Sunday lines:

CLE AA Zimmer, Bradley CF 3 1 1 0 .244 BB (45), CS (12)
CLE AAA Diaz, Yandy LF 5 2 2 0 .303
CLE AAA Gonzalez, Erik CF 4 1 3 0 .298 2B (19), BB (14)
CLE HiA Allen, Greg CF 4 0 1 0 .289
CLE HiA Bradley, Bobby 1B 2 0 1 0 .243 2B (16), 2 BB (41)
CLE LoA Castro, Willi SS 4 2 1 1 .270 HR (5), BB (10), SB (8)
CLE LoA Krieger, Tyler 2B 5 1 1 1 .313 2B (13), SB (15) [farewell to Eastlake]
CLE LoA Mejia, Francisco DH 3 1 2 2 .347 HR (7), BB (15) [farewell to Eastlake]
CLE MAJ Naquin, Tyler CF 4 1 1 1 .322 HR (6)
CLE SS Wakamatsu, Luke SS 3 0 1 2 .257 BB (3), CS (1)
CLE AAA Merritt, Ryan 3.1 6 4 3 1 1 4.23 L (4-7)
CLE HiA Brown, Mitch 4 8 7 7 4 3 5.37 L (2-6) [don't expect Brown on the 30-man prospect list next year]

Another of our draft picks, Ben Krauth, 16th rounder, had a successful debut yesterday. 2 innings, no hits, 3 K.

Francisco Mejia has been asked to play for the world team in the Futures game.

Greg Allen currently leads our entire organization with a .426 OBP and 35 SB's.

Monday in the Minors:

CLE AA Frazier, Clint LF 4 1 1 0 .295 2B (21)
CLE AA Papi, Mike RF 4 0 1 1 .189
CLE AA Rodriguez, Nellie 1B 4 1 3 1 .250 HR (15) [don't know how highly he's rated]
CLE AA Zimmer, Bradley CF 4 1 1 1 .244 HR (12) [good HR, SB and walk totals]
CLE AAA Gonzalez, Erik SS 3 1 2 0 .302 [he's ready if we ever need him, or want to trade him]
CLE HiA Allen, Greg CF 4 3 2 0 .292 2 BB (47) [on base machine, but not promoted]
CLE HiA Bradley, Bobby 1B 6 0 3 2 .249
CLE HiA Chang, Yu-Cheng SS 5 1 1 1 .272 HR (9)
CLE HiA Krieger, Tyler DH 4 1 1 0 .250 3B (1) [first day in Lynchburg]
CLE HiA Mathias, Mark 2B 5 1 2 1 .249
CLE LoA Castro, Willi SS 5 0 1 1 .269
CLE MAJ Naquin, Tyler CF 4 1 2 1 .328 2 2B (7) [never hit this well in the minors]
CLE SS Wakamatsu, Luke SS 5 0 1 0 .250

Mejia didn't play his first day in High A. Daniel Salters 2015 draft pick first game in Akron, two hits.
Luigi Rodriguez homered, doubled and singled first day of his demotion back to Lynchburg

CLE AA Morimando, Shawn 6 3 2 2 3 5 3.09 W (10-3)
CLE AAA Armstrong, Shawn 1 0 0 0 1 1 2.25 Sv (4) [rarely gets through an inning without a walk]
CLE HiA Sheffield, Justus 5.2 6 2 2 2 7 4.00 W (5-4) [doing OK; one of the youngest starters in the league]

Was reading on Twitter a writer said he talked to a scout last year that said he viewed Greg Allen as a 4th OF'er in majors. Said he just talked to the same scout and now he views Allen as an every day CF'er. Said not only what you see on stat sheet offensively but also plays great D. Said he's a great athlete with really good arm.

I guess it's time to give up on Mike Papi.. Too bad too, a lot of great cheering potential there with his name. He hits a homer and you get to scream, "Who's your Papi!?!". Sorry I'm going to miss that.

Papi has been terrible but too early to completely give up on him. Indians moved him to AA despite lackluster numbers in Lynchburg.
I cannot understand why they don't promote Allen to Akron unless they don't know where they'd play him since Zimmer is in center and Frazier in right. Allen routinely gets great marks for his defense. OF with Brantley in left, Allen in center and Frazier in right would be great defensively. Zimmer is supposed to very good defender too, steals nearly as often as Allen [although his % is lower] and also hits plenty of doubles and homers. Since Zimmer can't hit lefties, maybe the two of them would make a great platoon? [Allen a switch hitter has done better vs. RH but not that much]

Named to US team in Futures Game:

Clint Frazier, of
Indians (Double-A Arkon)
Born: Sept. 6, 1994. Ht.: 5-11. Wt.: 185. B-T: R-R
Career Transactions: Selected by Indians in first round (fifth overall) of 2013 draft.
Background: Like fellow Georgia prep outfielder Byron Buxton, there was some buzz for Frazier to be the top pick in 2013 thanks to his bat speed and all-around athleticism.
What to Watch For: The Indians worked to quiet Frazier’s hands at the plate to cut down on his strikeouts and it hasn’t cost him any power. Frazier’s more likely a corner outfielder now with Bradley Zimmer the superior defender.

Future Game Bio for Mejia

Francisco Mejia, c
Born: Oct, 27, 1995. Ht.: 5-10. Wt.: 175. B-T:: S-R.
Career Transactions: Signed as international free agent by Indians, July 2, 2012.

Background: Signed in 2012, Mejia repeated the low Class A Midwest League this year and has responded with spectacular results. He’s among the leaders in nearly every offensive category.
What to Watch For: Not only has Mejia taken a step forth as a hitter, but he has also caught 43 percent of runners trying to steal and is developing into a well-rounded prospect.

Catchers are prize commodities. Maybe I'd better put Mejia on my very short don't trade list.

Yandy with 2 more hits. Gonzalez scored the only run, and Plutko did the rest.

.

A piece of advice Adam Plutko got from Double-A Akron manager Dave Wallace has stuck with him, and now he's succeeding at Triple-A Columbus with it.

"He told me to treat your current level like the big leagues because right now, it is," Plutko said. "So I'm just trying to be as professional as I possibly can here. Everybody treats it like a job, but it's the best job. I just want to do my best to help my team win every time I'm out there."

Cleveland's No. 14 prospect did that Tuesday, yielding three hits and one walk while striking out five over seven innings in Triple-A Columbus' 1-0 shutout of Lehigh Valley at Coca-Cola Park. It marked Plutko's third start in the International League after getting promoted on June 16.

"Early on, I thought my command with my fastball was a little erratic," he said. "But I stayed with that and got my curveball going early. The slow and fast speeds kept their hitters off balance as the game went on."

The 24-year-old right-hander gave up a walk to top Phillies prospect J.P. Crawford in the first inning and a single to Cam Perkins in the second, but didn't allow another runner to reach base until the fifth.

Brock Stassi led off that frame with a single, but was thrown out trying to stretch that into a double by right fielder Collin Cowgill. The former big leaguer recorded the next two outs as well.

"CC made that entire inning by himself," Plutko said. "He did a [heck] of a job in right and played great defense all night, making all the plays. You've got to tip your cap to someone like that out there."

While UCLA product was dealing, however, IronPigs starter James Russell was just as good, matching zeros with the 2013 11th-rounder before surrendering the lone run of the game -- unearned -- in the sixth on an RBI single by Jesus Aguilar.

"He pitched a great game, but I didn't know much about him," Plutko said. "I know I'm in Triple-A and there are a lot of guys who were in the big leagues, but unless he picks up a bat, I don't have to worry too much about him. My focus was on getting the hitters out and they tested every bit of bit me tonight."

No. 23 Phillies prospect Darnell Sweeney doubled off him in the sixth, but was left stranded. Plutko (2-1) exited after throwing 62 of 98 pitches for strikes and lowering his Triple-A ERA to 1.93 over 18 2/3 innings. He posted a 3-3 record with a 3.27 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP over 71 2/3 innings with the RubberDucks prior to his third midseason promotion in as many Minor League seasons.

"It's a little different because you're coming into a team that's well-established already," he said. "All the roles are kind of locked up and you're the guy coming in and changing things up. So I'm just trying to keep my head down, work for my team as best as I can and learn from the guys here, some of whom have a lot of big league experience. Adam Moore, for example, caught Felix Hernandez during his Cy Young season [2010], and now he's catching me. I'm just trying to pick up as much as I can from the guys here."

Josh Martin allowed a hit in the eighth before Ben Heller closed out the ninth for his fourth save of the season.

No. 13 Indians prospect Yandy Diaz led all hitters with two hits and No. 11 Erik Gonzalez scored once.

Based on his mannerisms and his poise on the mound, it would be easy to mistake Triston McKenzie for a wily veteran.
In reality, McKenzie is the youngest player on the Scrappers’ roster.

On Tuesday night, a Scrappers team desperate for a win turned to their 18-year-old righty, who delivered like a pro.
Backed by McKenzie’s strong outing, the Scrappers defeated Auburn 9-5 in front of 2,370 fans at Eastwood Field.

McKenzie’s only mistake of the night came in the second inning when he surrendered a leadoff home run to Doubledays designated hitter Tres Berrera. McKenzie worked six innings, giving up two hits while recording eight strikeouts.

The right-hander, selected out of high school in the first round of the 2015 draft, has now started three games for the Scrappers. McKenzie has worked 16 2/3 innings, giving up just one earned run. He has 19 strikeouts while issuing just two walks.

“Every day I go out there and compete, the outcome is what happens,” McKenzie said. “I don’t really focus on the outcome. I focus on doing the best I can. Whether that means giving up no runs or giving up five runs with my team hitting behind me, whatever I can do.”

McKenzie threw 65 pitches, 51 for strikes.

“I feel like I’ve been commanding the zone well, getting strikes early in the count,” McKenzie said. “I don’t mind letting hitters hit the ball and letting my defense do its job.”

The Scrappers helped make a winner out of McKenzie with a three-run fifth. Silento Sayles was hit by a pitch to start the frame, then advanced to second when Gabriel Mejia reached on an error. Singles by Erlin Cerda and Luke Wakamatsu each scored a run, then Jodd Carter gave the Scrappers a 3-1 lead with a sacrifice fly.

The Scrappers added four runs in the sixth thanks to the wildness of Doubledays reliever Maximo Valerio, who issued three straight walks to start the inning. Nick Conner replaced Valerio and got back-to-back strikeouts, but a wild pitch, another walk and a pair of singles plated four runs.

Auburn scored four runs in the top of the seventh to cut its deficit to 7-5, but the Scrappers tacked on two runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning. Carter collected three RBIs, while Wakamatsu knocked out three base hits.

Scrappers manager Edwin Rodriguez noted that McKenzie’s performance was typical of all three of his starts this year.

“He’s been doing this all three outings,” Rodriguez said. “He’s got a very good arm, he’s very aggressive, he goes after the hitters. Everything is going for him. He is doing everything right. Triston is very confident, and he works at his game. He has earned what he has done so far.”

When asked what advice he gave McKenzie prior to the game, Rodriguez laughed, noting that there are times when silence is golden.

“I don’t say anything, I don’t want to mess it up,” Rodriguez said. “If you try to improve on what he has done, you’re going to mess it up. So I just let him be.”

The Scrappers and Doubledays continue their three-game series tonight at 7:05.

BA highlights from Tuesday:

Adam Plutko, rhp, Indians. The former UCLA ace had struggled with command in his first two Triple-A starts but ironed that out Tuesday. Plutko blanked Lehigh Valley (Phillies) on three hits over seven innings, walking just one and striking out five in a 1-0 win. Plutko doesn’t have the overpowering stuff possessed by former Bruins teammates Trevor Bauer and Gerrit Cole, but he succeeds with plus control and a high baseball IQ. His fastball is average, but plays up because he can spot it to both sides.

And:

CLE AA Papi, Mike RF 3 0 1 2 .195 2B (6), BB (13) [closing in on Mendoza line]
CLE AA Rodriguez, Nellie 1B 3 1 2 0 .254 BB (40)
CLE AAA Diaz, Yandy DH 4 0 2 0 .308 [ought to let him play 3rd sometimes]
CLE HiA Allen, Greg CF 5 1 2 1 .295 [keeps trucking]
CLE HiA Krieger, Tyler 2B 4 0 2 0 .375 2B (1)
CLE HiA Mathias, Mark 3B 4 1 1 2 .249 2B (17) [first time at the hot corner]
CLE SS Wakamatsu, Luke SS 5 0 3 2 .289 [yet another SS who can hit]
CLE AAA Plutko, Adam 7 3 0 0 1 5 1.93 W (2-1) [first 2 AAA starts his control was abnormally off, not this time]
CLE SS McKenzie, Triston 6 2 1 1 0 8 0.54 W (1-1) [first run allowed; 2 bb's in 3 starts]

Greg Allen has reached base in 17 straight games now. And has hit .417 over that stretch.

Mike Clevinger, Shawn Armstrong, and Erik Gonzalez have all been named to AAA all star game. Clippers manager tabbed to manage the IL team too.

Clevinger should be a good major league starter. His debut with the Tribe should help him when he's back up again.
Armstrong walks too many, or he'd be in the Indians bullpen now.
Gonzalez is just fine, but we don't need him. He is tradable depth.

Greg Allen 3-4 with a triple and a SB today. And a walk too. Promote him already.

Clevinger with 6 innings of 1 run ball tonight. 6 K.

Juan Hillman with 4 more shutout innings. Did allow 5 hits and walks.

Kaminsky with a good outing today. He's getting better and better.

Interesting, one of the catchers we just drafted, Michael Tinsley, got start in LF tonight.

And then there's this ...

Indians Prospective
Hillcats (C) Francisco Mejia extends his hitting streak to 25 games

42-97 22R 6(2B) 1(3B) 6HR 21RBI 5BB 1SB .433 AVG .466 OBP #Indians