2007 Cleveland Indians Prospects

2007 Cleveland Indians Prospects

1. Adam Miller, RHP, Grade A- (proved he was healthy after rough '05)
   
2. Chuck Lofgren, LHP, A- (power lefty is developing rapidly, is A- too high?)
   
3. Brian Barton, OF, B+ (only negative is age, but I love his tools, skills, statistics, intelligence, and work ethic)
   
4. John Drennen, OF, B (will need some time but his bat is promising)
   
5. Brad Snyder, OF, B (Jeromy Burnitz Part Two)
   
6. Wes Hodges, 3B, B (One of my favorite bats from '06 draft)
   
7. Trevor Crowe, OF, B- (good speed, patience makes him a good leadoff guy)
   
8. Tony Sipp, LHP, B- (power lefty for the bullpen should be ready soon)
   
9. David Huff, LHP, B- (polished finesse lefty should move quickly)
   
10. Edward Mujica, RHP, B- (underrated bullpen arm deserves attention)
    
11. Max Ramirez, C, B- (I love his bat, but his glove is shaky)
    
12. Scott Lewis, LHP, C+ (awesome numbers, but what kind of durability does he have?)
    
13. Asdrubal Cabrera, SS, C+ (very young, good glove, still might hit but was rushed to Triple-A)
    
14. Tom Mastny, RHP, C+ (not spectacular stuff but his numbers rule)
    
15. Matt McBride, C, C+ (good glove but want to see him hit at higher levels)
    
16. Generalissimo Ben Francisco, OF, C+ (Solid, does a lot of things well but doesn't get much notice)
    
17. Rafael Perez, LHP, C+ (another bullpen lefty with a good arm)
    
18. Brian Slocum, RHP, C+ (swingman/fourth starter type)
    
19. Jensen Lewis, RHP, C+ (swingman/fourth starter type)
    
20. Josh Rodriguez, INF, C+ (another favorite from 2006 draft)

Others of Note: Mike Aubrey, 1B; Jordan Brown, OF; Austin Creps, RHP; Jeremy Guthrie, RHP; Juan Lara, LHP; J.D. Martin, RHP; Ryan Morris, LHP; Joe Ness, RHP; Shawn Nottingham, LHP; Roman Pena, OF; Neil Wagner, RHP; Nick Weglarz, 1B.

The Indians in One Sentence: This system has considerable depth, with two top pitching prospects and many interesting hitters, which is good considering the highly-competitive nature of the American League Central.

The Indians need pitching. Miller will be ready very soon, and Lofgren could be outstanding if he continues to build on the progress he made last year. After them the pitching depth tails off in terms of impact talent, although there are many potential contributors. The large numbers of solid hitting prospects available gives them some parts to trade if they want to go that route.

ALL GRADES ARE PRELIMINARY. If you hate a grade, feel free to make a case for me to change it, though remember that cases phrased respectfully using logic and facts are more likely to be viewed positively than those featuring insults and invective.

There is a lot of slack in the B-/C+/C range and players may move up and down depending on how my thinking progresses. Feel free to make comments, point out sleepers I may have missed, etc. Note that there is only a limited amount of space in the book, and the max I can do is 35-36 players per team.

And, as always, there is the helpful reminder to Buy My Book, which will lay out reports for all these guys (and more) in detail.