Kipnis Is A "Rising Star"

Photo Credit: Tony Lastoria

Cleveland Indians second base prospect Jason Kipnis got some much needed good news this week as on Tuesday he was named to the Rising Stars Game out in the Arizona Fall League (AFL). The game is this Saturday at 9:00 p.m. EST and will be shown live on MLB Network and MLB.com.

Kipnis, 23, will be playing in a game that will feature a plethora of future major league talent, the most you will see in any minor league game aside from the Futures Game played over All Star weekend in July. Over half the players in the Rising Stars game last year played in the big leagues at some point in 2010, a group of players which includes the likes of Steven Strasburg, Buster Posey, and Mike Leake.

The news hopefully will lift the spirits of Kipnis who is going through a rough patch at the plate so far in the AFL. Widely considered the future heir to the throne at second base in Cleveland, he is only hitting .184/.231/.469 in 12 games with the Peoria Javelinas. Small sample size be damned and all, but that is a batting line which would make Luis Valbuena look like Albert Pujols.

On the positive side, when Kipnis has connected he has made the most of it with seven of his nine hits going for extra bases. He has also only struck out just six times in 49 at bats, and has been productive still with three home runs and 12 RBI. In addition to all of that he continues to play a solid second base in the field as he continues his conversion to the infield from the outfield.

With such a poor stat line to date, it is obvious that Kipnis made the Rising Stars Game based on reputation as a highly regarded second base prospect and not on his actual performance. But that’s okay, as 12 games don’t make for anything to draw any conclusions from, and he is being rewarded for an impressive campaign in 2010 where in 133 combined games at High-A Kinston and Double-A Akron he hit a combined .307 with 16 HR, 74 RBI and .878 OPS.

Even through the struggles, Kipnis is happy to be back out in Arizona where he spent the better part of two years at Arizona State from 2008-2009.

“While Chicago is home, I still know a lot of people out here," Kipnis said in a recent interview. "You can't complain too much about the Arizona weather unless you keep getting in games at 12:30 like we do. I love the area and I am happy to be back here, though obviously not with the goal to be in this league [but in the big leagues]."

Kipnis arrived in Arizona about five days before the start of the AFL season to workout with his team before the short five week season started. He was assigned by the Indians to the prestigious league as a priority player, and while Dustin Ackley of the Seattle Mariners is the priority second baseman on the team, Kipnis gets priority to be a regular in the lineup at second base, designated hitter, and even third base so he can get the required playing time to play four to five games a week.

While out in the AFL, Kipnis is not working on too much as instead of working on any specific areas of his game he just wants to perform and show what he can do against some of the best competition in the minors.

"It is tough as it's a mix," Kipnis said. "I want to get stuff done and work on things, but at the same time I want to just kind of play it out to see where I stand against this kind of competition just to see how far I have come along. It is still the offseason so I gotta get work done, and if there are holes I am going to try and fill them where I can and get stuff done at the same time."

Kipnis is actually doing a blog for MLB.com to relay his experiences in the AFL. It is something he is not paid to do, but something he felt could help him get some extra exposure and have some fun doing it at the same time. Unfortunately, his comments have mostly had to center around his struggles at the plate, so things have not been too much "fun" for him so far.

Still, Kipnis' recent struggles in just a dozen AFL games should not be too alarming. He's hit into some pretty loud outs and has been making hard contact. In a way, his cold start may just be Murphy's Law working against him where things are evening out after his ridiculously hot performance in the playoffs for Triple-A Columbus in September where he hit .455/.500/1.045 in five postseason games.

Said Kipnis in a recent blog post, "My dad always joked with me, 'It's better to be lucky than to be good. If you're good, things can go wrong. If you're lucky, everything's goin' your way." A funny proverb back then, but you will have to excuse me if I've stopped laughing at it and started realizing the truth in its meaning. ... I've swung at good pitches to hit, and I've hit a lot of balls hard so far, yet I have nothing to show for it."

After being thrown right into the middle of an intense playoff run in Columbus and responding by performing well, Kipnis would do anything if he could rekindle some of the magic from his success in his Triple-A debut and use it to get his bat going in the AFL.

"As soon as I know I will let you know," laughed Kipnis about his recreating the success he had in Columbus in the playoffs. "It was a great experience and a confidence booster that I can make it up to Triple-A and I know that since I have been there before in tougher situations that I can play there. That's the most I took from it and it was great to help them win their championship too. It is just something I will have to put on the backburner for now, but remember that I can do it and not lose the faith."

Kipnis was actually at home enjoying some down time before the start of the AFL season when he got a call from Indians Farm Director Ross Atkins asking if he could be ready to play and join the Columbus team for their final round playoff series.

"I was home for a week already by then," recalled Kipnis. "It was the first NFL Sunday and I was on the couch watching football and got a call from Ross Atkins saying they might need me up in Columbus. He asked me if I was available and I said absolutely. I hopped on the next flight the next morning and got out there."

The most memorable game of Kipnis’ short pro career came in the International League championship clincher when he hit for the cycle. In the very next game out in Oklahoma City for the Triple-A Championship against Tacoma of the Pacific Coast League he came very close to back to back cycles as he missed it by a single.

"I think if the guy was holding the runner on and it was a closer game it would have gotten through," Kipnis said about a groundball which just missed going into right field for a single. "I say that nitpicking as I am not mad at all as we got the win and had a great game and got to contribute to the team. It was something really cool to do and was my first cycle, well, first one actually where there was a box score for it. So to get two in a row would have been great. It was cool and an exciting time for me and I am just thrilled it happened."

Even with the small hiccup so far in the AFL, the 2010 season has been a memorable one for Kipnis where he had produced at the three highest levels in the minors. For his efforts the Cleveland Indians named him the recipient of the organization’s Lou Boudreau Award which is given to the top hitter in the organization.

Kipnis still has time to right the ship in the AFL and finish strong which could help build some momentum and serve as a springboard into a big 2011 for him. He’s on the cusp of getting a big league opportunity, and 2011 could be the year he makes his major league debut and begins a very long, productive career.

"Once the AFL is over, I will probably go home for December and start working out," Kipnis said. "But once January and February come around I might be back in Arizona going at it again already. I don't want to short myself with anything, so I want to get going again.”

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI.  His latest book the 2010 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is also available for purchase on his site for a special year end closeout sale of $10.00 (including shipping and handling).

Posted in: Jason Kipnis