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Cleveland Indians spring training hitting stats

What did spring training bring for Tribe hitters?

Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

The Indians wrapped up their Cactus League "season" with a 14-18 record. There will be no ticker tape parade for them through the streets of Goodyear, but spring training records don't mean anything, so we need not lose any sleep over the team having lost more in the desert than they won.

Individual player statistics don't mean a whole lot either, for the most part, but there still sort of interesting to look at, so I thought I'd compile some of them. I've included strikeout and walk rates, and you should pay attention to those, because they have stronger predictive value than anything else here.

Yan Gomes

  • 49 PA, .275/.408/.500, .908 OPS, 2 HR, 26.5 K%,12.2 BB%

Roberto Perez

  • 37 PA, .357/.486/.536, 1.022 OPS, 1 HR, 21.6 K%, 18.9 BB%

Carlos Santana

  • 69 PA, .228/.319/.421, .740 OPS, 3 HR, 20.3 K%, 11.6 BB%

Jason Kipnis

  • 40 PA, .250/.385/.406, .791 OPS, 1 HR, 15.0 K%, 17.5 BB%

Lonnie Chisenhall

  • 55 PA, .280/.333/.400, .733 OPS, 0 HR, 18.2 K%, 7.2 BB%

Jose Ramirez

  • 61 PA, .224/.237/.310, .548 OPS, 1 HR, 16.4 K%, 1.6 BB%

Mike Aviles

  • 48 PA, .311/.333/.311, .644 OPS, 0 HR, 2.1 K%, 2.1 BB%

Michael Brantley

  • 44 PA, .366/.409/.463, .873 OPS, 1 HR, 9.1 K%, 4.5 BB%

Michael Bourn

  • 58 PA, .364/.397/.473, .869 OPS, 1 HR, 19.0 K%, 5.2 BB%

David Murphy

  • 50 PA, .188/.220/.208, .428 OPS, 0 HR, 4.0 K%, 4.0 BB%

Ryan Raburn

  • 45 PA, .211/.333/.263, .596 OPS, 0 HR, 24.4 K%, 15.6 BB%

Brandon Moss

  • 42 PA, .275/.310/.700, 1.010 OPS,  5 HR, 33.3 K%, 4.8 BB%

The Tribe's top three prospects all spent some time in camp. Francisco Lindor had a .902 OPS in 16 games, Clint Frazier had a .856 OPS in 5 games, and Bradley Zimmer had a 1.917 OPS in 6 games. Each of them homered at least once.

Some positives...

  • Yan Gomes' walk rate is one thing that jumps out at me, as it's nearly triple his figure from the 2014 regular season. If he were to maintain his 2014 power numbers and defense, while boosting his walk rate to 12.2%, he would likely be the best catcher in baseball, and a possible MVP candidate.
  • It's nice to see Perez doing so well too.
  • Kipnis looks healthy.
  • Brantley doesn't seem to have rested on his laurels during the winter.
  • If Bourn can stay healthy, maybe he'll earn his hefty salary this season.
  • Moss looks like he could become the first player to hit 30+ homers for the Indians since Grady Sizemore in 2008. (This is the longest the team has gone without a 30-HR hitter since Andre Thornton ended an 11-year streak without one by hitting 33 of them in 1978.)

Some negatives...

  • Santana's walk rate wasn't up to its usual standard. (not that I'm worried)
  • Ramirez had a very rough spring at the plate. He's going to find himself on the bench, watching Lindor play shortstop, if he doesn't do better than that in April.
  • The Murphy/Raburn platoon did not impress.
  • Moss' power was awesome, but his strikeouts and walks were not.

I think there's a bit more good than bad, all told. Third base, shortstop, and right field seem like the biggest question marks, which is exactly what was said heading into camp. The Indians have the potential for one of top five offenses in the American League, and if they stay healthy, I think they'll get there.