“Stock Watch” is a weekly feature covering the Indians prospects that may be seeing their status change within the system as a result of their recent play.
↑ Luis Valbuena, 2B Columbus Clippers
The 23-year old Clippers second baseman has gotten off to a very strong start. Valbuena has displayed an advanced approach through his first 11 games. His .468 on base percentage (.514 against righties) trails only Michael Aubrey (.500) for team best. Valbuena is punishing right-handed pitching. He’s currently carrying a .370 average with a 1.070 OPS against them. While his numbers against southpaws are not nearly as impressive (.273, .697 OPS) it comes with a small sample size (11 AB’s). After hitting .288 against lefties last year in the minors, the Indians have no cause for concern. If Valbuena continues his strong play he may just be a big league injury away from getting regular playing time with the Tribe.
↓ Carlos Rivero, SS Akron Aeros
The big Akron shortstop has always been streaky at the plate. The start of his '09 season has been just more of the same. Through 37 at-bats, Rivero is hitting just .216 with one extra base hit (a double on Sunday). While he is still very young (turns 21 in May) it’s important that Rivero has a more balanced 2009 than 2008 where he batted .238 in April, .310 in May and .220 in June and July. Rivero is one of the Indians top prospects and his bat will have to carry him to the bigs. Expect Rivero to play in Akron all summer as the Indians aren’t known for fast tracking prospects.
↑ Chuck Lofgren, SP Akron Aeros
Remember him? Before the start of last season Lofgren was considered by many to be the second best prospect in the entire Indians system. Things changed quickly after Lofgren struggled mightily in Akron and finished with a 5.99 ERA in 15 starts and 13 relief appearances. The lefty has righted himself this season. In his first two starts, Lofgren has allowed only two runs in his 10 total innings of work. Opposing batters are hitting .167 against him. Lofgren is still only 23-years old and the Indians could get rewarded for being patient with the hurler. The dominant upside appears to still be there and a strong 2009 will put Lofgren back on the prospect map.
↑ Matt McBride, 1B Kinston Indians
At one time many thought McBride would be the Indians catcher of the future. Injuries and better system depth has moved McBride into the outfield and first base. After a frustrating 2008 season, McBride has turned things around. Through 11 games McBride is hitting .390 with 8 doubles, 2 HR’s and 10 RBI. His early OPS of 1.200 is beyond outstanding. This is an important year for McBride, he turns 24 in May and is old for single-A. McBride will have to carry this success to Akron and beyond if he wants to re-establish himself as a legitimate prospect.
↑ Luis Valbuena, 2B Columbus Clippers
The 23-year old Clippers second baseman has gotten off to a very strong start. Valbuena has displayed an advanced approach through his first 11 games. His .468 on base percentage (.514 against righties) trails only Michael Aubrey (.500) for team best. Valbuena is punishing right-handed pitching. He’s currently carrying a .370 average with a 1.070 OPS against them. While his numbers against southpaws are not nearly as impressive (.273, .697 OPS) it comes with a small sample size (11 AB’s). After hitting .288 against lefties last year in the minors, the Indians have no cause for concern. If Valbuena continues his strong play he may just be a big league injury away from getting regular playing time with the Tribe.
↓ Carlos Rivero, SS Akron Aeros
The big Akron shortstop has always been streaky at the plate. The start of his '09 season has been just more of the same. Through 37 at-bats, Rivero is hitting just .216 with one extra base hit (a double on Sunday). While he is still very young (turns 21 in May) it’s important that Rivero has a more balanced 2009 than 2008 where he batted .238 in April, .310 in May and .220 in June and July. Rivero is one of the Indians top prospects and his bat will have to carry him to the bigs. Expect Rivero to play in Akron all summer as the Indians aren’t known for fast tracking prospects.
↑ Chuck Lofgren, SP Akron Aeros
Remember him? Before the start of last season Lofgren was considered by many to be the second best prospect in the entire Indians system. Things changed quickly after Lofgren struggled mightily in Akron and finished with a 5.99 ERA in 15 starts and 13 relief appearances. The lefty has righted himself this season. In his first two starts, Lofgren has allowed only two runs in his 10 total innings of work. Opposing batters are hitting .167 against him. Lofgren is still only 23-years old and the Indians could get rewarded for being patient with the hurler. The dominant upside appears to still be there and a strong 2009 will put Lofgren back on the prospect map.
↑ Matt McBride, 1B Kinston Indians
At one time many thought McBride would be the Indians catcher of the future. Injuries and better system depth has moved McBride into the outfield and first base. After a frustrating 2008 season, McBride has turned things around. Through 11 games McBride is hitting .390 with 8 doubles, 2 HR’s and 10 RBI. His early OPS of 1.200 is beyond outstanding. This is an important year for McBride, he turns 24 in May and is old for single-A. McBride will have to carry this success to Akron and beyond if he wants to re-establish himself as a legitimate prospect.
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4 comments:
Please Sweet Jesus tell me that Lofgren has turned the corner!
Good to see Valbuena kickin butt, another raping of the Seattle system by Shapiro.
Was going to mention Matt Brown but I see the Carolina League has been watching too.
Hi, Tony. I saw the game in Bowie on Sunday, and while Lofgren pitched well, I noted that his fastball was sitting at 83-85, topping out at 87. Not to be a Debbie Downer, but this is not the same guy who dominated in the Carolina League several years ago.
As for Rivero, yeah, he really is a big guy for a shortstop. He seems to be carrying himself with more confidence than I saw last year. --Ken from Alexandria
It certainly is a positive so far with Lofgren, granted just two starts. I have not seen the radar readings from the game last Sunday, but he was consistently at 87-91 MPH all spring. If there is a drop in velocity, methinks they are having him take some of the velocity off his pitches so he can re-learn to better command them. They do this a lot with guys. I'll know more next week when I get to Akron and talk to Niebla about it.
Premature assessment of Rivero. He is only 20 and facing a jump to AA as one of the youngest in the league. He has a history of slow starts at new levels. This should not be a surprise when comparing him to players much older. Poor evaluation.
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