10 MLB Hitters Who Could Experience a Power Surge in 2015

Every season features countless players who enjoy an uptick in power and hit more home runs than they did the previous year.

The improvement can be extreme in some cases, such as when Jose Bautista went from 13 home runs in 2009 to 54 the following year. However, a majority of the time it’s more subtle, with players adding anywhere from five to 15 home runs compared to the previous year.

But which players are poised to hit for more power in 2015?

In order to determine candidates with the potential for a power spike next season, we looked at guys with room to improve in their home run totals and isolated slugging (ISO), using line drive, fly ball and home run rates in 2014 as predictors. We also considered guys who battled power-limiting injuries last season and are reportedly fully healthy entering spring training.

Here are 10 hitters who could experience a power surge in 2015.

Jon Singleton, 1B/DH, Houston Astros

2014 Power Stats: 362 PA, 13 HR, 50 XBH%, .168 ISO, 15.9% HR/FB

Singleton packs 255 pounds into his 6’2” frame, and so far, he’s mostly lived up to his billing as a plus power hitter. The majority of his 13 homers in 2014 weren’t cheap, and he’s shown the ability to generate power toward Minute Maid Park's short left field porch, which should pad his totals as he learns to make more consistent contact.

These things make him a 30-homer candidate over a full season, even with all the strikeouts, but those homers could be lonely knowing that he hasn’t shown much of an ability in exploiting the gaps for doubles.

Jonathan Schoop, 2B, Baltimore Orioles

2014 Power Stats: 481 PA, 16 HR, 35.8 XBH%, .145 ISO, 13.1% HR/FB

Jonathan Schoop has an overaggressive and undisciplined approach as well as a serious swing-and-miss problem, but dude has some serious thump in his bat. Granted, Schoop’s not consistent about hitting balls to the outfield, but he puts a charge into the ones that he does. And while his home run power has mainly been concentrated to left field, he’s driven enough balls deep to center to convince one that he’s not just a pull-power guy. Hitting difficulties aside, he has the goods to challenge the 25-homer threshold in 2015.

Travis d'Arnaud, C, New York Mets

2014 Power Stats: 421 PA, 13 HR, 40.1 XBH%, .174 ISO, 10.5% HR/FB

Travis d’Arnaud may have developed a distinct preference for pulling the ball last season, but it did allow him to start hitting home runs with greater frequency and has him poised for even more dingers in 2015. His demotion to the minors back in June was once again the key separating point, as he’d gone from basically not hitting anything well to left field to hitting everything well to left field. It's a bummer that his power to other fields is limited, but he’s turned himself into a potential 20- to 25-homer catcher.

Xander Bogaerts, SS, Boston Red Sox

2014 Power Stats: 594 PA, 12 HR, 31.8 XBH%, .123 ISO, 7.1% HR/FB

Xander Bogaerts showed that he needs some serious work with his approach and hitting in 2014, but things weren’t so bad with his power. He hits a lot of fly balls, and in doing so has shown good power up the middle of the field, and while he didn’t show much of it last season, the youngster also has good pop the other way.

The best way for Bogaerts to increase his power in 2015 would be to try to pull the ball more often so as to take advantage of the Green Monster, although such an adjustment would have to go hand in hand with his approach. Regardless, there’s no question that Bogaerts’ power potential is better than his production makes it look.

Nick Castellanos, 3B, Detroit Tigers

2014 Power Stats: 579 PA, 11 HR, 33.3 XBH%, .135 ISO, 7.5% HR/FB

Nick Castellanos is a candidate for a serious jump in the power department in 2015, especially after over 60 percent of his batted balls in 2014 were either line drives or fly balls. More importantly, Castellanos, 22, demonstrated an ability to drive the ball and pick up extra-base hits to all fields last season. Plus, he cashed in on some of that power in the second half (9.6 percent HR/FB), and it’s a good bet he’ll continue to do so into 2015.

Manny Machado, 3B, Baltimore Orioles

2014 Power Stats: 354 PA, 12 HR, 28.6 XBH%, .153 ISO, 15.0% HR/FB

Though he was once again limited by injuries in 2014, Manny Machado managed to maintain a consistent approach to hitting, which in turn allowed him to show off some more home run power. His power boost was fairly simple, too, as the balls he hit that only made it to the warning track for doubles in 2013 suddenly started going over the fence. And not just to left field, either.

How much of a home run hitter he can be is a good question in light of his ground-ball habit, but his performance definitely warrants some optimism for increased power over a full season.

Oswaldo Arcia, OF, Minnesota Twins

2014 Power Stats: 410 PA, 20 HR, 45.3 XBH%, .220 ISO, 19.4% HR/FB

If you’re looking for a guy poised to put up monster power numbers in 2015, look for further than Oswaldo Arcia.

In 2014, the 23-year-old outfielder mixed line drives and fly balls better than he did the previous year, and he basically decided to abandon an all-fields approach and adopted a more pull-heavy air assault on right field. It worked out quite well for the left-handed slugger, but don’t overlook the power he has up the middle too.

He doesn’t have any power to the opposite field, but what he showed last year speaks to his very real 30-homer potential.

Bryce Harper, OF, Washington Nationals

2014 Power Stats: 395 PA, 13 HR, 26.0 XBH%, .151 ISO, 15.5% HR/FB

Power’s hard to come by when your mechanics are out of whack and then you get hit with a thumb injury, which was the case for phenom Bryce Harper in 2014. But Harper’s power could be in worse shape heading into 2015, and he definitely helped his case with a power resurgence in early August that carried through the postseason.

Relatively speaking, Harper had an easier time driving the ball and hitting for power following his return, highlighted by his 20 percent HR/FB rate, than he did before the injury (6.9 percent HR/FB). That and the reality that Harper’s fly-ball rate is generally trending upward will do for signs of encouragement that could result in a 30-plus home run season in 2015.

George Springer, OF, Houston Astros

2014 Power Stats: 345 PA, 20 HR, 42.7 XBH%, .237 ISO, 27.8% HR/FB

The fact that George Springer needed only 78 games to hit 20 home runs pretty much sums up his power. The 25-year-old sophomore gives himself plenty of chances to tap into it with a high fly-ball rate (39.3 percent), and he can make booming contact to all fields with ease. The only real concern heading into 2015 is how infrequent line drives (15.3 percent) were in his debut season, but that could turn out to be merely a petty gripe in light of his very real 35-40-homer potential.

Starling Marte, OF, Pittsburgh Pirates

2014 Power Stats: 545 PA, 13 HR, 33.3 XBH%, .162 ISO, 12.7% HR/FB

Marte’s power potential is limited because he doesn’t rely on fly balls, but he’s continued to show good raw power when he does get the ball in the air, with more than 12 percent of his fly balls leaving the yard during his first two full seasons in the league. And there’s reason to believe that if Marte can continue to improve his plate discipline and pitch recognition, then he’s going to tap into more power.

Furthermore, Marte, 26, can hit the ball hard in any direction and pick up extra-base hits, although a majority of his home runs are hit to either left or center field. Knowing this and how his speed can turn singles into doubles and doubles into triples, he’s a better source of power than you might think.