Kiermaier is focused on becoming a better all-around player by significantly improving at the plate in 2016, Bill Chastain of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

Already a stellar defensive player going into his third major league season, Kiermaier is striving to carry over the momentum he generated in the last seven weeks of the 2015 campaign. The 25-year-old Gold Glover produced a .311/.352/.480 line after Aug. 11, following a right thumb injury. "When the Mets came into town [in August] and I hurt my thumb, I was so much better from there on out," said Kiermaier. "I finally figured out what I want to do with my approach and my swing. "... The last two months of the season, I went with a less-is-more approach. I cut down on the strikeouts. I had much better at-bats and I was just so happy about how everything unfolded. I just told myself, 'I'm going to learn from this, what happened with my thumb. And I'm going to take this and use it for the rest of my career.' Anytime you can learn from something like that and use it to your advantage, it's going to help you." Kiermaier's overall .263/.298/.420 line in 2015--as well as his modest power numbers (10 home runs) and prowess on the basepaths (18 stolen bases)--could serve as a harbinger of greater success at the plate in 2016.