2010 Cleveland Indians Top 20 Prospects in Review
Here is a review of the 2010 Indians prospect list, originally published January 9th, 2010. THIS IS A REVIEW OF THE OLD LIST AND PRE-SEASON GRADES. THIS IS NOT A NEW LIST. The 2011 list and new grades won't be ready until the season is over and I start writing the book.
1) Carlos Santana, C, Grade A: .316/.447/.597 for Triple-A Columbus, .260/.401/.467 in 46 games for the Indians. Obviously successful, hopefully the knee injury won't be a long-term problem.
2) Lonnie Chisenhall, 3B, Grade B+: .264/.329/.433 for Double-A Akron, 14 homers, 29 walks, 55 strikeouts in 360 at-bats. Makes contact and has some pop, but not dominating.
3) Nick Hagadone, LHP, Grade B: 2.39 ERA with 45/29 K/BB in 38 innings for High-A Kinston, 4.46 ERA with 36/26 K/BB in 36 innings for Akron. Great stuff as shown by the K/IP ratios, but walk rate is excessive.
4) Alex White, RHP, Grade B: 2.58 ERA, 104/41 K/BB in 132 innings combined between Kinston and Akron, 109 hits, 1.74 GO/AO. A fine campaign.
5) Hector Rondon, RHP, Grade B: 8.53 ERA for Columbus with 33/10 K/BB in 32 innings, 48 hits. Went on the DL in May.
6) Michael Brantley, OF, Grade B-: .319/.395/.425 with 13 steals for Columbus, .174/.252/.256 in 121 at-bats in the majors. He'll get more chances.
7) Carlos Carrasco, RHP, Grade B-: 4.04 ERA, 105/44 K/BB in 123 innings for Columbus, 119 hits, 1.53 GO/AO. Outlook remains the same: he's got the stuff, but will he make the most of it in the majors? Gets grounders but has also given up 16 homers.
8) Nick Weglarz, OF, Grade B-: .285/.390/.503 between Akron and Columbus, 50 walks, 69 strikeouts in 312 at-bats. He still hasn't fully tapped into his power, but he's getting closer. On DL with sprained thumb ligament.
9) Jason Knapp, RHP, Grade B-: 8.1 innings of rehab work in rookie ball so far, with 14/3 K/BB, recovering from shoulder procedure.
10) T.J. House, LHP, Grade B-: 3.62 ERA with 91/50 K/BB in 117 innings for Kingston, 112 hits. Good year, not a great one.
11) Jason Kipnis, 2B-OF, Grade C+: .313/.395/.502 in 106 games between Kinston and Akron. Error rate at second base is high, but with this kind of bat they will be patient there.
12) Lou Marson, C, Grade C+: Couldn't hold off Santana with a .186/.263/.267 major league mark. Glove will get him more chances as a reserve.
13) Zach Putnam, RHP, Grade C+: 4.48 ERA, 50/13 K/BB in 62 innings between Akron and Columbus, 73 hits. I still see him as a good future reliever.
14) Tony Sipp, LHP, Grade C+: 5.19 ERA with 47/32 K/BB in 43 major league innings, 37 hits. Command the main problem.
15) Josh Judy, RHP, Grade C+: 3.46 ERA, 44/11 K/BB in 39 innings between Akron and Columbus, 48 hits. Strong K/IP and K/BB ratios, hit rate is rather high.
16) Jess Todd, RHP, Grade C+: 3.48 ERA, 50/18 K/BB in 44 innings for Columbus, 42 hits. In the relief mix for next year.
17) Mitch Talbot, RHP, Grade C+: Pre-season, I wrote "he could pull a Randy Wells in 2010," as a guy coming out of nowhere and doing well. 4.09 ERA, 67/51 K/BB in 121 innings, 120 hits for the Indians. The low strikeout rate is bothersome, but otherwise this is a decent rookie year.
18) Scott Barnes, LHP, Grade C+: 4.83 ERA, 99/43 K/BB in 110 innings for Akron, 101 hits. Season is better than the ERA indicates, FIP is 4.12 and he's improved each month.
19) Eric Berger, LHP, Grade C+: 5.11 ERA, 73/59 K/BB in 92 innings between Akron and Columbus, 92 hits. Command the big problem here, simply too many walks.
20) Jason Donald, INF, Grade C+: .259/.319/.403 for the Indians. I expect a long career as a competent utility player.
21) Kelvin De La Cruz, LHP, Grade C+: 2.91 ERA with 28/8 K/BB in 34 innings for Kinston, 4.54 ERA with 64/48 K/BB in 77 innings for Akron. Command slipped at the higher level, but 6-5, 190 pound lefties who hit 90 are inherently interesting.
22) Conor Graham, RHP, Grade C+: 3.36 ERA, 48/39 K/BB in 64 innings for Akron, 66 hits, 3.06 GO/AO. Strikeouts down from previous seasons, but tons of grounders, seemed to take well to relief conversion.
23) Jeanmar Gomez, RHP, Grade C+: 5.20 ERA, 78/42 K/BB in 116 innings for Columbus, 129 hits. Although he has a 1.56 ERA in three major league starts (9/5 K/BB in 17 innings, 14 hits), the Triple-A numbers aren't very good. Wide range of possible outcomes next year.
24) Alex Perez, RHP, Grade C+: Tommy John.
Aside from some typical pitcher injury attrition, there is quite a bit to be pleased with here. Santana was excellent, Weglarz has made progress, several pitchers look good. On the negative side, I do wonder if Chisenhall may be overrated. I have no idea what to expect from Carrasco and Gomez next year...they could both be quite successful in the majors, but they could also stink.
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