With Opening Day just over two weeks away, it's a good time to consider players who can go from good to great this season.

There has been plenty of action to get excited about, from the free-agent frenzy to critical trades and rule changes that will substantially impact how the game is played.

Another exciting element about the leadup to a season is projecting who is going to take that next step.

In this exercise, we're looking at one player at each position primed to explode into stardom in 2023, based on their most recent production and expected roles this season.

SP Cristian Javier, Houston Astros

By now, you have probably seen plenty of Cristian Javier. He's pitched in the last two World Series, with nine strikeouts over six innings en route to a win in Game 4 in 2022.

Last postseason, he pitched to a 0.71 ERA over 12.2 innings, including two starts in which he gave up just one hit against the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies.

Javier should catch no one by surprise as he assumes a more prominent role in the Astros rotation. It's the departure of last year's American League Cy Young winner Justin Verlander and the unreliable health of Lance McCullers Jr. that really puts Javier into focus.

Behind All-Star southpaw Framber Valdez, Javier is arguably the Astros' best pitcher. The team rewarded Javier's performance with a five-year extension worth $64 million this offseason.

Javier has one of the trickier fastballs to hit, and you can expect to see a lot more of it in 2023.

C Sean Murphy, Atlanta

Sean Murphy's breakout year actually came in 2022 with the lowly Oakland Athletics. The franchise barely even tried to compete last year but still had one of the game's best catchers in Murphy.

True to form, they traded him to Atlanta this offseason, giving the 28-year-old a chance to play for an actual contender. Atlanta took it a step further, buying out his arbitration years and then some with a six-year extension worth $73 million.

Murphy won a Gold Glove in 2021 and had the second-highest fWAR among catchers last year. But now, he gets to play for a team worth paying attention to, one that should be interesting from start to finish.

Atlanta is in arguably the best division in baseball and one of two teams to win 101 games last season. Once Murphy is playing in relevant baseball games, his profile and stardom should rise.

1B Andrew Vaughn, Chicago White Sox

Similar to Javier in Houston, the departure of a legend on Chicago's South Side thrusts Vaughn into a more prominent role.

First base had been manned for nearly a decade by former AL MVP José Abreu, who left a vacancy when he signed with the Astros in free agency.

You might hardly view it as a vacancy, considering the White Sox had a clear and obvious replacement in Vaughn, their 24-year-old former No. 3 overall pick.

Vaughn has spent most of his first two major league seasons in the corner outfield spots, as positional redundancy has plagued the White Sox.

But now he's in his natural position and while not spectacular last year, Vaughn's profile as a power hitter is promising. He ranked in the 90th percentile in hard-hit rate and 82nd percentile in exit velocity, according to Baseball Savant.

His strikeout rate and swing-and-miss rate are also around the top quarter of the league. Vaughn has huge shoes to fill but all of the tools to excel in this role.

2B Nico Hoerner, Chicago Cubs

The Cubs didn't just sign one of the top free-agent shortstops available in Dansby Swanson. That also allowed them to move Nico Hoerner to second base after proving himself as an everyday shortstop last year.

Hoerner just navigated his first full MLB season. He was called up late in 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic shortened 2020, and injuries plagued him in 2021.

Yet last year he ranked 10th among shortstops in fWAR and wRC+. He also tied for fifth among shortstops in defensive runs saved. The Cubs effectively have two of the game's best defensive shortstops playing in their middle infield.

Hoerner is a team-oriented player who seems like he could thrive in any role. As Cubs manager David Ross told reporters last September, Hoerner "wants to win" and that "the willingness to move around for him is real."

Now that Hoerner's shown what he can do at shortstop, expect him to really take off in his second full MLB season.

SS Oneil Cruz, Pittsburgh Pirates

Last month, we took a look at the boom-or-bust potential in Cruz. He displays incredible power, but what has to be an infuriating whiff percentage of 34.9.

Only Joey Gallo and Chris Taylor struck out a higher percentage than Cruz for players with at least 300 at-bats.

Still, it's fascinating to watch the 6'7" Cruz play shortstop at Aaron Judge's size. Cruz had the hardest hit of the Statcast era (122.4 mph) and the hardest throw from the infield. His sprint speed and arm strength are elite.

The challenge for him is putting it all together and showing some consistency.

There is reason for optimism based on how he finished the season. September was his strongest month, posting a .284 average and .897 OPS.

Cruz slashed .279/.348/.508 with six home runs and 14 extra-base hits over his last 30 games. That strikeout rate also ticked down slightly.

Considering how he's posted a .910 OPS through 26 spring training at-bats, it seems like Cruz is figuring it out. If that's the case, be on notice.

3B Alec Bohm, Philadelphia Phillies

With all of the stars Philadelphia has on its roster, especially after signing Trea Turner to a megadeal in free agency, it's easy to overlook third baseman Alec Bohm.

But remember, he was a hitting machine at times last year. In fact, former MLB executive Jim Bowden pointed out in The Athletic this month that Bohm had more hits than third basemen like Nolan Arenado and Alex Bregman and tied Rafael Devers with 164.

It's quite possible Bohm is on track to be that level of a player, but he just is not yet nearly consistent enough.

One noticeable change at training camp was Bohm arriving with added muscle. He told reporters he ate cleaner this offseason but did nothing different in the weight room. Known to hit singles, the 6'5", 218-pound Bohm is not trying to recreate himself as a power hitter.

But the added muscle and improved physique is just the next step in the former No. 3 overall pick reaching his full potential.

LF Daulton Varsho, Toronto Blue Jays

Similar to Murphy in Oakland, Varsho is already an established valuable player who just has not played a ton of consequential baseball.

That should change this season after being traded from the Arizona Diamondbacks to Toronto Blue Jays. It will also be his first full season without any catching duties after moving to the outfield full-time.

Varsho showed he could be elite defensively in right field, and his left-handed bat was just what the Blue Jays needed to balance out their righty-dominated lineup.

He posted a .745 OPS last season, slashing .235/.302/.443 with 27 home runs. You should expect an improvement with Varsho hitting at Rogers Centre and other hitter-friendly stadiums in the AL East. Varsho also has far more lineup protection in Toronto than he got in Arizona.

CF Jazz Chisholm Jr., Miami Marlins

Chisholm is already an All-Star and the most recent cover star for MLB The Show 23. If that level of stardom isn't enough, the 25-year-old is also making a fascinating position change in his fourth MLB season.

The Marlins traded for AL batting champion Luis Arraez, who will play second base for Miami, and moved Chisholm to center field.

Despite never playing the position, Chisholm has the speed and athletic profile to be good in center. Now, we just all need to see it play out, especially after injury cut his All-Star campaign short last season.

If he goes from an All-Star second baseman to excelling in center field, Chisholm's profile will only grow. It helps that his confidence is already through the roof.

Chisholm has already predicted he'll win a Gold Glove in the outfield someday. Perhaps even more impressive is that many of us are inclined to believe him.

RF Anthony Santander, Baltimore Orioles

Fans finally caught a glimpse of how good Santander can be after he hit a career-high 33 home runs last season, which led a scrappy Orioles team that went from worst in the AL to playoff contention.

The home runs are especially encouraging considering it was Santander's first full season without injuries holding him back. Since his debut in 2017, Santander had never played in more than 110 games, but he got in 152 last year.

If Santander's early performance for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic is any indication, he's ready to make some plays. He had the game-tying home run off Dominican Republic's Sandy Alcantara, the reigning NL Cy Young winner, and had an amazing diving catch in the eighth inning of that game.

Perhaps it's just a fleeting moment in time, but signs point to a healthy Santander becoming a star in 2023.