As we reach the Spring Training portion of the program, it is time once again to salute a squad¡¯s worth of guys who enter the year unheralded for their actions.

Let¡¯s unveil the annual All-Underrated Team, which, unlike many other discussions about who or what is ¡°underrated,¡± actually has stipulations put in place for who can qualify.

For 2025, those requirements -- slightly tweaked for this year, because, frankly, sometimes it¡¯s hard to fill this team when we get too strict -- are as follows:

• No All-Star appearances in the last five years (a change from ¡°no All-Star appearances ever,¡± because I think we can all agree 2019 might as well be another lifetime)
• No BBWAA Awards (MVP, Cy Young or Rookie of the Year), ever in the player¡¯s career
• No Silver Slugger or Gold Glove honors, ever in the player¡¯s career
• No All-MLB Team honors, ever in the player¡¯s career
• No prominent inclusion on MLB Network¡¯s current ¡°Top 10 Right Now!¡± lists this year (a slight, less-strict wording change from previous years, for reasons that will be explained below)
• No nine-figure contracts
• At least two years of service time

Away we go!

Catcher: Shea Langeliers, Athletics

The A¡¯s, as a whole, might be my All-Underrated Team going into 2025. But let¡¯s hone in on their catcher here.

Prior to the 2023 season, the A¡¯s acquired the man who would come to be known as ¡°Bangeliers¡± in the trade sending Matt Olson to the Braves, despite having drafted Tyler Soderstrom as a catcher in the first round in 2020 (Langeliers had been Atlanta¡¯s first-rounder in 2019). In the time since, Langeliers hit 22 homers with 19 doubles in his first full season in 2023 and then 29 homers with 18 doubles last year. His 51 homers over the last two seasons are second among catchers only to the Mariners¡¯ Cal Raleigh (64) in that span. The 2024 season saw improvements in Langeliers¡¯ whiff, chase and strikeout rates, as well as his average exit velocity. He slashed .241/.321/.472 in the second half. All this points to a player growing more comfortable at the plate.

As for his work behind the plate, well, that¡¯s a work in progress. Langeliers does not grade out well in framing and blocking. But he excels at throwing out runners, with a 25% caught stealing rate last year that was also second only to the Gold Glove-winning Raleigh among those with at least 75 attempts against them.

First base: Vinnie Pasquantino, Royals

Us Italian-Americans are selfless, salt-of-the-earth sorts. Vinnie P. proved it by logging 13 sacrifice flies last season -- the most by any player since 2016 (Francisco Lindor, 15) and just six shy of Gil Hodges¡¯ 1954 record. And he did it despite missing the last month of the season with a broken right thumb. He even returned ahead of schedule, in time for the playoffs, because that¡¯s just the kind of team player he is.

Oh, amid all that sacrificing, Pasquantino hit 19 homers with 30 doubles and drove in 97 runs. But I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve seen the best of him yet.

Remember, when he debuted in 2022, we saw Pasquantino slash .295/.383/.450 in 298 plate appearances, but he tore his labrum during the 2023 season and successfully returned last year, only to break the thumb. A fully healthy 2025 could be his time to truly shine, because he limits strikeouts at an excellent rate (12.2% of plate appearances in his career) and makes enough quality contact to point to the kind of production that historically befits this position. Perhaps he¡¯ll even get that sacrifice fly record, too!

Second base: Gleyber Torres, Tigers

Torres is the reason I adjusted my prerequisites from ¡°no career All-Star appearances¡± to ¡°no All-Star appearances in the last five years.¡± I¡¯m also allowing him on this squad despite being named one of the top 10 second basemen by MLB Network because, well, he was 10th, so¡­ who cares?

I think these decisions are fair, given that this guy was on a superstar trajectory as an All-Star in his first two seasons before settling into being a solid regular who signed a very modest one-year, $15 million free-agent deal with the Tigers this offseason. Think of it this way: Torres, leadoff hitter for a World Series participant in 2024, signed a contract identical to those of aging starters Alex Cobb (also Tigers) and Charlie Morton (Orioles), both of whom had been contemplating retirement. So yes, I wouldn¡¯t say he¡¯s rated all that high.

I¡¯m here to tell you there¡¯s nothing wrong with being a solid regular! Torres was always judged relative to the expectations that come with being a prominent prospect in pinstripes, and he fell way short of them. And his early struggles and a benching for lack of hustle during his walk year didn¡¯t help his reputation. But Torres slashed .292/.361/.419 in the second half in 2024, then was an on-base machine from the leadoff spot in the ALDS and ALCS. As a poor defender, Torres has a limited ceiling up the middle. But he has plus strike zone awareness and has provided above-average production from a position where that¡¯s hard to find. I¡¯ll be curious to see how he performs in a lower-pressure environment.

Shortstop: Miguel Rojas, Dodgers

Nearing his 36th birthday, Rojas is not an everyday shortstop. The Dodgers are planning to start some guy named Mookie Betts there this season. But if you asked a casual fan to list as many Dodgers as they could without looking at the roster, I¡¯m guessing it would take a while to get to Rojas¡¯ name, if he even comes up at all.

It says something, though, that he was presented by the World Series champs¡¯ players and coaches with the 2024 Roy Campanella Award as the player who best embodied the spirit and leadership of the late Hall of Fame catcher.

Though Rojas profiles best as a utility type at this point, he can still get the job done at a premier defensive position. His 11 Outs Above Average were seventh-most among qualified shortstops last season. And in 337 plate appearances last year, he had the best full-season OPS+ (113) of his career. So here¡¯s a little love for the respected veteran.

Third base: Jake Burger, Rangers

Not gonna lie: With the parameters in place, there wasn¡¯t much to work with here. The Rockies¡¯ excellent hot corner defender Ryan McMahon was our third baseman on this imaginary team each of the last two years, but he had to go and be named an All-Star in 2024 (congrats, Ryan!). So even though Burger basically split his time between the infield corner spots with the Marlins last season and probably won¡¯t be playing much third in his new home in Texas, he¡¯s been a third baseman for much of his career and we¡¯re going to salute him here for a couple reasons.

The first is that Burger¡¯s 63 homers over the last two seasons match the totals of Jos¨¦ Ram¨ªrez and Corey Seager for 15th-most in the Majors, which most people probably don¡¯t realize. (That Burger provides his power evenly against righties and lefties is an added bonus.)

The second reason, which is not getting nearly as much attention as it should, is that he has hit exactly .250 in each of the last three seasons. You might remember that slugger Khris Davis, amazingly, hit exactly .247 every season from 2015-18, while qualifying for the batting title in each of those years. Unfortunately, Burger did not qualify for the batting title in 2022 (183 plate appearances), but, look, I¡¯m trying to fill out a team here, and Burger¡¯s chase of his fourth consecutive .250 season is the kind of thing that can put butts in the seats down the stretch.

Left field: Taylor Ward, Angels

Though MLB Network¡¯s ¡°Shredder¡± system was kind enough to include Ward among the top 10 left fielders this year, his spot way down at No. 9 still does not reflect his performance for the Angels. So I¡¯m leaving him in the left field spot he occupied on this fake team one year ago.

Despite missing a good chunk of 2023 after taking a fastball to the face, Ward has been worth 7.6 Wins Above Replacement, per Baseball-Reference, over the last three seasons. That ranks seventh among those who have logged at least half of their games played in left field.

Ward¡¯s 117 OPS+ in that span is tied for fifth among qualified left fielders (and is actually identical to the OPS+ put forth by Brewers rookie sensation Jackson Chourio in 2024). Last season, Ward joined Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Kyle Schwarber and Riley Greene as the only players in MLB to rank in the 80th percentile or better in expected weighted on-base average and barrel and chase percentage. And defensively, he had the fourth-most OAA in left among qualifiers in that three-season span from 2022-24. He¡¯s a vital -- and underrated! -- cornerstone for an Angels team trying to contend.

Center field: JJ Bleday, Athletics

Hey! Another A! First name JJ! Last name Bleday!

I just broke out in song, because Bleday, the fourth overall pick in the 2019 Draft by the Marlins (who later traded him to the A¡¯s), just broke out on the field. He was also the center fielder on the 2024 All-Awardless Team, so he¡¯s having one heck of an offseason when it comes to receiving imaginary hardware.

Bleday didn¡¯t crack MLB Network¡¯s top 10 in center field this year, but that will change if he has a 2025 that builds off his 2024, when he slashed .243/.324/.437. Bleday actually had the 17th-most extra-base hits (67) of any player in MLB last season. The only other primary center fielders with that many extra-base hits were AL MVP Aaron Judge and All-Star Game MVP Jarren Duran.

Right field: Lars Nootbaar, Cardinals

Nootbaar might spend the bulk of his time in left or perhaps even center this season. But he¡¯s logged the majority of his MLB defensive innings in right, so that¡¯s where he¡¯ll suit up for us.

Injuries have prevented a true breakout for the 27-year-old Nootbaar. In the last two seasons, he¡¯s hurt himself sliding into bases, running into walls and even just swinging the bat. That¡¯s no fun. But when able to take the field, Nootbaar has shown excellent plate discipline, leading to a 116 OPS+ over the last three seasons -- production basically on par with our left fielder, Ward. When you look at Nootbaar¡¯s Baseball Savant page, you might note that he¡¯s in the 82nd percentile or better in whiff percentage, average exit velocity, max exit velocity, hard-hit percentage, walk rate and chase percentage. All this points to a breakout in the making for Nootbaar¡­ if he can stop running into walls.

Designated hitter: N/A

Apologies if you had built your day around the All-Underrated DH reveal, but unfortunately none of the regular DHs from 2024 who met our qualifications had a good enough season to merit inclusion.

Starting pitcher: Michael Wacha, Royals

An All-Star way back in 2015, Wacha qualifies for our club. The Royals rewarded him for a strong 2024 (13-8 record, 3.35 ERA in 29 starts with a three-year, $51 million extension.) That¡¯s good money, but $17 million in average annual value is still a modest sum for a guy who, over the last three seasons, has posted a 128 ERA+ (28% better than league average). That ties him with Framber Valdez for the 12th-best mark of any pitcher with at least 200 innings in that span (for context, Valdez has been an All-Star twice and finished in the top 10 of the AL Cy Young voting all three years in that timeframe).

Wacha was a first-round pick of the Cardinals in 2012 and an NLCS MVP the very next season. Within that context, what came next -- performance as more of a back-end starter and then rough turns with the Mets and Rays after reaching free agency -- was a disappointment. But the 33-year-old Wacha keeps posting up and seems to be figuring things out with age. His opponent hard-hit rate (32.2%) last season was his lowest since 2017, and his line drive rate (23.5%) was the best of his career. His 3.65 Fielding Independent Pitching mark was his best in seven years.

Relief pitcher: Tyler Holton, Tigers

Holton wasn¡¯t just a reliever in 2024. He was an opener, a multi-inning starter, a bulk reliever and even a closer. He was the perfect embodiment of the Tigers¡¯ ¡°pitching chaos.¡± He did it all, and he did it well, with a terrific 2.19 ERA and 0.78 WHIP in 94 1/3 innings (because only 17 of those innings came as a starter, he certainly qualifies as a ¡°reliever¡± in this exercise).

Over the last two seasons, Holton¡¯s 195 ERA+ trails only Tanner Scott (224), Emmanuel Clase (220) and Ryan Helsley (196) among relievers with at least 100 innings in that span. Those other guys were all All-Stars in 2024. Holton did his best work in the second half, so he didn¡¯t receive such acclaim, but this versatile lefty who is elite at limiting walks and hard contact with his deep arsenal is certainly deserving of a nod here.