Tribe Happenings: Wood Trade Was All About The Cash

Photo Credit: AP

Some news and notes from my Indians notebook…

Wood Deal Now Complete

On July 31st the Indians sent right-handed reliever Kerry Wood to the New York Yankees for cash or a player to be named later. On Thursday the deal was finalized with the Indians receiving two minor leaguers in right-handed pitcher Andrew Shive and infielder Matt Cusick. The Indians also received a little over $3 million in cash from the Yankees in the deal.

The whole purpose of the deal when it was consummated back on July 31st was to dump Wood’s salary, some of which was reallocated to help sign some of their 2010 Draft picks (more on that in a minute). The Indians had very little interest in Wood from other teams up until the July 31st deadline even though they were dangling him for very little compensation other than cash. The two nibbles of interest they received were from the Yankees and Boston Red Sox, but ultimately the Red Sox passed on a deal as they did not want to include as much cash as the Yankees ended up agreeing to in their deal.

As for the players received in the deal? Well, while getting something is better than nothing, the two players they received are no doubt very fringy prospects. Cusick is a tough out as he rarely strikes out and he consistently puts the ball in play; however, he lacks any real speed, pop, or defensive ability. If he is even still in the organization at the end of spring training next year he will likely just be a bench player at Double-A Akron or Triple-A Columbus. Shive turns 25 years old in a few weeks, has pitched no higher than Low-A, and is coming off of Tommy John surgery, so he is about as big a long shot as there can be.

Bottom line, the Indians in the end were able to get a very large chunk of Wood’s pro-rated $10.5 million salary picked up by the Yankees, so they accomplished the only real goal of the trade. The fact they got both cash and two players in this deal should say more about how low of value the two players had to the Yankees. The trade also allowed the Indians to create a roster spot in order to get some looks at some other young bullpen arms the rest of the season, and of course allowed right-handed closer Chris Perez to stay in his role without the distraction of Wood still being around.

Indians Named Best Class of 2010

The days are as dark as they have ever been these days for the Indians, but if you want some shining beacon of light to turn to for any hope you can look at their three most recent drafts from 2008-2010 as a sign that things are moving in the right direction.

This week the publication “Baseball America” tabbed the Indians 2010 draft class as the best in all of baseball. The Indians broke all kinds of team records this year with money spent on the draft as they shelled out a total of $9.4 million in signing bonuses. They signed four players to signing bonuses of $1 million or more and in total signed 15 players to bonuses of $100,000 or more.

The highlights of the draft include left-handed pitcher Drew Pomeranz (1st round) and outfielder LeVon Washington (2nd round), both of whom are projected to be impact talent down the road. In addition to them there are lots of other very interesting players with high ceilings such as shortstop Tony Wolters (3rd round), right-handed pitcher Kyle Blair (4th round), catcher Alex Lavisky (8th round), and many others.

The draft has been the Achilles heel of the Indians for a long time, and is largely the reason why they have been forced to tear down and rebuild the big league team two times because of that lack of talent in house in the late 1990s and mid 2000s. Some of this was due to just bad selections, but a lot of it was the result of some very bad luck with injuries to so many high round picks over the years.

But when you add the two good drafts in 2008 and 2009 to what initially looks like a great draft this year, you can start to see that the Indians may finally be building something from within through the draft rather than through the veteran for prospect deals they have relied on for almost a decade. There is still a long way to go of course as a lot of these players will wash out over time in the minors, but hopefully this crop of players from the recent drafts can remain healthy, continue to develop, and start supplementing this team at the big league level soon.

What About Me?

Two of the highest priorities for the Indians this offseason are to find a veteran right-handed bat and a veteran starting pitcher. While they are likely to kick the tires on some veteran starting pitchers like Kevin Millwood, Brandon Webb, and Jake Westbrook, there may be an internal option they consider if they find the free agent market too pricey. That being right-handed pitcher Anthony Reyes.

Reyes, 29, did not pitch this season for the Indians as he was recovering from Tommy John surgery. He tried to come back and pitch with the Indians a couple of times in the second half of the season, but had some setbacks in his rehab which shut him down. He recently pitched a few innings in the Indians Fall Instructional League program and sat in the low 90s with his fastball and even touched 96 MPH. The arm strength looks like it has certainly returned, but the big question marks for him are his still questionable health status and if his command will return.

By the start of next season Reyes will be over 18 months removed from the surgery, so recovery from the surgery should no longer be an issue. Since he did not pitch this year and is coming off such a major surgery, his innings workload will likely be restricted in 2011 which is certainly a negative when considering him for the rotation next year. With this in mind, before turning to Reyes as an option the Indians will surely look for other alternatives that may give them a better shot to pitch 170-180 quality innings. Even if the Indians sign another pitcher, they may still sign Reyes anyway to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training.

Coaching Moves

There are lots of current and former Indians managers and coaches who have been in the news this week. First off, former manager Eric Wedge (2003-2009) was hired as the new manager of the Seattle Mariners this week. The Mariners probably offer him a better chance from a spending standpoint, but one thing that will be interesting to see play out in the short term is how his managing style fits in with a roster that includes a guy by the name of Milton Bradley and a few others who have been malcontents in the past.

Indians first base and catching coach Sandy Alomar Jr. is suddenly a finalist to be named the new manager of the Toronto Blue Jays. He along with former Indians Farm Director and current Boston Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell are considered two of the top candidates for the Blue Jays job. Finally, Double-A Akron manager and former Indians third base coach Joel Skinner has been hired by the Oakland A’s to be a part of their major league coaching staff as a bench coach.

Minor Coaching Options

If Sandy Alomar Jr. bolts for the Blue Jays job, the Indians will need to add another coach to their major league staff, and I couldn’t think of a more deserving coach than Triple-A Columbus manager Mike Sarbaugh. He is a proven winner and over the years has earned the respect of his players with the way he goes about his business.

Sarbaugh, 43, has been in the Indians organization since 1990 as a player and coach, and since becoming a minor league manager in 2004 he has won at every stop he has been at. He won the NY-Penn League championship in his managerial debut in 2004 at short-season Single-A Mahoning Valley, won the Carolina League championship at High-A Kinston in 2006, the Eastern League championship in 2009 at Double-A Akron, and the International League championship at Triple-A Columbus this year. In between there his 2008 Akron team was the leaguer runner-up after losing the championship series, and Kinston made the playoffs with the best record in the league in 2007 before an early playoff exit.

Also, with the Double-A Akron manager position now open with Joel Skinner’s departure, look for short-season Single-A Mahoning Valley manager Travis Fryman to get strong consideration for the job. In fact, if he wants it, I would think it is his. If Sarbaugh moves up to Cleveland, then the Indians will need to replace the manager at both Akron and Columbus. If this happens, Fryman could even end up as the manager at Columbus and someone like High-A Kinston manager Aaron Holbert could move up to Akron.

No matter what, there is going to be some movement on the minor league coaching front, and there may be one or two new coaching faces in the dugout at Akron and Columbus this year.

Award Winners

On Thursday the Indians announced that second baseman Jason Kipnis was named the recipient of the Lou Boudreau Award which is given to the organization’s top position player in their minor league system. In addition, right-handed pitcher Alex White won the Bob Feller Award, which is given to the organization’s top pitcher in their minor league system.

Kipnis hit a combined .307 with 96 runs scored, 32 doubles, 8 triples, 16 homers and 74 RBI in 133 games between High-A Kinston and Double-A Akron this year. White went a combined 10-10 with a 2.45 ERA in 26 games (25 starts) between Kinston and Akron while limiting opponents to a .220 average against.

Going, going, gone

The Indians released minor league right-handed pitcher Santo Frias this week. Frias, 22, was signed as an undrafted free agent out of the Dominican Republic in December of 2005, and was a promising arm in the lower levels of the system. He was armed with a mid-90s fastball, but arm injuries sidelined him for most of the 2008 and 2010 seasons and ultimately led to his release.

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).

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With Draft Over, Indians Focused On Signing Players

Editor’s note: This is another reminder that there will be no Minor Happenings this week due to the heavy amount of draft coverage this week. It will be back next week.

The Indians had a very good draft this past week as they took a lot of good, young talent with upside.

But all those pats on the back about their very good draft will mean nothing if they don’t sign some of these risky, upside picks. The Indians know this and plan to be just as aggressive in their signing process as they were with their selection process.

“On paper we feel like it [was a good draft],” said Indians Scouting Director and Assistant GM John Mirabelli in a phone conversation last evening. “But you have to get them signed to make it stand for anything. But we did the first part.”

Going into the draft the Indians stacked their top 150 players in order on their draft board and pulled from that listing through the first eight to ten rounds. Since there is no time for discussion when their pick comes up each round due to the fast pace of the draft, the Indians pull from that top 150 listing until it is exhausted and then move onto another listing where they stack the remaining players at each position.

Most if not all discussions happen prior to the start of the draft, so they have to be prepared going in with what they want to do, and this year it was about going the extra step and adding some upside talent to the organization.

“I would say upside is a good word to describe our draft,” said Mirabelli. “We put our draft board in order of talent and ability and worked off it from there. We didn’t base it on signability. We looked at our values and how we valued the player and the upside and we thought we put our board in its natural order from top to bottom. When it was our time to pick, that’s the guy that we took.”

What helps the Indians and all other clubs is the first three rounds of the draft are protected where if the Indians were unable to sign any of their picks in the first three rounds this year, they would get a compensation pick next year. This is a good fallback and gives Major League clubs some leverage in the signing process, but the Indians’ first choice is to sign these players.

“The first three rounds are protected, so that is part of your strategy going in to take the best guys and worry about the other stuff later,” said Mirabelli. “We are going to take the best player and try to sign them, and if not we will get something for them next year. We know the players have leverage. We recognize that and respect that. This is a baseball draft and they have options, especially high school players. We understand that, but at the same time we needed some talent in the organization and we are pretty determined to take a shot.”

The Indians have built up a lot of “inventory” in the system the past few years as last year they signed 28 of their draft picks including all of their first 20 picks. In the 2008 Draft they signed 30 of their picks, including 25 of their first 28 picks. In 2007 they signed 26 picks and in 2006 they signed 37 picks.

But this year with so much inventory already in place and a lot of organizational filler already in the system, they really targeted upside right through the end of the draft. In previous years they may have spent a lot of last day picks on guys to sign so they could fill out the short-season Single-A Mahoning Valley and rookie level Arizona rosters. This year there will be more of a quality over quantity approach to the signings as in the end maybe at most 20 players in total are signed.

“I think this will be a substantially smaller group than what we traditionally sign, certainly smaller than what we signed last year,” said Mirabelli. “We have a lot of inventory of guys still in the system. We are in pretty good shape in terms of filling organizational spots, so we didn’t have to do that [in the draft]. I think that was the goal all along as we were taking upside late in the draft as opposed to organizational filler, so I think those [signing] numbers will just naturally come down.”

As for the signings themselves, a few will be announced in the next week as Mahoning Valley starts up play in less than a week on June 18th and Arizona starts up a few days later on June 21st. But because of the questionable signability of so many of the players they took, the Indians expect the signing process to carry throughout the summer with most of the “big splashes” coming at the August 16th signing deadline.

“Yes, historically if you look back at what has happened in the last three or fours years it is a pretty safe bet that a majority of these signings will be near or at the deadline,” said Mirabelli. “As I told you before we would be aggressive selecting them, and we are going to be aggressive trying to sign them. We are not going to be foolish, but we want to get players signed for what we think is the appropriate value. Hopefully the players and our values are close enough aligned and we can make it happen, and I am confident we will.”

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2010 Draft Recap

The three day marathon that was the 2010 Draft has come to a close. With that, here is a rundown recapping all of the picks the Indians made this year. Click on the player's name to see their profile and any scouting reports, video, and other information for them.  These will continue to be updated throughout the next few months.

Overall, of the 50 players selected 22 were right-handed pitchers, 6 were left-handed pitchers, and 22 were position players. They selected 34 college players in all, which 17 were right-handed pitchers, 3 were left-handed pitchers, and 14 were position players. They selected 16 high school players, and 5 were right-handed pitchers, 3 were left-handed pitchers, and 8 were position players.

Also, 33rd round pick SS Logan Thompson is the son of Indians special assistant Robbie Thompson, and 42nd round pick Aaron Fields is the sone of Indians minor league hitting coordinator Bruce Fields.

I will also be providing signing updates on all of their pages either to confirm their signing, or to report on what they may be looking for and if they may or not sign. This listing will be housed on the right side of the page under the General Reference heading (2010 Draft).

Note: bold means they have officially signed

Rd	Player	Pos	School	Ht	Wt	DOB	B	T	Scout
1	Drew Pomeranz	LHP	U. of Mississippi	6'5"	230	11/22/1988	R	L	Bartlett
2	LeVon Washington	OF	Chipola JC	5'11"	170	7/26/1991	L	R	Bartlett
3	Tony Wolters	SS	Rancho Buena Vista HS (CA)	5'10"	175	6/9/1992	L	R	Smith
4	Kyle Blair	RHP	U. of San Diego	6'3"	230	8/27/1988	R	R	Smith
5	Cole Cook	RHP	Pepperdine U.	6'6"	215	10/18/1988	R	R	Sagisi
6	Nick Bartolone	SS	Chabot College (CA)	5'11"	165	10/22/1990	R	R	Lyle
7	Robbie Aviles	RHP	Suffern High School (NY)	6'4"	195	12/17/1991	L	R	Urcheck
8	Alex Lavisky	C	St. Edward HS (OH)	6'1"	205	1/13/1991	R	R	Melendez
9	Jordan Cooper	RHP	Wichita State U.	6'2"	210	5/10/1989	R	R	Abney
10	Tyler Holt	OF	Florida State U.	6'0"	190	3/10/1989	R	R	Tyler
11	Hunter Jones	SS	Lakewood HS (CA)	6'2"	190	8/17/1991	R	R	Smith
12	Tyler Cannon	INF	U. of Virginia	6'0"	205	8/30/1987	S	R	Mayer
13	Michael Goodnight	RHP	U. of Houston	6'4"	215	6/10/1989	R	R	Pajari
14	Diego Seastrunk	C	Rice U.	5'9"	180	1/11/1988	S	R	Pajari
15	Ben Wetzler	LHP	Clackamas HS (OR)	6'1"	185	9/12/1991	L	L	Uhey
16	Cody Allen	RHP	St. Petersburg JC (FL)	6'1"	200	11/20/1988	R	R	Soper
17	Aaron Siliga	OF	Oceanside HS (CA)	5'9"	180	8/24/1992	L	L	Smith
18	Chase Burnette	OF	Georgia Tech	6'3"	205	5/20/1988	L	L	Tyler
19	Mark Brown	OF	Martin Luther King HS (MI)	5'9"	165	9/11/1991	L	L	Melendez
20	Burch Smith	RHP	Howard College	6'4"	190	4/12/1990	R	R	Cullen
21	Owen Dew	RHP	U. Central Florida	6'2"	180	9/26/1988	R	R	Soper
22	Nate Striz	RHP	U. North Carolina	6'2"	245	10/15/1988	R	R	Mayer
23	Tony Dischler	RHP	Louisiana State U.	6'3"	198	3/6/1989	R	R	Pajari
24	Andrew Triggs	RHP	U. Southern California	6'4"	210	3/16/1989	R	R	Sagisi
25	Jay Gause	RHP	West Brunswick HS (NC)	6'3"	230	4/24/1992	R	R	Mayer
26	Ben Lively	RHP	Gulf Breeze HS (FL)	6'4"	190	3/5/1992	R	R	Soper
27	Jeff Shaus	OF	Clemson U.	6'1"	195	4/7/1989	L	R	Tyler
28	DeMarcus Tidwell	OF	Yavapai College (AZ)	6'2"	185	7/15/1990	L	L	Ewing
29	Kirby Bellow	LHP	Nederland HS (TX)	6'1"	190	11/14/1991	L	L	Pajari
30	Taylor Hill	RHP	Vanderbilt U.	6'3"	185	3/12/1989	R	R	Bartlett
31	David Goforth	RHP	U. of Mississippi	5'11"	185	10/11/1988	R	R	Bartlett
32	Michael Palazzone	RHP	U. of Georgia	6'2"	197	5/6/1989	R	R	Tyler
33	Logan Thompson	2B	Palm Beach St. College (FL)	6'0"	165	8/4/1989	R	R	Soper
34	Kyle Petter	LHP	El Camino College (CA)	5'11"	190	4/5/1990	L	L	Sagisi
35	Ken Ferrer	RHP	Elon U. (NY)	6'1"	220	12/13/1989	R	R	Mayer
36	Rye Davis	RHP	Western Kentucky U.	6'5"	250	12/11/1988	R	R	Melendez
37	Trey Griffin	OF	Martin Luther King HS (GA)	6'3"	187	11/20/1991	R	R	Tyler
38	Tyler Pearson	C	Monterey HS (TX)	6'1"	180	4/15/1992	R	R	Cullen
39	Bobby Wahl	RHP	West Springfield HS (VA)	6'3"	190	3/21/1992	R	R	Mayer
40	Jordan Casas	OF	Long Beach State U.	5'11"	190	3/17/1988	L	R	Smith
41	Brian Heere	OF	U. of Kansas	5'10"	175	8/6/1987	L	R	Abney
42	Aaron Fields	2B	Wright State U. (OH)	6'0"	190	6/20/1988	R	R	Melendez
43	Chris Waylock	SS	Cary-Grove HS (IL)	5'10"	185	8/7/1991	R	R	Armstrong
44	Brock Stassi	LHP	U. of Nevada Reno	6'2"	190	8/7/1989	L	L	Lyle
45	Frank Dejiulio	RHP	Daytona Beach CC (FL)	6'3"	205	8/22/1989	R	R	Soper
46	Justin Haley	RHP	Sierra College (CA)	6'5"	230	6/16/1991	R	R	Lyle
47	Lucas Maloy	RHP	Alamo Heights HS (TX)	6'0"	185	11/11/1991	R	R	Pajari
48	Chris Bradford	LHP	Pace HS (FL)	5'9"	160	4/12/1991	L	L	Bartlett
49	Marcus Bradley	OF	No School	5'10"	160	8/30/1990	L	L	Ewing
50	Henry Dunn	OF	Binghampton U.	5'8"	180	3/26/1989	R	R	Urcheck

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Pomeranz and Day 2 Thoughts

Last night the Indians selected University of Mississippi junior left-handed pitcher Drew Pomeranz with their first round pick (5th overall). Here are some quick thoughts on the pick and some quick thoughts on what could unfold today on Day 2:

• The Pomeranz pick was not really much of a surprise, in fact going into the draft most prognosticators had him going to the Indians. That said, some final hour discussion from national media types that mentioned he may be slipping on draft boards did add some drama to the Indians selection and did make many people (including yours truly) reconsider who the Indians may end up taking. In the end, the reports were bogus and the Indians took their top guy.

• The Indians have not commented on who else they were considering for the pick, but every indication has been given that he was their guy all along with the assumption that Harper, Taillon and Machado would not be there when they picked. Had the Royals taken Pomeranz it is unknown who the Indians may have taken and if they would have selected Chris Sale or Michael Choice, but it appears they knew they were getting Pomeranz because he wouldn’t go top three and the Royals had no connection to him. Some of the late news of the Indians backing off on him may have been a smokescreen to kind of quiet the talk he would be the pick as everyone was aligning him up with the Tribe. Mission accomplished.

• Some may be wondering if Pomeranz will pitch in the Indians system this year, but from what I am hearing he very likely will be a late signing just like Alex White was last year. Unless he goes for slot, which is not happening, both sides are going to let this play out until the mid-August signing deadline gets closer. This should be no surprise as just about every one of the Top 10 picks will likely not sign until deadline day just like last year. What this means is if this happens then Pomeranz will not pitch this year for the Indians, just like White last year.

• Here is a quick take on Pomeranz from a rival AL scout who followed him this year: “Pomeranz is a big, strong, durable guy that has the ability to get his fastball in on right hand hitters at 90-95 with a good spike curveball. He's a workhorse. Will need to further the development of his change-up. He had a peck strain that he pitched thru that caused his velocity to drop. He was healthy at the end though. No concern with his health.”

• There have been some questions on how Pomeranz is considered a “power lefty” when he typically throws 91-93 MPH though touches 95 MPH. Some have brought up Dave Huff who often throws in the same range (91-93), but the difference here is not necessarily the actual velocity. Former Indians hurler Cliff Lee also typically threw 91-93 MPH and most observers would consider him more of a power lefty than Huff. With Pomeranz though the difference is he gets it consistently up to 93-94 and touches 95 MPH. Some guys also have fastballs which get on hitters quicker because of deception in their delivery, good late life, and/or good movement (all three qualities Pomeranz has).

• One interesting little nugget is the area scout for the Indians who followed Pomeranz and will be responsible for getting him signed is Chuck Bartlett. What makes this interesting is Drew's father, Mike, played at Ole Miss and lettered there for four years and his teammate was Chuck Bartlett. I'm not sure if that helps in negotiations at all, but there is some familiarity there (and hopefully trust) so every little bit helps.

• Shifting gears to today, so what will the Indians do with the #55 today? The Indians pick 5th overall in the second round and to start Day 2 of the draft. One name that is gaining huge interest in the on-line discussion world is local fireballing right-handed high school pitcher Stetson Allie (St. Edward) who is committed to pitch at the University of North Carolina. But don’t get your hopes up as he is sliding purely for signability reasons. If he stays healthy, with his 97-100 MPH fastball he has a chance to be the #1 overall pick in 2013 or at worst a top three guy, so the bonus demands right now are going to be huge. It would actually be a huge surprise to see the Indians take him early on Day 2, though they may take a flier on him if he were still available a few rounds into the day.

• Another guy to keep an eye on is A.J. Cole, a high school right-handed pitcher from Winter Springs, FL who is committed to the University of Miami, FL. He could be one of those “aggressive” picks Mirabelli hinted at last week. As for high school outfielder Austin Wilson (North Hollywood, CA), forget it. He is probably more unsignable than Allie at this point and is another guy who could become top overall pick material or a Top 5 guy.  The Indians have a pretty good relationship with the University of Michigan of late, so it would not be a surprise to see outfielder Ryan LaMarre be the pick at #55.

• Really, after the Indians loaded up on pitching last year by acquiring over 30 pitchers via the draft or trade, it may be time to put some focus on a few high profile bats out of high school in the higher rounds. There are currently some interesting hitters in the lower levels of the Indians’ system, but there is not nearly the amount of bats as seen in the upper levels, particularly Triple-A Columbus. With the system being so top heavy at the moment with Major League caliber bats, an influx of some good, raw bats would be nice. So, one of the things I plan to watch on Day 2 is how they attack the position player front and what gambles they take. Also, it will be interesting to see if their focus over the past year on acquiring power arms continues.

• Day 2 kicks off at noon today. We will be listing the picks here on the site as they come in just like last year.  Like with yesterday’s posting with Pomeranz, we will edit and update the profiles for each pick with new information as it comes in with scouting reports, analysis, stats, video, etc.

• By the way, if you are up for discussing the draft (or just want to lurk), follow the discussion on the IPI forums.

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Indians' Amateur Scouting Director Talks About Pomeranz

Here are some quotes from last night's press conference with Cleveland Indians Director of Amateur Scouting Brad Grant:

On Drew Pomeranz: "Drew brings a power fastball 90-95 MPH with a plus late breaking swing-and-miss curveball, a changeup, and an ability to start. On the mound he is an extreme competitor as he is very mature and very focused. Nothing wavers him at all and he looks much more mature than everybody else out on the field because of that presence that he brings out on the mound. He was the SEC Pitcher of the Year, so that does have a factor for us, but at the same time he pitcher very well and was one of the top starters with Team USA this year. We scouted him out of high school, for three years at Mississippi, and with Team USA, so we have a lot of history similar to the history we had with Alex White [last year]. This winter after his performance with Team USA and in the Regionals, he was a targeted guy for us. We feel like we got a big front of the end rotation left-handed starter.”

On Pomeranz’s health: “We thought where we were going to take him was the place to pick him. Coming into the year he did pitch very well. He had a pectoral strain right around the end of March, beginning of April, but we were at almost every single start this year and at the end he went seven innings on Saturday in the Regionals and did very well there. We took who we felt was the best player available. With Drew’s ability to start and his power stuff we liked him. He has never had any arm issues in the past as this was not an arm issue, it was a [pectoral] issue.”

On Pomeranz’s best attribute, biggest weakness: “He gets swings and misses with his fastball, that’s really the most impressive part [about him]. Not only is it 90-95 MPH, but it is explosive through the zone. Hitters just don’t hit it as there are a lot of swings and misses with it along with the curveball as well. The one pitch he needs to develop a little bit still is the changeup. He has a feel for it and does throw it, but it is something he needs to develop."

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Indians "Live" Draft Blog

Update 7:56 PM: Gotta say I am very happy with the Indians pick of Pomeranz at #5.  They did not change their opinion of him even after all the talk the past 24-48 hours that he could be sliding on draft boards.  As Mirabelli mentioned a few weeks ago, they stayed true to their approach of not reacting a lot to late risers or fallers.  Choice or Sale would have also been very good picks at #5, but to me Pomeranz has more upside potential.  Now the real work for the Indians begins as they prepare for the second round pick at #55.

Update 7:32 PM: Well, there you go.  After all the talk that Pomeranz was sliding or that the Indians were completely off him, the Indians at #5 select LHP Drew Pomeranz from the University of Mississippi.

Update 7:29 PM:  ESPN has said we are completely off Pomeranz, but Jonathan Mayo and Frank Piliere are both saying we take Pomeranz.  Guess we are about to find out who is completely wrong.

Update 7:25 PM: With the #4 pick the Royals select SS Christian Colon.  Looks like it will be Sale or Choice for the Indians, though considering there is no clear cut player here many others are also in play here.

Update 7:21 PM: With the #3 pick the Orioles select SS Manny Machado.  Ok, let the fun begin.

Update 7:15 PM: With the #2 pick in the draft the Pirates take RHP Jameson Taillon.  No surprise there either.  Machado should go next to the Orioles, and then it gets VERY interesting.

Update 7:09 PM: And the Nationals take C/OF Bryce Harper with the #1 pick.  Gee, big surprise there.

Update 7:05 PM: Keith Law and ESPN saying that the Royals appear locked on Christian Colon at #4.

Update 7:01 PM: ESPN is reporting the Indians are completely off Pomeranz as the #5 pick.

Update 6:58 PM: By the way, I will leave the stats, analysis and scouting reports for the player pick posts when they happen, but I will continue to add my initial thoughts and opinion about the first round pick in this post.

Update 6:55 PM: Draft is about to start.  The excitement should really kick in with the Royals at #4 and Indians at #5.  It is almost a foregone conclusion Harper, Taillon, and Machado will go and in that order.  But after that anything can happen.  If the Royals take Sale, I predict the Indians take Choice.  If the Royals take someone else, I predict the Indians take Sale.  (Which of course means they take Pomeranz).  In any case, we will know who the Indians pick in about 25-30 minutes.

Update 6:30 PM: Mayo and Callis on MLB Network both just predicted Pomeranz to the Indians at #5.

Update 6:18 PM: ESPN's Keith Law is saying the Royals will take Sale.  If this happens, it looks like it comes down to Pomerenz or Choice for the Indians.  Pomeranz is getting beat down hard late by negative reports, so it will be interesting if the Indians let any last minute news and discussions affect their view of him.

Update 6:08 PM: Jonathan Mayo on MLB Network just jumped on the Pomeranz "falling" bandwagon as he mentioned some questions about his health, durability and drop in velocity late in the season.  Also, mentions Sale and several of the college pitchers will look to sign for over slot.  Last, both Mayo and Baseball America's Jim Callis say Grandal may be slipping to the middle of the first round now and maybe out of the first round completely.

Me personally, I would be okay with any of Sale, Pomeranz or Choice being the pick.  I have a feeling it is going to be Choice.

Update 6:01 PM:  As the draft nears, lots or rumors are flying all over the place with regard to who is going where and when. As far as the Indians are concerned, it is pretty much Fort Knox as they are pretty much hunkered down and not talking when it comes to giving any insight on what they may do with the first pick. There have been some reports that the Indians are “higher on this guy or that guy” but a lot of that is coming from the agents talking to other media types.

Right now, sifting through all the rumors and gauging the real interest vs. the artificial interest being driven up by the agents, it appears the Indians have their sights on one of two left-handed pitchers in Drew Pomeranz and Chris Sale or one of two position players outfielder Michael Choice or catcher Yasmani Grandal. There may also be others in the mix for the pick, but those are the four names commonly linked to the Indians and who they may pick.

There are some late reports from ESPN’s Keith Law and Baseball Prospectus’ Kevin Goldstein that Pomeranz may be slipping on draft boards. Also, there have been reports that Kansas City, who has the #4 pick right in front of the Indians, are working on a deal to sign Grandal. If this is the case, it really looks like when you whittle the options down it may come down to Sale or Choice for the Indians.

I’ll continue to update this post up until the draft and the Indians first pick.

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2010 MLB Mock Draft

The baseball draft by its very nature is different from every other sport's draft.

The only draft that comes close to it is hockey. Hockey, though, is still a draft where you can consider need because of the number of players who do go straight to the pros. In baseball it is considered the exception and not the rule when a player is able to play for your Major League team within a year of drafting.

This year, much has been made of Mike Leake and his skipping the minors. The reason for this is its rarity: only 21 players have skipped the minors and the last was Xavier Nady in 2000. Last year’s top pick for the Indians, Alex White, has torn up the minors but still won’t be in the majors for at least another year.

This is why it’s smart to draft the best player that you can sign regardless of need, depth, or your current roster. This means that even though the top player the Indians have is viewed as Carlos Santana, if you think Yasmin Grandal is a second coming of Victor Martinez with gold glove defense then you draft him and never look back. If you draft an All Star, you can find a place for him or move him for a need. This is why the Indians will take the top talent available instead of just drafting a bat because their system is pitching heavy. On top of that you can never have pitching.

So without further ado, here is my mock draft with an explanation on why each pick will or won't be the pick made for each team:

1 – Washington Nationals: Bryce Harper C Southern Nevada (JuCo)

Why it will: Harper is not quite as hyped as Strasburg, but it’s pretty close. His power and ability as a hitter is very special for his age. He is the best high school bat since A-Rod.

Why it won’t: If the Nationals office is hit with sleeping gas by Pittsburgh’s front office and make the pick instead of the Nationals.

2 – Pittsburgh Pirates: Jameson Taillon RHP HS

Why it will: Taillon (pictured) is a monster talent who is a huge righty who throws hard and has great mechanics. He is one of the major talents in this draft and with the best arm by far. Tallion is the consensus number 2 guy in this draft.

Why it won’t: For now Taillon seems to have leapfrogged Machado for the number 2 pick, but it has been back and forth between them, and Machado could steal the spot back at any point.

3 – Baltimore Orioles: Manny Machado SS HS

Why it will: Machado has a 70 arm at short and on top of that has the ability to do everything well on the field. In terms of over all potential, he has the highest ceiling of anyone not named Harper.

Why it won’t: If Pitt goes back to Machado then this pick becomes Taillon. This is one of the more dependent picks in the draft, as it seems that Baltimore will take whoever Pitt doesn’t at this point.

4 – Kansas City Royals: Yasmin Grandal C University of Miami

Why it will: The reports indicate that KC and Grandal’s people are working to make a deal. Grandal wants Buster Posey money. KC has had little problem signing expensive talent over the years, and Grandal’s price tag would not scare them off.

Why it won’t: KC over the years has a habit of taking the top over all talent and trying to develop it. There was a lot of talk before with KC looking at pitchers, and Sale and Pomeranz are both on the board.

5 – Cleveland Indians: Drew Pomeranz LHP University of Mississippi

Why it will: The Indians have almost exclusively taken college talent early, and Pomeranz would be the top college player on the board at this point.

Why it won’t: The Indians have taken risks the last two years in the draft, and they might make a surprise pick here taking a player with the high upside. Sale would also be up for consideration.

6 – Arizona Diamondbacks: Matt Harvey RHP U. of North Carolina

Why it will: Harvey has more helium then any player right now in the draft. He has an excellent arm and when he first went to college, he was talked up to be the player who would go first over all this year.

Why it won’t: Harvey has been a bit of a disappointment in college, and while he has rebounded there are still some questions about if he is a starter or reliever long term. Zona is looking at college arms and could decide to go another direction if Harvey is viewed as a reliever. I know most people would put Sale, but Zona has preferred power arms in the past.

7 – New York Mets: Chris Sale LHP Florida Gulf Coast University

Why it will: Sale would be a big value at this point as he could go as high as 2, and falling to 7 would make this a hard pass for the Mets. Sale would also sign for slot which would be a bonus.

Why it won’t: The Mets have been linked to many players, and it’s hard to say who Minaya might like best. Sale, though, is not one of the players they have been linked to in the process.

8 – Houston Astros: Josh Sale OF HS

Why it will: Sale is in the upper tier of home run hitters in this draft. Among the high school players, he has the best power. With the Astros having so many picks they can’t afford to take a player who would cost a ton to sign.

Why it won’t: By reports they are in love with Delino Deshields Jr., and he might not be there when they pick. If the Astros decide they like DeShields more, then this pick could easily be him.

9 – San Diego Padres: Micheal Choice OF U. of Texas Arlington

Why it will: The Padres have been linked to multiple bats, and all of them are college bats. Choice’s massive power will convince someone to draft him early. On top of that, if he does hit then Choice should be the first bat who makes it to the majors. His power is huge, legit, and already a major league level skill.

Why it won’t: The Padres have been heavily linked to Vitek. If they decide he is worth the 9th pick and could be a power hitting CF, then he could be the pick instead of Choice.

10 – Oakland Athletics: Karsten Whitson RHP HS

Why it will: It has been a weird scouting progress for the A’s, who for the first time in a while seem to be hot on prep arms. Over the years they have drafted college players almost exclusively in the first round. I have heard Whitson’s name talked of here, and he would be a value pick.

Why it won’t: This is an easy one—because Beane never drafts prep players, and so this pick would be a big change of pace.

11 – Toronto Blue Jays: Zach Cox 3B University of Arkansas

Why it will: Cox is the best pure hitter in the draft. He has an excellent swing and has produced. He should be able to stick at 3B, get on base, and show enough power to make him a possible all star at third.

Why it won’t: People question both his power and if he can stick at third base. His bat is a great tool, but there is worry it’s his only tool. The Jays rarely go over slot, though, so Cox seems like a nice fit.

12 – Cincinnati Reds: Mike Kvasnicka C University of Minnesota

Why it will: The Reds have been drafting players who can get to the majors sooner and seem to value polish over potential. Kvasnicka is a player on the rise, and thanks to his time in college he should be a bat who can quickly reach the majors.

Why it won’t: Kvasnicka is not the best or most talented player at this point. He does fit the Reds profile, but they might decide to take a player with higher upside.

13 – Chicago White Sox: Deck McGuire RHP Georgia Tech

Why it will: McGuire has been talked about all year as a possible top ten pick. He is more of a MOR starter and that’s why he is falling, but he is a polished player with minimal chance of busting.

Why it won’t: There are more talented arms out there and McGuire has been sliding, so the White Sox could look for a different pitcher who would take slot.

14 – Milwaukee Brewers: Jesse Biddle LHP HS

Why it will: Reports say that the Brewers are high on Biddle and are locked into him at this spot. He has been rising as of a week ago; he was mostly linked with Philly. The Brewers have taken some risks on talented hard signs before and had success.

Why it won’t: Biddle’s name has been linked with Mil, but you always have to wonder when a player starts jumping if it’s just a rumor or if it’s all just a smoke screen.

15 – Texas Rangers: Brandon Workman RHP Texas

Why it will: It never hurts to take a local kid when you have to spin your pick. With Workman they not only get a local kid, but a player who should be an easy sign. They need an easy sign since this is a compensation pick for failing to sign Purke last year.

Why it won’t: DeShields and O’Connor have both been rising and both guys could be very real choices here.

16 – Chicago Cubs: Asher Wojciechowski RHP The Citadel

Why it will: Wojciechowski is a player who has been reported to have two of the top pitches in this draft. He lacks a third pitch, but having two legit pitches is going to tempt some team early.

Why it won’t: Wojciechowski might have two plus pitches, but he really lacks a third pitch and it might end up causing him to become a reliever. He should be a major leaguer no matter what happens, but if he is seen as a pen guy his stock will take a hit. This is another team that is hot on DeShields, whose name is linked to more teams than anyone else in this draft.

17 – Tampa Bay Rays: Nick Castellanos 3B HS

Why it will: Castellanos is a very talented prep player who can hit for power. He will grow out of SS to 3B, but his ability with a bat should play at 3B. He is a hitter whose upside should make him very tempting to a team like TB that stockpiles young talent.

Why it won't: TB has 2 first rounders and money is always a concern with 2 picks in the first rounder. Castellanos is going to want more than slot and TB might decide that they can't spend half their draft budget on round 1.

18 – Los Angeles Angels: Dylan Covey, RHP, HS

Why it will: Covey is considered by some to be the number prep arm in this class. He is a big talent and a great value at this pick. The Angels have done well drafting late by taking risks on prep players.

Why it won’t: The Angels have three firsts and signing them all might be hard. Covey would be a hard sign and it might cause them to take a lesser talent at this pick.

19 – Houston Astros: Delino DeShields Jr. 2B HS

Why it will: The Astros have been hot on DeShields for months. If he is there then he will be the pick.

Why it won’t: This is an unlikely pick just because I think that DeShields won’t get passed over this much. Teams like the Cubs, Rangers, and a few others have all been linked to him repeatedly in the past weeks.

20 – Boston Red Sox: Anthony Ranaudo RHP Col

Why it will: Ranaudo was projected as the number 2 player in this draft going into the year, but he has had injuries and failed to perform this year. He is unquestionably talented, but the concerns over his injury will cause him to drop.

Why it won’t: If they are scared off by his injury or if they decide that one of the prep athletes is a better option then the Sox will spend as they are never scared off by demands.

21 – Minnesota Twins: Alex Wimmers RHP Ohio State University

Why it will: Wimmers might not have star potential, but he is the odds on favorite to be the first player from this draft to make the majors. He fits the type of pitchers that Minny seems to draft. He has been locked in as the ideal fit for Minny.

Why it won’t: Until last year Minnesota’s picks had tended to be surprise picks, so it’s hard to say that this is the consensus pick for them because Minny avoids the consensus pick.

22 – Texas Rangers: Kaleb Cowart 3B/RHP HS

Why it will: Cowart is this year’s Casey Kelley, but unlike Kelley he might be able to stick at 3B. He is a better pitcher than a hitter, but he might be able to make the majors as either a good hitter or an all star pitcher. Plus, with Texas’s financial woes they might want to roll the dice and if they lose the pick it won’t kill them since they have the extra pick this year.

Why it won’t: If Texas wants to make sure and draft a player they can sign they could take a player who is a much easier sign. Cowart is a top talent at this point, but the money issue could scare off Texas.

23 – Florida Marlins: Aaron Sanchez RHP HS

Why it will: Florida is a team that only seems to draft pitchers in round one. Sanchez is a big time talent who looks like he should have two plus pitches down the road.

Why it won’t: Florida has been linked to more than a few pitchers and they apparently also like a local kid, but at this point Sanchez seems to be a big fit.

24 – San Francisco Giants: Bryce Brentz OF Middle Tennessee State

Why it will: Brentz has been one of the top players in college baseball the past two years. If he had been healthy all year, I have little doubt he would have gone higher. He has good power and speed and is a very polished hitter. He has an excellent arm in the OF and would work well in San Fran’s cavernous OF.

Why it won’t: With a lot of college hitters out there, an argument could be made over which one is the best available at this point in the draft. San Fran, though, seems a likely place for one of those many outfielders to land.

25 – St. Louis Cardinals: Stetson Allie RHP HS

Why it will: Allie is the hardest thrower in this draft; he has hit 100 on multiple occasions. Last year the Cardinals took a hard thrower in Shelby Miller, and Allie is not as good a pitcher, but his velocity is going to make him a first round pick. The fact he has fallen this far might shock some, but anymore people seem to value pitchers more than throwers.

Why it won’t: Allie had some of the worst control in baseball until this year, and even though he has suddenly found it in his senior year there are plenty of questions. The big one is if many scouts think because his control is still shaky that his best bet will be to end up in the pen. His rawness and the fact he might be the player who is farthest from the majors in this draft might really knock him back.

26 – Colorado Rockies: AJ Cole RHP Col

Why it will: Cole is one of the top arms in this entire prep class. Most experts have him ranked 2 or 3 over all. Last year Colorado took the falling top prep arm in Matzek, and it worked out perfectly. At this point they could grab another top talent late.

Why it won’t: They could decide to take the local kid in Gausman or grab one of the falling college bats.

27 – Philadelphia Phillies: Justin O’Connor C HS

Why it will: O’Connor is an athlete who projects at a premier position. This is the MO for the Phillies over the years, as they love to draft athletes and hope they turn into stars. O’Connor’s stock has risen a lot, and he could go much earlier.

Why it won't: Philly loves athletes and the best athlete in this draft is considered by many to be Austin Wilson, while there are some questions about him as a player as an athlete there are few questions. He would be a player that Philly might find too good to pass on.

28 – Los Angeles Dodgers: Christian Colon SS Cal State Fullerton

Why it will: Colon’s defense is the best of any middle infielder in this draft, in spite of being one of the slowest players in the draft. With Colon you get a sure defender, and the importance of defense is on the rise. Plus, with the Dodgers great financial issues, Colon would not be a hard sign.

Why it won’t: In a draft that’s this deep, great players will fall. Colon is one of the many top players who are still on the board thanks to the great depth in this class. The Dodgers could go many different ways at this point.

29 – Los Angeles Angels: Peter Tago RHP HS

Why it will: Tago is a name that has been linked to the Angels, and he fits the mold of a project able arm that the Angels love. He is a very raw arm, who is going to take time to make the majors, but his talent level is great.

Why it won’t: There have been come concerns about Tago, who academically had issues and had to uncommit from UCLA.

30 – Los Angeles Angels: Tony Walters SS HS

Why it will: According to Keith Law, there has been an Angles scout at almost every one of his games. Walters is also one of the players PGcrosschecker rated as the player who should have the best career of any middle infielder in this draft.

Why it won’t: Walters is a guy whose name isn’t in a lot of mocks. He has not been talked up as much, and the Angels might think they can wait to grab him.

31 – Tampa Bay Rays: Kolbrin Vitek, OF Ball State

Why it will: Kolbrin Vitek is a name that has been talked up to go as high as 9th in this draft. At this point Vitek would be an interesting prospect, thanks to his speed and power combo. If he can match his potential then this pick would be a steal today.

Why it won’t: While Vitek is a good prospect this late, it might be tempting for them to take one of the high ceiling at this point in the draft over Vitek.

32 – New York Yankees: Tyrell Jenkins RHP HS

Why it will: Jenkins fits the profile for a Yankees pick: he is a major athlete with a high velocity arm. He is a three star athlete, whose fastball hits 96 and should add speed as his mechanics get refined.

Why it won’t: Jenkins has huge upside, but he is a boom or bust type of pitcher. The Yanks might decide they want an arm that has a bit less potential but a lot less risk to it.

So there we go.  All 32 picks with projections and some rational behind why I am going to be very right or very wrong. The draft should be a fun and exciting time for most Indians fans. By the end of the draft the Indians will be better team, and the future for the Tribe should look a little bit brighter.

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2010 MLB Draft: What You Need To Know

It is Draft Eve and the craziness that is the MLB Draft is upon us. Here is a quick rundown of some things to know for the draft:

- Tomorrow night at 7:00 P.M. EST the draft will kick off with just the first round and first round compensation round only. The first round will be televised tomorrow night by MLB Network (coverage starts at 6:00 P.M. EST), but MLB.com will be carrying the draft live on-line all three days.

- On Tuesday (June 8th) the draft kicks back up with rounds 2-30. The draft wraps up on Wednesday (June 9th) with rounds 31-50. Both days start at 12:00 P.M. EST.

- There will be several minutes between selections for the first round because of TV, but for rounds 2-50 the picks will come fast and as furious as always via conference call.

- Here are the overall placements of the Indians' picks through the first ten rounds: 5, 55, 87, 120, 150, 180, 210, 240, 270, 300.

- For a refresher on who the Indians make take with their first pick, check out Jeff Ellis' two pieces he did on the hitters and pitchers the Indians will likely consider.

- Starting tomorrow we'll have all the news as it comes in with regard to what the Indians may be doing with the first pick, and as the draft commences and the picks come in lots of scouting reports, video, stats, analysis, etc will be posted immediately (as soon as humanly possible).  So check back often!

- Finally, here is the first round draft order:

1. Washington Nationals
2. Pittsburgh Pirates
3. Baltimore Orioles
4. Kansas City Royals
5. Cleveland Indians
6. Arizona Diamondbacks
7. New York Mets
8. Houston Astros
9. San Diego Padres
10. Oakland Athletics
11. Toronto Blue Jays
12. Cincinnati Reds
13. Chicago White Sox
14. Milwaukee Brewers
15. Texas Rangers (com pick for unsigned pick Purke last year)
16. Chicago Cubs
17. Tampa Bay Rays
18. Los Angeles Angels (comp pick for Chone Figgins signing with Seattle)
19. Houston Astros (comp pick for Jose Valverde signing with Detroit)
20. Boston Red Sox (comp pick for Billy Wagner signing with Atlanta)
21. Minnesota Twins
22. Texas Rangers
23. Florida Marlins
24. San Francisco Giants
25. St. Louis Cardinals
26. Colorado Rockies
27. Philadelphia Phillies
28. Los Angeles Dodgers
29. Los Angeles Angels (comp pick for John Lackey signing with Boston)
30. Los Angeles Angels
31. Tampa Bay Rays (comp pick for unsigned pick of Washington last year
32. New York Yankees

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Minor Happenings: Chen Is Exploding In Lake County

"Minor Happenings" is a weekly column which covers the important developments and news in the Indians farm system. While most of the information in this report is from my own research and through interviews I have conducted with organizational personnel, some information in this report is collected and summarized from the various news outlets that cover each team.

This is the second part of Minor Happenings this week as part one posted yesterday.

The Indians are preparing for the 2010 MLB Draft which gets started this coming Monday night June 7^th and then carries on with rounds 2-30 on Tuesday June 8^th and rounds 31-50 on Wednesday June 9^th.  Me along with several others on the site will be posting the picks and tons of information as it comes in, so if the draft is your thing and you crave information on the new players in the system, the IPI is the place to be.

I was in Lake County last night and was able to talk with several Indians brass as well as a couple scouts from other organizations.  One name in particular which came up was Roberto Perez as the feeling was mutual among all parties that he is a big league defensive catcher RIGHT NOW.  He still needs work with the bat, but the feeling is it will come, but worst case the feeling is he will be at worst a major league backup provided he avoids injuries and continues to work hard.  I will have more on him soon in a feature piece on the site.

Onto the Happenings…

Indians Minor League Player of the Month
(for May)

Chun Chen (Catcher – Lake County)
.400 (32-for-80), 10 R, 11 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 15 RBI, 10 BB, 15 K, .478 OBP, .688 SLG, 1.166 OPS

There’s another catcher starting to make some noise in the Indians minor league system.  Everyone knows about Triple-A catcher Carlos Santana and the promise he has as a big league catcher in the near future, but a catcher in the lower levels of the system at Low-A Lake County known as “Chun” looks like he may be in line to take over as the best “hitting” catching prospect in the system once Santana graduates later this year.  I make note of him being the best hitting prospect solely because fellow Lake County catching prospect Roberto Perez far and away is the best defensive catcher in the organization who many believe is Major League ready as a defender right now.

Chen, 21, is having a break through season offensively for Lake County where in 39 games he is hitting .345 with 4 HR, 27 RBI, and a .996 OPS.  His play to date is a far cry from the disappointing year he had last season at short season Single-A Mahoning Valley where in 59 games he hit .215 with 1 HR, 19 RBI and a .635 OPS.  He has always displayed good plate discipline during his three seasons in the Indians’ minor league system, but what has changed this year is the reemergence of his power stroke as he has 24 extra base hits – including a whopping 17 doubles - in 145 at bats so far this year which has already bested his 16 extra base hits in 195 at bats last year at Mahoning Valley.

Chen’s bat has always been something the Indians have been excited about since they signed him out of Taiwan in September 2007 and then impressed in the Gulf Coast League in 2008 and Instructional League after that.  He has an uncanny knack to consistently square the ball up, and when he does the ball just jumps off his bat.  The scary part is he is continuing to get stronger and projects to have more power down the road.

The biggest question mark with Chen is his defense as he is a converted third baseman that since he signed with the Indians has been playing catcher.  He has split the season at catcher with Roberto Perez and when he has not caught he has been in the lineup as the designated hitter.  He has shown a lot of improvement behind the plate, but still has a long way to go.  Even still he has the tools where it is felt he could become an offensive-minded catcher with average defensive skills, and if catching does not work out for him he should be able to handle first base as he definitely seems to have the bat for the position.  His progress will be interesting to follow the remainder of the season, and what a shot in the arm to the catching depth it would be if he can continue to develop both as a hitter and defender.

Honorable Mentions:

Jordan Brown (OF/1B – COL): .353, 15 G, 9 R, 7 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 19 RBI, 4 BB, 4 K, .978 OPS
Carlos Santana (C – COL): .324, 28 G, 19 R, 6 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 23 RBI, 24 BB, 24 K, .998 OPS
Josh Tomlin (RHP – COL): 3-0, 5 G, 1.52 ERA, 29.2 IP, 22 H, 5 ER, 6 BB, 19 K, 0.94 WHIP, .208 BAA
Frank Herrmann (RHP – COL): 1-0, 10 G, 0.00 ERA, 16.2 IP, 8 H, 3 BB, 13 K, 0.66 WHIP, .145 BAA
Jared Goedert (3B – AKR): .340, 26 G, 19 R, 10 2B, 0 3B, 6 HR, 16 RBI, 11 BB, 15 K, 1.051 OPS
Alex White (RHP – AKR): 2-2, 6 G, 2.11 ERA, 38.1 IP, 23 H, 9 ER, 11 BB, 25 K, 0.89 WHIP, .173 BAA
Jordan Henry (OF – KIN): .343, 26 G, 24 R, 4 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 10 RBI, 23 BB, 17 K, 9 SB, .851 OPS
Joe Gardner (RHP – KIN): 3-0, 6 G, 30.2 IP, 17 H, 6 ER, 13 BB, 27 K, 0.98 WHIP, .160 BAA
T.J. McFarland (LHP – KIN): 4-1, 7 G, 2.13 ERA, 42.1 IP, 37 H, 10 ER, 7 BB, 26 K, 1.04 WHIP, .231 BAA
Trey Haley (RHP – LC): 3-1, 6 G, 2.84 ERA, 31.2 IP, 24 H, 10 ER, 17 BB, 28 K, 1.29 WHIP, .216 BAA

Previous Winners:

April: Bo Greenwell (OF – Lake County)

Scout’s Takes

Indians’ Director of Amateur Scouting Brad Grant and his staff are hard at work getting set for the Major League Baseball Draft which kicks off this coming Monday night June 7^th.  Last minute preparations are being made to put their draft board together and go through all the players they are interested in taking this year.  Earlier in the week he shared some thoughts on the draft:

On preparing for the draft: “We started last year right after the draft.  We knew we were going to have a high pick last year right after June 10th and started to focus on things and we have been able to narrow it down now to where we have just a handful of players that we are looking at and focusing directly on.  It has been a fun process and it is good to kind of get to the end of it right now."

On the strength of the draft:  "This year's draft has good depth to it overall.  Obviously the focus is going to be on the fifth pick, but what we are looking to do as a Scouting Department is to infuse as much talent as we possibly can into the organization.  We are going to be picking at the top of each round, and we are doing everything possible to get the best players as possible in each round and use the entire draft.  We have done a good job of that in the past and we want to continue to make sure we don't lose focus on the other rounds in the draft and ensure that we are adding from the depth of the draft.  This year's depth does look like it is pretty pitching heavy, especially with high school right-handed pitching.  There are a lot of them out there, so we are going to try and add as many quality players as possible throughout the draft this year."

On picking for need vs. best player available: "We have a very deep system, so we are not looking to fill needs.  What we are looking for is to just get the most talented player as possible.  We have done a very good job as a staff as our scouting staff has done an excellent job of evaluating everybody and not focusing on a specific player or eliminating a player based on an agent or signability.  We have focused on evaluating everybody and will take the best player available this year."

On the availability of a Strasburg-type player this year: "I wouldn't say there is that kind of player as Strasburg is a once in a generation type player, so there is not that clear cut player this year.  There are a lot of good players out there and like I said there is a lot of depth.  It is a good draft and I think you will get good players throughout the draft this year."

On preparing for the draft: "I [recently] started to pull back and come to Cleveland a lot and started to look at and gather all the information talking to our scouts and just try to piece everything together.  They all [came] in on Sunday and we [started] with conference calls on Sunday and go with those for three days.  We start to put our draft board together and bring all of our scouts in an entire week before the draft just to go all through the information and prep for all of the players."

On the toughest pick to make in the draft: "That second pick is usually the most difficult pick because there are a lot of good players there that we like.  The first round kind of filters out as you get a pretty good feel of who you are going to get and who will be there if you have enough information, but that second round pick is difficult because you have players there you like and you have to choose one or the other.  We have 17 area scouts and five crosscheckers and all of them like a certain player, so you are getting a lot of information from a lot of different people and you ultimately have to make a decision."

On if he has seen any of the 2009 Draft picks play this year:  "I unfortunately don't get to see them as I am out looking at everyone for this year’s draft, but I live and die with the box scores and look at them every night.  It is fun to see Jason Kipnis making the transition over to second base as we hoped he would.  He is playing an excellent second base right now and also hitting at the same time.  Joe Gardner has been pitching very well and has moved up to Kinston now and has been great for us.  Austin Adams threw 97 [the other] night, so it is fun to get the box scores and game reports and see how those guys are doing."

Hagadone Has Solid Double-A Debut

After making ten starts for High-A Kinston where he went 1-3 with a 2.39 ERA (37.2 IP, 28 H, 29 BB, 45 K), left-handed pitcher Nick Hagadone was moved up to Double-A Akron earlier this week.

In Hagadone’s Double-A debut on Tuesday night he had a so-so performance as he battled through four innings and allowed three runs on three hits, two walks and had five strikeouts.  While the actual numbers from the game were not particularly impressive, he did show better control of his emotions, something which at times have flared up on him this season.  One of the early knocks on him since being acquired from the Red Sox in the Victor Martinez trade is he has a tendency to get too amped up and his intensity can work against him at times, and it is something he is currently working through.  At least for one night this was not the case on Tuesday and is a good sign considered he should have been amped up considering it was his first Double-A appearance.  On top of that he located his pitches well down in the zone and his changeup was as good as it has been all season, so while the numbers were not there his actual performance was better than it was in the box score.

In addition to controlling his emotions, another thing Hagadone is still working on is pounding the strike zone more consistently with strikes and eliminating the big misses.  He is averaging over six walks per nine innings which is not going to cut it at the big league level, much less the Double-A level.  Command is typically the last thing that comes when a player has Tommy John surgery, and he is still just under two years from the surgery, so as he becomes further removed from the surgery the hope is his command will return.

Comings & Goings

Here is a quick update noting some recent releases or signings as well as a look in to see how some former Tribe farmhands are doing with their new teams:

Former Indians farmhand right-hander Sung-Wei Tseng recently signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and former catcher Rolando Petit - whose release was somewhat of a surprise this spring - was recently signed by the Baltimore Orioles.  Neither player has appeared in a game yet for their new organization.

Left-hander Chuck Lofgren is pitching well for Triple-A Nashville (Brewers) where in 12 starts he is 6-4 with a 5.49 ERA (62.1 IP, 69 H, 30 BB, 37 K).  Left-hander Ryan Edell has made four starts for Double-A Midland (Athletics) and is 1-0 with a 0.98 ERA (18.1 IP, 14 H, 5 BB, 8 K) and right-hander Neil Wagner has made six relief appearances for Midland and is 0-1 with a 4.82 ERA (9.1 IP, 9 H, 10 BB, 13 K).  Right-hander Erik Stiller has made five relief appearances for Double-A Corpus Christi (Astros) and is 0-0 with a 4.00 ERA (9.0 IP, 8 H, 2 BB, 7 K).  Left-hander Matt Meyer is with Double-A Springfield (Cardinals) and in 18 appearances he is 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA (16.2 IP, 18 H, 13 BB, 13 K).  Finally, third baseman Jesus Brito is struggling with Low-A West Virginia (Pirates) where in 48 games he is hitting .208 with 6 HR, 20 RBI, and a .677 OPS.

Affiliate Notebook

Columbus Notes (35-21, 1^st place, 3.5 GU):  While left-hander Jeremy Sowers recently came out of the bullpen to make a spot start in a doubleheader earlier in the week, it is not a sign that he is going back into the rotation anytime soon.  The Indians are pretty committed to using him as a bullpen option going forward and in 12 appearances he is 1-2 with a 4.64 ERA (21.1 IP, 20 H, 9 BB, 15 K). … Catcher Carlos Santana ranks first in the International League in walks (42) and on-base percentage (.450), is second in OPS (1.030), 4th in RBI (45) and slugging percentage (.580), is firth in batting average (.316), and is fourth in home runs (10). … Infielder Brian Buscher is hitting .353 (12-for-34) with 3 2B, 1 HR and 6 RBI over his last 11 games and has hit safely in 10 of them. … Outfielder Chris Gimenez has 4 RBI over his last three games. … Outfielder Jordan Brown has batted .382 (13-for-34) with 5 2B, 1 HR and 13 RBI over his last 10 games. … Right-hander Josh Tomlin now has a 1.81 ERA (44.2 IP, 34 H, 9 ER, 8 BB, 28 K) and is 4-0 in his eight starts this year. … Right-hander Justin Germano has gone 1-1 with a 3.71 ERA (17.0 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 17 K) with a .167 opponents avg. mark (10-60) in his three starts at Columbus.  He is a combined 3-2 in 10 games (4 starts) between Columbus and Akron and is carrying a 3.22 ERA (36.1IP, 27 H, 13 ER, 6 BB, 33 K, 0.91 WHIP).

Akron Notes (25-30, 6^th place, 12.0 GB): Infielder Jared Goedert was called up to Triple-A Columbus yesterday, but not before his 21-game hitting streak came to an end on Wednesday night.  He finished a game short of the Akron franchise record held by Dave Roberts (1998) and James Betzsold ('97) when they both hit in 22 straight games.  Goedert leaves Akron hitting .325 with 7 HR, 32 RBI, and a .922 OPS in 44 games.  He currently ranks third in the Eastern League with in batting average and his OPS is ranked seventh. ... Outfielder Matt McBride is batting .317 (13-for-41) with 2 2B, 1 3B and 4 RBI over his last 11 games.  For the year he is hitting .260 (45-173) with 10 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 23 RBI and 22 runs scored. ... Third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall has scored 8 runs in his last five games while hitting .450 (9-for-20). … Right-hander Paolo Espino is 5-1 over his last six decisions (5 GS) with a 2.87 ERA (31.1 IP, 22 H, 10 ER, 28 K). … Right-hander Alex White is 2-1 with a 1.83 ERA in three starts for Akron (19.2 IP, 11 H, 5R/4ER, 4 BB, 11 K, .159 avg) and has thrown seven straight quality starts (45.0 IP, 20 H, 10 ER, 12 B, 32 K) between Akron and Kinston.

Kinston Notes (29-26, 3^rd place, 7.0 GB):  Right-hander Marty Popham has impressed in his short stint at Kinston since being called up there a little over a week ago.  In three starts he is 0-1 with a 5.52 ERA (14.2 IP, 16 H, 9 ER, 5 BB, 17 K).  His ERA is inflated because of a rough outing last time out on June 3^rd where he allowed eight runs and eight hits in 4.1 innings, but in his other two starts he was very good. … On Tuesday the Indians picked up right-handed pitcher Shane Lindsay off of waivers after he was released by the New York Yankees and then optioned him to High-A Kinston.  The Indians made room for him on the roster by moving outfielder Grady Sizemore from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.  While he is technically optioned to Kinston, he is actually in extended spring training working on getting back to pitching. … With utility man Adam Davis being promoted to Akron on Friday and left-hander Nick Hagadone promoted earlier in the week, the Indians promoted outfielders Trent Baker and Tim Palincsar from extended spring training to fill the roster void.  Both are likely temporary fills until a Lake County player is deemed ready to move up and then they would slide back to Lake County. … Outfielder Abner Abreu is batting .316 (12-for-38) with 10 RBI over his last 10 games, all of which he has hit safely. … Over his last 22 games, outfielder Lucas Montero has hit .347 (26-for-75) with 5 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR, 11 RBI and 17 runs scored raising his average from .149 to .248. … Outfielder Jordan Henry has 7 multi-hit games over his last 10 played batting .341 (15-for-44).  He has scored 10 runs over his last 10 games along with 3 stolen bases and is 12-for-13 in stolen base attempts and ranks 6th in the Carolina League. … Second baseman Jason Kipnis is batting .330 (29-for-88) and 27 RBI when runners are on base this year. .. Right-hander Cory Burns has picked up 6 saves in his first 7 games for Kinston (6.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 5 BB, 12 K). … Right-hander Rob Bryson has racked up 22 strikeouts in his first 7 games (12.2 IP, 3H, 2R/ER, 3 BB).

Lake County Notes (37-18, 1^st place, 4.0 GU): Cleveland Indians’ Andy Marte will be making a rehab assignment with the Lake County Captains on Saturday June 5th and Sunday June 6th. … Catcher Chun Chen is batting .441 (15-for-34) in the past 10 games with 6 2B, 1 HR and 7 RBI.  He has hit .413 (58-for-92) with 12 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR, 18 RBI and 15 runs scored since May 1 (26 G).  He ranks third in the Midwest League in slugging% (.570) and OPS (.968) and his .338 average (48-142) is fourth. … Outfielder Bo Greenwell is 10th in the league in batting at .316 (61-for-193).  He is also is 8th in the league in RBI with 34 this season. … Outfielder Delvi Cid remains second in the league with stolen bases swiping 22 in 24 attempts. … Third baseman Jeremie Tice’s 37 RBI are 3rd in the league. … Right-hander Austin Adams has gone 2-0 over his last 6 games (4 GS). ... Left-hander Vidal Nuno is now 1-1 with a 6.52 ERA in 9.2 IP (11 H, 7 ER, 14 K, 1 BB) this season. … Right-hander Antwonie Hubbard has been stellar at home carrying a 1.53 ERA and one save in 8 games at Classic Park (17.2 IP, 12 H, 3 R/ER, 5 BB, 21 K).

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @tlastoria.  His new book the 2010 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is also available for purchase on Amazon.com or his site.

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