SPECULATOR: Searching for the next Michael Brantley

An annual preseason rite here in the Speculator space is identifying a breakout performance from the previous season, and constructing a profile that might help identify candidates for a similar step up in the current year. 

But talk about big shoes to fill. While normal author Ray Murphy is one of faces leading our First Pitch Forums Midwest stops this weekend, he tapped me to take a swing at this topic. Why the big shoes? Well, because last year, as Ray looked for the next Carlos Gómez, three of his candidates were Corey Dickerson, Christian Yelich, and Kole Calhoun.

Tough act to follow, but we'll give it whirl.

Michael Brantley (OF, CLE) was one of the surprises of 2014, no doubt. A quick scan of his year-by-year BPI:

Year   AB  ...

Almost!

You’re just a few clicks away from accessing this feature and hundreds more throughout the year that have a singular goal in mind: Winning your league. Subscribe to BaseballHQ.com here!

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

More From Speculator

We've all had a bad day at the office... what if we grant a mulligan to some starting pitchers who had one as well?
May 13 2026 3:07am
An early look at who is changing their pitch mix the most... and whether or not it's working.
May 6 2026 3:06am
With skills so bad, we can only speculate on an underlying injury. We hope we're wrong!
Apr 29 2026 3:05am
Our annual "draft skills, not roles" using projected skills and year-to-date playing time.
Apr 22 2026 3:05am
With most pitchers 3-4 starts in, we dive into the sub-indicators to see who's rising and falling.
Apr 15 2026 3:06am

Tools