No. 2 – RHP Corey Kluber, $507,000
Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Corey Kluber made as big a stride forward as any pitcher can make in a one year window. In 2013, he was used as a starter in 24 games and logged two appearances in a relief role as well. He posted a 3.85 ERA with an 11-5 record. Perhaps the best indicator of his future success was in his K:BB ratio. In 2013 it was an impressive 4.12 before jumping to 5.27 in 2014. It’s obvious he has excellent command of his pitches and is able to pick his locations.
White Cleat Beat
Of course, 2014 is well documented history now, as Kluber went on to upset Felix Hernandez and take home a Cy Young award as a 28-year old in his first full season pitching from within a big league rotation. Not even eligible for arbitration until next offseason, it would be foolish to keep him off this roster.
The only reason I am hesitant to not grant him ace status is his track record is not as solid as Cobb’s, though his durability may be a little better. With Kluber’s salary of $514,000 in 2015, the Cleveland Indians only paid $28,555 per win. His WAR of 7.4 was second only to NL MVP and Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw.
Kluber is one of a couple very talented but inexpensive arms the Tribe has in their system. The deadline has passed for signing pre-arbitration eligible players. Though it seems unfair, Kluber is set to make around the league minimum in base salary for 2015. It’s for reasons like this the Indians’ pitching staff has a payroll currently just shy of $15 million, yet their team ERA ranked 14th best in MLB in 2014. Carlos Carrasco, T.J. House and Trevor Bauer all have a lot of potential and are all younger than the Klubot is.