Cleveland Sports Forum

why they overlooked the rest of the Captains I cannot say. Lynchburg rained out plays two today

CLE AAA #1 Tyler Freeman, SS 4 1 1 0 0.259 BB (16),
CLE AA #3 Brayan Rocchio, SS 4 2 1 0 0.218 2 BB (27),
CLE AA #4 George Valera, SS 5 4 3 2 0.290 2B (13), BB (40),
CLE AAA #6 Nolan Jones, RF 4 1 2 1 0.313 2B (5), BB (11),
CLE AA #11 Jose Tena, SS 5 1 3 1 0.268
CLE MAJ #27 Steven Kwan, OF 5 1 2 1 0.284 3B (3),
CLE AAA #39 Will Brennan, OF 4 1 1 1 0.316 BB (31),

LE AA #26 Carlos Vargas, RHP 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 0.00
CLE AAA #30 Konnor Pilkington, LHP 4.0 9 5 5 2 5 4.80
CLE AA #34 Joey Cantillo, LHP 5.0 1 0 0 4 3 2.04 W (4-3)

on tuesday Battenfield went 6 scoreless innings for Columbus, only struck out 3 which is his pitching style

for LC

Davenport 5 2/3 6 3 3 3 7 3.45
Martinez 2b and 3B 269 837 OPS

2nd game:
Martinez 2 walks
Noel HR #19

Nick Sandlin's debut in Columbus was not impressive; 2 outs, a walk, a 2 run homer
Tobias Myers with for him a good line 4 2/3 2 1 1 3 6 5.53 ERA
Mikolajcheck also ineffective 1 /23 2 2 2 0 1 and a homer

at bat, Will Benson tripled and walked
Freeman singled
Brennan singled twice
Nolan Jones 0-4 with 2 strikeouts; still playing RF exclusively

Elswehere lots of really top notch starting pitching:

Logan Allen in AA: 7 2 1 1 1 11
Mason Hickman in High A 5 3 0 0 2 8
Jack Leftwich in Low A 7 3 1 1 1 9
Will Dion in Low A 6 5 2 0 1 8

Allen and Dion are for promotions; Leftwich maybe, too. Hickman is returning to form after injury and down period

a handful of offensive standouts

AA:
Valera triple and single; he's due a promotion, too
Rocchio single, double, walk
Delgardo single and walk doing well after his promotion

High A:
Angel Martinez single, 2 walks
notable but for the good: Noel a perfect 5 strikeouts in 5 AB

Low A in a doubleheader:
Burgos a single and his 2nd homer
Valdes 2 singles
Isaiah Greene double and 4 walks
notable: Carson Tucker a first round pick a couple years ago returned and went 0-2, he's hitting 077
Jordan Brown 6th round pick in 2019 at age 17 has been brought on slowly; not sure if there's been injury issues; in the lineup yesterday a hit in 3 AB, he's 5-16 with 3 doubles in his rare appearances.

BA lines for our top 40 prospects [as judged preseason]therefore no Will Dion while Aaron Bracho is still on the list
[and with preseason positions listed; e.g. Nolan Jones has not played an inning at 3b; nor Palacios at 2b]

CLE AAA #1 Tyler Freeman, SS 4 0 1 1 .258
CLE AA #3 Brayan Rocchio, SS 3 3 2 1 .225 2B (10), BB (28),
CLE AA #4 George Valera, SS 4 2 2 1 .294 3B (2),
CLE AAA #6 Nolan Jones, 3B 4 0 0 0 .288
CLE HiA #10 Angel Martinez, SS 2 0 1 0 .268 2 BB (30),
CLE LoA #17 Carson Tucker, SS 2 0 0 0 .077
CLE HiA #18 Gabriel Rodriguez, 3B 4 0 1 0 .253
CLE HiA #20 Jhonkensy Noel, 3B 5 0 0 0 .219
CLE HiA #22 Petey Halpin, OF 4 0 0 1 .215
CLE MAJ #24 Ernie Clement, 2B 4 0 0 0 .204
CLE HiA #25 Aaron Bracho, 2B 3 2 1 0 .144 2B (4), BB (8),
CLE MAJ #27 Steven Kwan, OF 1 0 0 0 .283
CLE LoA #32 Isaiah Greene, OF 2 1 1 0 .227 2B (7), 2 BB (45),
CLE LoA #32 Isaiah Greene, OF 1 0 0 0 .227 2 BB (45), SB (11),
CLE LoA #37 Luis Durango, OF 3 1 1 0 .192 SB (15),
CLE LoA #38 Yordys Valdes, SS 4 0 0 0 .258
CLE LoA #38 Yordys Valdes, SS 4 1 2 1 .258
CLE AAA #39 Will Brennan, OF 4 0 2 0 .319
CLE LoA #40 Jake Fox, SS 3 1 0 0 .232
CLE LoA #40 Jake Fox, SS 4 0 0 0 .232

CLE AA #9 Logan Allen, LHP 7.0 2 1 1 1 11 3.33 W (5-3)
CLE AAA #23 Tobias Myers, RHP 4.2 2 1 1 3 6 5.56 L (1-8)

When the G's drafted the Arizona kid, Carson Tucker, I smiled a bit.

My smiles have turned to frowns and it looks like a complete swing and a miss.

he's been hurt a lot, I suppose he might turn out to be what they thought he would be, but he's got a lot of catching up to do

Guardians have got more than they bargained from from Oscar Gonzalez, who in the majors doesn't strike out as much as in the minors, has a great throwing arm and does not try to pull everything.

Steven Kwan is having another excellent month and has his batting average back up to 286, proving he's not just a flash in the pan.

Richie Palacios who was an IF until sometime last summer has been more than advertised as well.

All of which is to say that we're not nearly as desperate for OF help as we've been for an eon or so. If we were more attention probably would be focuses on 21 year old George Valera who is having a great season for Akron, getting better as the season has gone on.
Single and homer #12 last night puts his avergae at 298 and OPS 937
and in June his line is 360/456/653. He will certainly be moving to Columbus sooner than later

also Friday:

AAA
Freeman HR4, single, showing greatly increased power
Brennan HR2, single 343 avg at AAA
Bo Naylor his first AAA hit
Bobby Bradley his 5ht homer, avg up to 200
McCarty 4 scoreless innings

AA
Curry 6 2/3 6 1 0 2 4

High A
Halpin single and walk
Boone 4 2/3 8 4 4 1 8 still getting the strikeouts but also allowed 3 HR, we'll call it an adustment

Low A
Valdes single and walk
Greene only 1 walk
Denholm 4 2/3 5 1 0 5 5 over 57 IP 72 K 22 walks, yesterday walks were exceptional

biggest news on Saturday was promotion of 20 year slugger Jhonkensy Noel to Akron where I'm sure he'll be the youngest player in the Eastern League. He debuted with a double and a walk.

Other notes:

at Lynchburg Fox walked 3 times. Tucker once

at Lake County: 17-2 win featured lots of good hitting lines;
Joe Naranjo with 2 homers, 2 walks a single and 5 RBI
Planez homer 2 singles 3 RBI
Tolentino single and 3 walks
G. Rodriguez homer single 2 walks
even Bracho managed a single but also avoided scoring any runs or batting any in
Nikhazy still can't stop walking too many 5 1/3 3 2 2 4 6 3.38 ERA
Ray Burgos in relief 2 1/3 1 walk 3 K. I'd like to see him back in the rotation

at Akron:
Rducks held a 3-0 lead until the 9th when 7 scored against them.
Tanner Burns 4 0 0 0 2 5 2.20
Oviedo 4 1 0 0 1 4

for Columbus: relief solutions? no
Alex Young 1 1/3 0 0 0 2 oh gosh, I hope we don't have to go there again
Karinchak 1 3 0 0 0 2 well no runs or walks anyway
Sandlin 1/3 1 2 2 1 2 well he only walked one
Gabriel Arias returned and went 1-2;
one hit each also by Brennan, Jones and Naylor
Lavastida in on the IL; I didn't catch the cause
Castro 1 1/3 1 0 0 2 2 well he didn't allow any runs

With encouraging reports from the minors, we seem to be developing a log jam for promotions. Kwan, Palacidos and OG could certainly be a great answer in the outfield and more knocking on the door. Good problem? or Bad problem?

Too many outfielders is quite a novel problem for the G's or for their predecessors.
Not quite the logjam when we dealt Brian Giles since we already had Kenny, Albert and Manny. And traded Sexson and Casey because we had Thome

And the lessons from those deals:

1. Do you trade the established star[ter] or the up and upcoming?
2. What do get in return: Ricardo Rincon was not a good price for Giles; Sexson for for Bob Wickman, Steve Woodard and Jason Bere better; Casey for Dave Burba, fairly even.

Nowadays as an article posted in Articles suggests: it's always risky to trade with Cleveland. We've received winning packages.

1 game is already,

Lake County lost 4-2
Tommy Mace 3rd round 2021 lefty continues to look a lot worse than lower round picks Bibee, Dion Leftwich and Boone [although the latter has like Mace struggled at High A and the middle 2 haven't been tried there yet] 4 7 4 4 1 4 5.87 2 homeruns
G. Rodriguez 5th homer of the year and 2nd of the weekend; Planez single and 3 strikeouts
former No. 2 draft pick and extremely unsuccessful pro Quentin Holmes is apparently still in the organization; debuted today going 2-4. Career average is 190 and OPS 537. He turns 3 in a couple weeks.

Akron is in the 8th with a regrettable line in the box score:
Gavin Williams 2/3 inning a hit 3 walks and out. A bad day is OK but I hope this doesn't mean he was hurt. We're still missing Espino after 6 weeks.
Carlos Vargas 2 more scoreless innings. That brings his season scoreless streak to 4! which are his first innings since 2019
Noel likes AA like Gonzalez likes the majors 2 singles in 3 AB.
Tena homered

Lynchburg nearing the end too, in the 8th up 6-4
Fox double 2 singles no walks!
Burgos 2 singles 3 walks
Jason Wolf 2 2 1 1 0 1 rehabbing; he's the 4th man in the Lindor deal along with Greene who had the day off today

Guardians asst. GM James Harris gives updates on prospects Nolan Jones, Daniel Espino, Bo Naylor and more

CLEVELAND, Ohio — With a farm system as robust and productive as Cleveland’s, the sleepless nights Guardians assistant general manager James Harris experiences are more centered on finding at-bats and innings for high-performing prospects than struggling to fill spots.

Harris, whose responsibilities center mainly on overseeing the club’s player development system, has his finger on the pulse of each minor league affiliate, and the biggest issue he faces on a daily basis is finding playing time for prospects that are performing at or above expectations.

“We want to win today, but ultimately we want to win in the playoffs and be a winning team, and we’re hoping that these guys can help us do it,” Harris said. “It’ great that they’re getting experience now playing great teams. We’re hoping we can be good for years to come with homegrown talent.”

Before Sunday’s game against Boston, Harris was asked about several top prospects in the Guardians farm system. Here’s what he had to say.

OF Nolan Jones (Triple-A)

Jones is hitting .286 with a .397 on-base percentage and 11 RBI in 56-at bats since recently re-joining the Clippers. He opened the season on the injured list with a sore back.

Harris said they’re trying to keep Jones to one position, having him play mostly in right field, but they will gradually introduce him to left as well.
“And he can play first base if we need him,” Harris said. “You guys know, we have no idea where those guys are going to play when they’re (in Cleveland). In 2016 Jose Ramirez played 48 games in left field. So, we have no idea.”

INF Tyler Freeman (Triple-A)

Freeman, who arrived in Columbus in late April after missing most of spring training with injury issues, has turned it on of late, batting .383 with a home run and nine RBI in his last 10 games.

“If you look at the total package, he’s still a really good player,” Harris said. “He puts the bat on the ball, and plays a good second base. He’s pretty average at shortstop, but we like him there as well.”
SS Gabriel Arias (Triple-A)

Arias, who missed nearly two months with a fractured hand, made his return to Columbus on Friday and was promptly hit by a pitch on the elbow before being removed after two at-bats. Harris said it looked like the injury was superficial and removing him from the game was precautionary.

Arias’ hand appears to be doing well, though. He will continue to play shortstop and third base for the Clippers as he works his way back toward feeling more comfortable at the plate.

“You know how this game is,” Harris said. “It’s full of situations that you’ve got to adjust to, and he’s getting that opportunity today.”

RHP Hunter Gaddis (Double-A)

Gaddis, who earned Eastern League Pitcher of the Week honors on May 23, turned in another dominant outing on Tuesday when he struck out 10 batters in 5 2/3 innings against Harrisburg.

Harris said Gaddis is among a number of pitchers performing well for the RubberDucks, but moving anybody is based more on where a pitcher will have the opportunity to remain stretched out and help the big league club as needed more so than any numbers would indicate.

“It’s not always about just the performance, which we love the performance (from Gaddis) as well, but it’s an opportunity to play,” Harris said. “We can’t promote all of them at the same time, so yeah, he’s in the conversation.”

RHP Daniel Espino (Double-A)

The good news is that Cleveland’s first-round draft pick from 2019 is starting to throw again after dealing with knee and shoulder soreness from earlier in the season. Harris says there’s no exact timeline on when we’ll see Espino back on the mound for the RubberDucks, though.

Espino has been limited to 18 1/3 innings over four starts at Akron this season, but managed 35 strikeouts to just four walks in that stretch.

“He’s a big, physical person of a guy who’s performed great, so we’re not going to rush him back,” Harris said. “We would rather have him be healthy and return to form. When he returns to form, he’s special. So, we’d rather take our time.”

C Bo Naylor (Triple-A)

Naylor was promoted to Triple-A this week after Bryan Lavastida went on the injured list with a sore hamstring. The left-handed hitting catcher batted .271 with an .898 OPS in 52 games for Akron, batting mostly out of the leadoff spot. Naylor walked (45) nearly as often as he struck out (46) and scored 29 runs. Harris said Naylor’s return to form after an up-and-down 2021 campaign is remarkable.

“I wish I could bottle it up and give it to other guys,” Harris said.

Naylor has had conversations with older brother Josh as well as the hitting coaches in Akron, Junior Betances and Mike Mergenthaler, that have kept him on course.

“If you look at the end of last season as well, he ended the season pretty well, but then where he started this season is nothing short of remarkable,” Harris said.

INF/OF Johnkensy Noel (Double-A)

Noel was recently promoted from High-A Lake County to Akron after hitting 19 home runs for the Captains in 62 games. Noel wasted little time making the transition to Double-A as he collected an extra-base hit on the first pitch he saw for the RubberDucks.

Noel was in the same international class that produced Brayan Rocchio, Jose Tena and George Valera. Harris said Noel’s hard contact rate is one of the things that jumped out about him with Lake County.

“He’s a big, physical presence if you’ve seen him in person,” Harris said. “We thought that Double-A is the appropriate challenge for him now.”

OF George Valera (Double-A)

Valera continues to tear up Eastern League pitching, batting .297 with a .935 OPS, 12 home runs and 46 RBI in 63 games as the RubberDucks’ full-time left fielder.

Expect to see Valera in left field a little more now that Noel is at Akron getting his feet wet in right.

“On occasion we probably need to put him in center, too, because you don’t know where the opportunity is going to be for him,” Harris said.