Early Roster, Lineup Changes MLB Teams Should Consider Making

We're three weeks into the 2015 MLB season, but a handful of teams around the league should already be thinking about roster and lineup changes they can make to improve their squad. 

While you don't want to overreact, April games count just as much as contests in September. There should be a certain amount of leeway given to players who start slow, but it gets to a point where a change must be made. 

We have a few of those situations around the league. In Chicago, Carlos Rodon seems worthy of John Danks' spot in the rotation. Meanwhile, the Miami Marlins and New York Yankees should consider benching Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Didi Gregorius. 

Read on for further information on those ideas. 

Chicago White Sox Promote Carlos Rodon

Chris Carlson/Associated Press

Carlos Rodon is closing in on a spot in the White Sox rotation.

Carlos Rodon is the No. 15-ranked prospect in all of baseball according to MLB.com after a tremendous first season as a pro. The southpaw made just five starts in 2014, but he fanned over 13 hitters per nine innings at both Single-A and Triple-A. 

Despite appearing ready for the big leagues, the Chicago White Sox decided to keep Rodon in the minors to begin the season. The move makes sense, as missing a handful of starts wasn't worth losing out on the extra year of his services.

But with that deadline now past, it's time for the White Sox to green light their top prospect to "the Show."

Back in February, I made the case for Rodon making the team out of camp. My biggest reasoning was the massive drop-off in production from the front of the Chicago rotation to the back. John Danks and Hector Noesi are clearly inferior pitchers and have started off 2015 the same way they pitched last season.

Craig Edwards at FanGraphs notes that the White Sox have staggered their starting pitchers with all the off days in the season's early days and that it bodes well for Rodon's impending arrival. That call-up can't come soon enough according to Edwards. 

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Rodon might not be ready to make the immediate impact that Kris Bryant could make for the Cubs, yet he would still be an upgrade over either Danks or Noesi. Danks has been replacement level for three straight years. His 4.74 ERA and 4.76 FIP in 2014 were his best marks in those statistics over the last three seasons.

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The White Sox have a chance to compete in the AL Central due to Chris Sale, Jeff Samardzija and Jose Quintana at the front of the rotation. Adding Rodon would provide an immediate upgrade to the back end of that staff. 

Miami Marlins Bench Jarrod Saltalamacchia for J.T. Realmuto

Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Garrod Saltalamacchia's early season struggles have opened the door for J.T. Realmuto.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit 25 homers for the Boston Red Sox in 2012. That production has given him the reputation as an above-average offensive catcher, but that just isn't the case.

The 29-year-old has exceeded 100 wRC+ in just one season as a full-time backstop. In 2014, "Salty" hit just .220 while striking out over 32 percent of the time. Furthermore, he's one of the worst pitch framers in baseball, which gives him little to no value as a starter for an up-and-coming Miami Marlins team. 

To begin the 2015 season, Saltalamacchia is 2-for-28 with 12 strikeouts. He has gone deep once, but the Marlins can't afford to give him the majority of the playing time behind the dish. 

J.T. Realmuto, Miami's No. 2-ranked prospect, deserves extra reps with the big club and has taken advantage of his first 12 at-bats of 2015. Realmuto gives the Fish a more contact-driven approach, as he's been able to avoid huge amounts of strikeouts in his minor league career. 

Marlins manager Mike Redmond was thrilled by Realmuto's impact both offensively and defensively when he caught Dan Haren earlier this week.

"For him to come up and contribute both defensively and offensively, that's a big spark for us and he did a good job with a veteran pitcher," Redmond told Juan C. Rodriguez of the Miami Sun Sentinel. "I know Danny had been talking to him over the last couple of days, preparing him for the start. I thought he did great. He caught really well, had some key at-bats, was a nice spark for us."

Miami seems to be moving toward giving Realmuto the keys to the kingdom, something that should enhance its playoff aspirations. 

New York Yankees Bench Didi Gregorius

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

Didi Gregorius has yet to develop into anything that resembles a major league hitter.

It was never going to be easy replacing Derek Jeter as the shortstop of the New York Yankees. But Didi Gregorius has shown very little to convince the Bronx faithful that he's the man for the job. 

The 25-year-old is 5-for-36 to begin the season with no extra-base hits. He's struck out seven times, while failing to show any hint of patience. His average and on-base percentages are below .200. He's also struggled with the glove and on the bases. 

Jeter's legacy has cast an intimidating shadow over Gregorius, something Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News was quick to notice.

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In trying to succeed Derek Jeter as the Yankees’ shortstop, Gregorius understands the questions about replacing the legendary Captain aren’t going away anytime soon. He insisted all spring that the burden of taking over for Jeter wasn’t on his mind, and despite his slow start to the regular season, he swears he’s not putting any more pressure on himself.

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The Yankees could move Stephen Drew to short and promote prospect Rob Refsnyder to play second base. Drew has gotten off to a fine start in the Bronx, while Refsnyder hit .300 in Triple-A last season.

Whatever the case, Gregorius won't be allowed to continue to play every day if he's unable to provide some sort of offensive value. He's hurting a New York team with hopes of returning to the postseason this year. 

Philadelphia Phillies Cut Their Losses with Ryan Howard

Chris Szagola/Associated Press

Despite owing him through 2016, the Phillies should move on from Ryan Howard.

Ryan Howard is still owed a ton of money by the Philadelphia Phillies, but it's best for both parties to part ways after another slow start by the first baseman. 

Howard is 6-for-39 to begin 2015 with a whopping 13 K's. The 35-year-old has fanned close to 30 percent of the time in each of the past three seasons, and he's on pace to post similar strikeout numbers in 2015. 

Stephen Gross of the Morning Call also notes that opposing pitchers are challenging the once-feared slugger with fastballs more than they ever have. 

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Now, with Howard's performance in a free fall, pitchers are relying on a pitch that you would have been crazy to throw back-to-back to the 2005 National League MVP. Through Howard's first eight games, pitchers have thrown him a fastball 63.7 percent of the time – the highest ever for Howard since his first full big league season in 2005. That year, it was 58.3 percent and had not been higher than 54.2 percent since.

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Howard has been dropped to seventh in the lineup, but the Phillies should consider eating Howard's contract and committing to a rebuild once and for all. It may not make sense financially, but swallowing the remaining money owed to him would be the best thing for the franchise moving forward.

Advanced stats courtesy of FanGraphs.