Thursday performances by our preseason top 30

CLE AAA #9 Logan Allen, LHP 3.0 3 3 3 2 5 4.26 following up one good performance his AAA ERA is 7.25
CLE HiA #21 Doug Nikhazy, LHP 6.2 4 1 1 3 10 3.53 W (3-4) one of his best of the year reduced walks a little
CLE R #31 Lenny Torres, RHP 0.1 1 3 2 1 1 7.50 L (1-4) further rehab in Arizona not going well

CLE MAJ #1 Tyler Freeman, SS 4 0 1 0 .273
CLE AA #3 Brayan Rocchio, SS 4 0 1 0 .266
CLE AAA #4 George Valera, SS 3 0 0 0 .260 2 BB (56),
CLE AAA #5 Gabriel Arias, SS 5 2 2 3 .222 2 HR (10), E (8), looking up
CLE AA #11 Jose Tena, SS 5 1 0 0 .263
CLE AA #16 Bryan Lavastida, C 4 0 2 1 .226
CLE HiA #18 Gbl Rodriguez, 3B 4 1 2 0 .270 2B (14),
CLE AA #20 Jhonkensy Noel, 3B 4 0 1 1 .213 2B (13),
CLE AAA #24 Ernie Clement, 2B 3 1 0 0 .204 BB (14),
CLE HiA #25 Aaron Bracho, 2B 4 0 1 1 .165
CLE MAJ #27 Steven Kwan, OF 3 1 1 1 .296 HR (3), 2 BB (40), SB (9), CS (3), [he's hitting .300 by all other counts]
CLE HiA #33 Milan Tolentino, 2B 4 0 0 0 .289 BB (58), CS (3),
CLE R #35 Jose Pastrano, 2B 4 1 1 0 .263
CLE AAA #39 Will Brennan, OF 5 0 1 0 .323

"These guys are playing above and beyond expectations."

Or the Experts really have no clue...

Or it is really difficult to predict MLB level performance.

Or the Dians algorithms are getting better for position players after doing a good job on pitchers.

Wonder if other teams have noticed and will follow suit... Moneyball - The Sequel

Or they're playing the Tigers

Another top notch outing by Bibee for Akron. 6 innings, only 1 run and it was unearned. 4 hits 2 walks 6 strikeouts. AA ERA 1.42

Good day for Will Dion at Lynchburg 5 5 1 1 1 5. Among league leaders but that's in large because he has not been promoted.
e.g. Jack Leftwich who at Lake County Friday went 5 3 1 1 2 3 2.30 at his second level of the summer
Rather rare good day for Tommy Mace in Lake County 4 4 0 0 0 1

Lynchburg OF Johnnathan Rodriguez continues his homer barrage, No. 20, OPS now 9
OF Petey Halpin 4th homer, moving far faster through the minors than JRod
SS Angel Martinez 9th homer; he will be on the list of 40 man roster additions this fall. J Rod is eligible, too, but Cleveland has never pushed him aggressively so could well leave him unprotected with no AA experience I guess he's not likely to be drafted. But I do fear another Anthony Santander possiblilty

Tuesday is Hot Prospect day; to make the list the player has to not just have had a hot week but needs more generally to be considered. Johnnathan Rodriguez has turned into a homer freak but he still never comes close to the top 30 on Guardians list. Petey Halpin is pretty far down the list but is well regarded 20 year old in High A. Angel Martinez has been around the Cleveland Top 10 for a couple years. All 3 had great weeks. Will anyone be cited?

Well the answer is Sort Of.

J Rod gets special mention for the weekly "Helium Watch" for a player who has suddenly soared into prospect consideration. Glad to see it. I've been rooting for him for about 5 years already.

Johnathan Rodriguez, OF, Guardians

Rodriguez was Cleveland’s third-round pick way back in 2017. Many of his contemporaries from that round have either reached the majors or been released, but Rodriguez is still slowly moving through the Guardians system. The 22-year-old didn’t make his full-season debut until last year. This year, he leads the High-A Midwest League with 21 home runs. Since July 1, Rodriguez has hit 15 home runs in just 32 games. The Guardians have noticed and Rodriguez received a promotion to Double-A after Sunday’s game. (JC)

And also on the list is the recently DFA's Alex Call:


19. Alex Call, OF, Nationals

Team: Triple-A Rochester (International)

Age: 27!

Why He’s Here: .444/.500/.889 (8-for-18) 6 R, 2 2B, 2 HR, 6 RBIs, 2 BB, 5 SO, 3 SB, 1 CS.

The Scoop: Call has just 16 MLB at-bats, so he’s still a prospect by definition, but as a 27-year-old, he’s at the point in his career where he needs to make the most of any and all opportunities. The best opportunity he’s likely to ever get just arrived. Dropped from Cleveland’s 40-man roster because of the team’s roster crunch, Call was claimed by the Nationals. We can safely say that the Nationals’ roster does not have the Guardians’ numbers problem. In his first week at Triple-A Rochester, Call did a little bit of everything. Hopefully for Call, it will be his only week in Rochester. He earned a promotion to the Nationals for Sunday’s game. As a outfielder who can play all three outfield spots and get on-base, this is his chance. He is hitting .292/.423/.521 between his two Triple-A stops, and he’s walked nearly as much as he’s struck out in 2021 and 2022. (JC)

J Rod also named Midwest Player of the Week at milb.com. That's what happens when you hit 4 homers in a week, in only 21 at bats 5 other hits; 3 walks and 4 strikeouts.

The Guardians have suddenly a glut of Maybe Prospect outfielders.


Preseason Kwan was a perhaps. Now he's a For Sure. Gonzalez was viewed as Probably Not, now a Quite Possibly
Palacios looked OK but has returned to Columbus. Could make a good 4th or 5th OF
Jones looked great or a week or two and now back to his minor league woes
Will Benson had a major AAA breakthrough and is following his standard mode of struggling at each new level
Will Brennan has taken major step up at AA and AAA
J Rod became suddenly a big slugger
Halpin started slow as one of the youngest in his league and has come on very strongly
Isaiah Greene's numbers are mixed at Lynchburg but his near league leading walk total and dozens of steals are impressive.
And then we drafted a college OF number one this year which guarantees nothing [see Zimmer, Brad] but will rise high on prospect lists until he proves he cannot hit as a prol

Gavin Williams was the star of the day in Minor League baseball on Tuesday throwing 6 perfect innings.

Wednesday's lines

CLE AA #3 Brayan Rocchio, SS 6 0 4 2 0.267 2B (21), E (18),
CLE AAA #4 George Valera, SS 4 0 0 0 0.259
CLE AAA #5 Gabriel Arias, SS 4 0 0 0 0.222
CLE HiA #10 Angel Martinez, SS 4 0 1 0 0.290
CLE AA #11 Jose Tena, SS 5 2 1 0 0.268 3B (5), BB (20),
CLE AAA #13 Richard Palacios, 2B 3 0 2 0 0.266
CLE AA #16 Bryan Lavastida, C 3 1 1 2 0.230 HR (6), 2 BB (25),
CLE HiA #18 Gabriel Rodriguez, 3B 4 0 0 0 0.270 E (8),
CLE AA #20 Jhonkensy Noel, 3B 5 1 1 0 0.207
CLE HiA #22 Petey Halpin, OF 4 0 1 1 0.263
CLE AAA #24 Ernie Clement, 2B 3 0 0 0 0.205
CLE HiA #25 Aaron Bracho, 2B 4 0 1 0 0.167
CLE MAJ #27 Steven Kwan, OF 5 1 2 1 0.299 2B (19),
CLE LoA #32 Isaiah Greene, OF 3 0 0 0 0.227 BB (80),
CLE LoA #38 Yordys Valdes, SS 3 0 1 0 0.246 BB (32),
CLE AAA #39 Will Brennan, OF 4 0 0 0 0.312
CLE LoA #40 Jake Fox, SS 3 1 1 0 0.262 BB (64),

CLE AAA #9 Logan Allen, LHP 5.2 6 3 3 1 5 4.28 L (6-7) he's a darned good AA pitcher; AAA is quite a struggle
CLE HiA #21 Doug Nikhazy, LHP 6.0 2 1 1 3 7 3.39 showing more promise as the season goes along

Baseball America organizational talent ratings

Our competitor for most surprising team of 2022, the Orioles, top the list.
Dodgers No. 2
Cleveland No. 3

Cleveland Guardians
Notes:

Preseason 2022: 3 | 2021: 15 | 2020: 24 | 2019: 18 | 2018: 16 | 2017: 7
Top 100 Prospects: Daniel Espino, RHP (16); Gavin Williams, RHP (35); George Valera, OF (43); Bo Naylor, C (59); Brayan Rocchio, SS (71); Logan Allen, LHP (91).


The Skinny: The Guardians' farm system is stocked to the gills with middle infielders and pitchers, and a huge chunk of their talent is clustered in the upper levels as well. Their rise to this spot came from breakout years from pitchers like Gavin Williams and Tanner Bibee, a rebound from catcher Bo Naylor, solid production from top prospects Brayan Rocchio and George Valera and interesting pop-up seasons from players like outfielder Will Brennan. And all that fails to mention Daniel Espino, who showed some of the best stuff in the minor leagues before an injury in late April landed him on the injured list.

CLE AA #12 Tanner Burns, RHP 4.0 4 4 4 1 7 3.80 L (2-5)
CLE AAA #36 Hunter Gaddis, RHP 5.0 6 2 2 2 7 4.82

CLE AA #3 Brayan Rocchio, SS 3 0 1 0 .266
CLE AA #3 Brayan Rocchio, SS 3 0 0 0 .266
CLE AAA #4 George Valera, SS 4 0 2 0 .261
CLE AAA #5 Gabriel Arias, SS 3 0 1 0 .223 BB (13),
CLE HiA #10 Angel Martinez, SS 4 2 2 0 .293 BB (40),
CLE AA #11 Jose Tena, SS 3 0 0 0 .264
CLE AA #11 Jose Tena, SS 3 0 0 0 .264
CLE AAA #13 Richard Palacios, 2B 3 0 0 0 .262 BB (29), CS (1),
CLE AA #16 Bryan Lavastida, C 3 0 0 0 .227
CLE LoA #17 Carson Tucker, SS 4 0 1 0 .143 2B (2),
CLE HiA #18 Gabriel Rodriguez, 3B 5 0 1 1 .269 E (9),
CLE AA #20 Jhonkensy Noel, 3B 3 1 1 0 .207
CLE AA #20 Jhonkensy Noel, 3B 2 0 0 0 .207 BB (32),
CLE HiA #22 Petey Halpin, OF 4 2 2 1 .266 2B (20), BB (41),
CLE AAA #24 Ernie Clement, 2B 4 1 1 3 .206 HR (2),
CLE HiA #25 Aaron Bracho, 2B 4 0 2 0 .174 2B (8),
CLE HiA #33 Milan Tolentino, 2B 3 1 0 0 .282 2 BB (61),
CLE AAA #39 Will Brennan, OF 3 0 0 0 .310 BB (45),
CLE LoA #40 Jake Fox, SS 4 0 0 0 .258

RubberDucks bounce back from doubleheader sweep with win over SeaWolves

Akron Beacon Journal
RubberDucks 2, SeaWolves 1

The RubberDucks rebounded from a doubleheader loss to the host Erie SeaWolves behind a strong pitching effort and a big hit Friday night.

Tanner Bibee threw six innings of one-run ball and Julian Escobedo hit a two-run triple to give the Ducks the edge.

After being held scoreless for 18 innings, the RubberDucks finally broke through against SeaWolves pitching. Jhonkensy Noel walked and Daniel Schneemann doubled to put runners on second and third, setting up Escobedo's triple that gave the Ducks a 2-1 lead. Escobedo's triple snapped a six-game hitless streak.

Bibee (2-1) gave up a first-inning run but allowed just four hits and two walks. He struck out four.

Good read on the effects of the potential changes to the game:

https://www.mlb.com/news/abs-system-pit ... d-triple-a