SB Nation - John Meloan

Thursday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 14:32:43 -0000

by Jeff Roberson - AP

Dave Bush is pulled out of the game by Ken Macha as Jason Kendall stands by during the fourth inning Wednesday.

Some things to read while overextending yourself.

The Brewers managed to get eleven baserunners in six innings off of Chris Carpenter last night, the second most he's allowed all season, but the pitching staff couldn't keep the Brewers in the game long enough to give the team an opportunity to win. There's no shame in being outpitched by the bionic arm of Chris Carpenter. Jeff Passan of Yahoo has a profile of the Cy Young candidate and his dozens of surgical scars.

Dave Bush couldn't beat Carpenter last night, so he plunked him instead. That HBP was the 50th of Bush's Brewer career, making him the new franchise leader. He also picked up his 51st later in the game. After the game, Bush brushed off the suggestion that he could have used more time in the minors to prepare for his return. With the Brewers now below a 1-in-1000 shot of making the playoffs, they've got plenty of time to give Bush a few more starts and see if he straightens himself out.

Mike Cameron might be back next season after all: He told reporters he would be willing to make a sacrifice to remain in Milwaukee for 2010. FanGraphs has Cameron at 3.9 WAR for the season, the third highest total on the team.

Corey Hart is ready for a rehab assignment, and will spend the weekend with Nashville to see if he's ready for a return to big league action. He won't exactly be bumping aside a whole lot of vaunted prospects in the outfield in AAA: Yesterday's Sounds outfield featured both Corey Patterson and recent independent leaguer Tike Redman, with Jon Knott, another recent indy leaguer, pinch hitting. The Sounds lost to Memphis for the second straight day, dropping a game and a half behind in the division.

The Brevard County Manatees are playoff bound, and after months of living in the dark, we finally have a site covering them. Space Coast Baseball will be doing live audio broadcasts from Manatees games over the weekend and in the playoffs. The site is still pretty new, but it's great to have resources like it out there.

J.J. Hardy has gone 1-for-4 each of the last two nights since returning to the major leagues. What do you expect the Brewers to get for him this offseason? The Blue Jay Hunter would like to see him in Toronto, and is willing to offer relievers Jeremy Accardo and Jason Frasor, who would do a lot to help solidify the Brewer bullpen for next season but would still leave a gap in the rotation.

Meanwhile, Chris Capuano pitched well in his first appearance in Helena, throwing two scoreless innings. His velocity is down a bit, but that's to be expected from someone who's undergone Tommy John surgery twice. It'll be interesting to see what happens with Cappy after the season: He probably owes something to the Brewers, who spent all season rehabbing him despite very faint hops he'd pitch in 2009, but he'll also be a free agent.

The Brewers are commissioning focus groups to discuss what fans liked and didn't like about this season's Brewer team and ballpark experience. I'm guessing "more winning," "lower concession prices" and "cheaper parking" will be the suggestions.

The Brewers are up two spots to #18 in MLB FanHouse's Power Rankings.

Around baseball:

A's: Claimed pitcher John Meloan off waivers from the Pirates.
Giants: Designated pitchers Ryan Sadowski and Jesse English for assignment.
Nationals: Acquired minor league reliever Victor Garate as the PTBNL in the Ronnie Belliard trade.

We've hit September, so it's time to start talking about mathematical eliminations. As Jon Heyman noted, the Nationals were eliminated from contention in the NL East last night. The Orioles have already been eliminated from the division race as well. A Nats loss or a Rockies win today would eliminate them from contention for the Wild Card as well.

As a rule, I typically skim over or skip most things written by athletes on the web: They rarely have anything interesting to say, and would get themselves in trouble if they did say something worth noting, for the most part. With that said, I'm glad I didn't skip over this post at Baseball Analysts by A's prospect and Harvard grad Shawn Haviland, discussing the statistics that minor league pitching coaches do and don't care about, and how fluctuation in BABIP can impact them.

Rob Neyer and Wezen-ball offer their insights on old time pitchers, and how hard they actually threw. Neyer's analysis seems about right to me: they threw hard enough to earn a living today, but wouldn't dominate as they did then.

Getaway days in San Diego are going to suck next season: The Padres are moving the start of weekday day games from 12:35 Pacific Time to 3:35, meaning East Coast and Central Time Zone teams probably won't get out of San Diego until 7 or later local time, then face a cross country flight where they'll lose several hours in the air.

Congratulations are due out to former Brewer farmhand Michael Brantley, who picked up his first major league hit last night.

On this day in 1901, the original Milwaukee Brewers (who would later become the St. Louis Browns and Baltimore Orioles) lost both ends of a doubleheader, 10-0 and 6-1, to the original Baltimore Orioles (who would later become the New York Yankees). Joe McGinnity pitched complete games in both games for the Orioles.

On this day in 1976, Mike Hegan hit for the cycle as the Brewers beat the Tigers, 11-2. On this day in 1991, Jim Gantner homered (ending a 1762 AB homerless streak) and the Brewers scored three runs in the ninth to beat the A's, 5-3.

Happy birthday today to two former Brewer bullpen arms: Chad Fox, who turns 39, and Eric Plunk, who turns 46.

Oh, and yesterday was probably the only time William Ernest Henley will come up in baseball conversation this season.

Drink up.

Thursday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:58:38 -0000

More photos » by Jim Prisching - AP

Alcides Escobar talks with Willie Randolph during the first inning Wednesday.

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Some things to read while searching for a signature sign-off.

So, yesterday morning I skipped out early for an appointment, got back home, ate some breakfast, mowed the lawn, then sat down at my coffee table to check the comments on the Mug and discovered what might have been the biggest news day of the season, as the Brewers demoted J.J. Hardy to AAA, promoted Alcides Escobar, fired Billy Castro, designated Bill Hall for assignment and called up Jason Bourgeois. Adam McCalvy has reactions from the clubhouse, and here are several more reactions from around the web:

J.J. Hardy has until Friday to join the Sounds, and says he's looking forward to a few days off.
Brewed Sports was not pleased with that response.
Brewer Paradise Lost is one of many who suspects this move might have been made to prevent Hardy from becoming a free agent following the 2010 season. Hardy would have to remain in the minors past September 1 for the demotion to count against his service time, and it seems unlikely the Brewers will leave him there once rosters expand.
R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs isn't sure the Escobar-for-Hardy swap helps the Brewers this season, or helps Hardy's trade value down the road.
Meanwhile, Cash Kruth caught up with Bill Hall, who seemed upbeat about his situation and expects to be on a team again soon. With that said, this is the same guy who still thought he was the best third baseman in baseball a few weeks ago.
Ken Rosenthal is reporting that at least one NL team is interested in trading for Hall.
Cincinnati Reds Blog sees the Hall situation as "a big opportunity for the Reds to pick up a talented player."
Billy Castro, who had been with the Brewers as a coach for nearly 18 years, left with no regrets. He may not get another chance to be a pitching coach, but it sounds like he'll always have a spot in the Brewer organization, if he wants it.
A Girl's View of the Brewers wonders if these moves will be enough to get the Brewers back on track.
Big League Stew accused the Brewers of waving the white flag on the 2009 season.
PocketDoppler says the Brewers are pushing the panic button.
Aaron Gleeman of Circling the Bases says the move likely came too late for the Brewers' playoff hopes.
Keep Turning Up the Heat says "these are some dark times in the Brewers organization," and doesn't agree with the decision to call up Escobar or fire Castro.
Quevedo at the Buffet doesn't get the timing or the logic behind the moves.
The Bucky Channel wonders why Alcides Escobar was only used sparingly and Jason Bourgeois wasn't used at all last night.

Meanwhile, the Brewers did actually play a game last night, and lost their second straight to the Padres, dropping their playoff chances to 2.9%, the first time all season they've fallen below 3%.

Things could get worse today, as they play a day game against the Padres, who are sending Cesar Carrillo to the mound to make his major league debut today. The Brewers are 0-4 this season in games where the opposing pitcher is making his debut. And, of course, they haven't been good in day games either, or in games played in June, July or August.

Doug Melvin may not be done dealing. The Brewers claimed Doug Davis off waivers from the D-Backs (h/t FanShot), giving the two teams 48 hours to work out a deal to bring him back to Milwaukee. Davis says it would be fun to return to Milwaukee, but Tom H. says it's unlikely to happen.

A bunch of news got lost in the shuffle with everything else that happened yesterday. Here are the important notes that got buried in today's game preview:

Both Dave Bush and Jeff Suppan are expected back before September 1.
Jesus Colome was available to pitch last night despite his bruised pinky finger.
Nick Green cleared waivers after being DFA'd and will remain in Huntsville.

One other minor league note to pass along today: Matt Hagen of The Hardball Times nominated Jeremy Jeffress for most disappointing minor leaguer in 2009.

On power rankings:

The Brewers jumped from 23rd to 20th in WhatifSports' rankings.
MLB FanHouse has the Brewers holding steady at 19.

Around baseball:

Angels: Released reliever Justin Speier.
Cardinals: Placed Todd Wellemeyer on the DL with elbow inflammation.
D-Backs: Placed Scott Schoeneweis on the DL with depression and released Tom Gordon.
Giants: Placed Rich Aurilia on the DL with ankle tendinitis.
Indians: Claimed R.J. Swindle off waivers from the Rays.
Mariners: Erik Bedard is expected to undergo shoulder surgery and miss the remainder of the season.
Marlins: Signed Esteban Yan to a minor league deal.
Pirates: Placed reliever Evan Meek on the DL with an oblique strain and claimed reliever John Meloan off waivers from the Rays.
Reds: Placed Scott Rolen on the DL with a concussion.
Royals: Acquired pitcher John Bannister from the Rangers.
Twins: Placed Glen Perkins on the DL with shoulder trouble and released Mark Grudzielanek.

By shuffling the deck in the bullpen a little bit this offseason the Brewers created some new problems, but at least they're done with this one: Reflections of Blue has had it with Guillermo Mota, who posted a 0.26 ERA over one 35.1 inning stretch and a 10.32 ERA since.

Here's something to ponder for all of you who want to make the case that J.J. Hardy should be moved to second or third base, Rickie Weeks should be moved to center field and Mat Gamel should play first base or right field: Will Carroll says a player playing out of position has a 30 percent greater chance of getting injured, based on unfamiliarity with the position.

Brian Anderson wants your help to raise money for the I Back Jack Foundation. Follow the link for more info on how you can help Jack Bartosz, a young man fighting neuroblastoma.

Speaking of causes that could use your money, UW-La Crosse, alma mater of former Brewers Jerry Augustine and Vinny Rottino, has raised enough money to keep the program alive for one more season, but is still on the chopping block.

On this day in 1987, Paul Molitor homered in the ninth to extend his hitting streak to 28 games, but the Brewers still lost to the Orioles, 5-4.

Happy birthday today to Corey Patterson, who turns 30, and former Milwaukee Brave Tony Cloninger, who turns 69.

Drink up.

Pirates Claim John Meloan

Charlie — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 22:35:42 -0000

The Pirates have claimed reliever John Meloan off waivers from the Rays and sent him to Indianapolis. Meloan came up with the Dodgers, who traded him to Cleveland as a throw-in in the Casey Blake deal. He then went to Tampa earlier this year in a minor trade. He racked up absurd strikeout totals in the low minors but struggled in the tough pitching environment of Las Vegas and hasn't been quite as interesting since. Between his high strikeout totals, high walk totals and ugly ERAs, he follows pretty closely in the tradition of Neal Huntington acquisitions like Denny Bautista and Tyler Yates (whose spot Meloan takes on the 40-man roster as Yates moves to the 60-day DL). But at least the risk here is limited.

The Bucs also sent Evan Meek on the DL to nurse his strained oblique and recalled Steven Jackson to take his place on the roster. They also signed Australian amateur pitcher Jarryd Sullivan, who I'm guessing will head to Bradenton or perhaps State College next year.

Friday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:15:21 -0000

More photos » by Morry Gash - AP

Prince Fielder is now tenth on the Brewers' all-time home runs list, which also includes home runs hit as a Cervecero.

Browse more photos »

Some things to read while going off your meds.

The future is somewhat uncertain for Seth McClung after last night's poor outing. An off day will allow the Brewers to skip his spot in the rotation next time around, meaning the Brewers won't need a fifth starter until July 11, and a lot can happen between now and then. Manny Parra would probably like that spot back, and he'll start in AAA tonight. A good outing might give him the inside track.

Prince Fielder hit his 21st home run last night, the 135th of his career, and passed Don Money for sole possession of tenth place on the Brewers' all time list. Fielder needs two more home runs to tie Rob Deer for ninth place, and 25 more to tie Paul Molitor for eighth. While I'm thinking of him, I should also note that Paul Molitor will be in Appleton on August 4.

Also, happy birthday to Greg Vaughn, who ranks sixth on that list list with 169 Brewer home runs and turns 44 today.

With every home run, Fielder makes himself a little more likely to be an NL All Star:

Ken Rosenthal has Ryan Braun, Fielder and Yovani Gallardo making the team.
Viva El Birdos has just Braun and Fielder.
Baseball Digest Daily's roster doesn't include pitchers, but they took Braun and Fielder as well.

Casey McGehee is enjoying his return to Wrigley Field, although that might change when he finds out Anthony Witrado spent the day yesterday following his wife around Chicago.

With the Brewers loss and Cardinals win yesterday, the Cardinals have pulled back into a tie for the lead in the NL Central, which now has five teams within three games of first place. There are also nine teams within four games of the NL Wild Card.

It's probably too late to get tickets to go to Chicago this weekend and catch a game in this series but if you missed it, Miller Park Drunk says that's probably for the best. Recaps of all the things that suck about Wrigley Field make it easier for me to understand Cubs fans' desire to go watch the Cubs play somewhere else.

Another July day, another Doug Melvin quote lowering expectations for this trade season. By Monday's Mug, a similar version of this story will run again at least three more times. I don't really see any chance of the Brewers trading J.J. Hardy or Corey Hart during the month, but FakeTeams seems pretty certain the Brewers will either do it in July or during the offseason.

In the minors:

The Official Site has a profile of Eric Arnett and his transition from ultra-workhorse in college to one-or-two inning guy in Helena.
Dominican OF Jose Pena reportedly received a $400,000 bonus from the Brewers, much less than previously expected. The team also signed 17-year-old pitcher Jean Capellan. Both players are expected to report to the team's new academy in the Dominican Republic.
Results of fan balloting are in, and Brett Lawrie bobbleheads will be given to the first 1000 fans through the gates for the Timber Rattlers' game on September 3.

One power ranking to pass along today: Yahoo moved the Brewers up from seventh to sixth.

Around the majors:

Cubs: Completed their trade for Rockies IF Jeff Baker, sending minor league pitcher Al Albuquerque to the Rockies. They also designated Ryan Freel for assignment.
Indians: Acquired reliever Winston Abreu from the Rays for AAA reliever John Meloan.
Marlins: Signed reliever Luis Ayala.
Orioles: Pitcher Bobby Livingston exercised an option in his contract allowing him to become a free agent.

The Texas Rangers are in financial trouble, and while the team looks for a buyer, the situation continues to deteriorate. The team reportedly borrowed $15 million recently from Major League Baseball to make payroll. While this does not give baseball the right to take over control of the franchise, it might give MLB officials some say in Rangers' spending decisions, which could complicate negotiations with their top two draft picks, who are both still unsigned and seeking contracts above slot value.

Remember months ago, when Eric Gagne was believed to need shoulder surgery, but decided to try to rehab instead and pitch in the Can-Am League? Gagne has a 9.60 ERA in 20 innings for Quebec. The surgery probably would have been the right decision.

Earlier this week I cited increased attendance as a reason for keeping interleague play. As it turns out, the attendance bump may not be as big as originally thought. Beyond the Box Score says interleague games are scheduled on prime dates on weekends and in June and July, and the actual attendance bump caused by the games is closer to .4% than the previously reported 11%.

The Mets are now in a unique position to tell us what's worse. They spent most of the week this week at the (supposedly haunted) Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee, and are spending the weekend sharing a hotel with Anthrocon, largest anthropomorphics (furries) convention in the world. Follow the link for a quote from a Mets beat reporter, who had a close encounter with someone who "was dressed like Ralph Wigam as a Beaver." (h/t Bucs Dugout)

Oh, and if you think the crowds are big at Miller Park, today is the 27th anniversary of this 1982 game that crammed 55,716 fans into County Stadium.

Drink up.

Meet Jonathan Meloan

R.J. Anderson — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:30:44 -0000

Let's look closer at the newest reliever in the system, Jonathan Meloan. First, his percentage stats from the last few minor league seasons:

Year	Level	PA	K%	BB%	GB%	SwStr%
2007	AA	168	39.9	10.7	48.1	N/A
2007	AAA	85	23.5	10.6	43.6	10.6
2008	AAA	70	18.6	14.3	45.2	12.5
2009	AAA	173	19.7	8.1	41.1	9

Despite the inflated homerun ratio, Meloan has actually pitched pretty well in Triple-A this season. His walk rate is down and his strikeout ratio isn't poor despite inducing less whiffs. These numbers are nothing compared to his lower level numbers prior to 2007, where nobody could hit him. The Dodgers threw him in the rotation, something that didn't work out overly well. Since returning to the pen, Meloan hasn't shown that same domination although he has been pretty decent.

Let's look at his Pitchfx profile.

Fastball: 91-93 MPH, some cutting action inside to righties, tops out around 95.

(Sl/C)urve: 79-82 MPH, good break downwards.

Slider: 88-90 MPH

Change-up: show me pitch

Here's a look at a game chart from a Meloan appearance:

via www.fangraphs.com

It seems to me he may throw a two-seam fastball as well. Gameday classified both as four-seamers, so in reality there's a chance he throws a 90-92 two-seamer and 92-95 four-seamer. Throw in the slider as his outpitch and a plus looking slurve, and there's definitely some good stuff being thrown by Meloan.

So what's wrong with his performance in Triple-A this season? Apparently 14% (!!!) of Meloan's fly balls allowed are leaving the ballpark, simply put, that's unsustainable for a pitcher that seems to have quality stuff and an otherwise good performance at the level. Checking on Columbus park, it's very, very susceptible to the long ball. Statcorner's park factors have the park's HR/BIA factor at 122. Using MinorLeagueSplits and removing the ‘luck' aspect (aka excessive homeruns) of Meloan's performance, his FIP falls to 3.70.

I'm not going to say his true talent level is 3.7, since even when luck is thrown out Meloan's FIP is still in the ~4.2.-4.5 range for most of his Triple-A experience. CHONE and ZiPS agreed that Meloan's true talent projection sat between 4.4-4.9. Which...somehow, would make him the second worst reliever on the staff.

Accepting the fact that Abreu was A) gone either way, B) only here for a few months, it's hard to be too disappointed at this return. Meloan is the Rays property for at least the next six seasons and has the makings of a potentially above average reliever.

All stats courtesy of StatCorner, MinorLeagueSplits, and FanGraphs

The Rays Trade Winston Abreu to Indians for John Meloan

R.J. Anderson — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:36:19 -0000

[Note by Tommy Rancel, 07/02/09 2:39PM EDT ]Update: Just got confirmation the Rays have traded Abreu to the Indians for John Meloan. Meloan, the 2007 Double A reliever of the year (baseballamerica.com) was added to the Rays 40-man roster and will report to Durham.

Marc Lancaster tweets:

tboraysAm hearing #Rays set to trade Winston Abreu to #Indians for fellow RH reliever John Meloan. Not confirmed yet though

Well, okay then.

I'm probably the biggest Winston Abreu fan around, and while I'm glad he's going to get a shot somewhere, I'm obviously saddened it won't be here. The thing is, the Rays were going to have to pass him through waivers this weekend anyways, and potentially lose him for absolutely nothing in return. Instead, they may get Meloan, who I'll discuss in a few. Abreu had an opt-out clause in his contract and would've bolted if the Rays didn't throw him on the 40-man roster and try sneaking him through, so really, Abreu's time with the club was limited any way you look at it. I guess you could make the case the Rays should've released Joe Nelson and given Abreu his spot.

Meloan was once a promising reliever with the Los Angeles Dodgers who moved to the Indians in the Casey Blake deal. He's had a bit of a rough go in Triple-A this season, mostly due to the homerun bug, and he's not really a prospect anymore. He throws a low-90s fastball and curve. He'll be placed on the Rays 40-man roster, but has options remaining. Meloan's career line in Triple-A is:

185 IP, 8.2 K/9, 4.6 BB/9, 0.8 HR/9

He's actually always been effective against lefties, sort-of like Joe Nelson, only with a slight favoritism towards groundballs mixed in. Given his track record, I think it's fair to say he'll probably be a middle reliever for the Rays at some point in the near future.

He's no Winston Abreu, but I guess that's the price for freedom. Go flourish Winston.

Minor Action: April edition

APV — Fri, 01 May 2009 17:08:16 -0000

More photos » by Tony Dejak - AP

Aaron Laffey was the first Clipper to join Cleveland's pitching staff this season, but Jeremy Sowers might not be far behind.

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A month into the season, I think it is fair to begin looking more systematically at how the significant guys in our minor league system are faring. I’ll focus my attention on the guys that matter, a few exceptional performances from guys that probably don’t matter, and last year’s draft class.

Columbus (9-12, last place)

I really thought Columbus would dominate this season given the talent there. So far, not so much – although they have quite a few great individual performances.

Matt LaPorta: .352/.431/.676, 9.8 BB%, 9.8K%, 11 XBHs, +11 Net

For those who were beginning to get nervous about LaPorta at the end of last season…relax. Quite simply, there is nothing not to like about LaPorta’s line. The countdown is well underway as to when we will see him in Cleveland.

Luis Valbuena: .311/.427/.500, 16.7 BB%, 14.4 K%, 8 XBHs, +7 Net

I argued in a recent GameThread that Valbuena’s performance is in many ways more interesting than LaPorta’s. Valbuena is easily handling AAA pitching while, based on team reports, displaying stellar middle-infield defense. It’s hard for me to not get overly excited about a Cabrera-Valbuena DP combination. Great defense. +.400 OBP. Muy buena.

Michael Brantley: .217/.299/.275, 9.1 BB%, 18.2 K%, 3 XBHs, -1 Net

Brantley has struggled with hamstring issues and is clearly not feeling comfortable at the plate. He’s already more than halfway to his entire 2008 strikeout total. After his rave reviews in spring training, this is disappointing.

David Huff: 3-0, 4.09 ERA, 5.02 FIP, 10.0 BB%, 21.1 K%, 36 GB%, -5 Net

Huff is not off to an extraordinary start, and yet has still been effective. Keeping the K-rate over 20% even when he clearly has not been at his best is nice to see. I expect to see his walk rate come back down and GB rate go back up.

Jeremy Sowers: 1-1, 2.25 ERA, 2.61 FIP, 4.8 BB%, 21.2 K%, 42 GB%, +7 Net

Reports have Sowers throwing 93mph, his control has been fantastic so far, and he is getting strikeouts at a higher rate than he has since his debut campaign in 2005. I think many of us, myself included, are skeptical of Sowers. But his success so far this season cannot be ignored and might be the most important performance in Columbus so far this season.

Others…
David Dellucci: .414/.469/.517 – With Hafner DLed, Dellucci’s return is imminent
Michael Aubrey: .404/.431/.635 – I highlight him only because he’s been on a tear
Josh Barfield: .341/.370/.409 – on a 7 game hit streak
Jordan Brown: .309/.371/.509 – another first baseman!
Wes Hodges: .273/.284/.351 – teaming up with Brantley to bring down the offense
Andy Marte: .273/.333/.409 – who? (24 plate appearances)
Chris Gimenez: .151/.270/.245 – another slow, injury tainted start
Wyatt Toregas: .281/.351/.594 – has taken advantage of Gimenez’s struggles with 3 HRs in the past week
John Meloan: 14IP, 14H, 3HR, 4BB, 14K, 5.01 FIP – two bad outings

Akron (16-4, first place)

Despite some early season hitting problems, Akron is finding a way to win in impressive fashion.

Carlos Santana: .262/.405/.623, 19.2 BB%, 14.1 K%, 10 XBHs, +12 Net

As I said yesterday, not all .260 averages are created equally. Santana has been a stud and has done nothing to dampen optimism about his future.

Beau Mills: .266/.286/.380, 2.4 BB%, 14.3 K%, 7 XBHs, -5 Net

This could be going better for Beau. He made big improvements in his plate patience last year, it’d be nice to see him get that back.

Nick Weglarz: .089/.243/.143, 14.3 BB%, 27.1 K%, 1 XBH, -7 Net

Biggest disappointment so far. I wonder how long the Indians will let him struggle before trying to put him into a more comfortable environment, either against lower competition or with a former hitting coach.

Carlos Rivero: .208/.296/.292, 11.0 BB%, 17.1 K%, 4 XBHs, -1 Net

Also disappointing, though the peripherals are much better than with Weglarz. And for whatever it is worth, minorleaguesplits.com suggests he has been getting pretty unlucky with balls in play.

Hector Rondon: 4-0, 1.17 ERA, 2.37 FIP, 4.4 BB%, 24.4 K%, 47 GB%, +14 Net

By all accounts and by all measures Rondon has been sensational. Better competition, more strikeouts, fewer walks, more groundballs, better outcome. If he keeps this up for another month I expect he’ll get an early promotion to Columbus.

Others…
Jeanmar Gomez: 3-2, 3.62 FIP (A+/AA), just made his first start in Akron after getting called up, but has shown improved BB/K numbers so far this season. One to keep an eye on.
Josh Rodriguez: .314/.478/.353 – Valbuena makes it easy to forget Rodriguez exists. Exceptional patience covering up a lack of power so far. Also, 4 errors in the field.
Chuck Lofgren: 1-0, 3.69 FIP – Can 6 no-hit innings in his last outing and back to back great starts awaken long dormant hope?
Jose Constanza: .323/.400/.419, 10/1 SB/CS – this guy just hangs around as a mildly interesting speedy centerfielder…

Kinston (11-10, first place tie)

More great pitching, coupled with some nice performances by highly thought of 2008 draftees in Carolina…

Kelvin De La Cruz: 2-0, 1.50 ERA, 2.09 FIP, 4.4 BB%, 42.2 K%, 29 GB%, +12 Net

The tall lefty absolutely crushed the Kinston competition in his first two starts, getting 19 of his 36 outs via the K. Unfortunately he has been shelved since then, resting a sore arm. Fingers crossed.

Eric Berger: 2-1, 1.42 ERA, 2.20 FIP, 10.5 BB%, 34.2 K%, 44 GB%, +15 Net

Eric, who turned 23 last week, is picking up where he left off last season in his successful debut. His numbers are actually dragged down somewhat by a bad first start.

Zack Putnam: 2-0, 5.00 ERA, 2.23 FIP, 5.4 BB%, 25.7 K%, 56 GB%, +15 Net

Another 2008 draftee off to a great start (pay more attention to the FIP than the ERA). Putnam got hit with a linedrive in his last start, forcing him out after just 2 innings, but word is he should be fine going forward. A nice competition between Putnam and Berger to see who might get promoted to Akron first.

Cord Phelps: .306/.452/.444, 19.1 BB%, 14.9 K%, 9 XBHs, +11 Net

Tim Fedroff: .303/.422/.455, 16.9 BB%, 21.7 K%, 7 XBHs, +2 Net

Two more 2008 draftees continuing the early season trend of outstanding patience at the plate. For both of these, but especially Fedroff given his K-rate, it’d be nice to see a little more power.

Lonnie Chisenhall: .274/.344/.440, 8.6 BB%, 21.5 K%, 6 XBHs, -6 Net

Lonnie got some love from Baseball America after homering in 3 consecutive games earlier in April. Has cooled down a little since then, but the power and positive reviews of his defense at 3rd (although 4 errors) are nice to see. It’d be good to see him make a little better contact.

Others…

Matt McBride: .412/.468/.718 – yeah, yeah, yeah…
Dallas Cawiezell: 12.1IP, 3 BB, 15 K, 2.22 FIP
CC Lee: 14 IP, 6 BB, 17 K, 5.03 FIP

Lake County (8-12, 6th place)

As I mentioned in last week’s early weekend 6-pack, it’s another loaded pitching staff-very little offense club on Cleveland’s East Side this season.

Abner Abreu: .208/.240/.292, 2.7 BB%, 38.7 K%, 5 XBHs, -24 Net

It doesn’t really matter what kind of moon shots you hit in batting practice if you rack up 29 Ks and just 2 walks in your first 75 plate appearances.

Karexon Sanchez: .268/.342/.493, 8.8 BB%, 30.0 K%, 7 XBHs, -2 Net

Add in 8/0 SB/CS and Sanchez is another guy hanging around the peripheries of the interesting crowd. I’m admittedly biased, though, as I really hope to one day witness, for at least one inning of one game, an infield that includes Karexon Sanchez, Asdrubal Cabrera and Luis Valbuena – just for the scrabble points.

Joey Mahalic: 0-1, 1.00 ERA, 3.31 FIP, 8.8 BB%, 20.6 K%, 64 GB%, +7 Net

The 20-year old veteran of the Captains pitching staff, following in the organizational footsteps of Aaron Laffey (albeit about a year behind in terms of age). Might get promoted to Kinston soon.

Alexander Perez: 0-0, 1.99 ERA, 3.00 FIP, 8.0 BB%, 26.1 K%, 58 GB%, +11 Net

19-year old Dominican is off to a great start. The Latin American scouting department has been doing its job well.

TJ House: 1-1, 1.53 ERA, 3.76 FIP, 14.5 BB%, 21.1 K%, 51 GB%, +3 Net

Some control problems, but an encouraging debut from the 19-year old House.

Santo Frias: 1-0, 2.38 ERA, 2.20 FIP, 13.3 BB%, 40.0 K%, 53 GB%, +12 Net

One of my favorites going into last season (especially paired with Lord Kelvin) is coming back from missing most of last season with injury. Working out of the bullpen in the early season he has been fantastic. It’d be nice to see him either move back into the rotation at some point or up to Kinston.

Others…

Nate Recknagel: .327/.411/.449 – big 2008 U of M draftee will need to show more power given his defensive limitations
Jeremie Tice: .246/.342/.362 – 2008 college draftee…
TJ McFarland: 0-2, 7.13 ERA, 4.49 FIP – control and BABIP problems for this 19-year old

Minor Action: 4/6-4/12

APV — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 10:48:10 -0000

Yes, we finally have a victory in Cleveland, and I have the motivation to put together a brief weekly glance at some of our top minor leaguers, plus a few additional notes.

Columbus:

At 1-3, it wasn't the greatest of starts to the Clippers Cleveland affiliation. The biggest news is probably that Matt Laporta might be temporarily shelved after feeling some tightness following a swing. Prior to that swing, Laporta was off to a great start, with 2 doubles, a triple and a HR in his first three games. Michael Brantley has 7 hits in 15 ABs (one 1 K in 17 PAs). Luis Valbuena has been muy bueno in his opening week (.333/.412/.600). Apparently he doesn't embarass himself in the field either:

Despite the 12 runs scored by the Clippers, the penultimate moment of the game was a slick double play turned by Valbuena, Wilson Valdez and Aubrey in the 5th inning that killed the momentum Louisville was building in a quest to erase a Clippers lead for the 3rd time in 4 innings.

The catching tandem of Chris Gimenez and Wyatt Toregas hasn't been so good, as they are collectively still looking for their first hit.

On the pitching side, the bullpen, including John Meloan, Tony Sipp, and the recently promoted Vinnie Chulk have fared better than the starters (none of whom have allowed less than 4 ERs).

Akron:

Akron garned the most success, with a 3-1 opening week.

The four opening starters; Hector Rondon, Frank Herrmann, Josh Tomlin and Steven Wright all had quality opening starts. Rondon is the headliner of course, and his 6 Ks and one BB in 5.2 IP didn't disappoint. Carlos Santana hit a 3-run HR in his opening AB. Sadly the team hasn't hit a HR since. Weglarz, Mills and Rivero are still waiting to take off.

Kinston:

Like Carlos Santana, Tim Fedroff started Kinston's season off with a HR. And like Akron, no one has hit a HR since. Kinston is 2-2 in the early going, the two victories coming on the back of great starts from Kelvin De La Cruz and 2008 draftee Zack Putnam. Kelvin struck out a career-high 10 in his 6 inning debut. Matthew Brown (1.155 OPS) and Matt McBride (4 2Bs, 1.188 OPS) have carried the offense. Lonnie Chisenhall (.594) and Cord Phelps (.448) haven't exploded out of the gate. International signee C.C. Lee is off to a good start in the bullpen (4IP,2H,0R,2BB,5K), as are Jonathan Holt and Josh Judy.

Lake County:

The Captains love playing baseball. And as such, weren't content to play just 9 innings in any of their opening 3 games. Unfortunately they dropped 2 of the 3 extra inning games, and then dropped a more normal 9 inning affair yesterday. This shouldn't obscure some great starting pitching, however. Joey Mahalic, TJ House and Dominican academy graduate Alexander Perez - all legititimately intriguing guys - had great debuts. In Mahalic's outing, he got all of his outs via the K (5) or groundball (12) up until the last batter of the 6th, who recorded the first flyball out of the game. 2008 draftees Jeremie Tice (1.246) , Adam Abraham (1.204) and 21-year old Venezuelan infielder Karexon Sanchez (1.035, 2 HRs) have all gotten off to good starts at the plate.

Transactions: Spring Training Cuts

Ryan — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 06:15:17 -0000

From 3-15-09:

Reassigned RHP Tomo Ohka and LHP Ryan Edell to Minor League Camp

Although all Spring Training stats need to be treated with a high degree of skepticism, a pitcher fighting for a roster spot giving up 14 hits and 10 runs in 3.2 innings is a sign that he's not very good. That's what the Indians saw in Tomo Ohka.

Edell was a starter all of last year, but the Indians brought him to major-league camp to (I assume) take a look at him as a reliever. If he makes the Clippers as a reliever we'll know if they liked what they saw.

Optioned LHP Rich Rundles to Columbus (AAA)

Rundles looked like he had a decent chance of making the bullpen after making the 40-man roster late last season, but Eric Wedge saw some things he still had to work on:

''It's getting to the point where innings are tough to come by,'' Wedge said. ''Rundles needs to be very good against left-handers and be able to defend himself against right-handers. It's fairly new for him to be dropping down [throwing sidearm], and he has to get more consistent with that. So he has more development to do.''

With Rundles going down, it's very unlikely the Indians will be taking a situational lefty north with them.

From 3-19-09:

Reassigned the following to Minor League Camp:

1B: Jordan Brown, Beau Mills, Stephen Head

Brown and possibly Head will be playing in Columbus; Mills is headed to Akron. Mills is the prime prospect, Brown the sort-of prospect, and Head the not prospect.

RHP Jack Cassel

SS Jesus Merchan

3B Wes Hodges

A lot of things outside of Hodges' control has gone right for him. The Indians, instead of moving Jhonny Peralta to third, traded for Mark DeRosa, who is a free agent at the end of this season. And Andy Marte is for all intents and purposes not in the indians' future plans. That means Hodges now has the opportunity to play himself onto the 2010 roster. I still think it's more likely Peralta's playing at third next season, but if Hodges plays well, it will make the Indians' decision much more difficult.

Optioned the Following Players to Columbus (AAA):

2B Luis Valbuena

While Hodges is going to have to play his way into the Indians' future plans, Valbuena seems to be the default option at second in 2010. If the Indians do shift the infield around next season, his performance this season in Columbus will be the impetus for it.

LHP Tony Sipp

Sipp hasn't been able to stay healthy (tommy John in 2007, shoulder problems last season), but the only thing preventing him from pitching with the Indians this season is proof that he can handle a relievers' workload.

RHP John Meloan, Adam Miller, and Juan Salas

It was a given that Salas would be optioned to AAA as depth. Meloan washed out of the bullpen battle fairly quickly, but my expectations are still pretty high. Adam Miller looks like he'll undergo season-ending surgery on his right middle finger; the injury is possibly career-threatening. Miller's never pitched for the Indians, but it's a huge loss nonetheless. A healthy Miller in this year's bullpen would have given Eric Wedge a relief ace capable of filling in a multi-inning cap if a starter had to come out early, and eventually a late-inning setup man.

Optioned C Carlos Santana and Hector Rondon to Akron (AA)

Both players did nothing this spring to dampen the high expectations already placed on them. Santana is already an advanced hitter, but the Indians are fine at catcher and won't need to promote him agressively. Rondon, on the other hand, probably needs a full season in Akron.

[Update: Although not listed in the official transactions, the Indians also assigned LHP David Huff to Minor League camp.]

Casey Blake traded to Dodgers, Carmona activated from DL, Laffey sent down, Reyes acquired from Cardinals

Jay — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 19:04:50 -0000

The Indians have traded Casey Blake to the Dodgers for two quality prospects — Carlos Santana, a 22-year-old catcher who has been dominating the Advanced-A California League with a 993 OPS, and Jon Meloan, a reliever in Triple-A who just turned 24. Reports that a deal was close leaked out this morning and have been confirmed by Dodgers GM Ned Colletti.

Santana leads all minor leaguers with a staggering 96 RBI in just 99 games — yeah, I know it's an "idiot stat," but that is just a ton of RBI. With the caveat that we don't really know the relative park factors, Santana is hitting almost exactly as far above league average as Victor Martinez was in 2001, at the same age and level. His batting line is stunningly without flaw — .323 / .431 / .563, 16% walk rate, 1.74 ISO, 52 extra base hits and 69 walks against only 59 strikeouts. Optimistically, he'll be ready for the majors around 2010 or 2011, which coincidentally are Martinez and Shoppach's respective walk years.

Meloan dominated as a reliever last season in Double-A and Triple-A, but he struggled this season as the Dodgers attempted to make him into a starter. The Indians probably are interested in converting him back to the bullpen, where the club badly needs a few more strong, potential contributors in 2009. Meloan has two more option years remaining after this season.

One somewhat surprising detail of the deal is that the Indians will send the Dodgers cash to cover all of Blake's remaining salary for the season, about $2.2 million. This is an unusual detail in a deal that isn't essentially one team ridding itself of part of a horrendous contract, and it's especially unusual when the team receiving the money has a much larger budget for player salaries ($118 million) than the team sending it ($78 million).

That said, the arrangement is not so unusual considering the Indians' history of deals under Dolan and Shapiro. In most of the famous 2002 deals, the Indians passed up chances to shed payroll, opting instead essentially to continue paying the player they were giving up (Chuck Finley then, Blake now) or to take on "payroll steerage" to even the books (Lee Stevens in the Colon deal). By agreeing to shoulder an extra cash burden, the Indians consistently have given teams an added incentive to include better talent in these deals — given Blake's fairly marginal value over the next nine weeks, one could argue that the Dodgers have essentially sold the Indians a terrific catcher prospect for the bargain price of $2.2 million.

The Indians did not send the Brewers any cash in the Sabathia deal, which saved the club approximately $5.4 million and probably contributed to their generosity in this and any further trades.

In a separate and unrelated deal, the Indians have acquired RHP Anthony Reyes from the Cardinals for RHP Luis Perdomo. Reyes, 26, has had a solid season in Triple-A with a 3.25 ERA over 11 starts but fared poorly in ten appearances as reliever for the big-league club. Perdomo, 24, utterly dominated much younger Carolina League competition, and he's pitched well since being promoted to Double-A earlier this month. Neither is considered a significant prospect.

Reyes famously shut down the Tigers in Game One of the 2006 World Series, playing a key part in the 82-win club's improbable postseason run to a title. He has struggled to find any lasting success in the majors, however, with just 10 wins in 38 starts and a career ERA+ of 82. Ironically, the Cardinals to talked seriously to the Indians about acquiring Reyes this past offseason, in exchange for another young starter experiencing serious career difficulties — Cliff Lee.

The Indians presumably are looking at Reyes as a fifth starter option for the rest of this season, giving them a credible option especially in the event they trade Paul Byrd by August 31. Reyes will be out of options after this season, however, making him a non-option as a sixth or seventh starter in 2009. It's unlikely the Indians will see him as a quality option for the rotation next year, so barring key injuries in Spring Training, he likely will be off our 40-man roster by the end of next March, one way or another.

But wait — there's more!

The Indians have activated Fausto Carmona from the Disabled List to start tonight's game against the Twins, his first start in the majors in over two months. He's, like, awesome, and we have him signed until, like, forever.

Aaron Laffey was optioned to Buffalo to make way for Carmona. Laffey was suppressed runs like crazy in his first two months, garnering a 2.83 ERA over 11 starts despite poor K/BB numbers, 30/19 over 70 IP. The league seemed to catch up to him in his last five starts, in which he allowed 27 runs (22 earned) in just 23.2 IP. A trip to Buffalo might help him catch his breath, or it might just help the Indians keep him an extra year.

Andy Gonzalez has been called up to take Blake's spot on the active roster. He can't really hit at all, but he has played 26 games at 2B for the Bisons this season, plus 15 or more games at each of four other positions: 3B, 1B, SS and LF. Travis Hafner was moved from the 15-day DL to the 60-day DL, a formality with little consequence other than opening up a spot on the 40-man roster for a few months. Reyes and Meloan take the 40-man spots vacated by Hafner and Blake.