Cleveland Indians: Asdrubal Cabrera Emerging as a Star

The Cleveland Indians have taken the baseball world by storm in 2011.  

Most fans would assume that the squad is being led by mainstays such as Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner.  

Despite the solid contributions of Sizemore and Hafner, there is yet another player who has been proven to be even more valuable to the team. Along with the young Cleveland team's success has come the evolution of Asdrubal Cabrera.

The Venezuelan-born Cabrera is best known for his slick defensive skills, where he routinely shows up on SportsCenter highlight reels. Cabrera's early career in the majors saw him as a defensive shortstop who could hit for average.  

Fast forward to 2011, and fans now see a much different Asdrubal Cabrera. He is still the slick-fielding shortstop who makes spectacular plays in the infield.  

The difference for Cabrera is at the plate, where he has added some serious pop to his bat.  

Through nearly a quarter of the season, Cabrera has hit 10 home runs, fourth in the AL among all players. He also has 34 RBI, also good for fourth in the AL.  

Cabrera currently leads AL shortstops in many offensive categories. He is on pace to hit 35 HR and 120 RBI, numbers that would shatter his previous career-highs. His current .900 OPS is almost unheard of at the shortstop position.   

What's even more promising is the fact that Cabrera's game is hardly close to plateauing—he is still only 25 years old and is not done growing as a player.    

As his success continues, the baseball world will start to recognize Asdrubal Cabrera as a star.