Making the Grade: Ranking Right Fielders in the AL Central

Apr 26, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; Cleveland Indians right fielder Brandon Moss (44) hits an RBI single in the fourth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

The AL Central is home to a number of one-trick ponies in right field. From base stealers to home run hitters, the division lacks elite complete players at the position.

Filled with health concerns and aging hitters, right field is far and away the weakest outfield position in the AL Central.

It’s filled with former All-Stars such as Alex Rios (injured), Torii Hunter and Brandon Moss. Mixed in with aging veterans are unproven but high-upside outfielders such as Avisail Garcia and J.D. Martinez. There is certainly some potential in the group.

Still, right field brings with it a number of questions – health and production alike.

Rios is already on the shelf for an extended period of time after breaking his hand. Moss is recovering from offseason hip surgery and Garcia has failed to stay on the field since Chicago acquired him from Detroit at the deadline two seasons ago.

But the questions don’t become any clearer as teams make their way down the roster.

With Rios hurt, Jarrod Dyson has assumed some of the right field work despite not having played the position for any extended period of time in his career. Spelling Moss at times has been Jerry Sands and will soon be an aging (and achy) Nick Swisher.

The position is just an unraveled mess until you get to Martinez in Detroit, whose 2014 campaign could serve as a breakout campaign in a promising young career.

This piece highlights the right fielders who occupy the division and ranks them, from 1-5, in reverse order from least productive to most productive.

Next: No. 5

No. 5: Avisail Garcia, Chicago White Sox

Apr 17, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; Chicago White Sox right fielder

(26) receives congratulations from teammates after he hits a home run in the second inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

The White Sox are not far away from really reaping the benefits of the Jake Peavy-for-Avisail Garcia trade in 2013. 

Once a highly touted prospect with Detroit, Garcia has struggled to stay on the field in the early part of his career. He’s never played in more than 72 big league games in one season, as he most recently tore his labrum last April, which forced him out of action until mid-August.

This should be the year White Sox fans get to see what Garcia is all about. According Neil Weinberg of Fangraphs in his preseason predictions, Garcia is on par with Dayana Viciedo in terms of production – which isn’t very good.

While Garcia has been solid this season, he hasn’t done anything particularly impressive. He’s hitting .274/.318/.371 through 16 games and has just one home run and four RBIs. Despite the lack of power, Garcia at a dangerously high rate (17 strikeouts) for a player who can’t seem to compensate for big swings with round-trippers.

His -0.5 WAR in 2014 is certainly less than impressive, but he’s still a young outfielder with a lot of room to grow. He is the least talked about difference-maker in a White Sox lineup stacked with new and incumbent talent, including Jose Abreu, Melky Cabrera and Adam LaRoche.

Chicago is going to rely heavily on Garcia to produce this season but, unfortunately, he’s just not there yet.

Next: No. 4

No. 4: Jarrod Dyson, Kansas City Royals

Apr 27, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Kansas City Royals right fielder

(1) steals third base during the seventh inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

With veteran Alex Rios on the shelf with a broken left hand, Jarrod Dyson (along with rookie Paulo Orlando) has earned a handful of the opportunities in the vacant right field. 

Despite the Royals’ hot start, Dyson has really been the weak link on an otherwise effective offensive club. He’s hitting just .167/.211/.167 through nine games this season and has zero extra-base hits to his credit.

A career .255 hitter, Dyson is most effective as a fourth outfielder. He is a steady late-inning defensive replacement and a pinch-runner, having stolen 30 or more bases in each of the last three seasons.

But he is not an everyday outfielder. Nor had he ever played right field for any significant stretch during the early part of his big league career.

Over the last three seasons, Dyson ranks seventh in all of baseball with 100 swiped bags while earning an 82 percent success rate. Away from the base paths, Dyson is most valuable in the field, where he finished 22nd in the majors in dWAR last season despite playing roughly half as many innings as regular starting outfielders.

Dyson certainly has some value. His offensive deficiencies, though, make him an unreliable everyday player.

Next: No. 3

No. 3: Brandon Moss, Cleveland Indians

Apr 26, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; Cleveland Indians right fielder

(44) hits an RBI single in the fourth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Brandon Moss has shown signs of being both really good and very, very bad over his eight-year major league career.

When he’s hot, like he was on Friday night in Detroit, Moss has the ability to hit the ball a long way – 771 total feet for two home runs – and drive in runs like nobody’s business. But when he’s bad, Moss is as close to an automatic out as there is in the game.

Prior to Friday’s coming out party, Moss was 6-for-37 (.162) on the season with all 17 of his strikeouts coming in his first 34 at-bats. He has an aggressive approach at the plate, which accounts for his 76 home runs over the last three seasons in Oakland, but he racks up strikeouts at a rate similar to Adam Dunn.

Moss was an All-Star with the Athletics last season, as he hit .258 and clubbed 21 home runs prior to the break. Now 16 games and 51 at-bats into his season, Moss boasts a .216/.305/.471 triple-slash line. He is tied for the team-high in home runs (3) and RBIs (11) with slugger Carlos Santana, and his .305 on-base percentage ranks second among qualified players for the Tribe.

Still, it’s a long story of inconsistency for the veteran left-hander.

As well as he played before the break last season, Moss was equally bad – if not worse – in the final two-and-a-half months. Much like Lonnie Chisenhall, Moss saw his second-half average plummet to .173 as he dealt with a hip injury – which he had offseason surgery on – and mustered just four home runs.

When he’s good, Moss belongs at the top of this list. But when he’s bad, he could very well find himself at the bottom. With that in mind, he’ll settle in right in the middle of the pack of right fielders in the AL Central.

Next: No. 2

No. 2: Torii Hunter, Minnesota Twins

Apr 24, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Minnesota Twins right fielder

(48) makes a jumping catch to end the fourth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports

Although he is no longer fit to man center field on a regular basis, it’s certainly nice to see Torii Hunter back in his familiar Minnesota Twins jersey.

In his nine seasons with the Twins from 1999 through 2007, Hunter hit .271 and averaged 22 home runs, 79 RBIs and 75 runs per season. He has always been a difference-maker at the plate but, as Sid Hartman of the Star Tribune writes, few would have ever thought Hunter would return to Minnesota eight years later as an even better offensive player than when he left.

But that has seemingly been the case.

Hunter left the Twins in 2008 to join the Los Angeles Angels, where he hit .286/.352/.462 in five seasons. He averaged better than 20 home runs and 80 RBIs during his stay but, with the added hits, Hunter saw his strikeout numbers increase into the 120s. Hunter than signed with Detroit before the 2013 season and immediately made an impact, becoming an All-Star in his age 37 season. Hunter, again, improved his batting average and hit .295 over more than 1,200 plate appearances in two seasons.

He has gotten better with age.

Off to a slow start now with Minnesota, Hunter is still capable of making a difference on both offense and defense. Hunter has an above-average arm in right field and brings a strong, veteran presence to a young Twins’ organization.

There’s absolutely no doubting Hunter’s impact.

Next: No. 1

No. 1: J.D. Martinez, Detroit Tigers

Apr 19, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers right fielder

(28) in the dugout before the game against the Chicago White Sox at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Some players are just a product of their environment.

After being cut by the lowly Houston Astros in 2014, J.D. Martinez joined the Tigers and mashed himself to a breakout campaign. Martinez played 123 games with Detroit last season – hitting in an order that already contained Ian Kinsler, Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez – and posted a .315/.358/.553 triple-slash line. He more than doubled his career-high in home runs, clubbing 23 round-trippers and driving in 76 RBIs.

In fewer words: Martinez was the absolute perfect complement to an already dynamic lineup.

Martinez brought impressive power and a steady average to an already potent lineup, finishing the season with a 4.2 WAR – a marked improvement on his -1.6 combined WAR over the previous two seasons.

Still just 27 years old, Martinez has a chance to be a feared hitter in the Tigers’ lineup for years to come. Now hitting in the five-hole behind Cabrera, Martinez bridges the gap perfectly between Cabrera and another Tigers’ acquisition Yoenis Cespedes. He has already spanked five home runs, added 14 RBIs and hit .278 in the first 20 games this season.

Perhaps most impressively, Martinez has demonstrated a natural ability to hit from down in the count. Three of his four home runs this season have come in such situations, and he’s hit .308 so far with two outs.

There is still a dangerously small sample size here with Martinez but, with the amount of talent surrounding him in the lineup, he is going to continue to get pitches he can hit. Expect another impressive campaign for the Tigers’ right-hander.

Next: Ranking the Center Fielders