A Trip Around the Farm: Healthy Mark Mathias finds stride; Willi Castro heats up
By Michael Hattery Jun 13, 2018
Pulled aside in a concrete block hallway in the tunnels underneath picturesque Canal Park in Akron, Mark Mathias attempted to shoulder the blame for a 2017 season that was strewn with injuries.
“I don’t want to make excuses or anything, but it feels good to be healthy,” he said.
In 2017, Mathias encountered his first struggles in the Indians system slashing .212/.328/.308 with a strikeout percentage at just more than 27 percent.
Mathias did acknowledge ailing shoulders were to blame for a middling 2017.
“Last year I kind of played with a torn labrum in my left shoulder, and I decided not to have surgery early on in the year, had surgery in August and got a stem-cell injection in my right shoulder, so my right shoulder feels a lot more strong, too.”
Outside of a nine-day stint on the disabled list in May, Mathias has been seemingly healthy and productive. Mathias has slashed a much more useful .241/.354/.370 for a wRC+ of 105. The biggest positive, Mathias is back to his old hit-tool-first self, putting a lot of pitches in play, limiting strikeouts and taking walks. Striking out a mere 19 percent of the time and walking more than 13 percent of the time reflects improved discipline.
As for Mathias’ positive gains in terms of putting the ball in play, the fix was equal parts mechanical and approach. “(Limiting strikeouts) has been just about being aggressive early in counts, being ready to hit the fastball, being on time is what has helped me a lot,” he said. “Last year I was late on fastballs in the zone, early in the count so just being ready to hit, being on time.”
Of course, being on time sounds more like an outcome than adjustment; being “on time” can be achieved a few different ways.
“Just starting earlier, more control and an earlier load helped me a lot rather than being quick and late,” he said. “I tend to start my load a little bit earlier than last year where I used to get my load and my foot down a little bit late.”
Mathias is starting to look like the player the Indians saw when they drafted in the third round out of Cal Poly, and it all starts with health.
Blue chip production
(updates on former first-/second-round picks and major international signees)
Nolan Jones: After a middling April, Jones posted an OPS of .803 in May and .762 in June with the elite discipline remaining a striking component of his success. Consistency at third base is still an area of concern but continued work and his offensive production should have Jones spending the second half of the season with Lynchburg in the Carolina League.
Will Benson: Benson’s batting average remains disappointing, but the walk and power components have been elite for age and level. Further, Benson has dropped his strikeout rate from 34 percent to 29 percent so far, which is a dynamic gain. Finally, I have heard positive reports about improving routes for the young outfielder.
Quentin Holmes: The 2017 second-round pick remains stationed in Arizona and was not included on the current speculative Mahoning Valley Scrappers roster.
Brady Aiken: The former first-round pick has yet to be assigned to the roster of any minor-league affiliate.
Triston McKenzie: McKenzie finally returned from an early-season forearm injury for an exquisite first start, allowing 1 hit in 5 innings for Class AA Akron. Tracking McKenzie’s depth in games and arm strength as the season progresses will be illuminating.
Heating Up (A priority prospect who is using his tools): Willi Castro turned 21 in April and is one of the youngest players in the Eastern League. With his athleticism and age/level, the Indians did not fret about an April that saw Castro run a .564 OPS, and his bat has stabilized with a.792 OPS in May. A big key? Castro started putting the ball in play again, reducing his strikeout rate from 29 percent to 17 percent and heating up as Akron warmed. The smooth defender is showing the contact skills to get him to a near-average bat right now, which pairs well with above-average up-the-middle defense in the big leagues.
Hot three hitters
Name Level AVG OBP ISO K%
Andrew Calica Akron (AA) .322 .420 .126 20.80%
Oscar Gonzalez Lake County (A) .275 .296 .155 26.70%
Mitch Longo Lynchburg (A+) .295 .342 .111 15.10%
Hot three pitchers
Name Level IP ERA K/9 BB/9
Shane Bieber Columbus (AAA) 38.1 1.41 8.69 0.93
Eli Morgan Lynchburg (A+) 22.1 3.22 9.70 1.60
James Karinchak* Lynchburg (A+) 12 0.00 15.75 5.25
*Denotes reliever status
