Cleveland Indians: 4 candidates for Cleveland’s most improved player in 2021

4 candidates for the Cleveland Indians most improved player in 2021

The 2021 season for the Cleveland Indians was one that saw a lot of opportunities for young players. Between offseason and deadline trades paired with injuries, plenty of chances for players to prove themselves were presented. While most expected prospects to take advantage of those opportunities, some were grabbed by players already on the roster.

Whether it be a year-to-year upgrade in performance or a shift throughout the season, these four players showed great improvement in their games. Thanks to their efforts, they should have a spot secured on the 2022 Cleveland Guardians. On top of that, they’ve placed their names in the mix for the most improved player in 2021 for the Cleveland Indians.

Harold Ramirez, OF, Cleveland Indians

Saying that Harold Ramirez was one of the most improved players on the Cleveland Indians roster is a bit of an odd statement. He wasn’t in Cleveland last year, but his stats this year are far improved over his 2020 sample that saw just three games played. However, he had a strong 2019 season. So, perhaps this was a bounce back campaign rather than improved?

Regardless, Ramirez ends up on this list because he did improve greatly from 2020 to 2021, even if it might have to do with his sample size. Over his three games with Miami in 2020, Ramirez went 2-for-10 with an RBI.

Moving to Cleveland this season, Ramirez found his grove from 2019 that saw him slash .276/.312/.416 with 20 doubles and 11 home runs over 119 games for Miami. Now, Ramirez is putting up similar numbers for the Tribe.

This year, Ramirez is slashing .266/.302/.405 with 20 doubles and six home runs over 84 games in Cleveland. His slash line has actually dipped a bit, as has his power, but he’s been able to tally the same amount of doubles in 35 fewer games.

Based on the fact that this is more of a bounce back for Ramirez, I’m not sure he could qualify for most improved. Either way, he’s had a strong 2021 season and has been a great addition to the Cleveland roster.

Amed Rosario, SS, Cleveland Indians

Whether you consider the most improved award to be a season-to-season evaluation or over the course of a single season, Amed Rosario is a candidate and possibly the front-runner. Considered to potentially be the MVP of the 2021 Cleveland Indians as well, Rosario has been a bright spot for the club for most of the season.

Starting with the year-to-year, Rosario had a decent season in 2020 with the New York Mets. He slashed a respectable .252/.272/.371, but had just three doubles, a triple and four home runs over 46 games.

As for this year, Rosario used an incredible month of August to balloon his numbers to .285/.323/.413 with 22 doubles, an American League-leading six triples and 10 home runs over 129 games.

While the increase across the board is great, the most intriguing might be the rise in his on-base percentage. In 2020, Rosario drew just four walks, accounting for only 2% of his plate appearances. However, this season he’s drawn 27 for 5% of his plate appearances. That might seem like a small margin, but it’s proof that he’s being more patient in the box and finding his pitches to hit as well.

As for the in-season improvements, Rosario’s glove has come a long way this year. After logging seven errors through Aug. 1, Rosario has been error-free in the field for 32 straight games now. He gained confidence in August at the plate and perhaps it translated to the field as well. Whatever happened, he’s showing to be not only one of Cleveland’s most improved players this season, but one of the best overall.

Cal Quantrill, SP, Cleveland Indians

Like Rosario, Cal Quantrill checks the box for year-to-year improvement as well as in-season improvement when considering Cleveland’s most improved player of the 2021 season.

Spending most of the 2020 season in the bullpen, we’re going to jump back to the 2019 season for Quantrill’s year-to-year comparison. That was the last time that he served as a starter and it didn’t go as planned for the former eighth overall pick.

Starting 18 games over 23 appearances for San Diego in 2019, Quantrill posted a 6-8 record while watching his ERA rise to a mark of 5.16. He averaged just 7.9 strikeouts per nine innings and allowed two runs or more in 14 of his 18 starts.

A move to the bullpen seemed to alleviate some of Quantrill’s struggles, but when injuries hit the Tribe they called him back into the rotation. The start was a bit rocky, but since the beginning of July, when Quantrill was able to settle into the rotation with a high pitch count, he’s been arguably one of the best starters in the American League.

Over that span, Quantrill has made 13 starts, maintaining an ERA of 2.36 and allowing opposing batters a batting average of just .209 while tallying 67 strikeouts. For anyone who saw his first few outings as a starter, that was massive improvement not just over his 2019 campaign, but over his first handful of starts in 2021.