Cleveland Guardians history has conditioned me to not believe in Nolan Jones
by Chad Porto15 hours ago Follow @ChadNerdCorp

It feels like Nolan Jones is going the way of other past top prospects in the Cleveland Guardians system.
Matt LaPorta, Andy Marte, Mike Aubrey, Alex White, Jeremy Sowers, Brady Aiken; the names of failed prospects in the Cleveland Guardians‘ history is bountiful. Arguably no worse than anyone else’s franchise, that’s for sure. When you have 100+ players in the minor leagues, you’re bound to miss on some, and hit on others. Yet, Nolan Jones feels like an Oscar Gonzalez or a Steven Kwan type, and more like a LaPorta and more recently, Bradly Zimmer type.

Jones has just made his debut for AAA-Columbus this week, after missing more than 50 games already. So far he’s hitting fine through two games, .375/.500/.375 and an OPS of .875, with three RBIs, and two walks. That is just two games though.

In 101 games in AAA-Columbus, he’s hit just .241 and has an on-base percentage of .360. Those aren’t terrible Major league numbers, but they’re pretty bad minor league stats. Think about Kwan, the man is hitting .271 and was around the .230 mark a week ago. Kwan is a great prospect but he’s struggled as all rookies do.

At one point he was hitting nearly 80 points lower on his batting average in the majors than in AAA-Columbus. If that trend happens to Nolan, that’s a sub-.200 batting average.

By no means is Jones destined to be a bust, but he’s not improving as he’s moving up through the minors, and that’s worrisome.


Nolan Jones is failing upwards in the minor leagues
I fully admit that a 23-year-old ball player is not a finished product and that at times, one’s minor league performances may be overblown. Yet, the fact that each time he moves up in competition, he hits worse, is concerning.

In Rookie Ball he hit just .257 and saw a nice increase to Lower-A where he hit .317. We can mark this as the start of the Jones-hype train. then he fell to .279 in Single-A before increasing a bit to .289 in High-A.

Then in Double-A Akron, he hit just .253 and of course, in Triple-A Columbus he’s hitting just .241. To go back to Steven Kwan, he hit .300+ in every stop in the minors, save for High-A ball, where he still hit a respectable .289.

Some players get called up simply because they’re too much of a financial asset not to promote. Jones got $2.5 million in a signing bonus when the Guardians got him and they’re looking for a return on investment.

His lack of production at the plate is magnified by the fact that the director of amateur scouting for the Cleveland Guardians, Brad Grant, outright called him a “very good hitter.” He was literally drafted to hit the ball well.

And he’s not.

He is not by any means a bust, at least not yet, but the hype for Jones has not lived up to the production and production is the only way to tell if a minor leaguer is going to be any good at the Major League level.

I’m pulling for Jones, I’ve just seen this song and dance before with “top prospects” that don’t make it to the majors or flame out when they get here. We waited for how long for Zimmer to “put it together”?

Zimmer was unimpressive in the minors save for two stings in A-Ball. Same thing with LaPorta and Bobby Bradley. It’s hard to predict who’s going to be good in the Majors but it’s not hard to predict who’s going to be bad. If you can’t compete against talent that’s not good enough or not ready enough to be in the Majors, how are you going to compete against the best in the world?

Yes, sometimes players defy their minor league production, but those are the exceptions. Stats decline as you move up, that’s the nature of the game. If you’re producing good stats regularly, however, odds are much better for you that you’ll become a major leaguer.

If they decline to the point they’re unimpressive, or worse, bad; then you’re likely not going to make it.

I’m pulling for Jones to buck the trend and ascend to the level of player he’s expected to be. That doesn’t mean I’m not concerned.

Is there a place for Franmil Reyes still on the Cleveland Guardians?
by Chad Porto11 hours ago Follow @ChadNerdCorp

Will the Cleveland Guardians still have a need for Franmil Reyes upon his return?

When Franmil Reyes returns to The Cleveland Guardians, he may not fit the current structure of the team. After having a rough stretch of games that hindered the Guardians, they’ve dug themselves out of an early-season hole and are sitting one game over .500 as of this write-up and within striking distance of the Minnesota Twins for first place in the AL Central.

The driving force behind the surge has been the offense and their contact-first approach to hitting. They’re working counts, getting on base, and then swinging the bat with the intention of putting the ball in play, not raking home runs.

The Guardians are 10th in the league in batting average for a team, 1st in the league in fewest strikeouts, 17th in RBIs but just 25th in home runs. This is a team that swings to put the bat on the ball, and Reyes just isn’t that guy.

He’s a very streaky hitter, and streaky hitters aren’t reliable in this offense. The goal is to get on base, be it by a hit or a walk, but to get on base. Set up your teammate. That’s not Reyes. He’s got 57 strikeouts and he’s tied for a team-high in double-plays hit into.

Clearly, not having him in the lineup isn’t hurting the Guardians.


Franmil Reyes has got to change his game to succeed with the Cleveland Guardians
Reyes has always been a strikeout machine. In the majors, the minors, and everywhere in between, Reyes strikes out a lot and hits into double plays a lot. He’s either the first or second player on the team in double-plays hitten into every season he’s been here.

Now, I’ve talked about Reyes a lot already, but when you’re the team’s de-facto power hitter, and all you’re really doing is hurting the team, you’re going to be very noteworthy. It’s not like anything being said about him is untrue, either.

He’s a rally stopper and an inning killer offensively. His power makes him valuable but his inconsistency and impatience make him a detriment. He’s hitting under .200 right now and when he comes back, the Guardians are going to have to figure out where to play him.

Think about this, Reyes is the team’s DH, but he can also play first and a corner outfield spot. If you have to put your best lineup forward every day, do you really sit Oscar Gonzalez, Richie Palacios, Owen Miller, or Steven Kwan for Reyes?

I wouldn’t.

Would Reyes accept a position as a bench player? He should, as he’s clearly not someone you can lean on, at least right now. He needs work with the hitting coach and maybe even a personal hitting coach, to increase his patience and his willingness to not swing at everything.

We all know the best way to snap a player out of a slump is to bad mouth him on this forum.

Also, the opposite is true.

Puff up a player that is surprising everyone and the KOD will occur.

See Eli Morgan.

Pitcher Peyton Battenfield should be the Cleveland Guardians’ next call-up
by Anthony Alandt1 hour ago Follow @anthonyalandt


The Guardians will continue to call up plenty of prospects this season, and right-handed pitcher Peyton Battenfield should be next.

The most exciting part of a rebuild or retooling season has to be watching an organization’s most talented prospects don a major-league uniform. All that talk and whispers of potential comes to fruition. This season, the Cleveland Guardians have no shortage of top prospects barnstorming Progressive Field. It’s been like a rotating cast of dynamic hitters and fiery fielders overtaking the Guardians’ roster.

That parade should be a season-long affair, one that is all but destined to bring fan favorites such as the long-anticipated Nolan Jones and Tyler Freeman into the major-league fold. But who should be next? The answer is a little convoluted, given that most of the obvious choices within the organization are either still getting their beaks wet at a certain level or have yet to demonstrate their mastery of a certain promotion.

Enter Peyton Battenfield. The Guardians acquired the big righty from the Houston Astros in exchange for Jordan Luplow and DJ Johnson last season. Now, he ranks as Cleveland’s 19th prospect, settling in with the Columbus Clippers as a reliable starter with extremely commendable statistics.

On the surface, he’s gone 3-3 over 11 starts and 60 1/3 innings pitched (5.4 innings per start), struck out 40 and compiled an ERA of just 2.82. He holds a .228 batting average against and a miniscule WHIP of 1.17. But digging deeper – particularly with FanGraphs – it’s clear that Battenfield’s baseball career trajectory certainly won’t be trending downward anytime soon.


FanGraphs ranks his fastball and curveball at a 50 out of 80 and his changeup at a 45 out of 80. Solid stuff, nothing that’s going to blow someone away enough to become an organization’s top prospect, but someone nonetheless that should hold his own in MLB. His best pitch, according to FanGraphs, is his cutter, grading out at a 55. That’s solid stuff that, for the 24-year-old, could be built upon over the next few years.

He’s certainly stretched out enough to be a starter Cleveland can plug in and let fly, and he’s averaging 3.7 pitches per plate appearance in Triple-A. Can the young Guardians players behind him be depended on to field, without mistakes, someone who pitches to contact? That’s really the only short-term problem I see with promoting Battenfield, and you’re mistaken if you think pitching coach Carl Willis won’t fine-tune his arsenal to ensure he misses more bats.

The only issue with promoting Battenfield is that he’s not currently on the 40-man roster. In the flurry of prospects Cleveland added to protect them from the Rule 5 Draft, Battenfield, who isn’t eligible until the end of this season, saw himself left off for obvious reasons. It’s a minor issue, given some of the fringe major-league arms occupying the backend of the bullpen, but one Cleveland has to address if it wants to make this move.

Maybe his entrance to the 40-man and the major-league roster means the exit of Bryan Shaw or Anthony Gose. It’s a small price to pay for the promotion of a talented power arm like Battenfield.

Another factor that decides who gets the call-up is need. Cleveland’s hitters are set, more or less, and utility positions are currently filled out by newcomers like Richie Palacios. The Guardians, for all their success developing starters over the years, now need to fill out the final spots in their rotation, and dare I say cement it, moving forward. Battenfield isn’t a surefire bet to do anything like that just yet, but he should be the next man up if someone goes down.

On paper, Cleveland’s rotation is set, and at their best, it’s a dominant five starters. But Aaron Civale is working his way back from injury and Cal Quantrill and Zach Pleasac still have streaky spurts. Once a spot opens up, it’s time for the Guardians to fill it with Battenfield. Let’s see what the power pitcher can do in the majors, especially because Cleveland needs to know what they have before opting to place him on the 40-man roster over another prospect this offseason.

Hey civ - I run these from this blog just for discussion points.

Sure. Thanks !

My thoughts. Bring him up as a spot starter for double headers as 27th man. Certainly no need to cut Shaw or even Gose: McCarty is the obvious choice to be dfa’d. Perhaps author forgot about him
Keep him stretched out in Columbus so he can give us 6 innings when he joins the big lesgue club

How Guardians’ pieces are beginning to fit and another contention window is opening



Jun 9, 2022; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Oakland Athletics shortstop Elvis Andrus (17) is tagged out in a rundown by Cleveland Guardians shortstop Andres Gimenez (0) in the second inning at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
By Jason Lloyd
Jun 14, 2022
74

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I didn’t like the Mike Clevinger trade at the time. The Cleveland Guardians seemed poised to make a postseason run, even if it was during a wonky, virus-shortened 2020 season, and it was very clearly going to be Francisco Lindor’s last season in Cleveland. That alone made it counterintuitive to trade one of their best starting pitchers in the middle of the season.

Before it’s over, however, the Clevinger haul might be president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti’s signature trade.

We’re not there yet, but less than two years later, the Guardians (29-27) seem poised to produce four key contributors from that one deal — and that isn’t even counting Austin Hedges, the current starting catcher.

It was all part of the plan for the 2022 season. Once the Guardians missed on Matt Olson, Jesse Winker and any other attractive trade targets during the offseason, the mission for this year became playing the kids and figuring out what they have. Turns out, they got quite a bit in exchange for Clevinger, who needed a second Tommy John operation and hasn’t pitched much since departing Cleveland.

We’ll get to the total return in a moment. For now, here’s a look at some of the things I’ve observed and been told about the Guardians over the last few weeks.

The foundational pieces of this team, particularly across the infield, are beginning to take shape: Josh Naylor at first, some combination of Andres Gimenez and Gabriel Arias up the middle and Jose Ramirez at third.

Gimenez is solidifying his grasp on the second base job and there is a belief at least in some circles internally that Arias is likely the heir apparent at short. It’s a bit surprising that Gimenez has remained at second despite being superior defensively to Amed Rosario. The Guardians, however, remain loyal to Rosario for as long as he’s in Cleveland because he’s deeply respected in the clubhouse.

Rosario has done whatever the team has asked of him — including the ill-fated outfield experiment last year. That counts for something with this organization. It also boosts his trade value to keep him at short rather than move him back to the outfield. After all, how many teams are looking for a left fielder slashing .260/.294/.324 with no home runs and 13 RBI? He is not considered a candidate to play second base.

With the trade deadline roughly six weeks away, it’s fair to wonder how much longer he’ll be in Cleveland. As long as he is, he’ll be the shortstop.

Of course, Arias has to earn it too. And with players like Brayan Rocchio lurking, all of this is subject to change. For now, the belief is Arias and Gimenez are the future middle infielders with Arias likely the leader at this point to play short. It was noteworthy to me when Arias was promoted on April 20 to serve as the 26th man for a doubleheader and played shortstop in both games. That was not a coincidence.

Gimenez, meanwhile, is thriving and serves as the player who best encapsulates what the first two months of this season were intended to discover. No one was quite sure what to expect from him this year after his first season in Cleveland was bitterly disappointing.

He was handed the shortstop job after arriving as part of the package from New York for Francisco Lindor, but he struggled to hit and spent most of the season in Columbus.

Now he’s second on the team in OPS, firmly entrenched as a big part of the future of this club — and outpacing Lindor this year.

Guardians manager Terry Francona said Gimenez kept tinkering last year with his stance based on that day’s result. One game might have included a high leg kick, another game did not. That has all gone away as Gimenez has settled in with a .862 OPS — more than 100 points higher than Lindor.

“I just think he’s got a year under his belt and he knows he belongs,” Francona said of Gimenez, who doesn’t turn 24 until September. “And when things don’t go right, he knows that’s OK. Just stay with the program, don’t change my stance and I’ll be OK.”

Arias is still out recovering from a fractured hand that required surgery. He doesn’t have much left to prove in the minors, he needs to get healthy and bide his time until the Guardians clear a spot for him.

Naylor is settling in nicely at first base after his gruesome leg injury last year while playing in the outfield. He turns 25 next week and is on pace to flirt with 100 RBIs. He has appeared in a handful of games in the outfield, but that experiment appears to be ending. The Guardians believe his future is at first base, which was his natural position with the Padres before he was dealt to Cleveland as part of the return for Clevinger.

Now, about that trade. If the Guardians are right and Arias indeed claims the shortstop job sooner than later, they’ll have produced four key contributors from that one deal: Naylor, Arias, Owen Miller and Cal Quantrill.

Quantrill may not be a dominant ace, but he’s the type of pitcher who works into the seventh more times than not and gives you a chance to win.

Naylor’s emergence at first is causing a bit of a dilemma with Miller, who is batting cleanup, so clearly he has a place here. Now they have to find a position for him. Don’t be surprised if Miller eventually gets a look at one of the corner outfield spots, particularly after Franmil Reyes returns as the designated hitter. Miller is versatile enough to play several positions. We may soon find out if that includes outfield, which is a bit more unsettled other than Myles Straw.

Francona said recently he likes Steven Kwan better in left field than right field, and Oscar Gonzalez has been a pleasant surprise these last few weeks, but it’s too early to consider either as a cornerstone piece. George Valera might eventually have something to say about it, too.

If the Guardians are content moving forward with Naylor, Gimenez, Arias and Ramirez across the infield, it leaves a war chest of trade assets to go find an impact bat in the outfield or perhaps even another starting pitcher with multiple years of control. Baseball America’s recently updated top 100 list included eight Guardians, just as they had five of the top 80 on MLB.com’s midseason prospect report.

The farm system is stacked with players close to contributing, meaning infielders like Rocchio and Tyler Freeman could be important trade chips in a few weeks or later this winter. There are still more questions than answers at this point, still so much uncertainty and at least one or two big trades left to execute.

They’ll likely be buyers at the deadline regardless of the standings, just to rebalance the 40-man roster. Most importantly, they’re making good progress in evaluating what they have. And a lot of their pieces already fit. Quietly and steadily, Cleveland is starting to figure it out again. Another window of contention could soon be upon us.

(Photo of Andres Gimenez and Elvis Andrus: David Richard / USA Today)

And in the meantime they are feisty and battling every night. No Detroit/KC/Baltimore eternal rebuild here!!

Gimenez, meanwhile, is thriving and serves as the player who best encapsulates what the first two months of this season were intended to discover. No one was quite sure what to expect from him this year after his first season in Cleveland was bitterly disappointing.

He was handed the shortstop job after arriving as part of the package from New York for Francisco Lindor, but he struggled to hit and spent most of the season in Columbus.

Now he’s second on the team in OPS, firmly entrenched as a big part of the future of this club — and outpacing Lindor this year.

I'll start with Amed Rosario. I love this guy because he handles the bat which fits in with this team.

As for Gimenez.....in retrospect the front office got a REALLY nice return for Lindor! And so young.

Cleveland Guardians: A look at the loaded Akron RubberDucks
by Darren Klein58 minutes ago Follow @Grunttalksmlb

The Akron RubberDucks, the Guardians’ Double-A affiliate, are a loaded team full of talent that will one day do plenty of damage in the majors.

The Cleveland Guardians’ farm system will cause harm to other teams with their skill set now and, in the future, once some of them make the MLB. In a few recent games against the Yankees’ Double-A affiliate, the Somerset Patriots, these talents were on full display.

The Akron RubberDucks split those games, but they’ve both been hard-fought one-run games. In the first game of the series it was the RubberDucks with a comeback to force extras and win, while on June 8th it was a 2-1 loss where Akron starter Joey Cantillo carried a perfect game through 4 1/3 innings. This RubberDucks team no doubt has several players that will ultimately make an impact with the Guardians.

To start, let’s look at the RubberDucks’ leadoff hitter, catcher Bo Naylor. He of course is the brother of Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor, but he’s making a name for himself. He is Cleveland’s 15th-ranked prospect and could arrive in MLB as early as next season. With the Guardians’ poor catching situation, why not him? On the season, Naylor has a batting average of .280 with an OPS of .920. He also has six home runs, 21 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. For a catcher, he has a unique skill set, being able to lead off with his speed.

Next up is their second hitter, shortstop Brayan Rocchio. He is the Guardians’ fourth-ranked prospect and 76th in MLB’s top 100. He’s gotten off to a slow start with the bat, but has also stolen seven bases on the season. His expected arrival to the big leagues is also sometime next season, but it’s clear he’ll have to pick up his bat – his minor-league numbers in the past suggest he certainly will.


The last hitter is Akron’s third hitter, outfielder George Valera. He is Cleveland’s second-ranked prospect and 41st in MLB’s top 100. Unlike Rocchio, he has hit the ground running in 2022 with nine home runs, 38 RBIs and an OPS of .887. His arrival to the big leagues could also be sometime next season, and with the Guardians’ fluid outfield situation, it’s certainly realistic that it happens.

On the pitching side, Cantillo is not considered a top prospect at the moment, but he should be. He is a very underrated lefty who just won Eastern League pitcher of the month for May. During that span he went 2-0 and didn’t allow a run in 22 innings while striking out 33 batters. Last week against Somerset, he was lights out until he gave a hit and a walk in the sixth, got an out, and was then pulled. Two runs ended up scoring and he struck out five batters. It was still a very strong outing against a formidable Patriots lineup.

Cleveland’s best prospect is right-handed pitcher Daniel Espino. He has unfortunately been sidelined with knee soreness since the end of April. He is the 11th-ranked MLB prospect and had 35 strikeouts in 18 innings with an ERA of 2.45 before his injury. Once he returns, he should help the RubberDucks secure a postseason berth. All in all, Guardian fans have a lot of young talent to look forward to.

In addition:

Jose Tena, another young middle infielder, hitting better than Rocchio

Recently arrived RHP Gavin Williams, who is our second best pitcher behind Espino, and rising on prospect rankings
RH starter Logan Allen ranked on the team's top 10, lots of strikeouts, harder thrower than Cantillo
RH starter Hunter Gaddis, lots of strikeouts, has had some great games some not quite to this year
RH starter Xzavion Curry, short guy who allows too many homers, but is well regarded, excellent K/BB ratio. The next Eli Morgan? And best name in the organization

Nice, thanks civ!!

Meanwhile Amed Rosario....do we really know this kid's ceiling? He just keeps bobbing upward.

He kind of streaks hot and cold and he's been around a few years so he'll excite and disappoint over the course of season. But I think he has demonstrated a level we can expect to stay kind of steady over the course of a season; maybe 270 700 OPS, 15 steals, a few homers, wiling and able to play all over the field. Hustles, adaptable. Good team player

Giminez' ceiling is less certain and potentially quite high. Surprising power, not a a baserunner, doesn't walk.

Notably both of them are outhitting Lindor who is back in a slump and into the 240s although he has 45 rbi, infectious team leader, fine defender

from BA

A month from today, the baseball media and scouts from across the country will assemble in Dodger Stadium for the Futures Game, the annual showcase of some of the sport's most talented young prospects.

While the rosters won't officially drop for a little while longer, that shouldn't stop us from looking around the minor leagues and putting together the most fun rosters we can imagine. To be clear, these aren't to be construed as anything resembling official rosters. Those will come later. These are just the dreamscapes of people who love prospects and are California dreaming of the bounty to come.

We did adhere to the rules of the official roster construction: At least one player from every big league organization but no more than two from any club, either. We also skipped over some guys who are currently hurt or in the big leagues (Brennen Davis with the Cubs and Gabriel Moreno with the Blue Jays, for example).

Otherwise, everyone in the minors was fair game. In a short while, we'll see the actual rosters. Until then, take a look at what we think might be a fun pairing on July 16.

RHP — Gavin Williams, Guardians
Williams was a reliever at East Carolina who was slated to move into the rotation full-time during the 2020 season. The pandemic had other ideas. Undeterred, the Guardians popped Williams with their first-round pick and have reaped the benefits. Williams’ wicked arsenal—fronted by an upper-90s fastball and a hammer slider— has helped him tear apart the competition and reach Double-A in his first pro season.

OF — George Valera, Guardians
Valera has always been one of the most talented players on the Cleveland farm, and this year’s first few months look like he’s beginning to turn tools into skills. He was No. 10 in the Eastern League in all three triple-slash categories (.285/.392/.497), which is especially impressive considering how offensively oppressive the EL can be in the season’s early months.

civ ollilavad wrote:He kind of streaks hot and cold and he's been around a few years so he'll excite and disappoint over the course of season. But I think he has demonstrated a level we can expect to stay kind of steady over the course of a season; maybe 270 700 OPS, 15 steals, a few homers, wiling and able to play all over the field. Hustles, adaptable. Good team player

civ - as always thanks for the nice "take". I have a different one, a more positive (big surprise ) one but I will say it is one that has been spawned by year after year of playing fantasy baseball.

So, for me, I completely throw out the NY Met years for Amed Rosario. The kid was thrown to the lions as a prospect - and in NY of all places. I could list from here to forever the names that got chewed up there although many of them (Sonny Gray anyone?) left and took off.

So that leaves just last year and this year. Last year he gets stuck in the outfield to force feed Gimenez who wasn't ready. You may remember it took Rosario quite awhile to get going - but get going he did. That's just one year.

This year he starts out slow again but it's June and his numbers are his numbers and they are on the rise. I have a .290 hitter in mind who controls the bat and runs like all hell. Yes please!