Knapp Time followed by Miller Time

[JohnG71097]

The Tale of 2 Fireballers

 

This from AC

 

•Jason Knapp lives. And not only that, but he's going to pitch in an actual game. Knapp, for the uninitiated, is the guy who was considered the key acquisition in last summer's Cliff Lee trade. But we've seen little of him since. He was injured at the time the Indians acquired him, but because the Indians were not in a position to request an MRI on Knapp from the Phillies at that time, they didn't know about the loose bodies in his shoulder. He had shoulder surgery last September and has been pitching in Arizona Rookie League games the last few weeks. Now, he's been deemed ready to join Class A Lake County, and he'll make his Captains debut Friday night at Classic Park, against Dayton. Knapp posted a 1.46 ERA, 18 strikeouts and four walks in 12 1/3 innings in Arizona. Keep in mind, Knapp is turning 20 on Aug. 31. So while the injury was obviously a setback, he has time to get his career back on track and become the guy the Indians hope they acquired.

 

 

•The bolded note announcing the above news on the Indians game notes tonight is titled, "Knapp Time." Well played, Bart Swain.

 

 

•This is as good a time as any to give you an Adam Miller update. He lives, too, and he's been throwing bullpen sessions at the Arizona complex the last couple weeks. The Indians hope to get him in a game environment before the end of the calendar year. That could be in the Fall Instructional League or in winter ball. Miller has had four surgeries on his right middle finger over the last two and a half years, and his hope of reaching the bigs is a major longshot. But he's still out there pitching, trying to overcome the odds.

 

•As Miller proves, not all highly touted Draft picks pan out. Therefore, spending $9.3 million on a bunch of unproven kids won't silence the critics who consider the Indians to be... shall we say... frugal? But for those paying attention, what the Indians have done the last couple summers is significant. Knowing the Major League free agent market (and, for that matter, the high-end international market) is completely out of control and out of their budget, the Indians have chosen to invest heavily in amateur talent, hoping for a major payoff down the line. The Royals and Pirates are two other small-market teams that have gone this route. "The teams that are ahead of the curve, the teams that have, quite frankly, figured out the inefficiencies in this part of the market, have been super, hyper-aggressive," said John Mirabelli, the Indians' vice president of amateur scouting. "There isn't a slot system in place. There is a talent acquisition system in place, and your job as an organization is to get the best out of it."

 

 

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