In the age of social media and phones that put the entirety of human knowledge at our fingertips, it's difficult to be overlooked when you're good at something. That's especially true for professional athletes. If you're good, people know you're good, and players who are underrated will be properly rated before long.
That won't stop us from identifying overlooked players having great seasons though. Overlooked by whom? I'm not sure. Calling a player overlooked is subjective, but saying a player is having a great season is very objective. Our eyes and a mountain of stats tell us who's having a great year. We'll try to thread the needle between overlooked and great.
I'm setting one ground rule for this exercise: 2024 All-Stars are not allowed. If you were selected to the All-Star Game this season, sorry, you're not overlooked. You are the opposite of overlooked. You have been recognized by the fans and/or your peers for your great season. Tough luck, 2024 All-Stars. Everyone else is eligible, including past All-Stars.
Here now are six overlooked players -- one from each division -- having a great 2024 season, plus a few honorable mentions for good measure.
AL East: Austin Wells, Yankees
Over the last few months, Wells, a rookie catcher, has emerged as New York's biggest offensive threat behind Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. He's hitting .252/.343/.417 overall and .286/.379/.494 since June 1, and he rates as a strong pitch-framer and defender. That's a bit surprising because his reputation coming up through the minors was that he could hit, but the glove left something to be desired. Among catchers with 280 plate appearances, Wells ranked third with a 114 OPS+ entering Sunday, and he was tied for second among all catchers with 3.0 WAR per FanGraphs (FanGraphs WAR includes framing). The Yankees have found themselves a mainstay behind the plate with their 2020 first-round pick.
Honorable mention: Red Sox rookie outfielder Wilyer Abreu, acquired in the Christian Vázquez trade with the Astros at the 2022 deadline, has been a platoon monster, hitting .282/.347/.545 with 13 homers in 285 plate appearances against righties. (He has a .512 OPS against lefties.) The Rays have worked their magic with hard-throwing righty Edwin Uceta. He has a 0.94 ERA with 35 strikeouts and only four walks in 28 2/3 innings with Tampa. The Rays are Uceta's seventh organization since January 2023.
NL East: Mark Vientos, Mets
Vientos got pushed to Triple-A when the Mets signed J.D. Martinez and gave Brett Baty the first crack at the third base job. Baty flopped though, and Vientos has not stopped hitting since being recalled on April 27. He owns a .277/.338/.551 slash line with 19 home runs in 302 plate appearances, and has been one of the best power hitters in baseball since being summoned from Triple-A. The Mets replace Vientos for defense in the late innings when they have a small lead and it remains to be seen how long he'll stick at third base. Clearly though, the bat has a long-term home in New York's lineup, regardless of position. Vientos has always had power. The plate discipline and pitch recognition is beginning to catch up, and it's taken him to the next level.
Honorable mention: I was surprised to see Braves closer Raisel Iglesias has never once been an All-Star in his career. He is 26 for 28 in save chances this season and has a 1.51 ERA in 47 2/3 innings. Iglesias has struck out 46, unintentionally walked seven, and retired the last 29 batters he's faced dating back to July 27. He's been fantastic. The Nationals have a few players who deserve a mention here, including second baseman Luis García Jr. and starter Jake Irvin.
AL Central: Bailey Ober, Twins
It's hard to be overlooked when you're 6-foot-9, but we're highlighting players whose performance is under the radar, not whether they literally stand out in a crowd. Ober has a 3.49 ERA with 140 strikeouts in 134 innings this season -- he has a 3.46 ERA in close to 250 innings over the last two years -- and 12 times he's gone at least six innings with no more than two runs allowed. That's the eighth-highest total in the American League. Despite averaging 91.9 mph with his fastball, Ober is a weak contact machine and one of the most difficult pitchers to square up in the game. Twins corner infielder Jose Miranda has a case for being the pick here, though I don't think he's flying under the radar after getting 12 hits in 12 consecutive at-bats earlier this year.
Honorable mention: Freddy Fermin, Salvador Perez's backup catcher with the Royals, has hit his way into the everyday lineup. He owns a .303/.354/.422 slash line in 275 plate appearances and now plays every game either at catcher or DH. Guardians rookie righty Cade Smith has been one of the most dominant relievers in baseball this season. He's top 20 among bullpeners in win probability added, which is a fancy way of saying Smith has gotten a lot of outs in high-pressure situations.
NL Central: Michael Busch, Cubs
The Dodgers ran into the "more good players than roster spots" problem this past offseason and sent Busch (and reliever Yency Almonte) to the Cubs for two prospects. Chicago has sheltered Busch against lefty pitchers (only 62 plate appearances against southpaws), but he's hitting .258/.351/.460 against righties and .258/.345/.455 with 16 home runs overall. His 122 OPS+ entering Sunday was seventh best among full-time first basemen with at least 400 plate appearances and, thanks to nifty glovework, Busch is fourth among first baseman with 3.1 WAR. The Cubs are falling short of expectations this year. They did find themselves a keeper at first base in Busch though.
Honorable mention: Joey Bart, owner of a .277/.351/.532 slash line, has found a home with the Pirates after failing to gain traction with the Giants as the No. 2 pick in the 2018 draft. Righty Tobias Myers has been a godsend for a Brewers team that has churned through an MLB-high 17 different starting pitchers. He's pitched to a 2.81 ERA in 88 1/3 innings. Also, Willson Contreras has been really, really good for the Cardinals. He had a forgettable first year in St. Louis in 2023 and he missed time with an unfortunate injury earlier this year, but catchers with an .850 OPS are hard to find.
AL West: Brent Rooker, Athletics
Rooker was a deserving All-Star in 2023, yet he did not make the Midsummer Classic in 2024 despite having a much better season. He owns a .292/.366/.576 line with 29 home runs -- Rooker slashed .249/.329/.488 with 30 homers last year -- and, entering play Sunday, he ranked fifth among qualified hitters in adjusted OPS. Look at these names:
- Aaron Judge, Yankees: 222 OPS+
- Juan Soto, Yankees: 187 OPS+
- Bobby Witt Jr., Royals: 178 OPS+
- Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers: 175 OPS+
- Brent Rooker, Athletics: 167 OPS+
Rooker has been one of the best hitters in baseball the last two years (and especially so this season). Also, shoutout to JJ Bleday, Rookie's teammate in Oakland. Bleday seems to be figuring things out after going up and down with the Marlins and A's the last few years. Despite ownership's efforts to field an awful team, the A's have a few players having terrific individual seasons.
Honorable mention: Bryce Miller is the fourth member of the Mariners' four-headed rotation monster behind Luis Castillo, George Kirby, and Logan Gilbert. A 25-year-old with a 3.29 ERA and a 4.13 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 139 2/3 innings deserves more love. Miller has been so good. Rangers super utility man Josh Smith is the honorable mention to the honorable mention in the AL West.
NL West: Michael King, Padres
The headliner on San Diego's end of the Juan Soto trade, King started the season a bit slowly, but he has been lights out the last few weeks: 2.44 ERA and 100 strikeouts in his last 14 starts and 81 innings. King has four 10-strikeout games, the fourth most in baseball behind Garrett Crochet, Tyler Glasnow, and Chris Sale (six each). The Soto trade has worked out well for both teams. The Yankees got a difference-making bat and the Padres got a frontline starter in King, plus pitching depth.
Honorable mention: You can include about half the Diamondbacks roster here. Christian Walker got talked up so much as an All-Star snub that I don't think he qualifies as overlooked. Jake McCarthy, Joc Pederson, and rookie reliever Justin Martinez do though. They're all having great seasons. So too is Giants righty reliever Ryan Walker and Rockies ballhawk Brenton Doyle, who's added offense to his elite center field defense.
