As an aside, sometime later this month I will begin a daily countdown of Indians prospects ranking them from #100 to #1 for 2009. Each day we'll countdown to the next prospect and his new and updated scouting report will be posted until #1 is unveiled the first week of March. The new prospect book will be available well before that, so if you want the full 100 before March you'll have to get the book (selling ploy!). I'm hoping to have scouting reports for up to 125-150 players in the book this year, so we will see! More details on the book later, but it promises to be bigger and better than last year's inaugural effort!
Time for another Saturday rundown to recap all the happenings in the system from this past week as well as a few news items:
The Indians have officially committed to Miller in the bullpen next year, and that is where he will pitch from the outset of spring training. While he will be a longshot to win a job in Cleveland when camp breaks, it is likely he will be in Cleveland at some point next year provided he is healthy. This is good news though, and It is about time the Indians made this move which was long overdue. Miller has closing stuff, and is someone who could fill that role next year in Cleveland by season's end.
After seeing the success that the Cubs had with Kerry Wood in converting the oft-injured starter into a closer, the Indians obviously took notice and probably see Miller in much the same vein as Wood from a talent and medical perspective. Down the road Miller could move back to the rotation, but right now he impacts the Cleveland Indians the best in 2009 pitching out of the bullpen. This is going to be one of the top storylines to follow next spring and during the season. Just stay healthy Adam.
It can be tough for any American or foreign player who plays out in Venezuela or the Dominican Republic, and in LaPorta's case a firsthand report from out there said that his slow start is partly the result of the umpires who keep expanding the zone on him. So, LaPorta has had a tough time with the large strike zone.
That said, while the concern is noted, it is way too early to go off the deep end and ledge on LaPorta's performance until things settle down for him and he has a chance to play in a regular environment for an extended period of time. Remember, upon being acquired he played a handful of games in Akron, then a week later went to New York for the Futures Game, then went home to Port Charlotte, Florida for a week to spend time with his family after the passing of a family member, then he came back to Akron for ten days, then he went to Beijing for a month and played for Team USA, then he returned to Akron for about two weeks, and then he went home for a little bit between the end of Akron's season and the start of winter ball, and now is in the Dominican Republic. All this in about four months.
Bottom line, this is LaPorta's first full season and the level of competition he has played at in the Olympics and now Venezuela is about as good as it gets next to the major leagues. No doubt he is getting challenged, and when you combine that with all everywhere he has been and everything he has been a part of these past four months, some slack should be given. The performance to date is surely noted, but let's see what he does next season after he comes back in with the batteries recharged and sticking in one spot (Columbus) for what should be most of the first half of the season and then start to grade him out.
Farm Director Ross Atkins approached him about the move to the outfield just before Instructional League started back in September, and McBride was fired up for the opportunity. It is likely that McBride still catches next year, but we agreed that in any case he could see some time in the outfield at some point next year whether just on off days from catching or on a more consistent basis if the move is made to take him out from behind the plate permanently.
Also, McBride is locked in as a guest on an upcoming edition of Smoke Signals. No date has been determined, but he should be on anytime between the end of November and early January.
So, Paul and I spent the better part of 25 minutes from 9:30-9:55 literally calling frantically to BTR to log in, and I was on-line with their tech staff trying to resolve the issue. Eventually, Paul got in and we started the show 25 minutes late. Big, big props to Huff for continuing to try to call in as he had problems connecting too, and after like his 50th try, much to Paul's surprise, Huff got on the air which made for a very funny moment for the two! (you have to listen to the podcast to understand) Anyway, after I feverishly dialed in with my house phone in one hand and my cell phone in the other hand and continually hit redial, I eventually got into the show about 5 minutes later on like the 100th try and things settled down and went smoothly from there.
Of course, little does Huff know that this was all a ploy by Paul and I to put him on the spot and see how he deals with pressure and a little adversity when things don't go right (LOL). Seriously though, even though he could have been flustered by the whole thing and said the hell with it, he remained cool and collected and was determined to get on the show. This is but a mere example of why he is so highly thought of by the Indians and around baseball and why he has so much success on the mound. Thanks again Dave, and next time we promise it will be much better (we hope).
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Weekend Update: Miller To The Bullpen And More
Everything on this site is free, but for those interested in making any monetary contributions to help support the stability and growth of this site please click on the "Donate" button below.
0 comments:
Post a Comment