Demoted RHRP Scott Roehl to Mahoning Valley (SSA) from Lake County (A-)
Traded 1B Eric Crozier (AAA) to the Toronto Blue Jays for 1B/C Josh Phelps
Interesting move from the Toronto end. Phelps has massive power potential (think a right-handed Russ Branyan), but cannot hit right-handers to save his life. I don’t understand the rush to get him out of town, but I’ll certainly take him. This move allows Phelps to platoon with Ben Broussard, and turns lefty-masher Lou Merloni into a super-sub. As for Eric Crozier, this gives the Jays a small insurance policy in case Carlos Delgado leaves via free agency. I think he can be a decent major-league player, and he’ll probably get an extended look in Toronto.
Eric Wedge now has a wealth of lineup options to choose from. For example, he could go with this against left-handers:
2B Ronnie Belliard
SS Omar Vizquel
RF Matt Lawton
CA Victor Martinez
DH Travis Hafner
3B Lou Merloni/Casey Blake
1B Josh Phelps
LF Coco Crisp
CF Grady Sizemore
and this against right-handers:
LF Matt Lawton
SS Omar Vizquel
DH Travis Hafner
CA Victor Martinez
1B Ben Broussard
3B Casey Blake
2B Ronnie Belliard
RF Jody Gerut
CF Grady Sizemore
Things get even more interesting when Aaron Boone and Ryan Ludwick come back.
Ryan
Prospect Review – Andrew Brown
Continuing with my look at Akron prospects:
RHSP Andrew Brown
Age: 24 (Born 2-17-1981)
Roster Status: On 40-Man Roster
2004 Stats: (AA) 40.1 IP, 4.02 ERA, 58 SO, 14 BB (Jacksonville)
(AA) 50.1 IP, 5.19 ERA, 52 SO, 28 BB (Akron)
Ranked #20 in Los Angeles’ organization by Baseball America
The second player received for Milton Bradley, Brown has eye-popping stuff, as evidenced by his strikeout ratios, but has battled both injury and wildness over this season. He’s already on the 40-man roster, so the Indians aren’t going to rush him; he’ll probably finish the year in Akron, and go to Buffalo in 2005. I’d really like the Indians to give Andrew every opportunity possible to show he can start; he has a blazing fastball along with a couple good breaking pitches, a combination that should be good enough to get batters out multiple times in a game.
Promoted OF Brad Snyder to Kinston (A+) from Lake County (A-)
With the success of Michael Aubrey and Ryan Garko this year, 2003 first round pick Brad Snyder has quietly put up pretty good numbers in his first full professional season. He’s not as accomplished offensively as Aubrey or Garko, but he plays, at least for now, at a more valuable position. I don’t think he’ll shoot through the system that fast, but he’s someone to keep an eye on.
Promoted OF Juan Valdes to Lake County (A-) from Burlington (R-)
Valdes was also selected in the 2003 draft (5th round), and is a toolsy outfielder with upside. He’s really young to be playing in Lake County (he just turned 19), so I’m expecting some initial struggles the rest of this year, but then again, he was a bit too young for an Advanced Rookie League as well. His numbers from Burlington:
134 AB, .269/.364/.381, 4 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 21 SB, 3 CS
Traded LHSP Jeriome Robertson to the Montreal Expos for LHRP Pierre-Luc Marceau (A+)
Ugh.
Marceau looks like an organizational guy, judging by his age (23) and the fact that he’s put up barely adequate numbers over his professional career. Obviously the Indians had no leverage here, as the Expos could have simply claimed Robertson off waivers. Regardless, losing Robertson for essentially nothing really annoys me.
Trading Rule 5 picks such as Willy Taveras is something I have no problem with; a team simply can’t keep all their prospects and expect to win at the major-league level. Eventually you have to acquire major-league talent, and one of the best ways to do that in a medium-sized market is to trade your excess minor-league talent for it. Now obviously if you remember the situation, the Indians were looking for some starting pitching depth at the time, and with Houston being one of the few teams that supposedly had a spare starter, they made a great trade partner, especially when they couldn’t keep Taveras on their roster.
However, when the Indians make these kind of deals in the future, they have to do a better job identifying their major-league talent. That’s all I’m asking. I don’t want the Indians to stockpile marginal Rule 5 eligibles on their 40-man roster just because they’ve been burned with Taveras; you can’t win that way. They just have to do a better job scouting the players they receive in return.
Hitting Streak
IF/OF Argenis Reyes has put together an impressive 23-game hitting streak for Mahoning Valley, and it doesn’t look like he’s slowing down; he went 4-5 tonight for the Scrappers. So far this year, he’s hitting .314/.348/.355. Argenis turns 22 after the season, so he’s not on any prospect list, but still that’s quite an accomplishment.
A Seller’s Market
The Indians didn’t make any moves to bring in a veteren player, and judging by the trades made over the weekend, it’s probably a good thing they didn’t. Listening to Antonetti and Wedge before Saturday’s game lead me to believe that some clubs *cough*Seattle*cough* were asking the moon and the stars for bit players. No thanks. On the other end, there were some rumblings that the Marlins were interested in Matt Lawton. Unfortunately, they were only willing to deal prospects. If they had been willing to part with Brad Penny, I’d deal Lawton. But trading Matt for prospects right now would be a bad move. Number one, there’s no one in the minors to remotely replace his production (Alex Escobar is out for the year, and Ryan Ludwick is still in Buffalo getting to playing shape). Number two, it would probably turn off a lot of fans who had been getting interested in the team (Remember when Colon was traded?).
The bottom line is this; the Indians are on the periphery of contention. But is the chance of winning the division now worth giving up players that might help the 2005 or 2006 clubs? You’ll probably get a different response from just about every Tribe fan out there, but in Shapiro’s case, he’s being consistent. When the Indians blew the team up in 2002, he talked about 2005 being the year the Indians would be “back”, and that the team was being built so that a full-out rebuilding process wouldn’t have to happen for a long time.
Of course it goes without saying that this year’s team could still win the division; it’s very possible. But would you give up Grady Sizemore for Mike Myers? Adam Miller for Victor Zambrano? Travis Hafner and Jake Westbrook for Guillemo Mota and Paul Lo Duca? Those were the equivalents off what the Indians would have given up had they made those deals. It was definitely a seller’s market yesterday; the Indians, if they have the money they say they have, should make their moves in the offseason when it will be much more buyer-friendly.
Prospect Review – Michael Aubrey and Franklin Gutierrez
Moving onto Akron, where you’ll generally find the highest concentration of prospects. Since Sizemore’s promotion to Cleveland, these two are the #1 and #2 prospects in the organization, in no particular order.
1B Michael Aubrey
Age: 22 (Born 4-15-1982)
Roster Status: Off 40-Man Roster
Rule 5: Not Eligible (Drafted in 2003)
2004 Stats: (AA) 58 AB, .259/.357/.345, 2 2B, 1 HR
(A+) 218 AB, .339/.438/.550, 14 2B, 10 HR
The Indians got Aubrey with the 11th pick of the 2003 draft, and so far he looks like a steal. The Indians knew they were getting a polished hitter when they picked him, but his power production thus far has exceeded expectations. He walked (27) more times than he struck out (26) in Kinston. The fact that he slugged .550 on top of that is a real promising sign. Currently on the shelf because of a hamstring injury, which is the only thing to slow Aubrey down thus far. Depending on where you look, Aubrey will be the Indians’ #1 prospect next year, and could make a couple overall top 10 lists.
OF Franklin Gutierrez
Age: 21 (Born 2-21-1983)
Roster Status: Off 40-Man Roster
Rule 5: Eligible (Signed in 2001)
2004 Stats: (AA) 249 AB, .309/.377/.478, 23 2B, 5 HR
Gutierrez was the first player received in the Milton Bradley trade this April, and his ceiling is pretty high. That being said, he’s more of a projection type of prospect at this time, as evidenced by all his doubles (doubles generally turn into home runs as a prospect gets older). He’ll probably move a bit slower than Grady Sizemore did, mostly due to his strikeout totals (72 in 249 ABs). Still, some scouts have been whispering Juan Gonzalez’s name when talking about Gutierrez, and that would be more than OK with me. Baseball America might rate him in the top 20 or so when their prospect rankings come out this winter. I think Aubrey’s a more sure bet than Gutierrez, but a right-handed power bat who can play center field is something you can’t ignore. Unfortunately, Franklin is currently down with an injured elbow, which could sideline him for at least the next 3-4 weeks.
Signed free agent OF Jason Tyner to a minor-league contract; Assigned him to Buffalo
That’s right, Jason Tyner is replacing Russell Branyan on Buffalo’s roster. Tyner is the other-dimension Evil Branyan, the guy who doesn’t strike out, doesn’t walk, and doesn’t hit home runs. Jason could be an adequate fourth outfielder if needed. Pretty much a blah move, but if you view it in context, it’s a hilarious turn of events.
Distinguished Company
Here are the major-league leaders in VORP, regardless of position:
1. Barry Bonds, LF – 83.6
2. Albert Pujols, 1B – 60.2
3. Carlos Guillen, SS – 57.5
4. Todd Helton, 1B – 56.4
5. Vladamir Guerrero, RF – 53.7
6. Bobby Abreu, RF – 53.5
7. Manny Ramirez, LF – 53.2
8. Travis Hafner, DH – 53.0
9. J.D. Drew, RF – 52.7
10. Jim Thome, 1B – 50.9
That’s some pretty good company Hafner is with.
Designated LHSP Jeriome Robertson for Assignment
I don’t really like this at all. While fomer Astro phenom Scott Elarton is on his way to winning the Worst Starting Pitcher in Baseball Award, former Astro Jeriome “15-game winner with a 5.00 ERA” Robertson is designated for assignment. Picking between the two is like picking between the gas chamber and the electric chair, but I’d rather take my chances with Robertson than Elarton. While all this hand-wringing by yours truly will be made moot if Robertson clears waivers, I don’t see it happening. A lot of teams are desperate for starting pitching, and pretty much everyone could use a left-hander, so Jeriome should be playing for another team this time next week.
Reinstated LHSP Brian Tallet from the 60-day Disabled List; Optioned him to Akron (AA)
The reason why Robertson was DFAd. Tallet had exhausted his rehab time-limit, and he was healthy, so the Indians had to put him back on the 40-man roster. It’s doubtful that he’ll help the Indians this season, but if his arm holds up, he might be in the Tribe’s bullpen next year in some capacity.
Traded 3B Russell Branyan to the Milwaukee Brewers for Cash
I view this more as a favor to Branyan than anything. The Bisons’ offense definitely takes a hit, but the way Russ was hitting, he deserved a shot somewhere. I would have liked to see him in Cleveland coming off the bench, but the combination of a preponderance of left-handed hitters and Ben Broussard finally resembling a league-average first baseman probably sealed his departure. The Brewers are probably going to have him play everyday, as Wes Helms has been slugging an abysmal .324 this year; Branyan could do that with his eyes closed.
Demoted LHSP Aaron Laffey and RHSP Nelson Hiraldo to Mahoning Valley (SSA) from Lake County (A-)
Laffey has struggled in his first full season as a professional. The left-hander has struck out 67 batters in 73 innings, but has had control problems off (44 walks) and on (79 hits) the plate. Likewise, Hiraldo, a product of the Tribe’s recently bountiful Latin America program, has been just as hittable (5.38 ERA), but has managed to keep his walks down (26 in 72 innings).
Promoted RHSP Chris Niesel to Lake County (A-) from Mahoning Valley (SSA)
Niesel was dominating batters in the NYPL, so he’ll be given a shot against more advanced competition. He’s one of the multitude of college arms drafted by the Indians in this year’s draft, but he’s the first one to see a full-season league.
Site Update
I’m going to try to update the depth chart within the week; I personally feel that it’s the most useful tool for visitors looking for a quick overview of the team’s system. I’m trying to pare down on the amount of external pages that I have to update, as I’d rather condense all the info down onto one page (this one). Some of the salary info will eventually make it onto this blog, as will the options; but right now I haven’t figure that out. So please bear with me; before moving to blogger, the site was essentially a bunch of Word documents. Hopefully by the end of the year, everything is HTML-ized, including the player profiles. And yes, I will get to making new profiles eventually, but I don’t want to waste time making them the old way when I’d have to convert them into the new format this fall.
So essentially, please bear with me 🙂