Minor Action: 5/1

by APV on May 2, 2008 3:56 AM EDT

Who likes April, anyway? May's always a nicer month...(sorry, no player links today)

Lake County 1, Greensboro 3

Lake County lost, but the Captains pitching staff continues to put up cartoonish numbers. Ryan Miller went 5 innings and ended up with a no decision, but the 5 hits, one run, two walks and 6 Ks bring his line on the season to 4-0, 1.00 ERA, 27IP, 19H, 3ER, 10BB, 29Ks. Judge Judy put up another 2 scoreless innings in relief (3-0, 1.47 ERA, 18.1IP, 5H, 7BB, 23K), Vinnie Pestano added a scoreless inning (0-0, 0.77 ERA). Jonathan Holt , a promising 2007 draft product, continues to struggle (0-3, 8.76), taking the loss in tonight's game. And in case you missed it, Chris Archer , Dallas Cawiezell , and Mike Pontius combined to allow no earned runs (3 earned, courtesy of walks from Archer and bad defense) in 9 innings yesterday. Pontius, just 20, has the most cartoonish line of all the Captains staff (19IP,7H,0R,4BB,26K).

Kinston 7, Lynchburg 8

James Deters blew his first save of the season, allowing 2 runs in the 8th, but some encouraging offensive performances. Beau Mills went 2-4 with a 2B and a BB. Jared Goedert , beginning to regain some pop in his bat, had a double in 5 ABs. Carlos Rivera had 2 hits, including a 2B in 5 ABs. And the big man, Nick Weglarz , went 3-5 with a HR (2). Paulo Espino got the start but did not fare well, allowing 5 runs and 8 hits in 5 innings.

Akron 6, Erie 2

Chuck Lofgren , where you been? Lofgren's start (6IP,6H,1R,3BB,9K), while not great with all those walks and hits, was by leaps and bounds his best on the season. And, in what's hopefully a sign of things turning around, those 9Ks more than doubled his season total. And just when I was about to give him the Andy Marte treatment...Jose Constanza , who struggled mightily the first few weeks while filling in for Trevor Crowe in the leadoff spot, has been doing much better of late. In yesterday's game he went 3-5 with a 2B, 3B, and 2 RBIs. Michael Aubrey went 2-4 with a double (9) and an RBI. Wes Hodges also went 2-4, with 2 RBIs.

Buffalo 5, Charlotte 2

Jeremy Sowers apparently has come away from his brief stint in Cleveland with some renewed motivation. He went 7 innings, allowing 5 hits and a run while striking out 6 (his second consecutive 6K performance in AAA). His 4 BBs represented a season high, but they didn't hurt him yesterday. The big hits on offense came from Andy Gonzalez , who hit a 2-run HR (4), and Brad Snyder , who had a 2 run double (6).

Encouraging results from Sowers, Lofgren, and Weglarz...

3 recs | Comment 40 comments

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Kevin Golstein had a little blurb about Lofgren earlier in the week, and he said that his early season struggles could be due to some tinkering the Indians did in spring training. Here’s to hoping he’s worked the kinks out and this is a sign of things to come.

On Weglarz, the walks are well documented, but how about his k rate this year, down from 30% last year to 20% this year. Given that its only covering 78 at bats, it might be nothing, but I’m hoping he’s able to maintain it.

by ClarkM on May 2, 2008 9:34 AM EDT 0 recs

Pretty dismal stats for Beau Mills against right handers (although he has more walks than K’s).

Good to see he’s put a few good games together in the past week.

by Toxicadam on May 2, 2008 9:50 AM EDT 0 recs

I’m not too disappointed in his overall numbers, and if anything I feel better about them because of the aberration we’re seeing against RHP. It looks to me like everything’s right on track w/ Beau; everything we look for (power, patience, etc.) is there, just not yet in abundance.

by jhon on May 2, 2008 10:13 AM EDT up 0 recs

That’s a good point. I was just hoping for a meteoric rise through the ranks.

by Toxicadam on May 2, 2008 10:24 AM EDT up 0 recs

We can afford to be patient on Mills. It’s an odd situation, because we expect to wait many years on a high school draftee, but we expect college guys to get it together within a year or two. Mills is a college guy but he was only 20, just ending his sophomore year, so he’s really a “tweener.”

I’m fairly well sold on him as a first-round talent, but we really need to give him that extra year. If you think about it, it’s actually quite rare for a guy to be hitting Triple-A and then pounding on the door to the majors at age 20, like FatCab or Pujols, or at age 21 like Jhonny and Grady, or even 22 like AbaCab, who was the only 20-year-old in Triple-A when we acquired him (and shouldn’t have been there).

Mills came in with more wood-bat experience than a lot of college guys, from the Cape Cod and Alaska leagues, but it’s still not much. I think we can give him at least a few months and possibly a full season to settle in, especially as his power should really reach its fruition in 2009 or even 2010. I would pencil him in for a breakout in 2009. We don’t even need to start this guy’s option clock until 2011, and I expect him to be in the majors by then.

As a side-note, it’s my totally unscientific observation that the Indians seem to have a better track record evaluating guys age 17-19 than age 21-23.

by Jay on May 2, 2008 11:00 AM EDT up 0 recs

Gregorio Rosario!

by Brick. on May 2, 2008 11:06 AM EDT up 0 recs

I have to say, both Constanza and Goedert remain well off my radar at this point. Seems like you were straining to reference Goedert, but let’s be honest, he’s showing no power, drawing no walks, and he’s a few weeks from being officially “old for his league,” 23 in A-ball. Constanza likewise got a bunch of hits in the past week, but no real power and just two walks in 45 PA from the leadoff spot. Yech.

by Jay on May 2, 2008 10:15 AM EDT 0 recs

I don’t see Constanza as a prospect at all…just mentioning his efforts in the game and hot stretch. Goedert I do for two reasons: he plays the middle infield (at least marginally) and he’s had two consecutive seasons of hitting the ball very hard. His numbers this season, particularly his low BB/K ratio, seem like aberations I expect to correct relative to his career tendencies.

by APV on May 2, 2008 11:14 AM EDT up 0 recs

Promote Pontius! We are so deep in pitching that guys like Ryan Miller and Judge Judy get lost in the crowd. But where are the hitters? Just nothing to get excited about, ‘cept Daddy Wegz, of course.

by ken from alexandria on May 2, 2008 10:57 AM EDT 0 recs

Hodges is doing very well.

by Jay on May 2, 2008 11:02 AM EDT up 0 recs

He’s the pick of the litter, this year, I suppose. I like Hodges’ .865 OPS (as of this morning), and I think he’s probably the solution, circa 2010, to our chronic 3b problem. Still, his overall line of .290, 6 HR, 22 RBI is a little less than thrilling given that 2 of his HRs and 7 of his RBIs were accumulated in a single game, April 15. Then there are the 5 errors.

My original point was that some of our pitchers are really dominating; the hitters, not so much. It’s time for some of these guys-Hodges, Weglarz, Mills, Rivero-to get hot.

by ken from alexandria on May 4, 2008 8:55 AM EDT up 0 recs

Uhh.

Wegz is dominant. It’s just in an incredibly bizarre way; it’s not his fault no one would pitch to him, at all, for a month. Then, they started pitching to him and he’s bounding the ball again.

And.

He’s 20.

by afh4 on May 4, 2008 10:26 PM EDT up 0 recs

You’ve got to love that his reaction to seeing nothing but balls was not to swing.

by fleerdon on May 5, 2008 8:36 PM EDT up 0 recs

I’m liking Pontius a lot too. His rep was groundball pitcher, but 26 strikeouts in 19 innings is good no matter what you throw. Plus I’m a sucker for pitchers who throw really hard. It’s so demoralizing to me when the only guy in our bullpen who throws in the mid-90s is Fastball George.

by fleerdon on May 2, 2008 12:30 PM EDT up 0 recs

Miller needs to go to Kinston and probably will before long. They’ve created an interesting situation by packing the Kinston rotation with a bunch of 19- and 20-year-olds—now they need to make room for an age-appropriate 21-year-old.

Pontius should probably go directly to Akron if he can keep this up, possibly Judy as well. They’re already in the bullpen, why mess around with a step-by-step approach if they’re that far above their level? I was looking at their numbers, and even if you add all of Pontius’ baserunners into Judy’s stats, it still looks pretty good … 23K and 23 baserunners in 18.1 IP. (The real total for both guys is 49 K and 23 baserunners in 37.1 IP.)

by Jay on May 2, 2008 12:46 PM EDT up 0 recs

Here’s a list of the top minor league relievers in the system. The numbers are level/age, ERA, WHIP, K/BB, K/IP

Pontius A-/20, 0.00, 0.58, 6.50, 1.37
Stevens AA/24, 4.20, 1.27, 4.25, 1.13
Stiller A+/23, 2.20, 1.22, 3.13, 1.53
Nottingham AA/23, 3.55, 1.42, 4.00, 0.95
Judy A-/22, 1.47, 0.65, 3.29, 1.26
Mujica AAA/24, 6.06, 1.59, 3.60, 1.10
Santos AAA/25, 5.27, 1.98, 3.00, 1.10
Tomlin A+/23, 2.12, 1.12, 3.20, 0.94
Wagner A+/24, 6.75, 2.25, 2.80, 1.14
Rundles AAA/27, 6.35, 1.59, 2.33, 1.24
Pestano A-/23, 0.77, 1.11, 2.75, 0.94
Cawiezell A-/22 0.63, 0.91, 2.40, 0.84
Elarton AAA/32, 3.31, 1.16, 2.40, 0.74
Deters A+/25, 3.94, 1.44, 2.20, 0.69
Rick Bauer AAA/29, 0.79, 1.15, 1.58, 0.97
Newsom AA/26, 1.69, 1.03, 2.00, 0.75
Landis A-/22, 3.95, 1.61, 1.40, 1.02
Perdomo A+/24, 0.00, 0.67, 1.83, 0.73
Taylor A-/22 4.67, 1.62, 1.13, 1.04

by APV on May 2, 2008 1:00 PM EDT up 0 recs

their ranked from highest to lowest based on K/BB + 2(K/IP) – don’t ask me why

by APV on May 2, 2008 1:01 PM EDT up 0 recs

Of these guys, Pontius sticks out. Stevens still looks really good. Shawn Nottingham, converted from a GB-specialist to the bullpen this year, is doing very well. Erik Stiller would be nice to see in Akron. Mujica and Santos are getting a bit unlucky on the BIP side of things.

by APV on May 2, 2008 1:03 PM EDT up 0 recs

If Pontius can stay this successful through early summer, in Akron, would it be time to think about a call-up?

by fleerdon on May 5, 2008 8:37 PM EDT up 0 recs

I think you’d find it’s extremely rare to jump from Low-A to the majors in one season.

by Jay on May 5, 2008 10:20 PM EDT up 0 recs

Right, the question is more about that leap than about Pontius specifically. Even within the more volatile world of relievers, how good would he have to be?

by fleerdon on May 5, 2008 10:40 PM EDT up 0 recs

Well, I think if he’s striking out more than 10 per 9 in Akron for over a month, and his other numbers are solid, then he’s on the big-league radar. So basically, he has to be very nearly as good as he is right now, but two levels higher, and for more games.

by Jay on May 6, 2008 12:20 AM EDT up 0 recs

Interesting. Thanks.

by fleerdon on May 6, 2008 9:48 AM EDT up 0 recs

I’ll be more blunt than Jay. No. On a different team maybe, although all the conditions Jay mentioned would apply. The problem with the Tribe is there are, in my mind, simply too many legitimate ML-relief candidates ahead of Pontius for this to be a reality this year. Next year, sure…this year, no. Hell….Stevens can’t even make it to Buffalo right now, let alone Cleveland.

by APV on May 6, 2008 12:52 PM EDT up 0 recs

Well, it’s all moot if we don’t start using the relievers already on the 25-man, you know? I suppose the point is, Craig Breslow is doing the Craig Breslow job about as well as you’d expect. We don’t need a new Craig Breslow; we need a new Jensen Lewis (if not the old Jensen Lewis), and I guess I was wondering what level of performance in the minors by a reliever would be indicative of “the 2008 Jensen Lewis.”

I’m talking to myself again, aren’t I?

by fleerdon on May 6, 2008 1:48 PM EDT up 0 recs

There goes Judy’s line for awhile. 1IP, 8H, 7 runs….

Such is the fire of small sample sizes for relievers.

by APV on May 6, 2008 2:36 AM EDT up 0 recs

My boy Jeff Stevens has had a few good games in the past week after a dismal two weeks. But the real RP AA story has been Randall Newsom (a PTBNL in the Marte/Coco trade). 11 games and only 2 ER allowed and 6 saves. Good stuff. I’ve never seen him pitch, but judging by the stats he looks like a “pitch to contact” guy. Must be working, because he has a GO/AO right around 3.

by Toxicadam on May 2, 2008 11:36 AM EDT 0 recs

Newsom is a submariner type, though not as extreme as Chad Bradford.

by ken from alexandria on May 3, 2008 9:51 AM EDT up 0 recs

APV,

Just a note to say thanks for putting these together. Always helpful.

by tabler84 on May 2, 2008 3:52 PM EDT 0 recs

ditto on your media recaps

by APV on May 2, 2008 4:31 PM EDT up 0 recs

Aubrey in the lineup for Buffalo tonight

by JesseAK on May 2, 2008 6:23 PM EDT 0 recs

Here’s the blurb from the Bisons website. Jordan Brown got put on the DL with a left knee injury (no details), Aubrey was promoted to take his spot.

I suppose it’s nice to see Aubrey (finally) some place besides Akron, but I’d rather it not be at the expense of Jordan Brown.

by APV on May 2, 2008 7:02 PM EDT up 0 recs

Thanks for the update – I noticed Brown hasn’t been in the lineup the last few nights, so I suspected he had some sort of injury.

If I remember correctly, wasn’t it the left knee Brown had surgery on in the offseason? I hope there are no long-term effects from this latest injury.

As for Aubrey, we need to find out if he can stay healthy at a more challenging level and if he can handle that more challenging level – he could at least provide another option for the Indians offensively if this current offensive slump continues (hope not – we really need to start hitting like we’re capable of, and I’m pretty sure it’s better than what we’ve been showing for most of this season, even with Hafner’s and Blake’s woes and the adjustments youngsters like Gutierrez and Cabrera have to make,) and Aubrey can hit well at AAA for a few months. I know that’s a bit of a long-shot, but with the way our offense is going of late, I’m willing to consider every possibility, and especially possibilities that don’t force us to give up a bunch of prospects for players who COULD help us, but also usually have a question mark or two (like Bay, for instance.)

Just my 2 cents. :-)

The "cream of the crop" doesn't always rise to the top.

by indiansfan on May 2, 2008 8:38 PM EDT up 0 recs

I have no problem with Aubrey in Buffalo—I mean, ultimately, does it really matter?

But that said, I have little interest in whether he can handle the “more challenging level” since he has never demonstrated that he can handle Double-A. In 148 games for the Aeros since 2004, he’s got a 747 OPS. Looking at just 07-08, it’s about 720 in 331 plate appearances.

If he can stay healthy, there’s a chance that Aubrey is the kind of guy who just suddenly “finds it.” But it’s not that great of a chance, and the chance he’ll stay healthy is not great to begin with. Beyond that, we can’t really say for sure if he was ever really going to be as great as the scouts thought he would. He has just never shown anything better than modest hitting ability against Double-A pitching.

by Jay on May 2, 2008 9:24 PM EDT up 0 recs

Aubrey makes more sense in that he’s been around Akron so long, but I actually would rather have seen Whitney get pushed to AAA. Both are at pretty long odds to do anything in Cleveland (ever), but Whitney’s power (if it returns to last year’s level) is a skill we don’t have much of in the high minors.

by APV on May 3, 2008 4:19 AM EDT up 0 recs

Very good point. Whitney is two years younger, and they’re about equally accomplished at this point, and while we’re up against Aubrey’s option clock (he’ll get a fourth one for 2009), we’re up against Rule 5 with Whitney. There is a good chance Whitney will take Aubrey’s spot on the roster at the end of the year.

by Jay on May 3, 2008 10:35 AM EDT up 0 recs

Huff is doing what he can to stay in the picture as a back of the rotation guy in the near future. Nice start for him.

by dgcambridge on May 4, 2008 9:43 PM EDT 0 recs

(Feeding my theory that for some reason, nobody reads my Week In Review articles anymore.)

by Jay on May 5, 2008 12:26 AM EDT up 0 recs

Sorry, it’s not you, it’s me.

Busy for a while.

by dgcambridge on May 5, 2008 11:36 AM EDT up 0 recs

To a certain extent, I think you’re just seeing us running out of gripes. (Not out of REASONS to gripe, just out of ways to express it.) But I’m always more likely to discuss good news than bad.

In any event, I’m still reading them.

by fleerdon on May 6, 2008 1:50 PM EDT up 0 recs