Cleveland Sports Forum

Going a bit overboard Ken, but there is certainly no disputing that the Indians don't have a dire need for a LH hitting OF without power.

No questions answered regarding Scrappers in the first hour of the chat. But the reporter keeps saying that this is a deep pool of prospects and notes lots of talented players who just missed. So he must think that Naquin is pretty decent to fit on the list at all.

And here is my very negative question(Ken, you should be proud of me) with a positive answer:

Elliot (Youngstown OH): Have the Indians managed to whiff on another 1st round pick? Tyler Naquin's offensive stats were remarkably underwhelming. Do we have a proud successor to Trevor Crowe and Beau Mills in the making?


Aaron Fitt: I would strongly advise against writing off a first-round pick based on 36 games in the NY-P, at the end of a long season that began in February for him. Not all players adjust to pro ball at the same clip, but I think you'll see a strong year from Naquin in 2013 -- I think he is a line-drive machine with one of the best arms in the minor leagues (though it didn't play that way in his debut, perhaps because of fatigue or lack of opportunity to showcase it). I'm not saying Naquin is a future All-Star necessarily, but he has a chance to be, and I'm certainly not forming any negative judgments based on a short pro debut. If anything, I think his debut was encouraging because he showed he has a real chance to play center field, which was a question mark coming out of Texas A&M because he had played exclusively in right.

Elliot (Youngstown OH): Luis DeJesus was the only Scrapper pitcher who achieved much, but his low K/IP rate suggests he has a very low ceiling. Is there perhaps more there than meets the eye?


Aaron Fitt: Sure, another Mahoning Valley question: De Jesus is a pitchability righty in the Josh Tomlin mold, but without Tomlin's great changeup. He'll work in that 89-90 range, maybe bump 91, and throw strike after strike to both sides of the plate. He lacks a swing-and-miss secondary pitch, but he commands his breaking ball and changeup well. Not a high-upside guy -- somebody who will have to prove himself at every level. But he works hard, and he has a good feel for pitching, so he's got a chance.

Today BA moves up to the Midwest League where we have lots of prospects. It's also a very large league so hard to make the Top 20. Lindor of course will be well placed. Will Jose Ramirez (2B), Luis Rodriguez (CF), Jordan Smith (RF), Bryson Myles (OF) be ranked? Probably not, but hope that q's will be answered about them. I'm going to be tied up so may not be able to get q's in the queue.

3. Francisco Lindor, ss, Lake County Captains
Age: 18 B-T: B-R Ht.: 5-11 Wt.: 175 Drafted: Montverde (Fla.) Academy, 2011 (1st round).
The youngest regular in the MWL, Lindor also was clearly its best defensive shortstop. He has tremendous instincts, enhancing his range to both sides, and the strong, accurate arm to make all the plays. His hands work well and he made just 18 errors in 120 games, an exceptionally low total for an 18-year-old.

"He has unbelievable skills," said Fort Wayne manager Jose Valentin, a big league shortstop for 16 seasons. "It's so impressive how he approaches the game. He plays like he's been in the big leagues for 20 years. He knows how to position himself and he's always in the right spot. It's fun to watch him. He can play in Double-A right now."

Lindor has the tools to contribute offensively, though he'll need to get stronger after wearing down following a .285/.369/.410 first half. He's a switch-hitter who controls the strike zone and has gap power from both sides of the plate. A solid runner, he can steal a few bases.
AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG
490 83 126 24 3 6 42 61 78 27 12 .257 .352 .355

I'll see if BA mentions other Captains players and post any such comments. Looking at the team stats, I note that Bryson Myles had a ground total of One OF assist while making 9 errors. Jordan Smith who played exclusively RF had 6 assists and only 3 errors. Smith added an OPS of 820 to Myles' 734. Myles is supposed to a basestealer and he had 20, but 12 times caught. Smith was 9 of 12.

Not sure Smith is really a prospect, only 35 walks, 9 homers, but he did account for 23 doubles and 7 triples. A little extra (perfectly legal) juice might boost some of those long balls over the fence. Both played this season at age 22 in Low A ball which is not indicative of the team giving much credit to their future. The two of them, Naquin and much younger LuigiRodriguez should constitute the Mudcat outfield in 2013.

Sammy (DC): What can you tell us about Elvis Araujo's arsenal?


Jim Callis: Scouts thought he had better stuff than Felipe Rivero. Araujo still is figuring out his command and didn't have much of a track record of staying healthy before this year, but he has a low-90s fastball and a sweeping breaking ball that's a plus pitch at times. [ERA of 5.00, WHIP 1.496, 20 WP; 6-6 lefty]

No more on our guys. 16 team league and a one hour chat. Doesn't leave much time per player.

Carolina League will be next, in a few days. Only 8 teams; when Chris Kline did the chat for the CL he covered half the players in the league it seemed I will be interested how RRod, Wolters, Aguillar and Urshela are rated.

Here are the Mudcats final stats, offense, defense, pitching.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minor ... d=0f4ec3b7

Captains:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minor ... d=16c1fd1d

Aeros:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minor ... d=19bd5c13

Clippers:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minor ... d=0a82c885

Scrappers:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minor ... d=be1355fa

AZL Indians:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minor ... d=d48868c3

Our talented young IFs at Carolina don't quite get the high marks I though that they might. It's an 8-team league so easy to make the Top 20 but all we scored was Ronny Rodriguez at No. 19:


19. Ronny Rodriguez, ss/2b, Carolina (Indians)
Age: 20 B-T: R-R Ht.: 6-0 Wt.: 170 Signed: Dominican Republic '10.
Rodriguez shared shortstop and second base with Tony Wolters at Carolina, and he has the ability to play either position at higher levels. He has a legitimate 70 arm on the 20-80 scouting scale and plus range. He sometimes forces plays he shouldn't, which led to 28 errors in 80 games at short.

Rodriguez has surprising raw power for his size, and it should translate into more homers as he becomes more disciplined at the plate. For now, he's a free swinger who can get fooled by breaking pitches. He has above-average speed but has yet to grasp the art of basestealing.

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG
454 67 120 20 4 19 66 19 88 7 7 .264 .300 .452

And why are the Indians such a strong major league team now? Because 5 years ago their prospects dominated the Carolina League list: No. 4 Catcher Max Ramirez; No. 5 3B Wes Hodges; No. 10 3B/1B Matt Whitney; No. 13 Josh Rodriguez.

Not Jaypers (Wisconsin): Josh, who were the biggest suprises and disappointments from evaluators and managers in putting this list together?


Josh Leventhal: Managers really loved J.R. Graham and were impressed by his polish as a pitcher. Carlos Sanchez's ability to seemingly play anywhere on the infield also impressed. I think some folks expected a better second full season out of Brandon Jacobs, who still seems pretty raw at the plate and in the outfield. There was talk about a lack of focus from Edward Salcedo.

Frankie (SF CA): Besides power, what else does Jesus Aguilar bring to the table?


Josh Leventhal: Power is definitely his best tool. He's not bad at first base. His range is just average but he's got sure hands and has worked hard at improving his defense.

I have not asked a Bo Greenwell question this year for the first time in 5 years.