Minor League Thread

[CIMO.]

Batting leaders as of 7/3

 

Kinston

 

AVG

Lonnie Chisenhall

.284

 

HR

Lonnie Chisenhall

13

 

RBI

Lonnie Chisenhall

55

 

 

Akron

 

AVG

Cristo Arnal

.284

 

HR

Carlos Santana (tied with Weglarz)

12

 

RBI

Nick Weglarz

55

 

 

Columbus

 

AVG

Andy Marte

.326

 

HR

Andy Marte

11

 

RBI

Andy Marte

46

[Beanpot]

Great thread.

 

I watched Ross Atkins on Drennan's show this afternoon and he could barely suppress a sly giggle while talking about Rondon. I know it's his job to like his guys, but that name in particular caused him to beam.

 

He also mentioned that he makes it to ~60 minor league and ~50 MLB games a year. Yeah, that's a nice gig.

 

Beanpot

[Mr. T]

Thanks for the news from the minors. it has been a few years since I have been to Kinston to watch a game but my bet is they are more entertaining to watch than the wedgie machine!

 

 

[listercat]

from what I understand LaPorta is the real deal; cannot wait to see him in Huntington Park next weekend

 

BTW - Mrs Lister and I went down to Huntington Park yesterday evening just to bump around the arena district...it is REALLY COOL! Cannot wait!

[CIMO.]

Pitching leaders as of 7/3

 

Kinston

 

WINS

Eric Berger

6

 

Ks

Eric Berger

66

 

ERA

Eric Berger

2.29

 

 

Akron

 

WINS

Josh Tomlin

8

 

Ks

Hector Rondon

73

 

ERA

Ryan Edell

2.62

 

 

Columbus

 

WINS

Jack Cassell

5

 

Ks

Kirk Saarloos

53

 

ERA

Zach Jackson

4.87

[Oldcrow1945]

This is a great idea for a thread.

 

Either Huff or Sowers or Laffey is going to have a good year and end up with the Tribe as I think Pavano will be released or sent down at some point.

I had high hopes that Huff would turn a poor spring around but his first start wasn't great.

[CIMO.]

Sowers pitches 5 scoreless innings, walks one, strikes out 4 as the Clippers win 3-2.

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/st...colaaa_indaaa_1

[Oldcrow1945]

Sowers pitches 5 scoreless innings, walks one, strikes out 4 as the Clippers win 3-2.

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/st...colaaa_indaaa_1

 

Wow...Great news....5 scoreless.

 

[CIMO.]

Kinston

 

Kevin De La Cruz, in his second start, goes 6 scoreless innings, 4 hits, zero walks, 9 strikeouts. I like this guy.

 

 

Columbus

 

Hodges-LaPorta-Aubrey keep mashing in the heart of the order. Batting .333, .500, .550 respectively. Combine for 9 hits (5 doubles) and 4 RBI tonight.

 

Meloan pitches 2.1 scoreless in relief, no hits, one walk, 3 Ks. This guy throws in the mid-90s with a good slider. He has a future.

[CIMO.]

Akron

 

Carlos Santana (batting cleanup) hits a grand slam in the first inning, the team's only runs of the game.

Hector Rondon pitches 5.2 innings, gives up 4 hits, 1 walk, 1 run. Strikes out 5.

Vinnie Pestano records his 3rd save, still hasn't given up a run.

 

 

 

Columbus

 

Jordan Brown showing he still has big league potential. 3 hits, a homer and 2 RBI today - .318 average on the year.

David Huff pitches 5 innings, 5 hits, 2 walks. But only gave up 1 run and struck out three.

[Oldcrow1945]

Hector Rondon.

 

2-0

1.59 ERA

Opp. Batting Ave. .220

0 HR's

 

 

But here is the stat I love.

 

11 K's and 2 BB's.....Wow!

[Oldcrow1945]

A Columbus hitting report

 

In our discussions about spring training I mentioned that I think Mike Aubrey is still going to be a good major leaguer one day. I have a feeling it may not be with the Tribe though as there is a glut of good first basemen in the organization.

I would really hate to see this kid go somewhere else. I know there has been health problems but I'd still like to se him in Cleveland one day. He has continued his hot spring in his first 8 games at Columbus.

 

28 AB's

1 HR

1 Triple

2 Doubles.

.464 BA

0 K's

 

 

 

Matt LaPorta

 

24 AB's

2 HR's

1 Triple

3 doubles

.833 Slugging percentage

.375 BA

2 K's

 

The thing I really like about these two top Columbus hitters is that in a combined 52 AB's they have only 2 K's.

[CIMO.]

Jeremy Sowers

 

6 innings, 7 hits, 2 runs. 8 strikeouts to 1 walk. That's two good starts for him, love the depth but it's going to be tough if no one can start playing like an ace.

 

Interesting stat...

 

with the bases empty, batters are hitting .444 against Sowers.

with runners on, they're hitting .077....and in scoring position .087.

 

Yeah, small sample. But hopefully that's more a sign of clutch than luck.

[Oldcrow1945]

with the bases empty, batters are hitting .444 against Sowers.

with runners on, they're hitting .077....and in scoring position .087.

 

Yeah, small sample. But hopefully that's more a sign of clutch than luck.

 

Hmmmmm....really interesting...Looks like he buckles down when the going gets tough. I like that stat a lot!

 

[CIMO.]

Unforunate news for Kevin De La Cruz, who's definitely the player to watch at the lower levels. From the essential indiansprospectinsider.com

 

Today, advanced Single-A Kinston officially activated left-hander Ryan Miller who got the start in place of lefty Kelvin De La Cruz who was sent to Single-A Mahoning Valley (paper move, he is still in Kinston). Apparently, De La Cruz is okay but the Indians staff has taken precautionary measure to sit him for a start or two after he tweaked his elbow in practice a few days ago. This is certainly concerning given his great start to the season and his prospect status, so this is something to monitor the next week or so to see how he responds to the rest and how he pitches when he comes back.

http://www.indiansprospectinsider.com/2009...-sidelined.html

 

 

 

for Sunday's games

 

Columbus

LaPorta homers (his third), Barfield (playing center field) and Valbuena at the top of the order combine for 5 hits and 4 runs.

 

Valbuena is an interesting player. Currently batting .342 in Columbus with a .982 OPS and 3 stolen bases. He only had about 70 games above the AA level before this year, so assuming Cabrera/DeRosa/etc hold down 2nd base this year, it should be a good learning experience for him in Columbus. There's definitely space on this team for a guy who can hit .300 with speed.

 

Tony Sipp pitches 2 scoreless with 4 strikeouts. That's 10 in 7 innings for him.

 

 

Akron

 

Somehow this team keeps winning. After Sunday they hold an 8-2 record.

 

Nick Weglarz gets his first homer and first 3 RBIs.

 

Carlos Santana gets his 14th RBI in 10 games. He's only batting .229, but with his pop and plate disciple has an OPS of .941.

 

Chuck Lofgren seems to be bouncing back, pitching 6 innings with 2 hits and 1 run. 3 Ks to one walk.

 

Who knows the impact, but four of the five starters in Akron have ERAs below two. Santana must be doing something right behind the plate. I'd like to see how he's handling the running game too.

 

 

Kinston

 

Cord Phelps is looking like another good 2B in our system. After starting the season 1 of 17, he has 6 hits in his past four games. Two on sunday. Combined with good speed (4 steals on the year) and from what I've read, a good defensive game and he could be a fast riser.

 

John Ollman collects four hits and Ramon Pena drives in 3.

 

Matt Brown has two more hits and is currently hitting .457 in the cleanup spot. Might not have much of a big league future but he should be fun to watch.

 

Ryan Miller does a pretty good job filling in for De La Cruz as the team wins 9-7.

[Oldcrow1945]

Unforunate news for Kevin De La Cruz, who's definitely the player to watch at the lower levels. From the essential indiansprospectinsider.com

 

 

http://www.indiansprospectinsider.com/2009...-sidelined.html

 

 

 

 

 

Columbus

.

 

Valbuena is an interesting player. Currently batting .342 in Columbus with a .982 OPS and 3 stolen bases. He only had about 70 games above the AA level before this year, so assuming Cabrera/DeRosa/etc hold down 2nd base this year, it should be a good learning experience for him in Columbus. There's definitely space on this team for a guy who can hit .300 with speed.

 

I read an article by a Seattle sportswriter shortly after the trade. Valbuena was the guy he hated to see go. He thought that while he may not be a future hall of famer, he was going to be a very good Major league player. He thought the Tribe got a real steal there.

 

[CIMO.]

I'm not sure I'd call it a steal, considering the Mariners are loving their new defensive outfield led by Mr. Gutierrez. I do like having him in the system though, looks like he could be a more true #2 hitter than anyone we've had recently if he can continue with his good contact and speed, and he definitely seems pretty close to the majors.

 

Our big league team just seems so loaded with middle of the order mashers...Hafner, Peralta, Garko, Shoppach, Choo, etc. One of the reasons I'm really looking forward to Brantley coming up, we need guys who can just come up with a clutch single the other way and threaten with good baserunning.

 

LF - Brantley

CF - Sizemore

C - Martinez

DH - Hafner

1B - LaPorta

3B - Peralta

RF - Choo

2B - Valbuena

SS - Cabrera

 

Spread some contact/speed throughout the lineup, with 30 homer guys at #2 and #7, that's my kind of lineup.

[CIMO.]

in games....

 

Akron (10-2)

 

Sweeps the double header.

 

Hector Rondon (3-0) pitches 5 scoreless, 4 hits, 1 walk, 2 Ks. Doesn't look like he'll be making the jump this year, he still hasn't made it through six innings (probably on a strict pitch count, but still). But the potential is definitely there for a big future.

 

Vinnie Pestano saves another one (6). ERA is still zero.

 

Columbus (6-8)

 

14 runs for the Clippers.

 

Led by Wyatt Torregas (who?), with 2 HR and 4 RBI.

 

Josh Barfied and David Delucci (huh?) combine for 4 hits and 5 runs.

 

LaPorta goes 3/5, scores twice.

 

Scott Roehl gets the pretty impressive 3-inning save in the 14-4 win.

[Oldcrow1945]

LF - Brantley

CF - Sizemore

C - Martinez

DH - Hafner

1B - LaPorta

3B - Peralta

RF - Choo

2B - Valbuena

SS - Cabrera

 

I love that lineup. I really do.

 

Hey, if Francisco or Crowe continues to struggle around the .200 mark, how long before we see LaPorta in Left?

Crowe was 0-4 again tonight. Two K's and 3 LOB. Now hitting .192

LaPorta is just too good of a hitter to keep down. He's not a great fielder but I'm unsure how you can keep Crowe up and leave LaPorta down.

 

I was thinking, Having LaPorta there in left for Francisco gives Wedge yet another option as far as shuffling the lineup since LaPorta has experience at first. He could end up with one of the most versatile lineups in the league.

[CIMO.]

I edited my first two posts for the batting and pitching leaders in the triple crown categories. Looks weird with a few posts separating mine but it was too long to combine them in one post, so oh well. I'll try to update the stats every week.

 

 

As for the news

 

Columbus

 

Matt LaPorta combines for 5 hits, 2 homers, 4 RBI, and scores 5 runs in Friday and Saturday's wins

- His average now sits at .404 through 57 ABs

In the same span, Luis Valbuena gets 4 hits, a homer and 5 RBI, scoring thrice

David Huff on Saturday goes 6 innings, allowing 4 hits and 2 walks, 3 runs, and striking out 7.

 

 

Akron

 

Great start Saturday for Chuck Lofgren. Goes 6 hitless, scoreless innings. Walks one. Ks 7. Could be working his way back up the prospect ladder.

Vinnie Pestano gave up his first run on Friday, but another shutout save (7) on Saturday.

Carlos Santana hits his 5th homer on Saturday.

 

 

Kinston

 

From April 21st to the 23rd, Lonnie Chisenhall hit 3 homers, 2 grand slams, and drove in 13.

- Batting .341 at shortstop, he could be a fast riser. Looks like a great draft pick from 2008.

Jeanmar Gomez pitches 7 scoreless, 4 hits, 1 walk, 6 Ks on Saturday.

[CIMO.]

Interesting story about a near brawl in Columbus

 

Clippers manager Torey Lovullo heard from the office of International League president Randy Mobley today about the near brawl with the Indianapolis Indians on Saturday in Huntington Park.

 

Both teams spilled onto the field in the first inning after Columbus' Luis Valbuena hit a home run. The Indians thought Valbuena watched the flight of the home run too long and flipped his bat. Both are deemed sins in the unwritten book of baseball etiquette.

 

At any rate, Indianapolis second baseman Chris Barnwell screamed at Valbuena while he was circling the bases. When Valbuena hit home plate he turned and yelled at Barnwell. Barnwell threw his glove down and charged toward Valbuena. Both dugouts emptied.

 

Nothing much else happened because Columbus' Andy Marte intercepted Barnwell and kept him away from Valbuena. Mobley fined everybody who left the dugouts except Marte, whose quick thinking short-circuited the fight.

 

"I thought that was pretty good of Randy," Lovullo said of the decision not to fine Marte. "The rule is you get fined if you leave the dugout. I just stressed that there was an instigator and it wasn't anybody in our dugout. So that will put to rest that situation."

 

Lovullo wasn't sure what the fine would be but it sounded like the $25 variety for most of those involved. He likely hoped that Barnwell drew something larger.

http://blog.dispatch.com/clippers/

 

Pretty good blog, by the way. The Dispatch looks like it does a solid job with Clippers coverage.

 

 

As for some more regular news

 

TOLEDO - Jeremy Sowers checked the Toledo Mud Hens on one run and five hits over seven innings, and Wyatt Toregas hit a two-run homer to lift the Clippers to a 5-3 victory last night in Fifth Third Field.

 

Sowers (1-1) worked out of a two-on, no-out jam in the third and locked down the Mud Hens for the next four innings.

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/sport...29.html?sid=101

 

Akron starter Hector Rondon set a new Aeros season-high nine strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings as Akron improved to 13-4…Harrisburg dropped its 10th consecutive game to fall to 2-14.

 

“Just like he has all year, Hector had a good live fastball going through the zone,” Aeros manager Mike Sarbaugh said. “I also thought he threw some real good sliders tonight, which is something he’s been working on.”

http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/tribe_matters/...e-loss-tuesday/

6 2/3 innings, 6 hits, 1 walk, 1 run to go with his 9 Ks.

 

Kinston, NC– The Kinston Indians have swept the Carolina League Weekly Awards for the second straight week! Eastern North Carolina native Lonnie Chisenhall is the Carolina League Player of the Week and Eric Berger is the CL Pitcher of the Week!

Newport native Lonnie Chisenhall had a monster week at the plate hitting .333 (10-30) with three home runs and 15 RBI. Chisenhall hit a home run in three straight games last week with back to back grand slams on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by a three run home run on Thursday. Chisenhall is now second in the Carolina League with 18 RBI on the season. Chisenhall is hitting .296 on the year.

Kinston starting pitcher Eric Berger is the Carolina League Pitcher of the Week after going 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in two starts last week. Berger gave up only four hits in ten innings of work, striking out 13 and not giving up a run against Myrtle Beach and Lynchburg. Berger is 2-1 with a 1.42 ERA on the season and leads the Carolina League with 26 strikeouts. His ERA is the third lowest ERA in the Carolina League. Just like Chisenhall, Berger also has North Carolina ties, born into a military family in Goldsboro, NC, but moving to California at age two.

So far this season only Kinston Indians have won Carolina League Weekly awards. Chisenhall and Berger join pitcher Kelvin De La Cruz and outfielder Matt Brown as the only players to have garnered Carolina League honors so far this season.

http://www.kinstonindians.com/news/shownews.php?n=1315

[Beanpot]

From the PD:

 

Indians farm report: Marte homers twice in Clippers' win

Posted by mrose May 03, 2009 09:02AM

 

Andy Marte slugged two home runs, and Toma Ohka (2-1) spread seven hits over six innings, as Columbus won at Durham, N.C., 10-6.

 

Columbus scored four times in the top of the first, in the Class AAA game against the top farm team for Tampa Bay. One first-inning run scored on a sacrifice fly by Marte, who had three RBI in the game. The former Cleveland Indian is batting .345, with six RBI in 25 at-bats for Columbus.

 

Both his home runs were bases-empty blasts to left field.

 

The Clippers' first inning also featured the sixth stolen base of the season by Michael Brantley and the first by George Lombard. Wyatt Toregas and Lombard doubled in the Clippers' two-run fourth. Lombard also had a run-scoring double in the eighth.

 

Next up: Clippers close out series at Durham today at 5:05 p.m.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ssf/2...marte_home.html

 

Beanpot

[CIMO.]

Updated the statistical leaders on the first page yesterday.

 

Chisenhall Hits Another Grand Slam, Kinston Loses 10-9

 

Newport native Lonnie Chisenhall went 4-for-5 with a grand slam home run, as Kinston lost a wild one to Salem 10-9 Monday night in Virginia. Chisenhall was a triple short of the cycle, hitting two singles, a double and the big home run. Three of Chisenhall’s five home runs have been grand slams this season; he is now hitting .296 on the year with 24 RBI.

http://www.indiansprospectinsider.com

 

 

Columbus and Akron were both washed out.

 

 

And from the Dispatch blog, a cavity-inducing sweet description of Trevor Crowe, from Clippers manager Torey Lovullo

 

"(He is) exciting, passionate," he said. "When he steps on the field, you are aware of his presence. You've got to pay attention to him because he is loaded with talent. He doesn't want to let anything go to waste.

 

"He is blessed with a great ability to perform. He wants to do something spectacular on every single play. Even if it's a fly ball to right and he's playing in left, he wants to go catch it. There's nothing wrong with that."

 

Crowe, he added, has become more refined each year.

 

"As he has learned over the past four or five years, it takes more than just being an athlete," Lovullo said. "There is finesse to this game, and he has mastered the finesse. He's going to be special. Trevor, two years ago, was very raw and very mechanical at times. These past two years, he's really grown up."

http://blog.dispatch.com/clippers/

[Beanpot]

Draft related stuff from fangraphs:

 

Draft Reviews: Cleveland Indians

Posted By Marc Hulet On May 4, 2009 @ 2:00 pm In Minor Leagues | 5 Comments

 

2008 Draft Slot: 29th overall

Top Pick: Lonnie Chisenhall, IF, North Carolina community college

Best Pick: Chisenhall

Keep an Eye On: Trey Haley, RHP, Texas high school (2nd round)

Notes: The Tribe did a nice job scouting Lonnie Chisenhall, for whom some clubs had serious makeup concerns. By all reports, though, he’s been a model citizen for the Indians organization and has hit better than expected early on in his pro career. The club went over-slot with a number of players (Bryce Stowell, T.J. House) and could end up with one of the better drafts when we look back in five years at the 2008 selections.

 

2007 Draft Slot: 13th overall

Top Pick: Beau Mills, 1B, Lewis-Clark State college

Best Pick: Mills, from a weak pool of picks

Worst Pick: T.J. McFarland, LHP, Illinois high school

Notes: The club drafted slugger in 1B Beau Mills and then did not pick again until the fourth round, which certainly hurt in terms of depth. No one else has really stepped up their game since then. Prep pick T.J. McFarland has a history of elbow problems and he hasn’t looked very good since signing.

 

2006 Draft Slot: 39th overall (supplemental first round)

Top Pick: David Huff, LHP, UCLA

Best Pick: Wes Hodges, 3B, Georgia Tech (second round - 69th overall)

Worst Pick: Steven Wright, RHP, University of Hawaii (second round - 56th overall)

Notes: Perhaps worried that the club lacked a first-round pick, the organization went with an “advanced” college arm that had a lower overall ceiling but would move quickly. Clubs are now realizing that category of draft pick is pretty much a myth. It’s now 2009 and David Huff hasn’t pitched in the Majors yet. His ceiling is that of a third or fourth starter. Steven Wright is looking like a future middle reliever in the Majors, but the club made up for that second-round pick with another in the same round: third baseman Wes Hodges. The right-handed hitter won’t be a star but he should at least be a league-average third baseman.

 

* * *

 

2009 Draft Slot: 15th overall

Draft Preference (2006-08): Definitely college players

MLB Club Need: Pitching, Pitching, more Pitching, and Third base

Organizational Need: Center field, Right field, LHP Pitching, RHP Pitching

Organizational Strength: 1B/LF, Third base

Notes: The club has not really made a splash with its first overall pick in quite some time… although Chisenhall could change that. The club is picking in the middle of the first round, so a lot is up in the air… but you have to figure the club is leaning to a college pitcher, unless a good (college) bat finds its way to them.

 

Article printed from FanGraphs Baseball: http://www.fangraphs.com

 

Beanpot

[CIMO.]

Some snips from a great article on Lastoria's site

 

Indians Minor League Player Of The Month

(for April)

 

Matt McBride (First Baseman - Kinston)

.412 AVG (35-for-85), 21 games, 18 R, 11 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 27 RBI, 9 BB, 10 K, 1.186 OPS

 

After what was really a lost season for Kinston first baseman Matt McBride in 2008, he is sure doing his best to make up for lost time this season. McBride missed most of the 2008 season recovering from surgery to his shoulder, but has come back this Matt McBrideseason 100% healthy and is as hot as a hitter can be right now the first few weeks of the season. Eventually, he will cool down, but until then his teammates and the Kinston fans are enjoying the offensive onslaught he has been on.

 

(Indians farm director Ross Atkins) On Hector Rondon: ""He has been great. We talk about all the time what is best for these guys, and once they have shown over a period of time that they don't belong there then we start to talk about the best plan for their progression through the system. Hector has been unbelievable. We still want to see the slider come more consistently, and it may be that we have to get him to Triple-A to see that. But he has been a great sign this year, and everything we have asked him to do for the most part he has done it. The last piece to come is just being more consistently on top of that slider and using it more regularly."

 

On Abner Abreu: "Abner is impressive. When you look at him he looks a little like a young Vladimir Guerrero. He is a lean, lanky type of powerful athlete. He has plenty of arm strength, he is almost an average runner, and has well above average power. He's only 19 in the South Atlantic League and is getting his fair share of breaking balls. It probably has a lot to do with that he looks like Guerrero. He is not quite as big and strong, but I think just the look when he comes up to hit where catchers are immediately putting down the "2" sign. But he is an impressive athlete. He can throw and run and has a lot of raw power. He'll be someone that we are talking about for some time to come."

 

Andy Marte's stat line for the week

.429 AVG (6-for-14), 4 R, 1 2B, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 3 BB, 1 K

 

for the year (15 games) he has a 1.064 OPS....just sayin.

 

De La Cruz Is Officially Shutdown

It was bad news this week as it has been learned that prized left-handed pitcher Kelvin De La Cruz will be shutdown for six weeks with a left elbow strain. Reportedly, a few weeks ago during one of his off-day workouts he tweaked his elbow. The Indians skipped his spot in the High-A Kinston rotation, but his health did not improve so last week he was flown into Cleveland to be tested by teamKelvin De La Cruz doctors at Progressive Field and have an MRI done. Shortly after the tests it was learned that he will be completely shutdown for six weeks and rehab in Goodyear, AZ and then be re-evaluated at that time. If all goes well, he would be put on a return to throw program. At this point, De La Cruz will be sidelined for two to three months.

 

This is a very unfortunate development for De La Cruz as he has jumped onto the scene in the past year as one of the Indians Top 10 prospects and one of the best left-handed starting pitching prospects in all of baseball. He was off to a great start with Kinston this year where in two starts he was 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA and in 12 innings had allowed 6 hits, 2 walks and struck out 19 batters.

 

Santana Living Up To Hype

 

Indians top catching prospect Carlos Santana has done a good job so far of living up to all the hype that was built up around him this past offseason with his near unanimous #1 ranking in the Indians system by most publications as well as his inclusion in many Top 50 Prospect lists in all of baseball. So far this season he is hitting .268 with 6 HR, 22 RBI and has a .954 OPS.

 

Carlos SantanaLast year, teams pitched to him more since he was coming off a season in 2007 with the Dodgers Low-A affiliate where he hit just .223 with a .688 OPS. He responded by having a banner 2008 campaign hitting a combined .326 with 21 HR, 117 RBI and .999 OPS in 130 games in the Indians and Dodgers systems. This year, however, Santana is finding it a tougher road to hoe as a lot of the time he is just not being pitched to. With an Akron lineup that has been largely inconsistent this season, opponents have chosen instead to pitch around him. To Santana's credit, this has not frustrated him and he is taking what the opposing pitchers are giving him, which is a clear sign of just how advanced a hitter he really is. He has 19 walks and just 14 strikeouts so far this season.

 

http://www.indiansprospectinsider.com/

 

I'm constantly advertising this site, there's no better place for minor league Tribe news.

 

 

And from the Dispatch blog, the Clippers are facing Dice-K on a rehab assignment.

 

"We're well aware of what follows Dice-K," Columbus manager Torey Lovullo said. "We know there's a lot of media and a lot of excitement. We're not going to get caught up in that. But we're looking forward to the challenge of facing him. He's probably one of the best pitchers in the game. I played in Japan. I know that those media hordes follows the superstars."

 

I asked Lovullo if he had seen Dice-K pitch.

 

"I faced him a couple of times over there," he said, smiling. "That's about as close as I can get to saying that I've seen him. We know that he's a very effective pitcher. We've talked over a couple of things that he does. these guys are going to be excited to see what he is all about."

 

Center-fielder Michael Brantley smiled at the mention of Dice-K.

 

"I've only seen him on TV," he said. "He's an outstanding pitcher. What are you going to do? You have to battle and see where we come out at the end. It's always fun to face one of the best pitchers in the game. It's a challenge and I think our team is ready to handle it."

 

And later in that article, a note on Michael Brantley's defensive prowess

 

Winning will take more efforts like the one Saturday night. Brantley helped stop a six-game Columbus losing streak by robbing Carlos Maldonado of a two-run home run in the second inning. He leaped and gloved the ball above the wall in left-center field. He said that the ball came back to him a little.

 

"Right off the bat, I didn't think I had a chance," Brantley said. "I thought it was an absolute bomb, a home run. As it was traveling, it kind of slowed down. I knew I had a little bit of a chance at it."

 

He has taken a couple of other homers away in his career.

 

"But that was probably my best one," Brantley said. "It's a great feeling. You've robbed a home run and saved a couple of runs. So that's just one of the biggest feelings you can have as an outfielder."

http://blog.dispatch.com/clippers/

 

 

First page stats updated.

[CIMO.]

I've been lazy the past few days, but Castro touches on some important stuff.

 

 

--------------------

 

Wedge said Hector Rondon will work out of the Akron bullpen again Friday night. He said that even if Rondon had remained in the Akron rotation, he would not have been a candidate for Sunday's spot start. "Obviously, we see him as a starter [long-term]," Wedge said. "But for him to be an option for us [this year], the best way could be out of the bullpen. We want to take some time and see if he is an option."

 

An option that might be a little closer is right-hander Steven Wright, who, you'll remember, was moved from the Akron rotation to the bullpen earlier this month. Wright was promoted to Columbus today after giving up just one run on seven hits with three walks and nine strikeouts in four relief appearances for Akron. Wright was a second-round Draft pick out of Hawaii in 2006.

 

Right-hander Joey Mahalic has been promoted from Class A Lake County to Kinston after going 0-1 with a 1.91 ERA in six starts.

 

OF Nick Weglarz got off to a horrid start for Akron this season, but he's come on strong this month. He is batting .448 with a .541 on-base percentage and a .793 slugging percentage in May, driving in 14 of Akron's 48 runs in the month.

 

Trevor Crowe is just 4-for-29 since his demotion to Columbus.

 

[Beanpot]

Weglarz tearing it up in minors

Posted By RAY SPITERI / Review Staff Writer

Posted 5 hours ago

 

Nick Weglarz was named Eastern League Player of the Week for his Double-A baseball team last week.

 

The Stevensville native has helped lead the Akron Aeros, a minor league affiliate of the Cleveland Indians, to a league-best 29-9 record.

 

The 21-year-old hit .458 last week with three doubles, a home run, six runs scored and was tied for second in the league with eight runs batted in.

 

The Indians' third-round selection in the 2005 draft, Weglarz has been heralded for his discipline at the plate, as the Lakeshore Catholic high school graduate had seven walks and only three strike outs last week.

 

It has been an eventful year for Weglarz. Along with ripping it up in Ohio, he also donned the Maple Leaf in March as he represented Canada in the World Baseball Classic. Last year, he showcased his talents on the international stage when he played for Canada in the Beijing Olympics.

 

http://www.niagarafallsreview.ca/ArticleDi....aspx?e=1580085

 

Beanpot

[CIMO.]

It's about time. I was psyched about Weglarz going into the season but he's been pretty dreadful up until recently. We might as well just rename this the Akron Aeros Appreciation thread....what a team they've got.

[CIMO.]

I've really been slacking on this, and haven't kept up with any news as I've been sulking with the Cavs, so I don't know how much of this everyone knows, but oh well. I'll make my return with some big league-level players and assorted big names.

 

 

Travis Hafner's up to 7 games in Columbus. 25 At Bats. He's batting .440 with 3 doubles and 1 homer, 5 RBI.

 

Rafael Perez has pitched 9 innings since the demotion, with an ERA of 0.00, 9 K's, 9 hits and 3 walks. Getting him back to form in Cleveland will be very nice.

 

Andy Marte is batting .352 with 5 homers and 5 doubles in May. Such a crazy story. Before the season (and really for the last two years or so) I would've said he was done...but he doesn't want to go away.

 

Conversely, Michael Brantley is batting .260 in May. Not a great average for our leadoff man of the future, but considering he was hitting .217 in April and started the season ahead of schedule in AAA, there's certainly room for hope that he's growing.

 

Carlos Santana's been Akron's leading HR and RBI man all season but has struggled somewhat with his average. Recently his HRs and RBI have been dropping, but his average is up to .294 with an OBP of .425 (Asdrubal's OBP for the year is .385, for comparison)

 

Like Bean mentioned, Nick Weglarz has absolutely exploded in May. For April "Baby Thome" was hitting .089, with 1 homer, zero doubles and 6 RBI. In May, he's hitting .378 with 7 doubles, 6 homers and 28 RBI. Hmm. Like Brantley, he's ahead of schedule in the minors, and while we may not be able to expect those kinds of numbers for his entire career, they definitely show what he's capable of.

 

Hector Rondon snapped a 3-start winless streak on Monday. Something tells me no one was too worried.

 

Chuck Lofgren is still dominating AA, with a 1.48 ERA and 0.91 WHIP. I already called him as the next "savior" for our rotation (though Huff looked good today), he's continuing to get back on the track of what made him one of our top prospects.

 

 

Kerry Wood just finished his save which signals my exit. The Cavs are truly sucking the life out of me in the time I'd usually read up on the Tribe, but I'll try to get this thread going again anyway.

[CIMO.]

Couple of nuggets while I watch the Tribe get ready to topple Greinke

 

Michael Brantley has 15 hits in June, with an OBP of .500

 

Matt LaPorta in the same time is batting .382, 2 homers.

 

Chuck Lofgren is up to 3 starts and 17 innings in Columbus, giving up 10 earned, and has struck out 10.