Cleveland Sports Forum

Jonathan (Syracuse, NY): Thank you for the chat! In your personal opinion, are any players besides Zimmer and Frazier strong candidates for the Top 100 list?

Teddy Cahill: Zimmer and Frazier will be on the Top 100, and I very much expect Aiken will be as well. I'd throw in Sheffield and Bradley as serious contenders, with Sheffield obviously more likely to make it. I haven't made out my personal top 150 yet so I'm not entirely sure where I'd place them, but the way they played as teenagers in the Midwest League definitely stands out

Clark (JCNY): Can you tell me more about Triston McKenzie? I expected to see him a little higher up. What's his upside and ETA? Thanks!

Teddy Cahill: McKenzie was the Indians' second pick in this year's draft and he got the second largest bonus for a player drafted after the first round this year. He was an All-American this spring after a massive senior year and he didn't pitch much after signing because he had already logged 90 innings. He has big upside because he has a good feel for pitching and strong present stuff, but also has a lot of room to get bigger and stronger, which should help him add velocity. Scouts really liked him this spring and the Indians are very excited about him. But it was hard to push him higher up the list just because of how far away he is. A few years ago a player like that in the Indians system would have been in the top five, but as the system has improved, it's getting harder to move up the rankings.

Jeff E-z Pass (Houston, Texas): Have you guys heard anything for Aiken's return to a mound? Will he definitely pitch this season at some level?

Teddy Cahill: I suppose there are no definites in baseball, but Aiken is very much expected to pitch this season. He had surgery in March and his recover has gone well so far. While the Indians will be cautious with him and have no reason to rush him, he should be ready to go when short-season leagues begin.

my questions are mostly about the second rank prospects, like Paulino and Santander and Hentges and Greg Allen. We'll see if he gets that far in his Q&A

we continue at a question every 5 minute pace. Here's a kid we can be excited about:

CVC (Ohio): Luke Wakamatsu has been called a steal for where he was drafted, why did he fall so far? and if he was drafted much higher would he have been more likely to be higher ranked?

Teddy Cahill: Luke Wakamatsu, the son of former Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu, was the Indians' 20th round pick in June. Before the draft, he ranked No. 297 on the BA500, but scouts believed he had a strong commitment to Rice, leading to his fall in the draft. So when the Indians took him, I did not expect them to sign him (which J.J. Cooper talked about in our marathon podcast the day after the draft: http://www.baseballamerica.com/draft/ba ... podcast-9/). But they were able to get a deal done and he went on to play pretty well in the Arizona League. You'll find him in the top 30 and he'd probably rank in the same place regardless of what round he went in.

Elliot (Youngstown OH): Adam Plutko only succeeds at every level he’s tackled, but his stuff doesn’t inspire great praise. Can he make it in the big leagues as a starter?

Teddy Cahill: So I'm happy to see a handful of Adam Plutko questions. As people in the office can attest, I love talking about Adam Plutko. I am a firm believer in his ability to start in the big leagues. It's really just his fastball that gets the faint praise. His changeup is a really good pitch for him and he throws two good breaking balls. But with him it really is about his plus control and baseball IQ. His pitchability is very impressive. All of that means he doesn't have a massive upside and doesn't have a large margin for error, but I don't see any reason why he can be a backend starter fairly soon. He just really knows how to pitch.

here's a question from someone who likes Naquin a lot more than I do. In fact I'm very surprised he's rated ahead of Clevinger, McKenize and Hillman


a.j. (las vegas): With 700 at-bats above Hi-A, Brantley hurt and Bourn gone why won't Tyler Naquin be the Indians opening day CF?

Teddy Cahill: Since I've now broken the seal on Plutko questions, let's get a Naquin question in. I talk about him almost as much. I think there's a small chance he could break camp as the Indians center fielder, but realistically that's not going to happen. He has dealt with a lot of injuries over the last couple years and doesn't have much time in Triple-A. He would probably benefit from spending some more time in Columbus and then coming up in the summer. But I do think he'll make his MLB debut this year.

Joe (Atlanta): With 3 outfielders in the top 10 all younger than James Ramsey what is the chance he gets a shot in Cleveland in the next two years? Is his low ceiling hurting him?

Teddy Cahill: It's not Ramsey's ceiling that's hurting him. Maybe on prospect rankings, but not in terms of getting a shot in Cleveland. I think if he'd been having a better season last year you would have seen him. But it's hard to call a guy up when he's slumping. If he gets back on track this season, he'll likely make his debut. There should be opportunities to be had in that outfield this year, but Zimmer, Frazier and Naquin will be big league ready soon, so that depth chart could get crowded in a hurry.

Roy (216): Was Hillman close to making the list? [I'd have to assume he's No. 11]

Teddy Cahill: Lefthander Juan Hillman did receive support for the top 10, but ultimately just missed the cut. Like McKenzie, he parlayed a strong senior year in the Florida high school ranks into a spot on Day 1 of the draft. And like McKenzie he's more projectable than most top Florida high school pitchers because he won't turn 18 until this May. He adds another exciting arm to the Indians system.

CVC (Ohio): What pushed McKenzie into top ten over Juan Hillman?

Teddy Cahill: To piggyback on the last question, McKenzie's edge is based on his upside. If he is able to make the strength gains the Indians believe he can, he would have three above-average pitches and the athleticism to consistently throw them for strikes. Hillman's breaking ball is not that advanced and he doesn't have the same kind of potential to make a big jump in velocity, though he may gain some as he physically matures.

It's obvious this is the most exciting group of high school pitchers we've drafted since that 2001 talented draft class of Dan Denham, J.D. Martin, Jake Dittler and Travis Foley. I hope that the class of 2015 can exceed the ceiling reached by the Fab Four.

Now we move on to our next Russell Branyan:

Adirondack (Syracuse, NY): Bobby Bradley, the number one power bat in the minors right now? yes or No.

Teddy Cahill: No. As long as Joey Gallo is still prospect eligible, he'll be the best power bat. Bradley has impressive power, but he's not quite on that level.

Henry Hasbun (Miami): Does Bobby Bradley have the offensive upside to be an elite prospect as a 1st base only prospect? or the strikeouts limit his ceiling?

Teddy Cahill: Since we're already talking about Bobby Bradley, let's take this one. I suppose the answer to this depends on the definition of elite. It would not surprise me if Bradley was the best first base prospect in baseball at some point in his career. But how high that means he ranks on the top 100, I don't know. The strikeouts are somewhat disconcerting, but he was playing in a pitcher's park in a pitcher's league as a teenager. He's going to need to cut down on them, but I don't think they're unacceptable for a player coming from the Mississippi high school ranks playing in a league as tough as the MWL.

[That makes him sound potentially even better than Branyan.]

Ringo (Octopusses Garden): So who just missed the top 10 list?

Teddy Cahill: I've already mentioned that Hillman received some support. Shortstop Erik Gonzalez was talked about, as was Plutko. But it's probably fair to say Hillman was the closest to the top 10.

[No surprises there.]
[I'd like to see some discussion of Clevinger soon.]

my turn

Elliot (Youngstown OH): Over the years the Indians have had a batch of college 2nd basemen who debuted among the NYPL’s top hitters [e.g. Scott Pratt, Cord Phelps] but didn’t wind up amounting to much. Joey Wendle looked like another of same, but since he was traded away he’s kept hitting in the upper minors. Now comes Mark Mathias whose debut wasn’t quite as impressive but is rated by BA as the Indians’ best hitting prospect for average. What should we expect?

Teddy Cahill: That is an interesting point and, to be honest, one I hadn't thought of before now. But if you're in Youngstown, you've had the opportunity to watch Mahoning Valley up close. College second basemen tend not to be highly thought of in the draft because if they're already playing second base they're going to have to really keep hitting in pro ball. The Indians believe in Mathias' ability to do just that. He's got a strong pedigree, having won the Big West batting title as a sophomore and playing for the Collegiate National Team before suffering a shoulder injury that limited him this spring. Basically it will come down to his feel for hitting.