Obviously Giambi and Giminez will both be gone. Add back Swisher to the roster and we have 38 names, with Scott Barnes also likely to be DFA'd and Shuck, too, I would guess. But we don't have too many players at the top of the farm system who need to be protected. Giovanny Urshela is the only one I can come up with. [I think Lindor still has a year to go. Although maybe Wolters is due, but he's a marginal prospect at present. And always some possible relievers like Shawn Armstrong.]


Of the minor league FA's, not much worth worrying about. Lots of old guys and other team's retreads.
I don't care if we lose them all with the exception of Elvis Araujo. He's worth protecting since he's a big Lefty who's coming back from arm problems and making some progress. Was formerly projected as a pretty good prospect.

Monday games:

CLE AFL Lindor, Francisco
3 1 1 0 .267 2B (4)
CLE AFL Wolters, Tony
4 0 1 0 .179
CLE DL Ciriaco, Audy
3 0 1 0 .111 2B (1)
CLE DL Naquin, Tyler
4 0 1 0 .211 HR (1)
CLE VL Aguilar, Jesus
4 2 3 4 .286 2B (2)
CLE VL Urshela, Giovany
4 0 0 0 .391
CLE AFL Maronde Nick 1 0 0 0 0 1 11.42 he only stinks sometimes

BA has just started publishing its annual team Top 10 list. They go at a 1/day pace by divisions, starting this year with AL East. Time to start speculating on Tribe top prospects. For the first time in quite awhile we have 10 or even more names who can easily deserve to make a Top 10. My current thoughts:

1. Lindor.
2. Zimmer.
3. Mejia, I always rate him higher than the pros do, he should be about No. 5 or 6 on their list
4. Bradley, have to agree that a 1st baseman is less valuable than a SS, a CF/RF or a catcher, but he sure can hit
5. Sheffield, 18 year old pitchers have lots of speed bumps before they reach the majors
6. Frazier, not a great sophomore season, but still has lots of tools
7. Chiang, 3B/SS
from Taiwan who was nearly as good at bat as Bradley
8. Urshela
9. Tyler Naquin, Lots of skills, but those K totals really bother me
10. Mitch Brown, breakout season, might as well include 2 pitchers on the list

CLOSE CALLS:
UT Zach Walters, sure can hit homers, not sure he can do anything else
OF OF James Ramsey, unlikely to be less useful to us than Masteson was to the Cards
1B/OF Mike Papi, didn't turn heads like Zimmer and Bradley but he can hit, too
1B Aguillar, he often flops in his first taste at a new level, still plenty of offensive potential
SS/2B/3B Erik Gonzalez, more middle IF quality

BETTER THAN MANY OF OUR RECENT TOP TEN QUALIFIERS:
1B Nellie Rodriguez
RHP Adam Plutko
RHP Grant Hockin
CF Greg Allen
CF Gabriel Mejia, best basestealer in professional ball, hasn't made his U.S. debut
3B Yandy Diaz

GOOD PLAYERS EVEN IF NOT TOP 10 quality
2B Joe Wendle
RF Carlos Moncrief
LHP Shawn Morimando
CF Silento Sayles
C Ji-Jen Chu
LHP Thomas Pannone
LHP Ryan Merritt
RHP Casey Shane
LHP Sean Brady
LHP Luis Lugo
RHP Anderson Polanco

RECENT TOP 10 STAPLES, STILL WORTH WAITING FOR?
OF Luigi Rodriguez
IF Ronnie Rodriguez
LF Dorsyss Paulino
LF Levon Washington
LHP Elvis Araujo

RELIEVERS WHO ARE OVERSHADOWED BY PLAYERS WITH HIGHER CEILINGS
Ben Heller
Louis Head
Shawn Armstrong

Unexciting winter ball report:

CLE AFL Lindor, Francisco SS 5 0 1 1 .262 CS (3) [aggressive, unsuccessful basestealing]
CLE AFL Smith, Jordan RF 4 1 1 0 .298 [at his best he hits a lot of singles]
CLE DL Ciriaco, Audy 3B 4 0 2 0 .231 [a minor league free agent]
CLE DL Ramirez, Jose 2B 4 0 0 0 .125
CLE AFL Head, Louis 1 3 1 1 0 1 4.26 [the best pitcher we have in Arizona, which isn't saying much]
CLE VL Rodriguez, Ramon 0.2 1 0 0 0 0 0.90

Lindor report from Arizona:

2014 AFL Stats: .267/.313/.417, 4 2B, 3B, HR, 4 RBI, 2 SB, 3 BB, 6 K (14 G)

After batting .276/.338/.389 with 31 extra-base hits and 28 stolen bases in 126 games between the Double- and Triple-A levels, Francisco Lindor likely would have been fine without a trip to Arizona. However, the Indians clearly wanted Lindor to tack on an additional month’s worth of games, suggesting that he could be in the mix to take over at shortstop next spring.

The 20-year-old switch-hitter has basically picked up where he left off in Triple-A, with 16 hits (six extra-base hits), eight runs scored and two stolen bases in 14 games. He's also hit safely in five of the past six games.



Stock: Holding Pattern

Wednesday:

CLE AFL Lindor, Francisco SS 4 1 1 0 .261
CLE AFL Wolters, Tony C 4 0 1 0 .188
CLE DL Naquin, Tyler CF 4 0 0 0 .174
CLE DL Ramirez, Jose SS 4 0 0 0 .083
CLE VL Aguilar, Jesus 1B 4 3 4 0 .444
CLE VL Moncrief, Carlos RF 4 1 1 0 .333
CLE VL Urshela, Giovanny 3B 3 0 0 0 .373 BB (2), CS (1)

CLE AFL Sides, Grant 1 0 0 0 0 2 0.00 W (1 - 0)

BA's Tribe Top 10 will be posted on Nov 10 and chat that afternoon. If we get lucky again this year, the chatter will discuss dozens of prospects. I'll clear my calendar and have dozens of questions ready to send at 'em.

Give 'em hell, Civ!

Thursday in the sun:

CLE ABL Battaglia, Ryan 3B 1 0 0 0 .148 [Australians go home]
CLE ABL Campbell, Andrew DH 4 0 0 0 .150 [ditto]
CLE AFL Lindor, Francisco SS 3 0 0 0 .250 BB (4) [stopped hitting]
CLE AFL Smith, Jordan RF 4 1 1 0 .295
CLE PRL Perez, Roberto C 3 0 0 0 .000
CLE VL Aguilar, Jesus 1B 3 0 0 0 .381 BB (3)
CLE VL Moncrief, Carlos RF 4 0 0 0 .297
CLE VL Urshela, Giovanny DH 3 1 2 2 .386 BB (3) [keeps hitting]
CLE AFL Baker, Dylan 3 5 1 1 0 0 8.59
CLE AFL Maronde, Nick 1 1 0 0 0 2 10.24
CLE DL Arias, Gabirel 3.2 4 1 1 0 0 3.38
CLE VL Araujo, Elvis 1.2 0 0 0 0 1 0.00 W (1 - 0) [could make the 40-man roster, if he's throwing hard again]

Saturday in the Sun:

CLE AFL Lindor, Francisco DH 4 0 0 0 .---
CLE ABL Campbell, Andrew RF 3 0 1 0 .200 2B (2), BB (4), CS (1)
CLE DL Ciriaco, Audy PH-DH 2 0 0 0 .250
CLE DL Naquin, Tyler CF 3 0 1 0 .207 BB (3)
CLE DL Ramirez, Jose SS 6 1 2 1 .174 HR (1)
CLE PRL Perez, Roberto C 3 0 1 0 .444
CLE VL Aguilar, Jesus 1B 5 1 0 0 .258
CLE VL Moncrief, Carlos RF 5 0 1 0 .304 BB (7)
CLE VL Urshela, Giovanny 3B 5 1 3 0 .400 BB (4) [start his real season now]
CLE AFL Maronde, Nick 0.2 1 0 0 0 1 0.00 [not sure how his ERA dropped from 13 to 0 with 2/3 IP]

Sunday:

CLE ABL Battaglia, Ryan C 3 0 0 1 .118
CLE ABL Shorto, Ben 2B 0 0 0 0 -- [who's he?]
CLE DL Naquin, Tyler CF 3 0 2 0 .250
CLE DL Ramirez, Jose SS 5 0 0 0 .143
CLE PRL Perez, Roberto DH 3 1 0 1 .333 3 BB (4)
CLE VL Aguilar, Jesus 1B 4 0 1 0 .257 BB (4)
CLE VL Moncrief, Carlos RF 2 0 0 0 .292
CLE VL Urshela, Giovanny 3B 4 1 1 0 .393

CLE PRL Ramirez, J.C. 1.2 1 0 0 0 0 0.00
CLE PRL Romero, J.C. 1.1 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 W (1 - 0) [is this the same guy twice?]
CLE PRL Soto, Giovanni 1 0 0 0 0 2 0.00 [still trying to prove the Peralta trade was a good one]

I am not permitted to reveal my sources but I have received a post which includes these [edited] comments about some of the players who we are interested in and are working in the Instructional League.

Outfielder Gabriel Mejia who stole the show this past season in the Dominican Summer League with his stolen base and walk totals. At 19-years old he was a little older for that league. His speed is for real, though from the bat he is going to need a lot of work .

Clint Frazier. The bat speed is no doubt there as he made some impressive swings on balls and sent them rocketing to the right center gap, one in particular a laser shot to right center that got out in a hurry. He developed a few bad habits at the plate this past season as he consistently pulled off balls and was eaten up when pitchers could locate and work him away. When he stays on the ball and uses the entire field he is a treat to watch hit. He needs to stop being so pull happy and start looking to drive the ball to the middle of the field. If he does that his power should show more consistently and his strikeouts could even go down a little. He was a little sluggish in the outfield this year as he took some questionable routes to balls and did not get clean jumps, so refining his defense is another key

Greg Allen really impressed with his defense. He rates as one of the top defensive outfielders in the system, if not the best, with his outstanding speed, unbelievable instincts and smooth, calm way he chases down balls in the gaps. He goes back on balls and comes in on them well, ranges well to his left and right and has a strong enough arm to handle the position. The arm may be the only thing that limits him defensively. At the plate he puts the bat on the ball, shows some patience, is tough to strikeout and has the ability to impact a game with his speed on the basepaths. The biggest question mark is his lack of strength. If he doesn’t hit for much power he still needs to be able to make solid contact and drive balls to get them out of the infield. He is a switch-hitter with a plus makeup.

First baseman Bobby Bradley has the potential to get even bigger and stronger as he matures over the next few years. He just recently moved to first base and is still learning the position, but he has already made some strides. He shows some decent athleticism and speed for his size, which helps with his footwork around the base and with ranging to balls. He is still kind of stiff with his fielding, something infield coordinator Travis Fryman really worked with him on. He should be a fun power hitting first base prospect to follow for the Indians over the next several years.

SS/3B Yu-Cheng Chang. He has a strong arm and the range to handle both positions, but he is more comfortable at third base and profiles there better with his size. The bat is impressive as he has very good bat speed, strong wrists and forearms and quick, compact swing which allows him to barrel up balls and drive them to all fields. The Indians have already started throwing around Jhonny Peralta comparisons.

Catcher Li-Jen Chu put up a good offensive showing in the Arizona League this year in his pro debut. But it was only 100 plate appearances in the dry desert air. And his defense has a long way to go.

CLEVELAND --

The Indians made some adjustments to their roster on Monday, beginning with re-signing right-hander Tyler Cloyd to a Minor League contract that includes an invitation to attend Spring Training with the Major League club.

Cleveland also had outfielder J.B. Shuck claimed off waivers by the White Sox, and the Indians sent catcher Chris Gimenez outright to Triple-A Columbus. Gimenez, who was eligible for arbitration, has the right to decline the outright assignment and elect free agency. Under the latter scenario, Cleveland would likely have interest in re-signing the catcher to a Minor League deal.

The Indians' 40-man roster currently includes 36 players.

Cloyd -- originally claimed by the Indians off waivers from the Phillies in October 2013 -- spent all of last season at Triple-A, where the right-hander went 10-8 with a 3.89 ERA in 166 2/3 innings. The 27-year-old Cloyd had 118 strikeouts against 31 walks with a 1.27 WHIP in his 27 games for the Clippers. He has a 5.98 ERA in 19 career big leagues games with Philadelphia (2012-13).

The Indians acquired the 27-year-old Shuck from the Angels in exchange for cash on Sept. 5, but the outfielder went just 2-for-26 (.077 average) in his 16-game stint with the Tribe. In parts of three Major League seasons, Shuck has hit .264 (.640 OPS) in 204 games between stints with the Astros, Angels and Indians. He has experience in all three outfield spots.

Gimenez, who was originally drafted by the Indians in 2004, was acquired from the Rangers on Aug. 23 to give the Tribe another versatile option off the bench. He hit .241 with 10 homers and 11 RBIs in 42 games with Texas and Cleveland last season, and has hit .210 (.599 OPS) in parts of six big league seasons with the Tribe, Mariners, Rays and Rangers. Gimenez has experience behind the plate, as well as at the corners in both the infield and outfield.

Jordan Bastian is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Major League Bastian, and follow him on Twitter @MLBastian. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

36 men still include Scott Barnes who doesn't warrant a space and Nick Maronde is trying to prove his worth in Arizona Fall Ball. Not sure we have any more than 4 players worthy of adding; I'd expect some waiver pickups. Urshela becomes 37th man. Araujo? Armstrong? Wolters?

not much action on Monday:

CLE AFL Lindor, Francisco SS 3 1 1 0 .253 BB (5)
CLE DL Naquin, Tyler CF 4 0 1 0 .250 BB (4)
CLE AFL Sides, Grant 1 1 0 0 1 1 0.00 [25 year old RH reliever, had a good year for Carolina but boy that's old for a pitcher to have worked a total of 1 inning in AA]