suwinski didn’t get talked about enough.
A 15th-round pick by the San Diego Padres in the 2016 draft, Suwinski had a very nice showing from a power perspective across his first 106 MLB games in 2022 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, homering 19 times.
In 2023, he overcame hitting just .224 and was still valuable because he hit 26 home runs and walked 75 times.
One area of concern for Suwinski is that he posted minus-10 defensive runs saved across 931.1 innings in center field a season ago. However, defensive metrics are divided on his performance in center, as he also posted three outs above average over the same period.
Obviously, if Suwinski is able to stay in center field over the long run, he’s even more valuable to the Pirates. But if he continues to walk and hit the ball out of the ballpark at the clip he has over the last two seasons, they’re going to find a way to keep him in the lineup every day.
At least at the plate, the Pirates appear to have struck gold in acquiring Suwinski as part of the return for Adam Frazier at the 2021 trade deadline.
San Diego Padres: RHP Enyel De Los Santos
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Matt Thomas/San Diego Padres/Getty Images
Age in 2024: 28
2023 Stats: 5-2, 65.2 IP, 3.29 ERA, 3.48 FIP, 62 K, 0.7 WAR
He’s taken a winding road, but Enyel De Los Santos is back with the organization that traded him as a prospect to the Philadelphia Phillies for shortstop Freddy Galvis prior to the 2018 season.
Between 2018 and 2021, De Los Santos was an ineffective long reliever and occasional spot starter for the Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates. However, over the last two seasons with the Cleveland Guardians, De Los Santos has posted a 3.18 ERA and 3.10 FIP across 120 appearances. De Los Santos was one of just 20 relievers who logged 70 or more appearances a season ago.
The San Diego Padres reacquired De Los Santos in a November trade that sent veteran reliever Scott Barlow to Cleveland. In theory, he will be part of a trio of arms—along with Robert Suarez and Yukui Matsui—that tries to make up for the loss of five-time All-Star Josh Hader in free agency.
If De Los Santos continues to pitch at the level he did over the last two seasons with the Guardians, the Padres will be getting strong value out of a player who can’t become a free agent until after the 2026 campaign.
San Francisco Giants: C Patrick Bailey
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Age in 2024: 25
2023 Stats: .233/.285/.359, 7 HR, 48 RBI, 21 BB, .644 OPS, 2.8 WAR
Patrick Bailey hit just .233 with a 77 OPS+ in his rookie year with the San Francisco Giants, underwhelming offensive production that kept him from appearing on top-10 catchers lists entering the 2024 season.
But his work behind the plate is really good. His 10 defensive runs saved were third among all catchers a year ago, trailing only Gabriel Moreno and Alejandro Kirk. His 1.87 catcher pop time was second in the sport, behind just J.T. Realmuto. His 17.4 framing grade was the top mark for backstops. This is someone who has a chance to win multiple Gold Glove Awards in his career.
Still, to be considered among the best catchers in the sport—with the likes of Adley Rutschman, William Contreras, Will Smith, Sean Murphy and Realmuto—Bailey is going to have to make improvements offensively. He did walk 21 times in 97 games a season ago, so becoming someone who walks 45-50 times a season could help to lift his on-base percentage above .300, which feels like the Mendoza line in today’s game.
As long as Bailey does enough offensively to be a qualified defender, though, he’s going to rank among the best defensive catchers for years to come.
Seattle Mariners: RHP Bryce Miller
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Age in 2024: 25
2023 Stats: 8-7, 131.1 IP, 4.32 ERA, 3.98 FIP, 119 K, 1.9 WAR
Quietly, the Seattle Mariners have one of the best rotation trios in the sport with Luis Castillo, George Kirby and Logan Gilbert. If a fourth legitimate option emerges in their rotation, Seattle will have one of the deeper rotations in baseball in 2024.
Enter Bryce Miller, a fourth-round pick in 2021.
Miller’s 3.98 FIP suggests he could get even better results in 2024 than he did from an ERA perspective a season ago, when he finished with a 4.32 ERA in his rookie campaign. 131.1 innings pitched is a good base to build off, and it would be a shot in the arm for the Mariners if Miller can log 150-160 innings in his second MLB season.
Seattle doesn’t need Miller to be an ace; it has multiple top-of-the-rotation starters. But if he can consistently give them six innings and finish the season with an ERA slightly below 4.00, the Mariners are going to be right in the thick of the AL Wild Card race, if not the AL West one.
St. Louis Cardinals: LHP JoJo Romero
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Age in 2024: 27
2023 Stats: 4-2, 36.2 IP, 3.68 ERA, 2.22 FIP, 42 K, 1.2 WAR
Acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies for infielder Edmundo Sosa in July 2022, JoJo Romero posted a 2.22 FIP in 27 relief appearances a season ago. He was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise disastrous campaign for the Cardinals a year ago.
The next challenge for Romero will be putting together a complete season at the MLB level for the first time, as the 36.2 innings he logged for the Cardinals a year ago was a career high.
Part of the problem for Romero is he’s often been on the fringes of rosters for the Phillies and Cardinals, opening last season at Triple-A Memphis and making 17 appearances before getting recalled. He’s out of minor league options, so Romero is here to stay at the MLB level.
The only other question is whether he can stay healthy. Romero is a veteran of Tommy John surgery, undergoing the procedure in May 2021. Patellar tendinitis in his left knee also forced Romero to go on the injured list in early September a year ago.
But Romero has shown flashes, and if he’s able to make 50-plus appearances, 2024 could be a breakout season for the lefty reliever.
Tampa Bay Rays: INF/OF Amed Rosario
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Age in 2024: 28
2023 Stats: .263/.305/.378, 6 HR, 58 RBI, 29 BB, .683 OPS, 0.2 WAR
Amed Rosario is the type of player with positional flexibility who seems like is just going to become a star—or, at the very least, a very useful player—with the Rays.
One of the pieces the Guardians acquired from the New York Mets in the January 2021 Francisco Lindor trade, Rosario hit .282 with a .782 OPS for Cleveland from 2021 to 2022. Over that period, he also led baseball with 15 triples.
2023—a campaign that he split between the Guardians and Los Angeles Dodgers—proved to be underwhelming for Rosario, who finished the season with a .683 OPS. Without being someone who walks a lot or hits for much power, the margin between Rosario being a serviceable offensive player might be thin.
He has to hit closer to the .282 mark that he did from 2021 to 2022, as opposed to .263 in 2023.
But even if he’s never graded out well defensively at shortstop, Rosario can play there. He also had three defensive runs saved at second base after being acquired by the Dodgers last season. And he has some experience as an outfielder as well.
Rosario might not prove to be this era’s Ben Zobrist, but the Rays got a player capable of playing all over the diamond for just $1.5 million this past offseason. He just feels destined to have a career year for the franchise that always manages to find value at the margins as well as anyone in the sport.
Texas Rangers: RHP Tyler Mahle
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Age in 2024: 29
2023 Stats: 1-2, 25.2 IP, 3.16 ERA, 4.19 FIP, 28 K, 0.4 WAR
A few years ago, Tyler Mahle was one of the more coveted trade candidates in the sport. Now, he’s an afterthought with the defending World Series champion Texas Rangers, as he’s going to open the season on an injured list that will also include two of this generation’s best pitchers in Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom.
Mahle, still only 29, had Tommy John surgery last May. So, like Scherzer and certainly deGrom, Mahle is probably more in play for the stretch run than April, May, June and possibly even July. But around the trade deadline, he could be part of the reinforcements that the Rangers add to their starting rotation.
As recently as 2021, Mahle struck out 210 batters and logged 180 innings for the Cincinnati Reds. Texas landed him on a two-year, $22 million deal that will pay him just $5.5 million in 2023.
He’s a secret weapon in 2024, because he’s being overlooked with Scherzer and deGrom also both out. If the version of Mahle that the Reds got in 2021 starts to reemerge late this season, it will make this deal look like a stroke of genius by general manager Chris Young, while also potentially helping the Rangers make another deep playoff run.
Toronto Blue Jays: LHP Ricky Tiedemann
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Age in 2024: 21
2023 Stats (across four minor-league levels): 0-5, 44 IP, 3.68 ERA, 82 K’s
If you haven’t had a chance to watch Ricky Tiedemann pitch for the Toronto Blue Jays, do yourself a favor and sit down for his next Grapefruit League appearance. There’s definitely some electricity in his left arm.
Tiedemann’s repertoire includes a mid-to-high-90s fastball, sweeper and changeup that right-handed batters in particular struggled to hit a year ago. With all that said, it should come as no surprise that the 21-year-old is the top-ranked prospect in Toronto’s farm system.
The Blue Jays already have a pretty strong rotation with Kevin Gausman, José Berríos, Chris Bassitt and Yusei Kikuchi. Adding Tiedemann at some point in 2024 could further strengthen the rotation that manager John Schneider has at his disposal.
What’s also possible is that the Blue Jays are cautious with how much of a workload they have Tiedemann take on after he only pitched 44 total innings a year ago as he dealt with shoulder and biceps injuries. If that’s the case, Tiedemann would be a heck of a late-season weapon out of the bullpen, particularly if his velocity plays up over shorter outings.
Washington Nationals: LF Stone Garrett
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Age in 2024: 28
2023 Stats: .269/.343/.457, 9 HR, 40 RBI, 26 BB, .801 OPS, 1.2 WAR
Stone Garrett’s 2023 season ended in late August when he fractured his left fibula trying to rob a home run at Yankee Stadium. It was an unfortunate ending to an otherwise strong season for the late-blooming Washington Nationals outfielder.
Across his first 310 MLB at-bats—split with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2022 and Nationals in 2023—Garrett has 13 home runs, 50 RBI and .813 OPS. Additionally, he received strong marks for his work in left field with the Nationals last season, posting five defensive runs saved in 480.2 innings.
What’s crazy is that because he didn’t make his MLB debut until 2022, the 28-year-old won’t even become arbitration-eligible until the 2026 season. So Garrett is an extremely cost-effective player for the Nationals.
As Garrett works his way back from the injury, his status for Opening Day is still unclear. But when he returns, he’ll give the Nationals one of the better fourth outfielders in the league, if not a quality regular.
