Greg Allen had another hit and a SB last night.

We should trade Naquin now while his numbers look good. His BB-K ratio scares me to death. Like Holt (and Allen?) more than him. He's expendable. Try to get a corner guy for him, or pitcher.

Agreed that Naquin strikes out way too much for a potential leadoff man, hey that sounds just like Michael Bourn. But he's raised his average a lot this year and posted his career high OPS although continuing to whiff too often. Ks down a tiny bit from previous seasons. I'd like to see him in Columbus as soon as possible and see how he handles AAA. If he can hit 300 with an OPS of 750 I guess I could live with the Ks if his defense is really as good sometimes claimed. Although I have never been a big fan his 2014 improvements have won me over a bit.

Cleveland Indians ‏@tribeinsider
Francisco Lindor update:
+Removed Wedn vs Erie (bad-hop ground ball in facial area)
+Suffered small nasal fracture
+Will be out 7-10 days

Cody Anderson (Photo: Brittany Chay)

Seven Down: Indians prospects who have hurt their stock

By Tony Lastoria

June 26, 2014

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This is a continuation of my piece I posted on Tuesday noting the seven Indians prospects who have improved their prospect standing the most this season. Just like there are two sides to every coin and a yin to a yang, that means there have been some prospects who have hurt their prospect value this season, so this piece notes the seven Indians prospects who have done just that.

I have had the fortunate luxury of talking to a lot of people throughout the game over the past three months and at various venues. Whether it be in Arizona during spring training, on the road in Carolina or Columbus or closer to home in Lake County or Akron, and with Indians personnel or scouts from other teams, I have compiled a lot of insight and information. There is no doubt that performance is an easy indicator of a guy losing value, but there are often other things at play that tie into that performance that can enhance it to make it look better or hinder it further, and that is where this additional insight really helps.

Here are the seven prospects who have hurt their standing the most. Note, once again the players are listed alphabetically in order not to infer any kind of prospect order between the players.

Cody Anderson (RHP, Akron): Anderson came into the season as the IBI’s #4 ranked prospect. He came into the season with a lot of momentum having raced up the prospect rankings with an outstanding performance last year at High-A Carolina (9-4, 2.34 ERA, 2.3 BB/9, 8.2 K/9) and some significant strides in his development thanks to some good improvement with his fastball command and some mental and physical improvements as well. But so far this season has been a struggle as he is just 2-6 with a 5.21 ERA, 3.6 BB/9 and 5.6 K/9. His problems have centered around some delivery problems which have cropped up and him gaining a little extra weight, and that inconsistency with his delivery has resulted in a loss of some life to his fastball and the effectiveness of his secondary stuff. The Indians believe they have pinpointed the problem and have been working with him though the results have still been poor. His strong build and ability to haul innings with some good stuff still makes him very intriguing, and what may be happening this season is his inexperience and rawness on the mound showing themselves. Remember, he’s far from a finished product, so these struggles are expected to a degree, but now he needs to rectify the problem and finish the season strong. He’s still one of the Indians better prospects, but his status has certainly slipped to a borderline top 10 guy now.

Caleb Hamrick (RHP, Lake County): Hamrick came into the season as the IBI’s #32 ranked prospect. Going into the season he was a good performer in the early part of his career even at a young age along the lines of Clayton Cook, something that caught the eye of some scouts and Indians personnel. But this season he has struggled to the tune of a 2-3 record with a 6.66 ERA, 4.7 BB/9 and 5.3 K/9. His ability to command his fastball and consistently fill the zone up with strikes was something that really impressed people about him, not to mention some arm strength, some physicality and the feel for a slider that has plus potential. However, this season everything has taken a step back. His fastball lacks much movement and with a slip in his command and inconsistent secondary offerings it has led to him being a one pitch pitcher as hitters are sitting on his fastball. He’s still young and developing so he is still very much a prospect for the Indians, but he has slipped in value and will need to pitch well or risk moving to a relief role at some point next season.

Dorssys Paulino (OF, Lake County): Paulino came into the season as the IBI’s #11 ranked prospect. He has had probably the most disappointing showing of any prospect this season. He came into last season with high regard as a hitting prospect, but really struggled at the plate hitting .246 with a .646 OPS and especially struggled in the field at shortstop. The hope was that because he was so young that by repeating the Low-A level that some consistency would develop in his game and routines so that his performance would be better as a hitter and defender, but he has actually played worse in all phases of the game this year. It got so bad defensively that the Indians finally pulled the plug on him as a shortstop at the end of April and sent him to Arizona to work on a conversion to the outfield. He has played a little better of late, but is still only hitting .229 with 1 HR, 16 RBI and .623 OPS in 57 games. His approach has deteriorated and the once promising pop in his bat has all but evaporated. He is still only 19 years old so no one has given up on him by any means as he could be a late bloomer and the bat still has unlimited potential, but he is no longer viewed as a top prospect around the industry.

Nelson Rodriguez (1B, Lake County): Rodriguez came into the season as the IBI’s #30 ranked prospect. The Indians were very aggressive with him last season sending him to Lake County to start the year even though he was just 18 years old, and his youth showed as he struggled for two months before going to Mahoning Valley where he found his footing again and had a nice season there. That showing in Mahoning Valley was inspiring to a lot of scouts who liked his power potential and felt he had the makings of an approach which would allow that power to continue to show as he progressed through the minors. This season it has been a bit of a struggle again at Lake County as he is hitting just .227 but he has 9 HR and a decent 35-74 walk to strikeout ratio. That 12.0% walk rate to go along with a .171 isolated power make him quite interesting, but the 25.4% strikeout rate is alarming and something he has not really improved since last year. He is doing a better job this season of not compromising his power by maintaining good length to his swing, but he is still struggling with identifying pitches and being disciplined in swinging at the ones he can drive. Like with any other highly thought of prospect 20 years old or younger you simply don’t give up on them, but the struggles within his approach and with making consistent contact bring some significant concerns as he goes forward and starts to face more advanced pitching. He’s still a top 50 guy, but if his showing this season continues he will certainly slide in the rankings.

Anthony Santander (OF, Lake County): Santander came into the season as the IBI’s #18 ranked prospect. This has been one of the more perplexing situations to follow this season. He had offseason shoulder surgery so has not been able to throw a baseball all year, yet he was cleared to swing a bat and was at Lake County the first two months of the season strictly as a designated hitter. While the Indians say that there was no risk for injury by having him swing a bat, which I do not doubt to be true, it clearly was something that affected him mentally as his swing looked nothing like it did last year before he got hurt. After he hit .184 with 1 HR, 10 RBI and .530 OPS in 43 games the Indians finally pulled the plug on him and sent him to Arizona to get his mind right and finish off his rehab. He also suffered a right elbow strain, which may have resulted from him compensating for the recovery to his right shoulder. Maybe I am off base here, but I think he was really mishandled by the Indians this season and now he might have more physical problems as a result and now has 40+ games of poor play he has to recover from mentally as well. I still like his youth, his plus power potential and his nice profile as a defender in right field, but his once promising star is fading fast.

Jordan Smith (OF, Akron): Smith came into the season as the IBI’s #19 ranked prospect. This is one of the toughest players for me to list as he has been one of my favorites to watch develop over the past few seasons and how he continues to win people over with his play and who he is as a person. Unfortunately, when you get to Double-A it is no longer so much about development as it is in the lower levels of the minors. You have to perform. At Akron he has experienced frustration really for the first time as a pro baseball player for an extended period of time as he is hitting .210 with 0 HR, 22 RBI and .523 OPS in 68 games. Everything he does so well is down across the board. For his first three seasons in the organization you could pencil him in as a .300 hitter with an .800 OPS and near 1:1 walk to strikeout ratio every year, but the average and OPS are way down and for you advanced metrics fans his 44 wRC+ is a far cry from the 117-129 wRC+ range he had over his first three seasons as a pro. Probably the most concerning thing is the landslide-like decline in his approach as he has 19 strikeouts and 52 strikeouts, a near 3:1 strikeout to walk ratio which is way up over his near 1:1 career ratio coming into the season. For all the worry about his power, that is way down the list of concerns at the moment as the Indians are working on getting his approach back intact and get a more consistent, quick swing path to he can make better contact. The defense, makeup and everything else plays at the Major League level, so getting the bat going again is critical to his future. This is really the first time he has faced adversity, so it will be interesting to see how he handles it the remainder of the season and if he can finish strong. As of now, his prospect value has seen a decent sized drop.

Logan Vick (OF, Lake County): Vick came into the season as the IBI’s #31 ranked prospect. His season got off to a very slow start and he has never quite recovered, so much so, that the Indians earlier this month reassigned him to Lake County which is a sign in itself of a guy who has quickly lost some value. Even when a guy is struggling, if they are a top prospect the organization will give a guy a good three months or half a season to find his way before taking action - if they even do anything - but the fact the Indians did it with Vick just 41 games into his season at Carolina is noteworthy. Overall in 55 games between Lake County (14) and Carolina (41) he is hitting .186 with 3 HR, 21 RBI and .604 OPS. His 15.7% walk rate this season is exceptional and something that gives some confidence in him moving forward that when he figures things out with his swing that he will be a more consistent performer. But the talk in the industry is he is passive to a fault which leads to a lot of the walks. It also leads to him putting himself in poor counts which is why he strikes out so much (24.5% strikeout rate) and makes such weak contact. The Indians have worked with him to be a little more aggressive with his approach so finding that balance between being patient and aggressive is something he is still working through. He has a strong season last year at Lake County where he filled up the stat sheet, got on base, ran the bases well and was a versatile, dependable outfielder, but this season he has not been anything close to that player and as a result is going to see a significant regression in his prospect ranking next season unless he comes out of his funk.

Follow Tony and the Indians Baseball Insider on Twitter @TonyIBI. Also, his new book the 2014 Cleveland Indians Baseball Insider which profiles the Indians' Top 100 Prospects and more is available for sale.

Have I mentioned I like our new CF'er?

@mvscrappers: GREAT DIVING CATCH in centerfield by Greg Allen to end the top of the 5th. Keeps game tied 2-2. Roberts, Allen, Patterson due up

He also had two outfield assists in his second game as pro.

@mvscrappers: Allen scores from 3rd on a wild pitch to give the Scrappers a 3-2 lead after 7 innings.

Allen with a steal in each of his last 3 games.

Tony's list of disappointments includes two who never warranted much attention in the first place:

Jordan Smith (Tony's #16!!) is a RF with no particularly strong tool who always figured to peak at no higher than AA. Perhaps it turns out he peaked in Carolina inside of Akron, no big deal.

Logan Vick (Tony's #31!!!!) offers nothing of interest other than walking a lot. Can't see why he rated higher than No. 99 on Tony's list.

Paulino is a true disappointment after his 2012 debut in Arizona. 2013 featured a dreadful start and then gradual improvement. This year his return to Lake County he's been somewhat worse than last year and now he's an OF who needs to be a hitter to have any prospect ceiling.

Nellie Rodriguez' average is poor but he could he walks plenty and power numbers are pretty impressive. Sort of like those guys Oakland liked featured in the book I didn't read and the movie I didn't watch.

Anderson had one good season and everyone from Tony to BA shoved him up to the Top 5 prospects. I figured that was due more to the dearth of talent in the system than anything else. This year he's lousy; homers aplenty.

I was a Santander fan but whenever I locate a "5 tool" kid in Rookie or Short Season ball he always flops, so I'm not surprised. At least Anthony is still very young so could theoretically return to prospect status.

Thursday games:

http://www.milb.com/scoreboard/index.js ... d=20140626

Here are BA highlighted lines; they have more time to excerpt this info than I do:

CLE AA Rodriguez, Ronny 3B 4 2 4 0 .247
CLE AA Wolters, Tony SS 4 0 1 2 .249 BB (24) [returned to his SS roots]
CLE AAA Moncrief, Carlos RF 5 0 2 2 .261 2B (14) [good hot weather hitter]
CLE AAA Aguilar, Jesus DH 4 2 2 2 .278 HR (12), BB (32) [been quiet lately]
CLE LoA Rodriguez, Nelson 1B 3 0 2 3 .232 3B (2), BB (36) [good time for the Rodriguezes]
CLE LoA Frazier, Clint CF 5 0 1 0 .243 2B (9) [not exactly setting the world on fire]
CLE R Bradley, Bobby 1B 4 2 2 3 .333 2B (1), HR (1), BB (2) [good start]

CLE AA Armstrong, Shawn 1 2 0 0 0 0 2.01 Sv (11)
CLE HiA Morimando, Shawn 6 4 1 1 1 5 3.00 [why is he still in Carolina?]
CLE LoA Lugo, Luis 5 7 4 4 2 7 4.70 L (5-6) [big strikeout numbers are consistent; the rest of his game is not]

Bobby Bradley! Nice!

I am loving this draft.

In case you like consistency in your starting pitching try these last seven starts of Shawn Morimando:

6 innings 1 run
6 innings 2 runs
6 innings 1 run
6 1/3 inn 2 runs
6 innings 0 runs
6 innings 2 runs
6 innings 1 run

SS Erik Gonzalez promoted to Akron today.

Zimmer playing today

Gonzalez and Morimando are my picks this year.

Luigi Rodriguez (Photo: IBI)

Minor Happenings: Rodriguez finding confidence in approach

By Tony Lastoria

June 27, 2014

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Minor Happenings" is a bi-weekly column which recaps the important developments and news in the Indians farm system. Information in this report is compiled from my own research and through discussions with industry personnel inside and outside the Cleveland Indians organization. Unless otherwise noted, the intellectual property contained in this report is owned by IndiansBaseballInsider.com LLC, and any unauthorized reproduction of the information is prohibited.

In today’s edition of Minor Happenings, I take a look at the resurgence of High-A Carolina outfielder Luis Rodriguez and what has helped him turn his season around. I also talk about Double-A Akron right-handed pitcher Joseph Colon’s improvements and rise in ranks, provide lots of quotes from Low-A Lake County pitching coach Rigo Beltran on several of his pitchers, plus provide insight and news on players such as Francisco Lindor, Yandy Diaz, Ben Heller and more.

Also, in case you missed it, be sure to check out this week’s excellent “IBI on Site” hosted by Hayden Grove. He was at Progressive Field and had the opportunity to interview Mickey Callaway, Lonnie Chisenhall and a few Indians beat reports on camera.

Onto the Happenings…

IBI Minor League Hitter of the Week

(for games from June 19th through June 25th)

Luigi Rodriguez (Outfielder - Carolina)
.480 AVG (12-25), 8 R, 2 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 5 BB, 2 K, 2 SB, 1.447 OPS

There were no shortage of good performances this past week as the Indians enjoyed some big weeks up and down the full season circuit and even had a few nice showings in short season ball. Audy Ciriaco continues to swing a hot bat in Columbus and Carlos Moncrief is heating up in June once again, but the one performance which stood out above them all was that of High-A Carolina outfielder Luigi Rodriguez.

Rodriguez, 21, has been on quite a hot streak of late hitting .397 with 3 HR, 8 RBI and 1.162 OPS in 18 games this month. Most notably, he has completely flipped around his walk and strikeout numbers as he has 14 walks and 11 strikeouts. There is no doubt that the much improved approach has led to much better at bats overall and a ton of confidence at the plate. His good play of late has helped him overcome a slow start to his season and he is now hitting .274 with 5 HR, 17 RBI and .803 OPS in 48 games at Carolina.

Rodriguez has struggled with injuries over the past 12 months, so now that he is getting healthy his bat seems to be coming alive again. He suffered a shoulder injury last May which sidelined him for most of the rest of the season and then it cropped up again this spring which forced him to miss some time early this season. As with any hitter, an injury to the shoulder can lead to a lack of confidence in their swing and the conviction in which they swing the bat, and it has taken some time to get over that mental block where he was confident that when he swung he would not reinjure himself.

But the biggest different for Rodriguez may be an approach that is finally starting to develop for him. He has always lacked consistency with his approach and comfort with his swing and setup at the plate, but he is showing improved pitch recognition skills over the past three to four weeks and is doing a better job of staying in the zone with his swing. Maintaining that consistency with his swing and approach will be the key for him the rest of the season and something he really need to try and solidify over the final 60 or so games.

There is no doubt that Rodriguez is one of the Indians better prospects. He has upside with the bat, runs well and is very athletic. The defense is still an area of concern and might be what ultimately holds him back unless he makes some significant strides with his jumps, instincts and route running, but for now that is a secondary concern to him proving health and showing consistency with the bat. Barring a surprise promotion due to injuries at Double-A Akron he should remain in Carolina for the remainder of the season so he can really hone in on his limitations and rebuild confidence in his game.

Honorable Mentions:

Audy Ciriaco (INF, COL): .391 AVG (9-23), 7 R, 2 2B, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K, 1.310 OPS
Roberto Perez (C, COL): .300 AVG (6-20), 4 R, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 3 BB, 7 K, 1.041 OPS
Carlos Moncrief (OF, COL): .385 AVG (10-26), 5 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 8 K, 1 SB, 1.005 OPS
Giovanny Urshela (3B, COL): .318 AVG (7-22), 5 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K, .893 OPS
Francisco Lindor (SS, AKR): .333 AVG (6-18), 2 R, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 0 BB, 6 K, 1.038 OPS
Anthony Gallas (OF, AKR): .368 AVG (7-19), 0 R, 2 2B, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 3 K, .824 OPS
LeVon Washington (OF, CAR): .455 AVG (10-22), 5 R, 2 2B, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 2 BB, 6 K, 1.045 OPS
Joe Sever (INF, CAR): .400 AVG (12-30), 3 R, 2 2B, 0 HR, 5 RBI, 3 BB, 5 K, 1 SB, .921 OPS
Yandy Diaz (3B, CAR): .387 AVG (12-31), 4 R, 3 2B, 0 HR, 7 RBI, 2 BB, 6 K, .908 OPS
Todd Hankins (INF, CAR): .348 AVG (8-23), 6 R, 0 2B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 2 BB, 6 K, 4 SB, .901 OPS
Nellie Rodriguez (1B, LC): .313 AVG (5-16), 2 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 5 BB, 3 K, 1.101 OPS
Grant Fink (INF, LC): .333 AVG (7-21), 4 R, 3 2B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 3 BB, 8 K, 1.036 OPS
Eric Haase (C, LC): .313 AVG (5-16), 2 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K, .978 OPS
Logan Vick (OF, LC): .333 AVG (5-15), 2 R, 0 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K, .908 OPS
Drake Roberts (INF, MV): .381 AVG (8-21), 3 R, 2 2B, 0 HR, 6 RBI, 3 BB, 5 K, 2 SB, .995 OPS
Emmanuel Tapia (1B, AZL): .333 AVG (5-15), 3 R, 3 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K, 1.067 OPS

Previous Winners:

06/05/14 to 06/18/14 – Tyler Naquin (OF, Akron)
05/29/14 to 06/04/14 – Audy Ciriaco (INF, Columbus)
05/22/14 to 05/28/14 – Tyler Holt (OF, Akron/Columbus)
05/15/14 to 05/21/14 – Claudio Bautista (2B, Lake County)
05/08/14 to 05/14/14 – Paul Hendrix (SS, Lake County)
05/01/14 to 05/07/14 – Matt Carson (OF, Columbus)
04/24/14 to 04/30/14 – Roberto Perez (C, Columbus)
04/17/14 to 04/23/14 – Jose Ramirez (2B, Columbus)
04/03/14 to 04/16/14 - Jesus Aguilar (1B, Columbus)

IBI Minor League Pitcher of the Week

(for games from June 17th through June 23rd)

Joseph Colon (Right-handed pitcher – Akron)
2 GS, 2-0, 1.80 ERA, 15.0 IP, 15 H, 3 R/ER, 1 HR, 0 BB, 8 K

Over the past month it has been the Lugo and Colon show here at the IBI. That is because over the past five weeks Low-A Lake County left-hander Luis Lugo and Double-A Akron right-hander Joseph Colon have won all of the weekly Pitcher of the Week awards.

Colon, 24, is in the midst of his finest season as a pro. In 15 starts he is now 7-4 with a 2.84 ERA, and in 88.2 innings he has allowed 79 hits, 4 homers, 29 walks and has 58 strikeouts. He has been at 90-94 MPH with his fastball and gets it up to 96-97 MPH when he reaches back for extra, but strikeouts are not part of his game (5.9 K/9) because of his pitch to contact approach. He has averaged six innings an outing this season and has maintained a solid 2.9 BB/9 rate to go along with a nice heavy sinker that produces a good amount of groundballs and quick outs.

The command of all of Colon’s pitches has been improved by a focus this season on his mechanics and improving his rhythm on the mound. He has been working to develop the consistency of his changeup this season and continues to make incremental strides with it, and his curveball is another pitch he has worked to develop more confidence and consistency in. Finding that go-to secondary offering is key for him as even if he is throwing 75-80% sinkers he still needs something else to keep hitters honest and change what they are seeing.

The durability is probably the most encouraging thing that Colon has shown this season. The injuries have been something that have held him back for most of his career and now that he has been able to stay on the field without an interruption due to injury his performance and overall development have really started to come together and solidify themselves. This in turn has also solidified his prospect status and as a guy who, barring injury these next few months, should find his way onto the 40-man roster this offseason.

The Indians need starters and with Danny Salazar struggling this season and Justin Masterson banged up there is an outside shot he could be an option in Cleveland if the Indians have any more injuries and decide to pass on veterans Kyle Davies and Travis Banwart for short-term fill in options (or don’t make a trade). However, the Indians are unlikely to push Colon to the big leagues unless out of a complete act of desperation because he is probably better served to stay in the controlled environment of the minors this season and work to finish off his development. A promotion to Triple-A Columbus at some point this season is not out of the question.

Honorable Mentions:

Kyle Davies (RHP, COL): 1 GS, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R (0 ER), 0 HR, 2 BB, 1 K
Travis Banwart (RHP, COL): 2 GS, 0-0, 1.86 ERA, 9.2 IP, 12 H, 3 R (2 ER), 0 HR, 1 BB, 11 K
Gabriel Arias (RHP, AKR): 1 GS, 0-0, 1.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R/ER, 0 HR, 1 BB, 9 K
Will Roberts (RHP, AKR): 1 GS, 1-0, 2.25 ERA, 8.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R/ER, 1 HR, 0 BB, 7 K
Ryan Merritt (LHP, CAR): 1 GS, 1-0, 1.13 ERA, 8.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R/ER, 0 HR, 1 BB, 5 K
Adam Plutko (RHP, CAR): 1 GS, 0-0, 1.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R/ER, 0 HR, 0 BB, 6 K
Mitch Brown (RHP, LC): 1 GS, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 6.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R (0 ER), 0 HR, 2 BB, 5 K
Jordan Milbrath (RHP, LC): 1 GS, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 HR, 0 BB, 4 K
Dace Kime (RHP, LC): 1 GS, 1-0, 1.80 ERA, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R/ER, 0 HR, 2 BB, 8 K
Francisco Lopez (RHP, AZL): 1 G, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 4.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 HR, 2 BB, 6 K
Casey Shane (RHP, AZL): 1 GS, 1-0, 1.80 ERA, 5.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R/ER, 0 HR, 1 BB, 6 K

Previous Winners:

06/03/14 to 06/16/14 – Luis Lugo (LHP, Lake County)
05/27/14 to 06/02/14 – Luis Lugo (LHP, Lake County)
05/20/14 to 05/26/14 – Joseph Colon (RHP, Akron)
05/13/14 to 05/19/14 – Robbie Aviles (RHP, Lake County)
05/06/14 to 05/12/14 – Adam Plutko (RHP, Lake County)
04/29/14 to 05/05/14 - Robbie Aviles (RHP, Lake County)
04/22/14 to 04/28/14 - Jordan Milbrath (RHP, Lake County)
04/10/14 to 04/21/14 - Ryan Merritt (LHP, Carolina)
04/03/14 to 04/14/14 - Duke von Schamann (RHP, Akron)

Coach’s Corner

I recently sat down with Low-A Lake County pitching coach Rigo Beltan and we talked about a few of the pitchers on his staff. Here are his comments…

On Robbie Aviles: “For me I never really worked with him prior to this year, but one of the things we really focused on during spring training which really helped him was making sure that his mechanics in his delivery improved a little bit. He was a guy who kind of threw across his body and never really had his full extension off his back leg. In spring training we really focused on keeping a straighter line and better hips and backside direction to home plate. That has really freed him up and allowed him to maximize his delivery with a lot of success. He is a guy who just pounds the zone and attacks hitters.”

On Mitch Brown: “For him just being so young at 19 years old in this league he did probably get off to a bad start, but with him one of the biggest things I have focused on with him is teaching him how to slow the game down because there were times where he would walk a guy and one walk would lead to two and then two would lead to three and he would have a difficult time working out of trouble. This year he has done better on the mental side of the game controlling his emotions. He has learned how to do that, and because of that he has been able to compete and is now able to go deeper into games.”

On Dace Kime: “Coming into his first season his first year out of the draft there were some mechanical changes that were made. Those mechanical changes are the first year he has brought them into a season, and he was trying to compete with the mechanical changes at the professional level and it took him a while to figure it out. Now he is starting to figure out and understand his mechanics, and now that he is more comfortable with better rhythm and timing in his delivery we are starting to see the results and start to see the ability and why he was a third rounder. We are just making sure he gets a better backside drive and hip direction toward the plate. He is a guy who was kind of flying open and was putting himself in a bad position to throw the ball. Now he is able to repeat his arm slot and is able to command the ball better with the lower half adjustment.”

On Jordan Milbrath: “What I like about him is he always wants to get better. Day in and day out he comes in here and is a hard worker and is open to new ideas. I like the way his arm works and I like his height. He is a good athlete for as tall as he is. I see a lot of upside in him and potential. He is another guy who just needs to get out there and get innings and constant repetition so he starts learning how to pitch as far as understanding pitch sequences with when to use his fastball and when to use his changeup. That comes with experience. I really like that guy a lot.”

On Luis Lugo: “The biggest thing with him is just trusting his fastball and cleaning up his delivery. He was a guy who kind of kept flying open and could not have a consistent arm slot. Now he has cleaned up his arm action from the backside and is keeping his font side closed. Just with those two minor adjustments he has been able to take off. I know he only throws his fastball 88-92 MPH but it plays a lot harder and he throws a lot of fastballs by people, has really developed his changeup and right now we are really trying to sharpen up those breaking ball pitches. He definitely has some deception not only with his front side but with his height. Because of his height he creates a good downhill plane to the ball. With that deception and downhill plane he gets a lot of swing and miss with his fastball.”

Random Notes

Double-A Akron shortstop Francisco Lindor suffered a minor injury in Wednesday’s game where a groundball skipped up on him and hit him in the face. He was taken out of the game for precautionary reasons and underwent X-rays and a CT scan in the clubhouse, and on Thursday it was revealed that he suffered a nondisplaced nasal fracture and will miss about 7-10 days. The Indians may have caught a break as the ball just missed his eye, an injury that could have been much more devastating and really affected the short term plans of the organization. He is still expected to be back before the All Star break and should participate in the third consecutive Future’s Game that he was elected to this week and is played on Sunday July 13th. He is having another good season hitting .283 with 6 HR, 43 RBI, 19 stolen bases and .770 OPS in 72 games and continues to play excellent defense and provide great leadership on the field. This small setback should not affect any future plans with him at Triple-A Columbus or Cleveland. He will probably finish the season at Akron and take part in their playoff run and then has a good chance to be a September callup to Cleveland when rosters expand that month in order to break him in at the big league level to prepare for a much more expanded role there next season.

High-A Carolina third baseman Yandy Diaz has settled in quite well after missing two months with a hand injury. Diaz broke his hand in the first inning of the first game of the season sliding into third base and and returned to the lineup on June 5th and in 18 games he is hitting .304 with 0 HR, 8 RBI and .722 OPS. He is still getting his feel for hitting back and his timing down, so he has yet to show the good power that he displayed in spring training when he blistered balls all over the field. He was signed earlier this year as a defector out of Cuba and what impressed the Indians the most about him are his impressive hitting instincts. He has good bat speed and the ball explodes off his bat which projects him to have at least solid average power, but he is more of a line drive hitter who just pounds the gaps to pile up extra base hits. He was an outfielder in Cuba but the Indians are trying to develop him first as a third baseman because he has the arm and athleticism to handle the position, though there is uncertainty whether he has the hands to play there. He will be a project at the position and there will no doubt be some growing pains there, but the Indians are committed to him there to see if he can stay on the dirt before considering a move back to the outfield. He is an offensive oriented player who can also run a little bit and is no doubt one of the most exciting prospects to watch at Carolina right now.

Low-A Lake County right-handed reliever Ben Heller is having a banner season and is establishing himself as one of the Indians better relief pitching prospects in the lower levels of their system. In 25 appearances he is 3-1 with a 2.76 ERA, and in 32.2 innings has allowed 16 hits, 3 homers, 15 walks and has piled up 54 strikeouts. His ability to get a lot of swing and miss and limit good contact when hitters do make contact has been impressive. He is fearless on the mound and goes right after hitters by attacking the zone and has done a better job this season of getting ahead in the count. While he is armed with a mid-90s fastball that reaches 96 MPH when he reaches back for extra, it is the late life of his ball and the movement which makes his fastball so effective. He also mixes in a split-changeup and has a developing slider, but while both have potential to be an average Major League offering they are both still inconsistent and below average pitches. He is blowing hitters away with his fastball at the Low-A level and probably needs a challenge at a higher level at High-A Carolina in order to challenge him to work on developing his secondary offerings and refine his command.

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