MLB Players Quietly Carrying Their Teams into 2015 Contention

Not everyone gets the Bryce Harper treatment.

While the Washington Nationals' right fielder has been generating all sorts of much-deserved buzz, there's also a slew of MLB players like Brian Dozier and Michael Wacha who have quietly carried their teams into postseason contention.

In the list that follows, there's room for one masher who's making a dark-horse run for MVP honors and a few starters who are making lots of noise in the Cy Young Award chases.

Dallas Keuchel, SP, Houston Astros

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The Quiet Star

Dallas Keuchel has been carving up batters.

The 27-year-old left-hander is No. 1 in the American League with a 1.76 ERA and tops the bigs in innings pitched (81.2). The starter is the leader of the pitching staff for a Houston Astros team that has shocked the baseball world by claiming first place in the AL West.

Keuchel recently put himself in exclusive company, as he pitched a shutout and racked up 11 strikeouts in the process. Per ESPN Stats & Info, Keuchel was the first Astros pitcher since Randy Johnson in 1996 to punch out at least 10 batters and not dish out a single walk while pitching a shutout.

There's still plenty of baseball to be played, but right now, Keuchel is an early AL Cy Young Award front-runner along with the likes of Sonny Gray, Felix Hernandez and one other right-hander who cracks this list of quiet stars.

Brian Dozier, 2B, Minnesota Twins

David Banks/Associated Press

The Quiet Star

The Minnesota Twins have been one of the biggest surprises in baseball in 2015, and no position player has made a more prominent impact than Brian Dozier.

The second baseman is third in the majors in runs (41) and tied for third in extra-base hits (28). The 28-year-old, who is an absolute bargain for the Twins at a price of $2 million, also leads all second baseman with nine home runs.

Even with his monster start at the dish, Dozier just can't seem to gain the attention of the nation. Per Mike Axisa of CBS Sports, he is currently out of the top five on the All-Star ballot for second basemen.

Michael Wacha, SP, St. Louis Cardinals

Charlie Riedel/Associated Press

The Quiet Star

Michael Wacha is one of the most valuable players in baseball on a dollar-for-dollar basis.

The St. Louis Cardinals right-hander, who rakes in $520,000 this year, has cruised through his first 10 outings. So far, Wacha has reeled off a 7-1 record and a 2.27 ERA. The 23-year-old didn't even suffer his first loss of the season until May 30.

It's been an electric start to the season for Wacha and exactly the kind of showing that the Cards needed after losing staff ace Adam Wainwright for the year with a torn left Achilles tendon.

Anthony Rizzo, 1B, Chicago Cubs

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

The Quiet Star

Anthony has taken a two-by-four to the National League in 2015.

The first baseman has been a force at the plate for the Chicago Cubs, leading the team in nearly every major offensive category. Here's a list of the departments where he tops the charts:

• Average
• Hits
• On-base percentage
• Slugging percentage
• OPS
• Doubles
• Home runs

The Cubs sit in second place in the NL Central, five games off the pace of the first-place St. Louis Cardinals. But if the team snags a wild-card spot in Joe Maddon's debut season in Chicago, Rizzo will at least be in the mix for NL MVP honors.

Chris Archer, SP, Tampa Bay Rays

Jim Mone/Associated Press

If you want to know how good Chris Archer is, just ask David Price, his former teammate with the Tampa Bay Rays.

"So Chris Archer's slider is BY FAR the best pitch in baseball...90-92 with curveball action!! Get outta here @ChrisArcher42," the southpaw tweeted.

This season, the righty has been one of the best pitchers in the AL. Archer, who headlines the sneaky good rotation of the second-place Rays, is third in the league with a 10.85 K/9 ratio and fifth with a 2.12 ERA. His ERA is over a full run lower than his career mark of 3.19.

Archer is not only enjoying a breakout season atop Tampa Bay's rotation, but he is also elbowing his way into the Cy Young conversation.

Note: All stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and MLB.com.

If you want to talk baseball, find me on Twitter @KarlBuscheck.