The Most Improved Player on Every MLB Roster in 2023
While many have been their same old selves, a select few players have been pulling new tricks from their sleeves throughout the 2023 Major League Baseball season.
It is in honor of these guys that we've pointed to the most improved player on every team.
Though we disregarded rookie breakouts and veteran comebacks, there was no single thing that guided our gaze. This was about looking for players who've improved in all sorts of ways, so for each we zeroed in on a "Telling Stat" which sums up how far they've come from 2022 to 2023.
We'll go division by division, starting in the American League East and ending in the National League West.
American League East
1 of 6
Baltimore Orioles: RHP Tyler Wells
Telling Stat: From a 1.14 WHIP to a 0.89 WHIP
We'd be remiss if we didn't acknowledge how surprisingly good Austin Hays, Ryan O'Hearn and Kyle Bradish have been for a generally surprising Orioles team, but Wells' transformation really is something else. He leads the league in walks and hits per inning pitched, which mostly traces back to the best four-seamer among O's pitchers not named Félix Bautista.
Boston Red Sox: CF Jarren Duran
Telling Stat: From a .645 OPS to a .791 OPS
The defining image of Duran from last season was him turning into Richie Tenenbaum on an inside-the-park grand slam. Suffice it to say he's coming off a tad better in 2023, wherein he's graced the Red Sox with ample doubles (21) and stolen bases (14) while playing more confident defense. Once an outcast, he now looks like key cog in Boston's future.
New York Yankees: OF Jake Bauers
Telling Stat: From 0 G to 44 G
Last year was the second out of the last three that Bauers didn't get into any major league games, so it's significant enough that he's seen as much action as he has this year. That he's been 12 percent better than the average hitter is a nice bonus, and the dramatic increase in his hard-hit rate means there's at least one data point to back it up.
Tampa Bay Rays: 1B/OF Luke Raley
Telling Stat: From a .279 SLG to a .571 OPS
You can't go two feet in the Rays clubhouse without bumping into a dude who's having a career year, but Raley's takes the cake as the most encouraging breakthrough. He slugged in the .200-.300 range in both of his first two chances in the majors. Now he's more dangerous upon contact than any hitter this side of Aaron Judge.
Toronto Blue Jays: LHP Tim Mayza
Telling Stat: From a 1.3 HR/9 to a 0.0 HR/9
There's no ignoring what Kevin Kiermaier is doing for Toronto, but that's more like a comeback than a proper case of improvement. So, how about some credit for Mayza instead? He's having far and away his best season, and it's not just because he's had the platoon advantage more often than not. Batted balls off him just aren't going very far.
American League Central
2 of 6
Chicago White Sox: RHP Keynan Middleton
Telling Stat: From a 21.7 K% to a 32.7 K%
Middleton's rise with the Los Angeles Angels in the late 2010s was undone by Tommy John surgery, and he then returned to pitch to a 5.10 ERA between 2020 and 2022. Well, now he has a 2.33 ERA. He throws about as hard as the next late-inning reliever, but is certainly less predictable now that he's throwing more changeups and sliders than fastballs.
Cleveland Guardians: RHP Eli Morgan
Telling Stat: From a 3.38 ERA to a 1.67 ERA
Morgan's improvement this year is suspect from some points of view, including those of his strikeout rate (down) and walk rate (up). But it matters that he's shaved 3 mph off his average exit velocity, as the average batted ball off him is now traveling 33 fewer feet than it did last season. Throwing more changeups and sliders is clearly working out for him.
Detroit Tigers: RF Matt Vierling
Telling Stat: From a .648 OPS to a .759 OPS
This would be Riley Greene's spot if he wasn't on the injured list. But for his part, it's not surprising that Vierling has broken out. He came to the Tigers from the Philadelphia Phillies with intriguing metrics in his back pocket. What he lacked was results, and that's changed this year as he's boosted his average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage.
Kansas City Royals: 1B Nick Pratto
Telling Stat: From a .184 AVG to a .265 AVG
Bright spots on the Royals? Yeah, not so much. But it's nice to see Pratto, who went into 2022 as one of baseball's top 100 prospects, finding his footing as a regular producer. The Royals would no doubt like to see his strikeout rate come down, but at least he's their most dangerous hitter when he does put the ball in play.
Minnesota Twins: RHP Brock Stewart
Telling Stat: From 0 G (2020-22) to 25 G
It was largely because of Tommy John surgery that Stewart didn't crack the majors for three years, though it's not as if he was a hot shot beforehand. He posted a 6.05 ERA between 2016 and 2019. But now his average fastball is about 6 mph faster than it was in the latter season, and it's made a difference as he's compiled a 0.70 ERA and 35 strikeouts.
American League West
3 of 6
Houston Astros: RHP Phil Maton
Telling Stat: From a 3.84 ERA to a 1.86 ERA
The Astros bullpen was so loaded last year that they didn't even have use for Maton during their World Series run. That seems to have left a chip on his shoulder. He's doing better in every which way this year, and not just results-wise. There are red marks all over his Baseball Savant page, including for the second-lowest hard-hit rate in the league.
Los Angeles Angels: OF Mickey Moniak
Telling Stat: From a .509 OPS to a 1.054 OPS
Who says No. 1 picks can't be late bloomers? Not Moniak, apparently. Formerly the Phillies' top pick from 2016, he's found new life in Anaheim while working in a platoon role against right-handers. He is striking out a lot despite that, but he already has nearly twice as many barrels just this year (11) as he had in his first three seasons (6) combined.
Oakland Athletics: LHP JP Sears
Telling Stat: From a 2.2 K/BB to a 4.7 K/BB
Remember when nobody could get Brent Rooker out in April? Well, since then he's a .195 hitter. Even if he hasn't exactly towered over the competition, Sears has been trending the opposite way with a 3.14 ERA since the start of May. Of late, his slider has been a more reliable breaking ball than his sweeper ever was.
Seattle Mariners: LF Jarred Kelenic
Telling Stat: From a .534 OPS to a .779 OPS
Though Kelenic's returns have also been diminishing since he hit .308 with seven home runs in April, he has yet to outright regress to the guy who couldn't hit a lick in 2021 and 2022. Even if he's still striking out too much for his own good, there are worse ways to cover such things up than by increasing one's hard-hit rate by 13.5 percentage points.
Texas Rangers: RHP Jon Gray
Telling Stat: From a 3.96 ERA to a 2.89 ERA
Gray didn't reap immediate rewards from his Coors Field escape last year, yet his second season with the Rangers has been nothing less than a triumph. And it's shocking how little it has to do with his mid-to-high 90s fastball. The averages against his slider, sweeper, changeup and curveball are all in the .100s.
National League East
4 of 6
Atlanta: SS Orlando Arcia
Telling Stat: From a .733 OPS to an .830 OPS
It was a shocker that Atlanta not only lost Dansby Swanson to free agency, but apparently never really tried to retain him. But looking back, perhaps they knew something about Arcia that the rest of us didn't. He's indeed been a revelation on both offense and defense, where his six Outs Above Average qualify him as a top-five defender at the position.
Miami Marlins: LHP Andrew Nardi
Telling Stat: From a 9.82 ERA to a 2.62 ERA
Nardi had a good season in the minors last year, but his first 14.2 innings in the majors yielded 16 runs. Now he's quietly one of the more overpowering relievers in the National League by way of a 2.62 ERA and a 32.1 strikeout percentage. As left-handed batters are hitting just .157 against him, he especially dominates when he has the platoon advantage.
New York Mets: LHP Brooks Raley
Telling Stat: From a 139 ERA to a 156 ERA+
Honestly? This is a "Well, Someone Has to Go Here" pick. The Mets are 35-43 precisely because few, if any, of their players have upped their game this season. The 35-year-old Raley is an exception, yet even his early success comes with the caveat that his strikeout, walk and home run rates have all taken turns for the worse.
Philadelphia Phillies: 2B Bryson Stott
Telling Stat: From a .653 OPS to a .753 OPS
At least one of the Phillies' middle infielders is having a good year. As Trea Turner has struggled at shortstop, Stott has settled right in at second base. He's unlike other Phillies hitters in that it's very hard to get him to swing and miss and he even has a case as the team's best defender as well.
Washington Nationals: RHP Josiah Gray
Telling Stat: From a 2.3 HR/9 to a 1.3 HR/9
If you want to know how Gray finished last year with an ERA north of 5.00, well, leading the National League in walks and all of MLB in home runs will do that. He's at least solved the latter problem as he's lowered his ERA to 3.43 this year, for which it's helped that he's altered his pitch mix to include more sliders and a new cutter.
National League Central
5 of 6
Chicago Cubs: INF/OF Christopher Morel
Telling Stat: From a .433 SLG to a .631 SLG
Morel has cooled off since he hit nine home runs in 12 games upon being recalled from the minors on May 9, but his sudden turn as a slugger is still extraordinary. For anyone to have 13 home runs in 36 games is impressive, much less a guy who's list at 5'11", 145 pounds. He's barreling the ball like Shohei Ohtani, who has five inches and 65 pounds on him.
Cincinnati Reds: CF TJ Friedl
Telling Stat: From a .240 AVG to a .309 AVG
Nobody has done more than Elly De La Cruz to elevate the Reds into NL Central contenders, yet he's but one of several difference-makers in a surprisingly deep offense. Friedl is another. Though he does seem to be benefiting from good luck, the rise in his batting average can also be attributed to how well he's been using the whole field.
Milwaukee Brewers: C William Contreras
Telling Stat: From Minus-4 DRS to Plus-6 DRS
When Contreras made the NL All-Star team last year, it was courtesy of his bat and not his glove. If anything, the latter was a liability. Yet the Brewers have nonetheless been able to work some kind of magic on it, as Contreras is now an above average framer and blocker in addition to a quality hitter.
Pittsburgh Pirates: OF Jack Suwinski
Telling Stat: From a .709 OPS to an .814 OPS
After hitting 19 in 106 games last year, Suwinski is already up to 15 home runs this season. And in exciting fashion, as Andrew Simon of MLB.com recently covered how Suwinski has hit more "no doubt" home runs than anyone else. And by way of an elite 14.8 walk percentage, he's also been one of the league's more patient hitters.
St. Louis Cardinals: 2B/OF Brendan Donovan
Telling Stat: From 5 HR to 7 HR
Nolan Gorman would have been a shoo-in for this spot last month, but few things put a damper on a breakout quite like a .143 average in June. Instead, we figured we'd give Donovan props for already surpassing his home run total from last year. And with his exit velocity and launch angle both up, he truly has been driving the ball better.
National League West
6 of 6
Arizona Diamondbacks: SS Geraldo Perdomo
Telling Stat: From a .547 OPS to an .852 OPS
Go to Baseball Savant and check out the biggest year-to-year offensive gainers, and you'll find Perdomo at second for batting average and first for both on-base percentage and slugging percentage. That pretty much says it all, though we're sure he would appreciate it if we mentioned he's also playing above average defense at shortstop.
Colorado Rockies: RHP Justin Lawrence
Telling Stat: From a 5.70 ERA to a 3.02 ERA
Hot off a run with Panama in the World Baseball Classic, Lawrence has pitched like a man totally unbothered by the thin air and huge dimensions that come with life at Coors Field. It helps to have a sweeper that's thus far held hitters to a .107 average and registered 37 of his 41 strikeouts.
Los Angeles Dodgers: RHP Brusdar Graterol
Telling Stat: From a 3.26 ERA to a 2.12 ERA
This is another "Well, Someone Has to Go Here" pick. This is as lean on star power as the Dodgers have been in years, and even Graterol's improvement comes with question marks. Though his ERA is way down from 2022, he's allowing more walks and hits per inning pitched.
San Diego Padres: RHP Steven Wilson
Telling Stat: From a 124 ERA+ to a 168 ERA+
It was tempting to go with Fernando Tatis Jr. here, if for no other reason than he's been a sensation out in right field. But since he's not so much a new star as a different kind of star, we opted to give it up to Wilson for further cementing himself as an asset in San Diego's pen. His sweeper is up there with Lawrence's among the best in baseball.
San Francisco Giants: 3B J.D. Davis
Telling Stat: From Minus-3 OAA to Plus-6 OAA
That Davis also boasts an .832 OPS is indeed nice, but this isn't his first rodeo as a capable hitter. It's much more surprising to see him among the third base leaders for Outs Above Average, as he wasn't exactly known for his glovework before this season. To hear him say it, he "just needed some more reps" in the field for this to happen.
Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs and Baseball Savant.
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