Onto the Inbox...
Phil wrote: Which names you are hearing for the PTBNL from the Yanks? I know we won't be getting Montero as well as probably McAllister or Nova. So that makes the list a little shorter.
Well, turns out in the end it was right-handed pitcher Zach McAllister (good call by the way, you should be happy). McAllister is an interesting arm whose stock has dropped a little this year after an inconsistent season pitching for the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate Scranton/Wilkes-Barre going 8-10 with a 5.09 ERA in 24 starts (132.2 IP, 165 H, 38 BB, 88 K). Indians GM Mark Shapiro was in Columbus the last week since Scranton/Wilkes-Barre had been playing Columbus from Tuesday through Friday and caught his start against Columbus on Tuesday (5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R/ER, 2 BB, 4K). He’s a command/control specialist with a two-seam fastball that sits 87-91 MPH though has touched as high as 93 MPH. He complements the fastball with a slider, curveball, and changeup, with the slider being his best pitch and an above average offering. He projects as back of the rotation arm, and in a lot of ways is similar to Josh Tomlin with his approach and stuff.
McAllister, 22, looks like yet more pitching inventory the Indians are adding to their roster. With so much uncertainty with the rotation for next year, they are stock piling arms in what looks like will be a year long evaluation process to fill two to three slots in the rotation. The only certainties for next year are Fausto Carmona and Mitch Talbot, and really how much of a certainty are those guys given Carmona’s rocky up-and-down career and this being Talbot’s first year pitching in the big leagues?
With McAllister in tow, along with right-hander Corey Kluber who they obtained in the Jake Westbrook deal, they appear to have two more backend rotation options at their disposal in addition to the likes of David Huff, Jeanmar Gomez, Justin Masterson, Josh Tomlin, Carlos Carrasco, Hector Rondon, Alex White and others who will be options next year as well.
Stephen P. wrote: What in the world happened with Wes Hodges??? He went from top prospect at 3rd, to a position change to 1B. Then a he had a great spring and was doing OK in Columbus. Next thing he gets designated for assignment and dropped off the 40 man, picked up by Colorado, then cut again and back to the Tribe in Columbus. Has he fallen that far off the radar with the Tribe (and other organizations) that they consider him another Ryan Mulhern?
Yes, unfortunately for Hodges he is now pretty much viewed as a 4A player now. He will play in the Major Leagues someday, but it looks like it will be as a bit player and a constant shuttle from the big to Triple-A. When he was initially drafted by the Indians in the 2nd round in 2006 out of Georgia Teach he came highly regarded with his bat and was a solid defender, but injuries have taken their toll and he never was able to develop and improve enough to be viewed as at least an average Major League defender. In addition to that, while he has been solid offensively, his bat has never really progressed as well.
As a third baseman Hodge’s bat would have been just fine, but now that he has been moved to first base it is below average. You don’t see many first baseman with a .732 OPS like he has this year or .704 like he had last year, both numbers at the Triple-A level. His value was at third base, and now at first base he is swallowed up by a lack of big offense at a position which demands it. He just doesn't have an interesting enough bat at first base to be nothing more than a marginal part time player. This is why other teams passed on him and he had the adventures on the waiver wire. The Indians still value him, and like the depth he provides for them at a position of need at first base, which is why they claimed him back when the Rockies put him on the waiver wire. At this point, he is good depth to keep around, and I guess you never know about a guy what may happen down the road...but his prospect star has faded immensely.
Nate W. wrote: What do you make of the recent major league success of Jeanmar Gomez? I remember on many occasions you just weren't that impressed with his stuff, but he's consistently 91-94 MPH on his fastball with a lot of movement. He seems like he could develop into a pretty productive BOR or even MOR guy if he ever gets a consistent breaking ball.
Hey Nate, yeah, gotta say I am pleasantly surprised with Gomez so far. He is pitching well beyond what was expected of him, and definitely for me. Kudos for an outstanding job by him so far. One caveat though is it is only a handful of starts, and his true test will come once the league adjusts to him and how he handles that. He is still very young, and really has a lot more ceiling, so at this point the sky is the limit with him. But just like I don’t hold right-handed pitcher Carlos Carrasco’s poor performance last year in September against him, I also don’t take too much stock in a handful of good starts. Encouraging, yes, and what you want to see, but we need more games and data points to get a true read on Gomez and a lot of these other guys.
It is funny though how with the Latin Trifecta that included Gomez, right-handed pitcher Hector Rondon, and left-handed pitcher Kelvin De la Cruz, that the one guy I was least excited ended up making the big leagues first and is impressing! Good for him, and I am happy to be wrong. I never felt he was not good, I just felt that there were other better pitching prospects out there in the system and really those other guys still are better prospects. The difference is he has stayed healthy while guys like Rondon, De La Cruz and others have not. When opportunity knocks, sometimes players just answer the door!
Phil wrote: With Barret Loux being granted free agency on Sept 1 after not signing with the D-Backs due to the bone chips in his elbow, any chance the Indians would be in the mix for him?
From what I understand, the Indians have moderate interest in Loux. They like other teams are kicking the tires on him in gathering lots of medical information on him. Before anyone offers him a contract, it really comes down to what an organization’s people think of the medical information that is available for review. Teams may also require a second physical or additional tests, something I don’t believe he has to do, but considering his situation where he has little leverage, he just may have to so teams can get a better idea what they are dealing with in his elbow. The Indians actually had him rated as a second round talent at best going into the draft, but if they believe the risk is worth it I would not be surprised if the Indians end up being in the mix to sign him.
Dave wrote: Tony, Looking at today's Lake County box score, I was wondering whatever happened with the Greg Folgia to catcher experiment? Seems like it was abandoned pretty quickly?
Folgia is just another in a long line of guys (Jerad Head, Nate Recknagel, Adam Davis etc) in the last few years who go to Instructs or Spring Training to catch and then don't end up playing there. A lot of times it is just experimental purposes for these guys, and to also create some versatility for down the road. The deciding factor, though, is playing time at the position has to be available. Back in 2005 when Chris Gimenez made the switch to catcher there was time available to play him there in Lake County. The same was not the case this year in Lake County as the Indians had both Roberto Perez and Chun Chen open the season there, and both of those guys are priority catching prospects in the system. As a result, Folgia has not caught this year, but from what I understand he did well in Instructional League last year and showed some athleticism and a howitzer for an arm, so it is something that could be revisited in the future.
Raul wrote: Why don't the Indians put Jose Constanza in the 40 man roster? He's leading the league in stolen bases and is hitting over .300.
Constanza is in an unfortunate situation where the Indians just have so many outfield options as they already have center fielders Grady Sizemore, Michael Brantley, Ezequiel Carrera, and Trevor Crowe on the 40-man roster. That's a lot as it is on a 40-man where space is so limited. I think he has opened more eyes this year, and considering how well he has played I think he has created some value where the Indians can’t let him just walk away as a minor league free agent and instead end up putting him on the 40-man roster this offseason. I personally I would rather have him on the roster than Carrera or Crowe, so we will see. In fact, I would not be surprised to see Crowe traded or given the wazoo this offseason and his spot going to Constanza’s. Crowe has had almost an entire year in Cleveland, and has underwhelmed both offensively and especially defensively.
Erik J. wrote: In your opinion as of right now who would be the top 5 prospects in the system heading into the 2011 season.
This is a process that takes a lot of time and research with reviewing lots of subjective and objective information, so I am not one of those people who just throw out off the cuff rankings. I do think though, without much thought or analysis the top five guys in the system (in no particular order) would be third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall, second baseman Jason Kipnis, right-handed pitcher Jason Knapp, outfielder Nick Weglarz, and right-handed pitcher Alex White. Do note though, this list is fluid until the end of the fall/winter leagues, and there are a handful of other guys who could still factor in there.
Joel K. wrote: Just wondering has there been any news on international signings?
There is nothing really to report at this time on the International front for the Indians. They have keep a tight lip these days and don’t talk much about their International dealings until the signing period is over, mostly so as to not affect any signings that are still being worked on. That said, they have made it a point to mention they don’t really just go by the signing period from July 2 to August 31, as they actually sign guys all year. This is actually true as they actually sign more guys outside of the International Signing Period than during it. Like last September, I hope to have a piece on their International process and some of their picks this year in a piece sometime in September.
Stephen P. wrote: Where in the world is Stephen Head?
Head was released in spring training. After all the injuries and inconsistent performance, the Indians ultimately decided to move on. Had there been a spot at first base or in the outfield for him they may have kept him, but first base and outfield was bursting at the seams with options at the start of the season. He signed on with an independent team, I believe in the Golden Baseball League if I am not mistaken, and is continuing his dream of eventually making the Major Leagues.
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5 comments:
Seems like McCallister is a lot like Rondon and Gomez, who dominated at AA but struggled in their first year of AAA, all three at a young age for their level. Definitely he is young enough to recover next year and regain his former top prospect status. Stuffwise, though, it appears McCallister is more of a control pitcher like Talbot or Tomlin and less of a power pitcher than Rondon or Gomez. Fair assessment?
Are Gomez and Rondon really considered power pitchers?
I think that Rondon is more so than Gomez. Though I don't know if either really is.
Maybe a better way to say it is that McCallister, from what I've read, doesn't appear to be a power pitcher but more of a control pitcher. He is like Gomez and Rondon in that they dominated AA but have had it rougher in AAA. McCallister, like Rondon and Gomez, is young and can readjust next year, much like Carrasco has done throughout this year. Whatever the case, it seems like a very fair return for Kearns.
Yeah, Rondon is the most true power pitcher, relying on more consistent mid-to-upper 90s FB whereas Gomez is more consistently low 90s and "pitches" more. I see where LBS is going comparing age of McAllister to Rondon/Gomez with first year in AAA and McAllister's stuff with Tomlin. Good kid, I interviewed him yesterday.
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