Fansided

5 best MLB players you’ve probably never heard of

By JJ Keller

Aug 2, 2014; New York, NY, USA; New York Mets center fielder Juan Lagares (12) catches a ball hit by San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt (not pictured) in the second inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 2, 2014; New York, NY, USA; New York Mets center fielder Juan Lagares (12) catches a ball hit by San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt (not pictured) in the second inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jul 4, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Tanner Roark (57) throws during the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 4, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Tanner Roark (57) throws during the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports /

Every year, in every sport, there are certain players who end up flying under the radar despite finding success. The MLB is not immune, and in fact, it may be even more common than other sports. I say this because there are a multitude of ways to be valuable in baseball, and there are competing ideas on how to judge a player.

The more common and traditional method has some tendencies that lead to overrating individual aspects of the game (i.e. power only guys, high average with little on-base or power, etc.), and can ignore defense, or the ability to take a walk and get on base. Sabermetrics and advanced stats allow you to dig deeper into the player, and can give you a better overall picture of his contribution.

So, I thought it would be interesting to outline some of the more underrated or unknown players in the league. Guys who you may never even heard of, despite them being productive major leaguers, whether that be because they are good at aspects of the game that go unnoticed, are on teams that don’t get a lot of attention and coverage, or any number of other reasons.

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