Mediocrity Is Not an Option: Average MLB Players Who Became Stars

Many confident MLB players see themselves as being one adjustment away from stardom. These are the stories of the extraordinary few who actually made the leap from mediocrity to excellence.

Thanks to new technology and advanced statistics, diligent individuals in the 21st century can diagnose and correct their flaws. Previous generations produced unlikely All-Stars, too. Changing one's approach or strategy often leads to better results, though physical transformations have been the keys to success in several instances.

Most major league greats show immense potential from the get-go. They contend for the Rookie of the Year award and steadily improve. By their mid-20s, these guys typically have long-term contracts in place and numerous lucrative endorsement deals.

The following players, however, progressed very differently. They were either dismissed by previous teams or relegated to part-time jobs, only to peak when people least expected them to.

Perseverance and a little bit of good fortune fueled their improbable rises to fame and riches.

Dante Bichette (1988-2001)

The improvement in Dante Bichette's production before and after being traded to the Colorado Rockies wasn't entirely superficial.

Yes, high altitude helped. The thin air of Mile High Stadium clearly bolstered his power numbers during the 1993 and 1994 seasons (26 HR, 106 RBI in 126 home games; 22 HR, 78 RBI in 131 road games). Coors Field had an even stronger effect from 1995-1999.

But according to BaseballLibrary.com, Bichette participated in "intense weight training" prior to joining the club and impressed the coaching staff with his work ethic.

He was eternally reluctant to draw walks or let plate appearances extend beyond a few pitches. However, from age 29 onward, the outfielder did greater damage when making solid contact and struck out much less often.

Bichette skyrocketed from a reserve role at age 28 to the National League MVP runner-up three years later. Such a swift ascension at that stage of one's career was virtually unprecedented.

Raul Ibanez (Seattle Mariners)

Raul Ibanez was an afterthought from the moment the Seattle Mariners signed him in 1992. After all, 36th-round draft picks seldom make it to the majors, much less thrive in it.

He debuted at age 24 and took years to distinguish himself as someone worthy of everyday duty. From 1996 to 2000, the M's matched him up almost exclusively against right-handed pitching. Yet even with the platoon advantage, Ibanez batted only .241/.295/.383 with 14 home runs in 518 plate appearances. Poor defensive performance in the outfield and at first base dragged down his value below replacement level.

These struggles continued with the lowly Kansas City Royals in 2001. Ibanez owned a futile .293 OPS through the first two months in sporadic playing time and found himself demoted to Triple-A. 

It was then that the outfielder understood that he needed to alter his approach. Instead of continuing to swing at more first pitches than the average hitter, Ibanez hypothesized that being patient would be a means of seeing a pitcher's entire repertoire.

That adjustment fixed everything. He batted .302/.380/.550 from June through the season's end, nearly doubling his career home run total in the process.

Once Ibanez proved he could produce against lefties in 2002 and 2003, the Mariners took him back, this time as a staple in the heart of their lineup. He exceeded all expectations by garnering several top-10 AL MVP votes following the 2006 and 2008 seasons.

As a 36-year-old free agent, Ibanez cashed in with the world champion Philadelphia Phillies on a $31.5 million deal. Ibanez became an All-Star the following summer with one of the great first halves of anyone in Major League Baseball (.309/.367/.649, 22 HR, 60 RBI in 64 G).

Just when it seemed like his career was coming to a close, he drew interest from the New York Yankees in 2012. Ibanez will forever be celebrated by the storied franchise for his postseason heroics (via Kristie Ackert, Daily News).

Brady Anderson (1988-2002)

Brady Anderson initially had no clue what he was doing at the plate. The outfielder had a .219/.313/.306 batting line and 10 total home runs over his first 390 major league games. If Dwight Evans didn't retire prior to the 1992 season, Anderson might not have received a full-time opportunity.

He made the most of it, upping his OPS to .823 and stealing 53 bases. The 28-year-old stayed healthy the entire summer and excelled with runners in scoring position to earn his place on the AL All-Star roster.

From 1993-1995, Anderson was similarly productive. He didn't run the bases quite as aggressively, but he still provided an offensive spark.

Then came 1996. Tripling his previous season's total, Anderson launched 50 bombs. His excellence propelled the Baltimore Orioles back to the postseason for the first time since 1983.

Fellow Orioles legend Jim Palmer—and countless others—had suspicions about his output (via ESPN.com). In an era when performance-enhancing drugs were prevalent, it isn't unreasonable to believe than Anderson might have abused steroids to give himself an edge.

After retirement, he reflected on that magical campaign in an interview with The Baltimore Sun, and he used the "m-word" (h/t Baseball Think Factory): 

"

I know what I accomplished, am proud of it, and know that it was done with integrity. I’ll state this once again: It was 26 more home runs than I hit in any other season, but that’s just one more home run per week, just one more good swing. That is the data that simultaneously comforted me and haunted me, the small difference between greatness and mediocrity.

"

We'll never know for sure. MLB began testing for PEDs in 2003, the year after Anderson retired from baseball.

David Ortiz (Boston Red Sox)

During the mid-to-late 1990s, David Ortiz scorched minor league pitching. But since when does that guarantee a glorious career?

First off, it appeared that fragility would prevent him from sustaining success. Ortiz suffered injuries to his wrist and knee in 2001 and 2002, respectively, that required stints on the disabled list. And from a statistical standpoint, his first six seasons weren't all that impressive (.266/.348/.461 with 58 HR). He finished his age-26 campaign in a 34-for-142 skid (.239 batting average), so the Minnesota Twins released him.

Unidentified substances to the rescue!

We don't know exactly what exactly Big Papi ingested during his breakout 2003 campaign with the Boston Red Sox. Neither did he, according to Michael S. Schmidt of The New York Times. Maybe it was steroids; maybe it was "then-legal supplements and vitamins" (via ESPN.com).

Regardless, it fueled a 122-point leap in his OPS and fifth-place finish in AL MVP voting. In fact, he perennially earned top-five recognition from 2003-2007, never once being relegated to the DL. Ortiz was as much of a defensive liability as ever, not to mention a terrible baserunner. But his 25.1 offensive WAR during that stretch (via Baseball-Reference.com) led the Sox to two championships and made him a household name.

Drug testing has become increasingly commonplace since then, yet this 37-year-old DH remains at the top of his game. While it's true that his initial evolution was atypical, there's no reason for Dan Shaughnessy of The Boston Globe or anyone else to discredit his current dominance.

Jason Grilli (Pittsburgh Pirates)

Jason Grilli was put on the fast track to join the San Francisco Giants starting rotation as the No. 4 overall pick of the 1997 amateur draft. Barely a year into his professional career, the once-lanky right-hander had already made it to Triple-A.

But despite three promising pitches (a fastball, curveball and changeup), Grilli's numbers didn't initially reflect his ability. 

San Francisco traded him to the Florida Marlins, with whom he debuted in May 2000. Grilli posted a 5.94 ERA and 1.62 WHIP in seven appearances (six starts) before the fish left him unprotected for the Chicago White Sox to claim. His numbers grew even uglier in the Windy City (1.30 SO/BB, 11 HR in 45.0 IP) and at age 28, he was relegated to relief duty by his new team, the Detroit Tigers.

Grilli finally built up some MLB service time from 2006-2009. He seldom got save opportunities or pitched in pressured situations, but putting on weight added extra zip to his fastball. In terms of SO/9, he rapidly improved from 4.5 to 7.0 to 8.3 to 9.7.

The key was phasing the curve and change out of his game plan and utilizing a tight slider instead. Grilli told Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that former teammate Jeremy Bonderman was a major influence. 

He completed the transformation into a power pitcher in 2011 once he fully rehabbed from a knee injury. According to FanGraphs, his strikeout rate since joining the Pittsburgh Pirates is among the best in baseball (min. 100 IP).

Barring an injury, he's bound for the 2013 All-Star Game.

Jamie Moyer (1986-2012)

There was nothing particularly encouraging about Jamie Moyer's early MLB career. He earned a spot in the Chicago Cubs rotation, but his command left plenty to be desired. He tallied nearly as many walks as strikeouts in 1986, and the next year—his first full summer in the majors—Moyer averaged fewer than six innings per start.

The southpaw pitched decently for the 1988 Cubbies, spent the lonely 1991 and 1992 seasons at the Triple-A level and re-emerged as a competent mid-rotation guy for the 1993 Baltimore Orioles. But Moyer's stuff began to deteriorate in his early 30s, leading to a bloated earned run average and nightly home run derbies for the opposition.

It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. He reinvented himself with the Seattle Mariners as a 33-year-old, incorporating more off-speed pitches and learning to throw them for strikes. Superb defense from teammates like Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez made his life easier, too.

From 1986-1997, Moyer had never thrown more than 202 innings in a single season. He topped that total in five of the next six years.

During his time in the Pacific Northwest, the geezer set personal bests in all sorts of categories: wins, batting average against, strikeout-to-walk ratio and WAR. And as a 40-year-old in 2003, Moyer appeared in his first Midsummer Classic.

By the way, he was only throwing 82-mile-per-hour fastballs that season (via FanGraphs).

Red Ruffing (1924-1947)

Only 16 former players have been honored in Monument Park, which tells you that Red Ruffing was particularly effective in pinstripes.

However, he certainly wasn't on a Hall of Fame track while pitching for the Boston Red Sox. Ruffing spent parts of seven seasons on their roster, twice leading the American League in earned runs. During a period when elite pitchers were expected to toss complete games every time on the mound, this right-hander did so in barely half of his Red Sox starts.

In May 1930, the New York Yankees acquired Ruffing via trade. They turned him into a rotation leader by 1932. That year, he led the American League in strikeouts. He accounted for 6.5 WAR with his arm and another 1.4 WAR with his bat, according to Baseball-Reference.com.

And it wasn't fluky; Ruffing had legitimate offensive skills (.695 career OPS). Though only 76 percent of his career plate appearances came with the Yankees, he hit 86 percent of his home runs with the team.

Nothing says dependability like 10 straight years of at least 225 innings pitched, which Ruffing accomplished from 1931-1940. He posted a sub-3.50 earned run average in six of those seasons.

Ruffing always saved his best for the playoffs (2.63 ERA, 6.4 SO/9 in 10 GS). He started—and finished—the deciding games of the 1938 and 1942 World Series.

R.A. Dickey (Toronto Blue Jays)

During the early 2000s, R.A. Dickey's fastball topped out in the low 90s. The changeup was his top off-speed pitch and between the two, he surrendered way too many home runs.

Already past his "prime," the former first-round draft pick added a wrinkle to his repertoire: the knuckleball. Commanding it—or at least finding a catcher who could stay in front of it—was a recurring issue, so he bounced around to several teams.

The Milwaukee Brewers never promoted Dickey to the majors despite his Triple-A success in 2007. The following years, with the Seattle Mariners and Minnesota Twins, he pitched primarily out of the bullpen in low-leverage situations. His MLB stats through 2009 were downright mediocre (via Baseball-Reference.com).

Then at age 35, the journeyman signed a minor league deal with the New York Mets for the 2010 season. They needed someone to eat innings and Dickey complied with 173.1 IP in his 26 starts. By 2012, he had developed impeccable control of an unpredictable pitch. Leading the National League in shutouts, innings pitched and strikeouts—all while dealing with a strained oblique (via the Associated Press)—earned him the Cy Young Award, plus a lucrative sign-and-trade to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Dickey hit his stride at a phase of his career when most baseball players fade into retirement.

Chris Carpenter (St. Louis Cardinals)

Chris Carpenter was once held in high regard within the Toronto Blue Jays organization, but he drove the club crazy with his inconsistency. He went 49-50 in parts of six seasons, posting a 4.83 ERA, 1.51 WHIP and .287 BAA. Carpenter made five trips to the disabled list as a Blue Jay due to elbow and shoulder injuries. Their relationship ended after the 2002 season when the right-hander underwent surgery for a torn labrum.

Following a frustrating rehab process, Carpenter returned to the mound with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2004. They didn't pay much, but the deal was sweetened by performance bonuses that rewarded him for making regular-season starts.

That's all the encouragement he needed. Carpenter set single-season bests in terms of earned run average (3.46), innings pitched per start (6.50) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.00). He continued to progress the next summer, tallying seven complete games (four shutouts) en route to the National League Cy Young Award.

His postseason track record is especially impressive. In four World Series outings, he's undefeated with a 2.00 ERA and 0.93 WHIP in 27.0 IP. St. Louis won both Fall Classics in which he appeared (2006 and 2011).

Carpenter realized his potential when he altered his mindset and stopped trying to overpower his opponents. He threw noticeably fewer fastballs and more cutters to induce weak contact. It's no coincidence that his ground ball rate peaked in 2005 and 2009—his two best individual seasons.

Jose Bautista (Toronto Blue Jays)

Jose Bautista spent time on five major league rosters during his rookie season of 2004 and wasn't effective on any of them. He struck out 40 times in 96 total plate appearances with no home runs to show for his effort.

To put a positive spin on that, there was no place left to go but up. Bautista developed into a semi-regular player with the versatility to play the outfield and third base. From 2006-2009 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Toronto Blue Jays, his OPS resembled the league average (via Baseball-Reference.com).

But just like the others on this list, he refused to settle for mediocrity.

He broke out in 2010 with an AL-leading 54 home runs, only to follow that up with a superior 2011 campaign (.302/.447/.608, 43 HR, 103 RBI). So far this decade, he ranks ahead of Miguel Cabrera, Prince Fielder and every other human on the planet in total round-trippers. And that's despite missing nearly half of the 2012 season!

As expected, skeptics have pounced on Bautista and insisted that performance-enhancing drugs are responsible for his power-hitting.

Meanwhile, Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports reported the real story of how he just needed enough repetition.

Lefty O'Doul (1919-1934)

You could look at "Lefty O'Doul, the pitcher" through the lens of any baseball era and be underwhelmed. He allowed more than two baserunners per inning in parts of four major league seasons (1919-1920, 1922-1923).

The southpaw was erratic and hittable, and a few months shy of his 27th birthday, he needed a Plan B. Arm soreness forced him into an ultimatum: convert into a position player or pursue another profession. So he gave the outfield a try.

O'Doul embraced the chance to start fresh, even if it wasn't at the highest level. He played 707 games in the Pacific Coast League from 1924-1927 before the New York Giants took a chance on him at age 30. Jose Bautista would have been envious of all that repetition.

It paid off for O'Doul, who hit .353/.417/.539 over the next seven summers. He won National League batting titles in 1929 and 1932, feats that put him under MVP consideration. And if that didn't wholly affirm his greatness, an appearance in the inaugural MLB All-Star Game certainly did.

After retirement in 1934, O'Doul enjoyed a successful managerial career and helped grow America's pastime in Japan. With that said, he must have taken a lot of pride in this personal turnaround.