Another good night for some of our outfielders:

CLE AA Urshela, Giovanny 3B 3 1 2 0 .282
CLE AAA Fedroff, Tim CF 4 0 2 0 .250
CLE HiA Naquin, Tyler CF 4 0 1 0 .308 2B (10)
CLE HiA Rodriguez, Luigi LF 4 0 2 0 .333 2B (3), CS (2)

And the same as usual for our top two minor league pitchers:

CLE AA Salazar, Danny 5 5 1 1 1 8 2.67
CLE AA Adams, Austin 1.1 0 0 0 0 1 2.89
CLE AAA Bauer, Trevor 6.2 0 2 2 4 7 2.55 [he also hit 3 or 4 batters]

The box scores:

http://www.milb.com/scoreboard/index.js ... d=20130507

Also notable, at Akron: Chen double and walk; Aguillar 0-4 3K; Moncrief 0-4 2K, back in RF

Aeros win an early game behind Matt Packer's best start of the season, although still not overpowering:
7-5-2-0-2-2
Jesus Flores with 3 K in the 9th.

Ronnie Rodriguez makes his 6th error; a much lower error rate than past years. Hitting 230
No K for Jesus Aguillar, instead 2 GISP, hitting 239

http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.js ... x&sid=milb

Trevor Bauer's afternoon changed dramatically within a few minutes Tuesday. The Indians hurler was an out away from a no-hitter, but wound up fortunate to avoid a loss.
Related Content

Gameday box score
Trevor Bauer's bio, stats
Take in a game in Columbus

Cleveland's No. 1 prospect threw 6 2/3 hitless innings before being pulled one out shy of a seven-inning no-hitter in Triple-A Columbus' 4-2 loss to Charlotte at Huntington Park.

Pitching in a doubleheader opener, Bauer struck out seven but battled his own control for much of the afternoon -- he walked four, hit four batters and threw a wild pitch that allowed Seth Loman to advance into scoring position in a seventh inning that eventually sunk the Clippers.

After throwing 106 pitches, Bauer. was pulled by Columbus manager Chris Tremie with two outs and a pair of runners in scoring position in the seventh in favor of Preston Guilmet. The reliever allowed both inherited runners to score on Carlos Sanchez's single before serving up a go-ahead two-run homer to Brent Morel.

Within minutes, Columbus' first no-hitter in three years had turned into a stunning loss.

Bauer, who started for Cleveland on May 1 before being optioned back to the Minors, worked with runners on base in five of the seven innings he pitched in. He worked around a walk and a hit batsman in the first, struck out one in a 1-2-3 second, whiffed Dayan Viciedo to strand a pair of runners in the third, hit a man with one out in the fourth and the fifth and worked a perfect sixth before falling one out shy of his second career complete game.

The right-hander threw just 60 of his 106 pitches for strikes and labored through the seventh, at one point meeting with his infield on the mound to let Guilmet warm up. Bauer hit Loman to start the inning and bounced a pitch in the dirt that allowed him to advance before Jim Gallagher drew Charlotte's fourth walk, prompting a meeting on the mound with Columbus pitching coach Tony Arnold. Columbus third baseman Ryan Rohlinger made a great throw while falling on Steve Tolleson's sacrifice bunt to keep the no-hitter alive before Cord Phelps snagged a line drive at second for the second out.

But with one out to go, Bauer was done. Sanchez greeted Guilmet with a game-tying two-RBI single up the middle and Morel hammered a two-run drive off the high wall in right field.

It would have been the Clippers' first no-hitter since July 26, 2011 when Justin Germano went nine innings in his shutout of Syracuse.

Columbus scored twice in the fourth. Matt LaPorta hit a leadoff homer and the Clippers manufactured a run on a walk, a steal, a groundout and a sacrifice fly by Tim Fedroff.

John Danks started for Charlotte, allowing both runs on four hits and five walks over five innings. Donnie Veal pitched the final two frames for his first win.

Launching Off With The Aeros: 4/30/13 – 5/6/13

Aeros continue winning as they move up the Eastern League

Akron AerosBy Jim Piascik

May 7, 2013 ShareThis

The Akron Aeros continued their run of winning over the past week, taking five of seven games to move to 15-16 on the season. Manager Edwin Rodriguez thinks that the better play is all about those guys on the mound.

"I think the last ten games have been very good," Rodriguez said. "This game's all about pitching. The pitching sets the tone of the game."

Akron's hot streak moved them within one game of second place in the Western Division and out of the basement of the Eastern League. They will play two more games against the Erie SeaWolves Tuesday and Wednesday before heading on seven-game road streak to Reading and Binghamton.

In Orbit

Carlos Moncrief, OF.375/.400/.500 line, .395 wOBA, 9-for-24, 2 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 5:1 SO:BB, 0 SB in 25 PA

After his manager said that this was "Carlos Moncrief weekend," it is hard not to put Moncrief at the top of this list.

The outfielder flashed the power that makes him special, launching a pitch from Bowie pitcher and Orioles #2 prospect Kevin Gausman over the 60-foot batter's eye in center field of Canal Park. Earlier in the game, Moncrief threw out the speedy Xavier Avery at third base with his cannon arm, showing the all-around skills that could take him far.

He needs that power to be there more consistently, but maybe Sunday is the start of something bigger for Moncrief. The 24-year old is behind the curve after being a pitcher earlier in his career and needs to adapt to Double-A as soon as possible.

Giovanny Urshela, SS/3B
.364/.391/.591 line, .420 wOBA, 8-for-22, 3 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1:1 SO:BB, 0 SB in 23 PA

Urshela continued to learn about the ups and downs of Double-A this past week, rebounding from last week's Temporarily Grounded to In Orbit this week. The third baseman showed some of the power he is capable of -- hitting two doubles and a home run -- along with some impressive plate discipline.

Walks have never been a particular forte for Urshela (16 in 114 games last year), but limiting strikeouts is huge. His 60 strikeouts in High-A last year were not that bad, but getting it down to one over the last week let Urshela's natural hitting ability shine through.

Urshela still needs to get those walks up so his on-base percentage can rise (only .295 this year, .309 last year). That, along with this power, is what will make or break Urshela's chances.

Danny Salazar, RHP
0.00 ERA, 0.20 FIP, 0.50 WHIP, 1 H, 0 R, 12:2 SO:BB, 0 HR in 6.0 IP

At this point, it is probably best to reserve a spot in this section for Salazar. The right-hander once again went out and dominated an opposing lineup, striking out 12 of the 20 batters he faced Thursday morning.

So far in 2013, Salazar has a 2.83 ERA, 1.60 FIP, 1.08 WHIP, and has struck out 38.1% of batters he has faced. The right-hander absolutely dominated the Double-A level with a 2.30 ERA, justifying Cleveland manager Terry Francona's praise of Salazar during Spring Training.

Of course, Salazar only has 12 starts at the Double-A level, making any hope that he will get called up to Columbus in the near future a little unlikely. Still, as long as he is pitching like this, Salazar just may force his way up to Triple-A.

(Honorable Mentions: Austin Adams, Chun-Hsiu Chen, Jordan Cooper, Paolo Espino, Jose Flores, Tyler Holt, Quincy Latimore)

(Previous Winners: Chun-Hsiu Chen (4/16, 4/30), Tyler Holt (4/23), T.J. House (4/9, 4/23), Quincy Latimore (4/16), Carlos Moncrief (4/16), Toru Murata (4/9), Jose Ramirez (4/9, 4/30), Danny Salazar (4/23, 4/30))

Temporarily Grounded

Jose Ramirez, 2B/SS
.176/.263/.176 line, .207 wOBA, 3-for-17, 3 R, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1:2 SO:BB, 1 SB, 1 CS in 20 PA

This is probably a week Ramirez would love to forget. Not only did the middle infielder struggle at the plate, he also went on the disabled list with a hip flexor injury he sustained while jolting for a groundball that took a weird bounce.

Ramirez's adjustment to Double-A has gone about as well as could have been reasonably expected, as he is getting on base at a decent clip. (.261/.336/.315 line). Power is not a big part of Ramirez's game, so it is not surprising to see most of his hits come as singles.

What is most impressive about Ramirez' season so far is his plate discipline, as he has walked as much as he has struck out(13:13 SO:BB in 127 plate appearances). Hopefully this injury does not sideline him for long because Ramirez's rise through the system is truly impressive and he was only building on that rise so far in 2013.

Jesus Aguilar, 1B
.217/.280/.304 line, .265 wOBA, 5-for-23, 1 R, 2 2B, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 7:2 SO:BB, 0 SB in 25 PA

It is a well-established fact that power is Aguilar's calling card. Yet, to date in 2013, that power is simply absent from his game.

The first baseman's overall line of .257/.328/.358 looks good on a shortstop, but for a big-time power hitter, it is severely lacking. His ISO is lower than Tyler Holt's (.101 to .119), a pretty big problem considering that Holt is one of the low-power tablesetters at the top of Akron's lineup. Plus, Aguilar has struck out in 25.4% of his plate appearances, way too much considering his relative lack of power on the year.

It is too early to freak out about Aguilar, but the apparent problems could be serious. This no-power, high-strikeouts result is something people worried could happen as Aguilar faced the better pitching of Double-A and he needs to make adjustments to fix it in the near future.

Ronny Rodriguez, SS/2B
.160/.222/.240 line, .213 wOBA, 4-for-25, 1 R, 2 2B, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 5:1 SO:BB, 2 SB in 27 PA

The bad news: Rodriguez's season line currently sits at .235/.252/.339.

The worse news: that poor line is not bad luck, as his BABIP is a fairly normal .277 right now.

The worst news: Rodriguez has two walks in 121 plate appearances this year to go with 21 strikeouts.

Rodriguez has a surprising amount of power for his position and size, but he does not have nearly enough to justify this lack of walks. The middle infielder just is not getting on base, something that cannot keep up.

Now that the calendar has turned to May, hopefully Rodriguez can snap out of his funk. Things turned around for the middle infielder after April in 2012 and everyone is looking for a repeat performance.

(Dishonorable Mentions: Cole Cook, Mike Rayl, Blake Wood)

(Previous Losers: Austin Adams (4/23), Shawn Armstrong (4/23), Brett Brach (4/23), Cole Cook (4/23), Paolo Espino (4/16), Tyler Holt (4/9), T.J. House (4/16), Kyle Landis (4/23), Quincy Latimore (4/23), Fabio Martinez (4/16), Carlos Moncrief (4/9, 4/30), Toru Murata (4/16), Matt Packer (4/9, 4/16, 4/30), Edward Paredes (4/16, 4/23), Jose Ramirez (4/16), Ronny Rodriguez (4/9, 4/23), Danny Salazar (4/16), Giovanny Urshela (4/9, 4/30), Robert Whitenack (4/23))

Stats Oddities

See full weekly and yearly Aeros stats here.

5

The sudden resurgence of Chun-Hsiu Chen's power is amazing after watching him in 2012. Chen hit six home runs total in 2012; he already has five on May 7. His .330/.438/.560 line is heavily helped by a .418 BABIP, but the power is back (.230 ISO).

Plus Chen has seven steals this year, but that is a mystery that we do have time to dive into right now.

As long as the power remains, Chen's 29:18 SO:BB in 28 games does not actually hurt that much. The 24-year-old looks like he has finally put all of his skills together and deserves a chance to try to make it work in Columbus soon. He needs to keep hitting like this to carry being a first baseman/designated hitter, but it is worth a shot.

0

Heading into this week, center fielder Tyler Holt had 22 strikeouts in 23 games. It is hard to make hitting at the top of the lineup work with that amount of punchouts as those drive down on-base percentage.

Luckily, Holt managed to avoid striking out at all this past week, helping to drive his .385/.429/.577 line. Plus, Holt added some doubles power as he is up to seven on the season. The strikeouts are getting better, something that will be necessary to keep him at the top of the lineup.

Holt profiles best as a fourth outfielder, but if he can keep up this power and keep cutting down on the strikeouts, maybe he can develop into a little more. Maybe, but you never know.

1.76

After the bullpen was such a mess at the beginning of the year, seeing them post a combined 1.76 ERA is a big part of what is winning games for the Aeros. The combination of Austin Adams, Jordan Cooper (though he had one spot start), Paolo Espino, Jose Flores, Trey Haley, Kyle Landis, Bryan Price, and Bryce Stowell is finally holding leads for the team.

It was hard to believe that the Akron bullpen was struggling so much in April considering the depth of relievers in the organization. Now, it seems that all has fixed itself. This bullpen is full of good arms worth keeping an eye on this season.

Odds & Ends

Starting pitching was not as big a part of helping the Aeros get wins this week as one would think. Right-hander Blake Wood -- on a major league rehab assignment -- made it through 0.2 innings with two walks, a hit, and a run allowed. Left-hander Matt Packer struck out eight batters in his five innings, though he also gave up seven hits and four runs. Left-hander Mike Rayl (4.50 ERA, 5.45 FIP) and right-hander Will Roberts (3.86 ERA, 3.71 FIP) did not pitch particularly well, but managed to keep the team in the game.

Outfielder Bo Greenwell (.263/.333/.421 line) did pretty well during his first full week with the Aeros. Fellow outfielder Quincy Latimore (.278/.381/.556 line) had another strong week to help bring his line for the season up to .258/.327/.433.

M*A*S*H Unit

As noted earlier, Jose Ramirez was placed on the disabled list with a hip flexor injury. He was described as day-to-day on Sunday before going on the DL, so this could have been a way to get more flexibility on the roster. Hopefully he will only spend the minimum on the DL.

Left-hander Mike Rayl went on the DL shortly after his callup with a left forearm strain. Moving into my own paranoid speculations, the forearm is close to the elbow -- and I always assume that pitcher's arms are about to fall off -- so hopefully this is just general soreness and does not migrate into a more dangerous area for Rayl.

Catcher Alex Lavisky and right-hander Shawn Armstrong remained on the DL, missing 21 and 15 games respectively. There has been no timetable released for either player.

Moves (Like Orbit)

April 30 - RHP Will Roberts promoted from High-A Carolina

May 2 - LHP Mike Rayl placed on 7-day DL (left forearm strain)

May 2 - RHP Kyle Landis demoted from Triple-A Columbus

May 4 - RHP Blake Wood received on Major League rehab assignment

May 6 - RHP Brett Brach promoted to Triple-A Columbus

May 6 - INF Justin Toole promoted from High-A Carolina

May 6 - INF Jose Ramirez placed on 7-day DL (hip flexor)

Don't forget that Danny Salazar could have gone much further in his ballgames but was pulled early because he is on a strict pitch count (75 I believe) or innings pitches (5 I believe).

Speaking of Danny Salazar (former breakout pitcher ), He's been promoted to Columbus and duly deserved.

Salazar's encouraging start has him on way to Columbus

Indians promote promising righty to Columbus on Tuesday night
Danny Salazar (Photo: Ken Carr)By Stephanie Metzger

May 8, 2013 ShareThis

Akron Aeros’ right-hander Danny Salazar spent the offseason working out with Ubaldo Jimenez, but Tribe fans needn’t be concerned.

Salazar, 23, has fared better than Jimenez this season, as he is presently 2-3 with a 2.67 ERA and a 51:10 K:BB. In three appearances from April 20-May 2, Salazar didn’t allow an earned run. On Tuesday, his final start with the Aeros, he tossed five innings against the Erie SeaWolves and yielded just one run.

The Cleveland Indians signed Salazar as a non-drafted free agent back in 2006 and since then, he has slowly ascended his way through the system. In 2010, he was sidelined most of the season as he underwent reconstruction surgery on his elbow.

Last season, Salazar started the year in high-A Carolina, where he posted a 1-2 record and 2.68 ERA through 16 games before his promotion to Akron, where he went 4-0 with a 1.85 ERA. Now, he says his elbow is feeling good and he feels healthier overall.

“I feel great right now so far,” Salazar said. “I was working in the offseason a lot and spring training just to get healthy and I feel good right now.” The organization currently has him on a pitch limit, which consists of five innings or 85 pitches per start.

With one month of the season in the books, Salazar said he is focusing on his third pitch. His fastball, which ranges in the mid-90s, is his biggest strength and he also feels confident in his change-up. His slider is his current project and so far, it’s worked out well for him as the pitch appears to have hard, late movement that Salazar has been able to locate well.

Aeros’ manager Edwin Rodriguez agreed that Salazar has mastered the fastball, but his secondary pitches are his lifeline for the future. “He’s a very powerful pitcher with a very powerful fastball,” Rodriguez said. “The arm strength is there. His secondary pitches are very important from here on.”

The key to Salazar’s slider rests within the seams. Rodriguez explained that Salazar occasionally tries to put too much spin on the ball, which deters his release point.

Rodriguez is confident in Salazar’s improvement and knows that as the season progresses, so will Salazar. “He knows that it might take time and he might be inconsistent at the beginning of the season but eventually, he will find his release point for those secondary pitches and after that he will feel more comfortable throwing them,” Rodriguez said.

Comfort isn’t Salazar’s problem, as he feels confident in his elbow and the level he’s at. He said spending time with Akron last year was helpful and that he feels better about his approach against hitters – even lefties.

“Right now, my average against lefties is a little high,” Salazar noted – though .236 hardly seems too high. “But I feel more comfortable throwing to them because I can use my change-up a little bit more.”

Confidence has fared well for Salazar, which is reflected in his most recent achievement – Eastern League Pitcher of the Week. Salazar received the award for the week of April 29-May 5, during which he shut out the Altoona Curve through six innings, allowing just one hit as he struck out 12.

Salazar’s achievements did not go unnoticed, as according to his tweet on Tuesday night he was promoted to AAA-Columbus, a clear testament to his progression and the stellar season he’s had so far.

Now that he has a plan for the season and has his pitches under control, Salazar is heading south to take on the next level. If all goes according to plan, his next move will be north to Cleveland, alongside his workout partner Jimenez.

Around The Farm: May 7, 2013

Bauer flirts with no-hitter while Michael Bourn begins rehab assignment
Trevor Bauer (Photo: MILB.com)

By Arthur Kinney (IBI)

May 8, 2013 ShareThis

Around the Farm takes a quick look at some of yesterday’s performances by Indians prospects throughout the system. The positions listed below are where the player was playing in yesterday’s game.

Michael Bourn (Columbus - Game 1, CF) -1-3, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 SB – Bourn’s road back to the show begins with a solid night at the plate. While it is Triple-A, it is good to see that Bourn’s hitting stroke is still intact after his time on the DL. Also, his baserunning seems to have not suffered any rust from the layoff. The sooner he can get into Major League shape, the better for the Big Club.

Trevor Bauer (Columbus – Game 1, SP) – 6.2 IP, 0 H, 2 R (both earned), 4 BB, 7 K, 1 WP, 4 HBP, No Decision – All evening, Bauer walked a tightrope and kept the light-hitting Clips in the opener, but didn’t get a chance to finish the job in the bottom of the seventh (more on the reasons for that later). While a supremely-gifted pitcher in both the physical and mental aspects of the discipline, Bauer is prone to these odd outings where he seems to have forgotten how to control the baseball. While the consistency issues posed by such outings are a concern, they may just be the price that needs to be paid to have an unorthodox pitching savant like Bauer on the staff.

Kyle Landis (Akron, RP) – 0.1 IP, 1 H, 3 R (all earned), 2 BB, Hold, Loss – Kyle Landis’ return to Akron may be short lived as Landis left the mound accompanied by Aeros trainer Chad Wolfe after throwing only 15 pitches. Given the uneven (at best) nature of his season thus far, his future in the organization is hardly helped by the specter of significant time on the DL. For stat nerds like me, the rare combination of a hold and a loss on the same pitching line is also of note.

•Cord Phelps (Columbus – Game 1, 2B) – 0-2, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 SB – While he did manage a walk and some solid baserunning, it is disconcerting to see yet another hitless night from Phelps.

•Omir Santos (Columbus – Game 1, C) – 3-3 – Not much to say here except to congratulate Omir on his perfect night at the plate. Nothing spectacular in the other columns of the boxscore, but still perfect.

•Preston Guilmet (Columbus - Game 1, RP) – 0.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R (both earned), 1 HR allowed, Loss, Blown Save – While bringing in the closer was the obvious choice when Bauer’s control issues led to a tie game, it didn’t end well as Guilmet completed the implosion, including a two-run homer off the bat of Knights 3BBrent Morel. In Guilmet’s defense, I’m not sure anyone could have rescued the rat fiesta that the top of the seventh had become.

•Tim Fedroff (Columbus – Game 2, CF) – 2-4, 1 K – Fedroff continues his three-game streak of hitting exactly .500.

•Matt Lawson (Columbus – Game 2, 2B) – 1-4, 1 RBI, 2 K – Lawson only got on base once, but it proved to be big as his RBI single in the bottom of the sixth drove in the winning run.

•Cord Phelps (Columbus - Game 2, 1B) – 2-2, 1 2B, 1 BB – A refreshing departure from his performance in the opener, as well as most of the rest of the season.

•Brett Brach (Columbus – Game 2, SP) – 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R (earned), 1 BB, 8 K, 1 WP, 1 BK, No Decison – A very good night on the mound in his 2013 Triple-A debut (and his second game ever at the level). Lack of run support cost him the decision.

•Fernando Nieve (Columbus – Game 2, RP) – 2 IP, perfect, 5 K – Near-perfect baseball from the Clips reliever kept the team in the game long enough for the offense to step up and take the win in the nightcap.

•Justin Toole (Akron, 2B) – 2-3, 2 RBI, 1 BB – A good night at the plate, including a two-RBI single in the fifth inning. This seems to indicate a hitter getting used to his new level (albeit on in which he had 11 games of experience prior to this year) very quickly.

•Chun Chen (Akron, DH) – 1-2, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 Sacrifice Fly – Chun Chen continues to hit, even managing to be productive in recording an out (Sacrifice Fly in the third inning). The main impediment ot his Major League prospects is the recent decline in the prevalence of the full-time DH.

•Giovanny Urshela (Akron, 3B) – 2-3, 1 R – Gio’s recent strong form at the plate continues, with his hitting streal reaching five games. If he can keep this up, he may get above .300 soon.

•Danny Salazar (Akron, SP) – 5 IP, 5 H, 1 R (earned), 1 BB, 8 K, No Decision – While his fifth inning was not the greatest effort ever, the fact that he was pulled after only five innings (and 73 pitches) is disconcerting, especially as the trainer had been called out to check on him an inning prior.

•Jerrud Sabourin (Carolina, 1B) – 1-4, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 K, 1 HR – The Undrafted Wonder’s strong season continues with a two-run homer that supplied exactly half of the Mudcats’ run output tonight.

•Luigi Rodriguez (Carolina, LF) – 2-4, 2 K, 1 2B – It was feast or famine for L-Rod tonight as he either hit or struck out in every plate appearance.

•Zach MacPhee (Carolina, DH) – 1-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 K, 1 HR – Another prime example of getting only one hit but making it count.

•Joe Colon (Carolina, SP) – 6 IP, 3 H, 4 R (all earned), 3 BB, 3 K – In only his second Advanced Single-A outing, it is clear that Joe is still trying to figure the level out

•Owen Dew (Carolina, RP) – 2 IP, 1 H, 2 R (1 earned), 1 BB, 2 K, 1 HR allowed, Loss – A rare bad night from Owen (combined with a Yhoxian Medina throwing error) sunk the Mudcats’ ship tonight.

BA Prospect Chat

Paul (Minnesota): Danny Salazar - has 2013 to date been just natural progression - or has he improved his tools? How do you see his floor/ceiling?

J.J. Cooper: Biggest concern with Salazar is can he stay healthy. He was touching 98 mph before this year as well. So far, so good on the health standpoint so he is on track to give the Indians two solid starting pitching prospects who are nearly big league ready (him and Bauer). The big caveat there is that is all contingent on him staying healthy and there have been health problems in the past.

brad (catawissa): when can i hope to see lindor and sano make their move to the eastern league?
J.J. Cooper: Keep waiting a little while. Fans love to see guys get promoted after the first good week or good month. But for teams, there is very little upside in making a very quick promotion and all kinds of downside–teams hate to see a guy get in over his head because that often ends up slowing down development. If those two spent all year in high Class A, they’d still be on the fast track. I wouldn’t think it would be that long, but there doesn’t appear to be any reason to not keep both of them around til the all-star break at least.

Only team not rained out was Carolina and the Mudcats were clobbered. Some offensive stats by our prospects and one successful nonprospect:

Naquin with a single and 2K. OPS 781. Problem area: 32K vs 9 walks
Lindor with a single. OPS 895 14K vs 12bb
Jordan Smith with 2 hits, 2 rbi. His avg has been moving up steadily, not 264, but cleanup hitter's OPS is only 644. 19K vs 10bb
Luigi Rodriguea a single. Avg 300. OPS 674. Problem area 36K vs 11walks. Only 6 of 11 SB.

Nonprospect 1B Jerrod Sabourin hit 2 doubles, avg 328, OPS 828, 16K vs 14bb. He's 23, sort of old for this level and not a lot of power for a 1st baseman

http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.js ... x&sid=milb

Akron got in 7 innings before suspended at 3-3. Hitting by:

Chun Chen, 7th homer, and a walk, avg 336, OPS 1047. But the 24 year old is apparently condemned to the Eastern League for life.

Giovanny Urshela, single, steal no. 2 for slow 3B; avg 286, OPS 740. Not bad for 21 year old slick fielder, Indians bat him 9th

Ronnie Rodriguez doubles, his 4th, avg 223, OPS a gaudy 576. He has cut way back on his errors this year. Also age 21

Oft injured Bo Greenwell is not hurt, also not hitting. Avg 185 for 24 year old finally debuting in AA.

http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.js ... x&sid=milb

Yesterday' lines, including top performances by our top prospects. Excluding Bauer who will no longer qualify as a prospect soon, we have 3 good ones: Lindor, Naquin and Salazar, and all did nice work on Sunday. Too bad Dorsyss Paulino has regressed; he had another 0-4 day and made his 12th error. He has 21 hits which at least exceed the errors.

CLE AA Aguilar, Jesus 1B 4 2 2 2 .254 HR (4), BB (13)
CLE AA Urshela, Giovanny 3B 5 1 2 1 .296 2B (7)
CLE HiA Lindor, Francisco SS 2 0 0 0 .328 3 BB (16)
CLE HiA Naquin, Tyler CF 4 1 1 1 .291 HR (3), BB (10)
CLE HiA Rodriguez, Luigi LF 4 1 1 1 .277 2B (4), BB (4)
CLE MAJ Gomes, Yan C 4 1 3 0 .268 2B (2)

CLE AA Haley, Trey 1.2 2 0 0 1 3 0
CLE AAA Barnes, Scott 0.2 4 5 5 1 0 7.84 L (2-1)
CLE AAA Salazar, Danny 5 2 0 0 3 5 0 First Triple-A start just as good as his Double-A ones
CLE MAJ Allen, Cody 0.1 0 0 0 0 1 2.76 Sv (1)

Jose Ramirez is back off the DL and his return was pretty bad. 0-6 although he did hit the ball well. His average dips below the .250 mark for the first time this year and the first time in a long time.

Launching Off With The Aeros: 5/7/13 – 5/13/13

Akron moves to .500 on a successful road trip

By Jim Piascik

May 14, 2013

ShareThis



The Akron Aeros spent most of the past week on the road in Reading and Binghamton, and before departing from Canal Park, manager Edwin Rodriguez was frank about his goals for the team on the road trip.

"To be honest, I keep telling the guys one game at a time, it's a long season," Rodriguez said. "You go out there, we won today [Wednesday], turn the page, we think about tomorrow, and then we go from there. If you start saying 'win four out of seven,' then you're putting pressure on the guys."

Well, going one game at a time managed to get the Aeros to win four out of seven as the team moved to 19-19 on the season. Akron is five games behind the Erie SeaWolves, who lead the Western Division, but are in a tie for second place with the Richmond Flying Squirrels.

The Aeros will finish their road trip in Binghamton with games on Wednesday and Thursday before beginning a seven-game homestand on Friday.

In Orbit

Justin Toole, 2B

.476/.577/.571 line, .493 wOBA, 10-for-21, 6 R, 2 2B, 0 HR, 4 RBI, 1:4 SO:BB, 1 HBP, 0 SB in 27 PA

With regular second baseman Jose Ramirez heading to the disabled list and no clear backup to take the temporary starting spot, Toole was called up from High-A Carolina to fill in for about a week. Toole seized the opportunity, lighting up opposing pitching and playing a key role in Akron's wins.

After Wednesday's game, Toole said that he just wants to help however he can.

"I got an opportunity to come up here and I'm just trying to do whatever I can to help the team," Toole said. "Being an older guy, I've played with quite of a few guys on the team. I've just been around, moving up and down in the organization, so it's pretty comfortable with everyone."

Toole is far from a priority prospect, but he is one of the good guys in the organization. In order to make the minor leagues work, an organization needs players who know that they are there to be backups and do not have a real major league future. Toole accepts this, does his job admirably, and is a real credit to the organization.

Chun-Hsiu Chen, DH

.333/.423/.571 line, .455 wOBA, 7-for-21, 4 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 7:4 SO:BB, 0 SB in 26 PA

The greatness of Chen this year has been undisputable. He is currently hitting .331/.435/.562 for the season, and while that is inflated by a .420 BABIP, the power looks like it is back. He has six home runs -- one more than in all of 2012 -- eight doubles, and a triple so far this year.

Though his manager did not coach him last year, he has a hypothesis as to why Chen is hitting better now two years removed from playing catcher full-time.

"He's fine playing first [base], definitely he's very comfortable DHing," Rodriguez said. "But I think it was more the catching. Not only on him, on any catcher; that would take something away... The catching takes a lot of energy, not only physically but mentally from the catcher."

Being a first baseman/designated hitter limits Chen's future, but with it helping his offense flourish, it may actually work out for him better in the long-term after all.

Austin Adams, Jose Flores, Trey Haley, Bryan Price, Bryce Stowell, RHPs

12 G, 0.95 ERA, 1.31 FIP, 14.21 SO/9, 3.79 BB/9, 1.11 WHIP, 13 H, 2 ER, 30:8 SO:BB, 1 HBP in 19.0 IP

The Akron bullpen struggled earlier in the season, but the majority of the team's relievers have really turned it on over the past week. The combination of Adams, Flores, Haley, Price, and Stowell absolutely shut down opponents, striking out 41.1 percent of batters.

It really is amazing how much bullpen depth Cleveland has amassed in its minor league system. All five of these pitchers easily could be in Columbus right now if not for the sheer number of relievers in the system. I would expect all five of these guys to get a shot in 2013 and hopefully they all keep pitching this well.

(Honorable Mentions: Kyle Bellows, Quincy Latimore, Jake Lowery, Matt Packer, Roberto Perez, Danny Salazar, Giovanny Urshela)

(Previous Winners: Chun-Hsiu Chen (4/16, 4/30), Tyler Holt (4/23), T.J. House (4/9, 4/23), Quincy Latimore (4/16), Carlos Moncrief (4/16, 5/7), Toru Murata (4/9), Jose Ramirez (4/9, 4/30), Danny Salazar (4/23, 4/30, 5/7), Giovanny Urshela (5/7))

Temporarily Grounded

Jesus Aguilar, 1B

.207/.233/.414 line, .305 wOBA, 6-for-29, 3 R, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 6:1 SO:BB, 0 SB in 30 PA

The power began to show for Aguilar over the past week with two home runs, though he struggled to get on base again. He also only owns a .123 ISO for the year, which is quite troubling for the slugging first baseman.

Aguilar has 32 RBI on the season -- tied for first in the Eastern League -- though his manager thinks that Aguilar is leaving too much on the table.

"He's getting those RBI, but I think that he could do better," Rodriguez said. "Like today [Wednesday], he had many chances to drive in a lot of runs and he didn't come through. He's the guy that we need him to start swinging better. He's the four-hole hitter."

I still like Aguilar a lot long-term, but as a hitting-first guy not known for his defense, he does need to get his .246/.309/.370 line up quite a bit. Some of that could be helped by working on his strikeouts a little bit (37:13 SO:BB in 35 games), though power is the main problem right now.

Ronny Rodriguez, SS

.154/.185/.192 line, .199 wOBA, 4-for-26, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 4:1 SO:BB, 1 SB in 28 PA

I hate putting players in this section frequently, but sometimes it just has to be done. Such is the case with Rodriguez, whose .154/.185/.192 line is unfortunately close to his line for the whole season (.220/.240/.312).

A lot of Rodriguez's ills in Carolina last year were hidden by his power, which brought his line up to .264/.300/.452. The 19 home runs and 20 doubles made up for the low on-base percentage, something that is not happening in 2013 (four doubles, one home run in 37 games).

The encouraging part about Rodriguez's power surge last year was that Carolina's stadium -- and the Carolina League in general -- are not power-friendly. One could be forgiven for assuming the power transition would be for real, but I would still give the 21-year old time.

As much as we hate it, Francisco Lindor still needs some time in Carolina and Rodriguez is a high-upside, slow-starting prospect who needs time to figure things out in Akron. Patience is needed here and Rodriguez should not go anywhere for the time being.

Cole Cook, RHP

1 G, 5.40 ERA, 9.80 FIP, 5.40 SO/9, 0.00 BB/9, 0.60 WHIP, 1 H, 1 ER, 1:0 SO:BB, 1 HR, 0 HBP in 1.2 IP

I always hesitate to put relievers in either the In Orbit or Temporarily Grounded sections due to the small sample size, but this is more of a reflection on Cook's entire season.

In 12 appearances and 19.0 innings, Cook owns a 9.47 ERA, 6.78 FIP, 8.53 SO/9, 6.16 BB/9, and 2.16 WHIP. Cook's reputation is one of a strike thrower, making his early season walks troubling. I would expect his command to improve as the season goes on, but now the question is whether he will be given the time.

As stated above, Akron is a beneficiary of Cleveland's deep bullpen depth. With that, it would not surprise me if Cook loses his spot to another up-and-comer from Carolina in the near future. Cook has potential, but not enough to stay in Akron if he keeps throwing like this.

(Dishonorable Mentions: Brett Brach, Paolo Espino, Bo Greenwell, Tyler Holt, Kyle Landis, Carlos Moncrief, Will Roberts)

(Previous Losers: Austin Adams (4/23), Jesus Aguilar (5/7), Shawn Armstrong (4/23), Brett Brach (4/23), Cole Cook (4/23), Paolo Espino (4/16), Tyler Holt (4/9), T.J. House (4/16), Kyle Landis (4/23), Quincy Latimore (4/23), Fabio Martinez (4/16), Carlos Moncrief (4/9, 4/30), Toru Murata (4/16), Matt Packer (4/9, 4/16, 4/30), Edward Paredes (4/16, 4/23), Jose Ramirez (4/16, 5/7), Ronny Rodriguez (4/9, 4/23, 5/7), Danny Salazar (4/16), Giovanny Urshela (4/9, 4/30), Robert Whitenack (4/23))

Stats Oddities

See full weekly and yearly Aeros stats here.

38.3

Before being promoted after his start last Tuesday, right-hander Danny Salazar struck out 38.3 percent of batters in 33.2 innings.

133 batters, 51 strikeouts.

Few high-impact starting pitchers have gone through Akron over the past few years but that does not detract from how impressive Salazar was during his time with the Aeros. Since 2010, when I started watching Aeros games regularly, the only Cleveland pitchers to be in the same sentence as Salazar are Drew Pomeranz and Alex White. In fact, I may be a prisoner of the moment, but I think I might put Salazar above both of them.

Pomeranz and White may not be too good right now, but they were both top prospects in baseball at the time of the Ubaldo Jimenez trade. Hopefully Salazar will keep progressing into the top-of-the-rotation starting pitcher he is capable of becoming and will anchor Cleveland's rotation in the years ahead.

.743

Whereas his fellow left-side infielder, Rodriguez, has struggled early on in 2013 just like in Carolina last year, third baseman Giovanny Urshela has actually put together a pretty decent line. We are all still waiting for the walks to be higher (3.2 BB%), but his overall line of .294/.315/.429 with a .743 OPS is quite impressive considering his past.

Urshela started very slow in Carolina last year, but this year he has actually posted an average batting line. If Urshela comes on as the weather heats up as he did in Carolina, then suddenly we will be looking at an above-average hitter with major league-caliber defense.

Urshela has made seven errors so far this year, but the real important fact about his defense is the scouting reports. Scouts say his defense is ready for major leagues and I believe them over faulty error stats. If Urshela's bat has made the jump to Double-A then he will soon leave IBI's preseason #19 ranking behind and move up toward the top 10.

58

For whatever reason, left-hander Matt Packer has been utterly hittable in 2013. In just 42.0 innings, opponents have managed 58 hits off of him, good for a 12.4 H/9. That number is probably unsustainable -- especially considering it is propped up by a .366 BABIP -- but the concern is real.

Earlier in the year, Packer's velocity was very low (in the 84-86 MPH range). When I saw him recently, the velocity was back up near his past levels (88-90 MPH) and he pitched well. Monday's outing was bad again, however, raising the question of whether the regained velocity (assuming it was there; I was not in Binghamton) actually will fix the problem.

Packer's overall stats are average at best (4.07 ERA, 3.99 FIP), but as a control pitcher without many strikeouts (4.71 SO/9), he needs to limit his walks better (3.64 BB/9) in addition to the hits. I am more hopeful than I was earlier in the month after seeing Packer's velocity rise but he still has a ways to go.

Odds & Ends

Center fielder Tyler Holt had a substandard week (.154/.281/.231 line, .167 BABIP), though bad BABIP weeks happen. Overall he is still looking good at the plate and has decent stats to back it up (.257/.349/.368 in 170 plate appearances).

Fellow outfielders Quincy Latimore (.250/.318/.400) and Carlos Moncrief (.217/.296/.348) had average weeks with some good and some bad. Both need to show a little more to make this year a success, though Moncrief gets more slack as this is his first time in Double-A and Latimore is on his third time through.

The starting pitching carousel in Akron did not yield much fruit this past week, with right-handers Brett Brach (7.20 ERA, 5.20 FIP), Paolo Espino (6.00 ERA, 5.87 FIP), and Will Roberts (7.11 ERA, 8.73 FIP) each struggling in their starts. None of them are more than organization soldiers, however.

Right-hander Jordan Cooper, on the other hand, continued his decent showing in Akron with a six-inning, two-run outing. He owns a 1.93 ERA and 3.34 FIP in his 14.0 innings with the Aeros, though he too is an organizational soldier.

M*A*S*H Unit

Second baseman Jose Ramirez was activated from the disabled list after missing the minimum of seven days with a right hip flexor injury. Like I wrote last week, the biggest reason for putting him on the DL seems to have been getting roster flexibility to call Toole up from Carolina to temporarily take the starting spot.

Right-hander Kyle Landis was put on the DL with a right lat strain after an ineffective outing Tuesday night. He joins catcher Alex Lavisky (fractured left big toe), right-hander Shawn Armstrong (right hand contusion), and left-hander Mike Rayl (left forearm strain).

Moves (Like Orbit)

May 7 - RHP Blake Wood removed from rehab assignment

May 8 - RHP Kyle Landis placed on 7-day DL (right lat strain)

May 10 - RHP Brett Brach demoted from Triple-A Columbus

May 12 - 2B Jose Ramirez activated from DL (right hip flexor)

May 12 - RHP Danny Salazar promoted to Triple-A Columbus

May 12 - RHP Rob Bryson demoted from Triple-A Columbus