Melvin Upton Jr.
Melvin Upton Jr. will be a player to watch this spring as he could factor into the outfield rotation for the Cleveland Indians this season particularly early in the year. With Michael Brantley and Brandon Guyer possibly starting the season on the DL, Upton could get a great deal of playing time in the first month of the season should he perform decently this spring.
At 33, Upton will never be the player that he once was with the Rays, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be a useful player for the Tribe. Between 2015 and 2016 with the Padres, Upton was an above average hitter, outfielder, and baserunner which made him worth about three wins during that span of nearly a full season’s worth of playing time. Upton was then traded to the Blue Jays and really struggled for them. Last season, Upton was plagued by injuries and never played a game in the majors.
As of 2016, Upton’s Statcast numbers were promising as well. Upton has been able to maintain his plus speed into his early 30s. This coupled with his superb instincts on the bases have kept him a good base-runner and base-stealer as he swiped 27 bags in 2016. Upton is also an excellent defensive outfielder that can play either left or center, though he is more valuable in left field at this point in his career.
Perhaps most importantly for the Cleveland Indians is that Upton has had great success against left-handers for much of his career. He has a career 109 wRC+ against southpaws and was even better against them during his strong 2015-2016 run. If Upton can replicate this production, it will help the team ease Brandon Guyer back from his wrist injury. The Indians will be hoping to see glimpses of the 2015-2016 Upton in camp this year to bring him north with the team to begin the season.