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The Yankees will take the field March 3 for the first spring game of their 2015 season. 

The team is hoping to rebound from a disappointing 2014 season which saw it finish second in the AL East by a whopping 12 games. To do that, the Yankees will have to deal with a new crop of players, injury concerns and the departure of longtime shortstop and surefire Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, as well as the big dark cloud hanging over Alex Rodriguez.

There is room for optimism with this team though, and so long as they can stay healthy, the Yankees are candidates to surpass their modest PECOTA win projections (projected for an 80-82 record) for the 2015 season.

But, before the first spring game takes place and the media circus sets in, let’s take a look at who will make up the Yankees’ 25-man roster and what we might expect out of that group over the course of 162 games.

So, without further ado, I give you your 2015 New York Yankees.

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TAMPA, Fla. — Routinely in the early days this spring, the Yankees haven’t started workouts until late morning. Nobody begins their workdays this late in the spring, ever. Not in Florida. Not in Arizona.

Why did manager Joe Girardi do it? Was it because:

A. He wanted to outwait the thick morning dew and make sure the fields were dry.

B. The Yankees needed an extra couple of hours each morning to ensure that Masahiro Tanaka’s elbow was still in one piece, and to get CC Sabathia weighed in.

C. Alex Rodriguez thought it would be a fabulous team-bonding exercise to hold FaceTime sessions each morning with retired icon Derek Jeter.

Correct answer? A.

But the fact there is even a remote chance that “all of the above” could be accurate tells you how weird things have gotten around here.

“The [pitching machine] got yelled at for not covering first,” Girardi quipped.

Yet ol’ Iron Mike still was more nimble than Michael Pineda.

From the time A-Rod walked in wearing a lime green polo shirt and holding a cup of coffee at 10:08 a.m. Monday until the last Yankees straggled out midafternoon, there was every chance of spotting a flying monkey, or an intrasquad game featuring pitching machines instead of real, live pitchers.

Wait. That last thing was something else that really happened, one more odd twist in a spring full of them. Girardi explained that it was easier to control things with the pitching machines because the point of the exercise was to work on baserunners’ reactions, and cutoffs and relays.

These are different times and different faces for the Yankees, who are steaming toward a transformational summer that could be spectacular or disastrous, with little chance for anything in-between.

Disastrous, though, currently is the odds-on favorite.

In order to avoid utter catastrophe, old-timers Mark Teixeira (wrist), Carlos Beltran (elbow) and Rodriguez (yearlong suspension) must reverse their declines. And with Teixeira turning 35 on April 11, Beltran 38 on April 24 and A-Rod 40 on July 27, Father Time may be tougher to hit than Indians Cy Young winner Corey Kluber.

Tanaka (small tear in his elbow’s ulnar collateral ligament) must become the outlier from a group of many other pitchers—Chad Billingsley and Dylan Bundy among them—who have tried to avoid surgery by rehabbing, only to eventually need Tommy John surgery anyway.

Sabathia, who intentionally regained some of his old weight and expects to pitch at around 305 pounds this season (he’s 6’7″, so it’s not as bad as it sounds), must also rebound. And he turns 35 on July 21.

Even Brian McCann, who declined last year, is 31. Brett Gardner is 32 on Aug. 24.

In other words, the Yankees’ only hope is for a group of aging, veteran players to all bounce back together.

And of that group, how many? Four? Five? Six?

“I’ve never looked at it that way, you know?” Girardi says. “What’s important is everyone contributing. To win, you don’t need everyone having career years.

“Sometimes, what you need is nine or 10 guys having really good years. Sometimes, what you need is having three or four guys having career years.

“Whatever the combination is, we need to find it.”

With a fat payroll expected to check in at around $230 million and attendance expected to plummet now that we’re past the Jeter and Mariano Rivera farewell tours, you also wonder whether the conversation soon could turn from A-Rod’s sins to the futures of Girardi and general manager Brian Cashman.

It’s hard not to see a scenario coming soon in which both Girardi and Cashman move onto the griddle, unless you’re a fervent subscriber to the YES Network who believes in unicorns and the Easter Bunny.

If things go south, look out.

“The body’s perfectly fine,” Tanaka says through an interpreter. “I understand everybody’s worried about the elbow, and I understand, too, that I have to be cautious about it as well.

“But so far, it’s been good.”

Neither Tanaka nor Sabathia will see Grapefruit League action before next week.

“If I worry about every pitcher, it’s going to drive me crazy,” Girardi says. “If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen.”

Pitching coach Larry Rothschild is clinging to the belief that there are many pitchers who currently are throwing with small tears in their elbow that we just don’t know about yet, and they’re all doing fine.

“So I’m not sure how much actual knowledge we have,” Rothschild says. “You can draw conclusions.”

But his point is, those conclusions might not be accurate.

So the Yankees continue to believe.

At least, in the clubhouse.

Outside, with Jeter, Rivera and the rest of the icons now gone, it appears to be a different story. The Yankees already are dipping back into their past this summer in retiring the numbers of Bernie Williams (51), Andy Pettitte (46) and Jorge Posada (20), moves largely viewed as a means to create a few blockbuster days in a schedule that could be devoid of them.

In Tampa, the Yankees have scheduled some giveaway days during their spring schedule to help attract fans. And anyone wanting to purchase tickets for the Boston Red Sox visit on March 11 is required to also purchase two tickets to two other Grapefruit League games.

Never heard of that before in the spring.

Meanwhile, the new guys blend in, one pinstripe at a time.

“[S]tarting times were earlier in Arizona,” says shortstop Didi Gregorius, who has his work cut out for him in replacing Jeter at whatever time is go time. “That’s the biggest difference.”

Well, that and the clown show known as A-Rod. And, honestly, right now that could be a blessing for some of these guys. Because as he’s swallowing up all of the attention, the rest of the Yankees can work in peace. Gregorius doesn’t have 30 people asking him about Jeter every day. And Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances aren’t being sized for tabloid headlines looking to stoke a closer war.

“It’s been great,” third baseman Chase Headley says. “It hasn’t been an issue at all with Alex.”

And that’s where this entire misdirection play is coming from with the Yankees: While we’re all watching A-Rod, the real issues are a few more miles up the road.

Scott Miller covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report. 

Follow Scott on Twitter and talk baseball.

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Following the 2014 World Series, Alex Rodriguez‘s season-long suspension came to an end. Now, the controversial star has to convince the New York Yankees that he is healthy enough to be a productive piece for the franchise in 2015 and beyond.

That journey began Monday as he participated in an intrasquad game and will continue Wednesday when he plays in his first exhibition game.  

“[Joe] Girardi said A-Rod will play in Wednesday’s game and will DH. Might see some work in the field next week,” Brendan Kuty of NJ.com noted Monday.

“Rodriguez went 0-for-2 as the designated hitter in an intrasquad game Monday. Hitting off a pitching machine, he grounded to third on the second pitch and flied out to short right on the first pitch,” reported The Associated Press‘ Mark Didtler.

A-Rod began his path to redemption in the court of public opinion Feb. 17 when he issued a public apology for his past actions, courtesy of Andrew Marchand of ESPN.com:

I take full responsibility for the mistakes that led to my suspension for the 2014 season. I regret that my actions made the situation worse than it needed to be. To Major League Baseball, the Yankees, the Steinbrenner family, the Players Association and you, the fans, I can only say I’m sorry.

I accept the fact that many of you will not believe my apology or anything that I say at this point. I understand why and that’s on me. It was gracious of the Yankees to offer me the use of Yankee Stadium for this apology but I decided the next time I am in Yankee Stadium, I should be in pinstripes doing my job.

An arbitrator reduced Rodriguez’s original 211-game suspension to 162 games for his role in the Biogenesis scandal in January 2014. He initially appealed the decision before accepting it prior to the start of spring training in February 2014. 

Upon making his return, Rodriguez has to overcome the stigma associated with him. Redemption will only come if he plays well. However, it’s tough to expect much out of a 39-year-old with a history of hip problems who hasn’t played in an actual game since Sept. 25, 2013. 

There’s also the question of where A-Rod will play this coming season. During a press conference in October, general manager Brian Cashman said the team had discussed moving A-Rod to a different position, per Marchand:

I don’t think it’s safe to assume that he can play third base. With his age and missing a full year, you have to have some perspective. This is a very difficult game. Alex is up for that challenge, but I think it’s safer to assume that might not be something that he can handle the whole year.

Upon signing third baseman Chase Headley to a four-year, $52 million contract in December, Cashman confirmed to the AP that Rodriguez would be switching positions (via ESPN.com). The GM hoped A-Rod could serve as the team’s full-time designated hitter, and “if he shows he has retained athleticism, then he can play third as a choice when Joe [Girardi] decides to give Headley a rest.”

This winter, Rodriguez has taken reps at first base and was the designated hitter for Monday’s intrasquad game.

In October, Cashman also addressed the topic of what he expects to get from a healthy Rodriguez, per Marchand.

“I know one thing, he’s a great presence in the lineup when he’s healthy,” Cashman said. “And we look forward to good health and obviously production. But to assume anything right now on the front end, I can’t do that.”

No one should expect Rodriguez to come back hitting .300 with 40-plus home runs like he did in his prime. The Yankees don’t even need that. If he posts a .244/.348/.423 slash line like he did in 44 games during the 2013 season, that would be a vast improvement over what Yankees DHs hit last year (.230/.290/.372), per Baseball-Reference.

While that won’t satisfy those concerned with the enormous size of Rodriguez’s contract, the Yankees are on the hook for that money regardless of whether he plays or they release him. Accordingly, they should give him the chance to show what’s left in the tank. 

Rodriguez should be more motivated than ever to perform at a high level after having his livelihood taken away for an entire year. If that means he can hit 15-20 homers again with a respectable average and on-base percentage, New York should be satisfied with that.

We will find out what’s in store for A-Rod when he officially takes the field in spring training. 

If you want to talk sports, hit me up on Twitter. 

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The calendar has turned to March, meaning we’re inching ever closer to the onset of the 2015 MLB regular season.

Spring training is now in full swing for all 30 teams. Pitchers are throwing bullpens, and hitters are taking their hacks in the cage in preparation for the upcoming grind of a 162-game season. As if that weren’t enough, there’s a slate of roughly 30 spring games to be played as well.

General managers worked tediously this offseason to build complete rosters for such a grind, but not every team is poised for success in 2015. There are some that will disappoint.

The arduous journey has begun for every team in baseball, and while it’s hard to make predictions so early in such a long season, you will find a couple below.

Full daily schedule is also available at MLB.com.
 

Most Improved Team: Chicago White Sox

There’s a legitimate argument that can be made for which team had the best winter.

The San Diego Padres revamped their offense and added a front-line starter to an already strong group. The Chicago Cubs added Jon Lester, Dexter Fowler and Miguel Montero, giving them a strong veteran presence on an otherwise young team. Even the Boston Red Sox can be considered major winners after signing two of the top hitters on the market and trading for Rick Porcello.

But the top spot goes to the Chicago White Sox. They were aggressive in filling needs, as ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark writes:

If you watched White Sox GM Rick Hahn at work this winter, you could almost see him checking off boxes on his offseason wish list: Top-of-the-rotation starter — Jeff Samardzija (check). Closer — David Robertson (check). Left fielder — Melky Cabrera (check). First baseman/DH to ease the load on Jose Abreu — Adam LaRoche (check). Left-handed reliever — Zach Duke (check). Super utility men — Emilio Bonifacio and Gordon Beckham (check). Now that the transaction dust has settled, this team is way better than the 89-loss outfit of 2014.

Those commitments were mostly large financial ones—aside from the deals for Bonifacio and Beckham, of course—and that seemingly left USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale in shock:

When assessing the woes of last season’s White Sox, it’s obvious to see why these moves were made. They ranked 28th in baseball in terms of offensive WAR (10.6), 25th in starter’s ERA (4.26), 28th in reliever’s ERA (4.38) and 28th in defensive rating (negative-48), per FanGraphs.

Cabrera and LaRoche certainly solve some of the offensive issues, as both are 20-homer threats who can bat in the middle of the order. Samardzija and Robertson, each one of the top pitchers in their respective roles last season, will patch up shotty units for manager Robin Ventura. Defensively, Cabrera and LaRoche are solid, if nothing else.

Ventura now has a deep rotation to work with. Headlined by Samardzija and perennial All-Star Chris Sale, the unit also features Jose Quintana, John Danks and possibly top prospect Carlos Rodon.

Add in the fact that youngsters like Jose Abreu, Adam Eaton, Avisail Garcia and Tyler Flowers could still improve, and the White Sox are a team to watch in 2015 and beyond.

Hahn made moves to win now, but they also set him up for the future. No GM had a better offseason. Look for the White Sox to compete in the American League Central and possibly represent the division in the playoffs.

Prediction: White Sox win 91 games and win the AL Central.

Most Disappointing Team: Baltimore Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles won 96 games in 2014. It might be a struggle for them to even get to 86 in 2015.

The American League East champs lost Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis in free agency, two major contributors to last year’s team. Right-handed power is hard to come by in today’s game, but Cruz was the best of them all in 2014, smacking 40 home runs to lead baseball.

Andrew Miller, one of the studs of the postseason for the Orioles, also left town during the offseason, signing with the New York Yankees. The importance of a dominant bullpen was highlighted by the Kansas City Royals in October, so it will be interesting to see how the team copes with the loss.

ESPN.com’s David Schoenfield defended Baltimore’s choices:

Inactivity isn’t always a bad thing just as activity doesn’t ensure improvement. What have the Orioles lost? They’ve lost some 2014 value: Cruz was worth 4.6 WAR, Markakis 2.7 WAR and Miller 1.0 WAR (with the Orioles). The general consensus, however, is that the Mariners overpaid for Cruz (four years, $57 million) and the Braves overpaid for Markakis (four years, $44 million). Miller was just a rental and was going to leave anyway. Cruz turns 35 on July 1 and Markakis is entering his age-31 season, had offseason surgery to repair a herniated disk in his neck and has a .371 slugging percentage over the past two seasons. It’s understandable that the Orioles didn’t want to commit nearly $100 million to those two guys. 

At least there are options for the O’s. Dylan Bundy isn’t far from a major role on this team. The top prospect should be a starter in the future, but there’s nothing wrong with him settling into a late-inning role out of the pen in 2015. It should be enough to get his feet wet before a breakout season in 2016.

Kevin Gausman, another young arm, should find a permanent role in the rotation this season. He’s primed for a breakout himself. One can also assume that Ubaldo Jimenez will improve upon his disastrous 2014.

Baltimore had one of the best offenses in baseball in terms of WAR last season, per FanGraphs. Such noticeable losses put the pressure on Matt Wieters, Manny Machado and Chris Davis, three stars who either struggled or fell victim to injuries.

Davis hit 26 homers, but he slashed .196/.300/.404 after posting a line of .286/.370/.634 in the previous year. He doesn’t need to hit 53 bombs again, but he’ll have to up his average and on-base percentage.

For Wieters and Machado, it’s all about staying healthy. Machado told The Associated Press, via The Washington Times, that he’s ready to go: “I think everything has been going smooth, knock on wood. Everything’s been going good. I’ve just got to keep my strength up. I’ve got two brand new knees now, so it’s just time to go out there an play and keep do what I’ve been doing, stay on it.”

With a clean bill of health and a full season, Machado could hit 20-plus homers with a balanced slash line and even a Gold Glove to top it off. He’s a future stud barring trips to the disabled list.

The Orioles might be good, but they might be bad too. There are too many question marks surrounding the Orioles, and instead of putting a bunch of eggs in the metaphorical basket, it’s probably safest to bet low on the team.

Prediction: Orioles win 84 games and miss the playoffs.

Follow Kenny DeJohn on Twitter: @kennydejohn

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It seems every year there is at least one prospect who, despite not being regarded by the industry as a whole, blows past expectations in spring training and earns a spot on an Opening Day roster.

Most of the time, they are guys who do one or two things well: They have enough of one tool that their projected floor performance in the major leagues at least should be tolerable.

At the same time, if the player doesn’t meet those expectations, then his team won’t have to worry as much about a demotion or reduced playing time hurting his development as they would with a top-ranked prospect.

Here’s a look at some boom-or-bust prospects worth following closely in spring training.

Peter O’Brien, C, Arizona Diamondbacks

Peter O’Brien furthered his reputation as one of the minor league’s premier sluggers last season by launching 34 home runs in 427 plate appearances between the High-A and Double-A levels. But as has been the case during his career, O’Brien’s power came at the expense of consistent contact, as the 24-year-old fanned 26 percent of the time in 2014 compared to a five percent walk rate. That said, he still batted .271/.316/.594 and showed some defensive value by playing first base, right field and catcher.

When the Diamondbacks acquired O’Brien from the Yankees last July at the trade deadline, they did so for his potential to hit 25-plus home runs and possibly stick behind the plate. You see, he has long been scrutinized for his raw defense; detractors point to the natural challenges associated with his 6’3” frame, arguing that it limits his mobility and blocking ability.

However, the Diamondbacks believe O’Brien can handle catching in the major leagues, especially after the work he put in defensively during last year’s Arizona Fall League. In fact, general manager Dave Stewart recently stated that O’Brien could be the team’s long-term catcher, per Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic:

After trading Miguel Montero during the offseason, Arizona is, for whatever reason, content with opening the season with a combination of Tuffy Gosewisch, Gerald Laird and Rule 5 pick Oscar Hernandez behind the plate. It also means O’Brien could receive an extended look this spring, as he’s already drawing rave reviews for his exploits in batting practice.

While O’Brien’s power and upside certainly stands out most in the group—even if it translates to a high strikeout rate and low batting average—it will be his glove that ultimately determines his role and impact in the major leagues.

Steven Moya, OF, Detroit Tigers

Speaking of prodigious power, Steven Moya’s has always ranked among the best in the minor leagues, but a rash of injuries—including Tommy John surgery—caused him to fall behind the developmental curve, which is why he reached Double-A Erie for the first time this year in his sixth professional campaign.

Suffice it to say that Moya helped to make up for the lost time in a big way, as he was named MVP of the Double-A Eastern League after leading the circuit in home runs (35), RBI (105), extra-base hits (71) and slugging percentage (.555)—all career highs. He also set a single-season franchise record for Erie with 286 total bases in addition his batting totals. The Tigers rewarded Moya for his breakout season with a September call-up,

A 6’6” left-handed hitter, Moya’s bat speed, strength and leveraged swing fuel his enormous raw power to all fields, but there continues to be concern about his capacity to hit big league pitching. The 23-year-old’s path through the zone can be long, and he still lacks any semblance of plate discipline, which explains his 29.3 percent strikeout rate and 4.2 percent walk rate last season in 549 Triple-A plate appearances. Meanwhile, Moya continues to do the majority of his damage against right-handed pitching.

Even though manager Brad Ausmus has stated that Moya is unlikely to break camp with the team, there’s still a chance the Tigers will consider him for a bench role to begin the 2015 season if either Miguel Cabrera or Victor Martinez haven’t recovered from their respective injuries. If that were to be the case, then most of Moya’s at-bats would likely come as the designated hitter.

Frank Montas, RHP, Chicago White Sox

A pair of knee injuries limited Frank Montas to only 15 starts in 2014, his first season with the White Sox, but the right-hander still made a strong impression during his time with High-A Winston-Salem and Double-A Birmingham and then opened even more eyes in the Arizona Fall League.

The 6’2”, 185-pound right-hander boasts a fastball in the high 90s that eats up opposing hitters. However, in spite of his improved control last season, Montas‘ delivery involves considerable effort and currently impedes his ability to locate pitches within the strike zone; he won’t dominate as many hitters at the top of the zone at higher minor league levels. Montas struggles to throw strikes consistently with his above-average-to-plus slider and average changeup, with the former serving as his best swing-and-miss offering.

The 21-year-old may be best suited for a bullpen role at the highest level, but any additional improvement to his secondary arsenal and command profile should further his stock as a potential starter.

Montas is a candidate to receive more innings this spring in the wake of Chris Sale’s foot injury, according to Scott Merkin of MLB.com. He’ll have to really impress the organization to win a spot, however, as he’ll be competing against fellow prospects Carlos Rodon and Chris Beck.

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Winter is a long, soggy slog for everyone, but it’s especially brutal for Major League Baseball fans.

Not only do we endure the ice and chill, but we also do it without a flicker of MLB action. And the suffering really sets in once the hot stove goes cold.

So huzzah for spring training and the return of actual honest-to-goodness baseball. Gloves, bats and fresh-cut grass are back—the whole nine.

Here’s the thing, though: It’s only spring. The games, which kick off on March 1, are mostly meaningless—or at least the outcomes are.

Even individual performances can be deceiving, with scalding starts or extended slumps vanishing like a desert mirage when the regular season begins.

The point isn’t to throw a wet blanket on your budding baseball-related joy. But overreactions abound this time of year, and the discerning fan would do well to avoid them.

What sorts of overreactions? It’s funny you should ask.

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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.

Follow me on Twitter Follow @TylerDuma

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It wasn’t long after the end of the 2014 season that general manager John Mozeliak and manager Mike Matheny informed Carlos Martinez that he’d report to spring training as a starter in 2015.

It was the same message Mozeliak had for the 23-year-old right-hander after the 2013 season.

But after losing to Joe Kelly last spring, Martinez seems to have an inside track toward the final spot in the team’s Opening Day rotation this time around, a spot made available through the trades of Kelly and Shelby Miller.

Armed with a triple-digit fastball and a deep arsenal of swing-and-miss offerings, Martinez has emerged as one of the more dominant late-inning relievers in baseball, making 70 appearances out of the Cardinals’ bullpen since arriving on the scene in May 2013.

Yet the organization has never given up on his upside as a starter. It’s probably because the right-hander showed huge potential in the role during his time in the minor leagues, with a 2.61 ERA, .215 opponents’ batting average and 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings in 338 innings over 69 starts (70 appearances overall).

Martinez has started eight games for the Cardinals over the last two seasons, but his inconsistency in the role as well as the organization’s pitching depth have kept him from locking down a spot in the rotation.

This year, however, Martinez is determined to break camp as a starter. He spent part of the offseason playing in the Dominican Winter League, where he pitched to a 2.25 ERA with 26 strikeouts against two walks in 24 innings (five starts), and he’s already received glowing reviews from members of the organization after reporting to spring training ahead of schedule.

“A year ago you’d just see a kid bounding around here. It’s amazing the transformation,” Matheny told The Associated Press (h/t Fox Sports Midwest) earlier in the week. “In general there’s a whole different demeanor to him.”

So will this be the year Martinez finally sticks as a starter?

As a reliever, Martinez throws mostly fastballs, both four-seamers and sinkers, and sliders, and they’re each extraordinary pitches by all measures.

Martinez’s average fastball velocity of 96.7 mph in 2014 was tied for third highest among all pitchers with at least 80 innings pitched, per FanGraphs, while Brooks Baseball says he topped out at 101.97 mph last April.

Unsurprisingly, Martinez also throws his sinker (or two-seam fastball) exceptionally hard, averaging 95.2 mph with the pitch. He can struggle to control the pitch (17.78 percent strike rate) but generally keeps it down in the zone, as only seven percent of the balls put in play last season against his sinker were in the air compared to 65 percent on the ground.

So what makes the 23-year-old’s sinker so good? Beyond throwing it harder than most other pitchers, Martinez’s sinker stands out for its difference in vertical movement relative to his four-seamer. Specifically, the right-hander’s fastball averaged 8.2 inches of vertical movement last season where as his sinker had 3.2 inches, meaning there was more than a five-inch gap between pitches.

And then there’s Martinez’s slider, which was his best swing-and-miss offering last season thanks to a 24.2 percent whiff rate, per Brooks Baseball. In general, his slider generated whiffs on 45.5 percent of all swings. Martinez’s success with the pitch might have something to do with the fact he threw it nearly five miles per hour harder last season (86.5 mph) than he did in 2013 (81.6 mph), as it also allowed him to create more vertical movement.

Martinez’s changeup was widely viewed as his best secondary offering during his rise through the minor leagues, but he’s had to dial back his use of the pitch significantly as a reliever. But while the right-hander threw it only 2.9 percent of the time, he still was able to produce a nearly 21 percent whiff rate.

Improving his changeup has been a focal point for Martinez this offseason, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

It’s a circle changeup and it has depth to it. The changeup is not a new pitch for him. There was a time during his development that a scout told me Martinez could get “changeup happy” when he should just pile-drive the fastball. Played off his fastball, the changeup was viewed was one of his best and most deceptive pitches as he worked his way through the minors.

But for as good as Martinez’s stuff is, the 23-year-old still has plenty of room for improvement in terms of his command, evidenced by his 3.63 walks per nine innings last season.

The bigger issue is Martinez’s career splits, as he’s dominated right-handed batters in the major leagues but struggled mightily against lefties.

More specifically, he has problems throwing strikes and induce whiffs from left-handed hitters like he does righties:

Combine all that with the concerns regarding his long-term durability as a starter, and you begin to see why the Cardinals want Martinez to earn his spot in the rotation this spring. His main competition is left-handers Jaime Garcia and Marco Gonzales, and it’s possible that Carlos Villanueva could also receive consideration should the other hurlers struggle.

However, none of them have as much upside as Martinez.

Few do.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Spring training is now underway for the Boston Red Sox in Fort Myers, Florida. The Red Sox have 57 players in camp preparing for the 2015 season. In addition to the full 40-man roster, there are also 17 non-roster invitees trying to prove they belong.

While there are not likely to be many significant battles for spots in the starting lineup, the Red Sox’s final 25-man roster is still taking shape. Here’s a guide to every player participating in Boston’s major league spring training, broken down position by position.

Unless otherwise noted, all statistics via RedSox.com and contract information via spotrac.com. 

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The Los Angeles Dodgers underwent their first full workout of spring training this week, officially turning the page on a busy offseason and opening the 2015 chapter with high hopes.

Succumbing to the St. Louis Cardinals in the playoffs for a second straight year prompted the franchise to rethink its overall philosophy last October. Ownership opted to hire an entirely new front office, headed by president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and general manager Farhan Zaidi, shortly after the postseason defeat.

This analytic-minded duo wasted little time revamping the roster, trading away fan favorites Matt Kemp and Dee Gordon while allowing Hanley Ramirez to walk via free agency in an effort to improve defense, chemistry and financial flexibility.

Spring training games against other MLB opponents at Camelback Ranch don’t begin until March 4, but the Boys in Blue are eager to see what their new—and hopefully improved—roster can do on the field.

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