Jose Ramirez, 2B-AKR: 1-5, RBI, R.
Jose Ramirez did not appear on my top-51 prospect countdown prior to the 2012 season. In fact, prior to the 2012 season, I did not know the Indians had a player named Jose Ramirez in their system. I consider myself a pretty informed person when it comes to the Cleveland Indians organization, so when I say that Jose Ramirez came out of nowhere to rank as a consensus top-15 prospect in the Indians organization, I mean he REALLY came out of nowhere. Ramirez signed as an international free agent following the 2009 season, and made his stateside debut in 2011. He hit .325 in 48 games for the AZL Indians in that year, but with just one HR and a 17/7 K/BB ratio. Not terrible by any means, but not remarkable either. In 2012, Ramirez opened in extended spring training, then appeared in three games with the Mahoning Valley Scrappers before advancing to low-A Lake County. All he did in Lake County was hit .354/.403/.462 with 3 HR, 27 RBI and 15 stolen bases. He also walked 24 times while striking out 26, an impressive ratio for a 19-year old in his first exposure to a full-season league. His performance in the difficult offensive environment of the Midwest League was so impressive the Indians decided to have Ramirez skip high-A Carolina and open this season with AA Akron. So far, so good for the young Dominican 2B, as he’s opened the 2013 campaign with hits in all 6 contests, going .417/.462/.471. Oh, and he won’t be able to order a beer in the States until September. I obviously don’t expect him to hit .400 for the season, but he’s now a career .346 hitting in 124 minor league games, and with every passing week his overall ceiling gets higher and higher.
Rob Bryson, RP-COL: IP, 2 K, BB. Bryson allowed 2 runs (one earned) in 2/3’s of an inning in his season debut last Saturday, so it was good to see him bounce back with a solid outing yesterday. Still the only player from the C.C. Sabathia trade who has yet to play in the major leagues.
Tim Fedroff, CF-COL: 2-3, 2B, BB, K. Fedroff is 4 for his last 8, and is hitting .269/.296/.308 in 6 games with the Clippers this season.
Danny Salazar, SP-AKR: L (0-2), 2 2/3 IP, 4 ER, 7 H, 3 K, BB. Tough outing for Salazar, who just didn’t have his best stuff yesterday. Still one of the better SP prospects in the organization, and a guy that I should get to see pitch for the Aeros this Sunday.
Fabio Martinez, RP-AKR: 2/3 IP, 9 ER, 5 H, 2 BB. I don’t like to concentrate on negative performances here on ATF, but Martinez has now allowed 10 ER and walked 4 in 1 2/3 IP this season. He can still get his fastball up to the high-90’s, but it’s easy to see why the Indians were able to get him through waivers when they removed him from the 40-man roster this offseason. At this point, he’s a candidate to send back to extended spring training to try and completely rebuild his delivery from the ground up.
Gio Urshela, 3B-AKR: 2-4, R, K. After an 0-6 start to the season, Urshela is 4 for his last 12 to raise his average to .222. He’s one of the top two defensive 3B in the org (along with Kyle Bellows), so if the bat can play, he’ll fly up the prospect rankings.
Chun Chen, 1B-AKR: 2-4, RBI, K. Chen has hit in four straight, going 6 for his last 14 with a double and a triple. He’s hitting .333/.455/.500 for the Aeros this season and will be splitting time at 1B with Jesus Aguilar for the foreseeable future.
Jordan Cooper, SP-CAR: L (0-1), 5 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 3 H, 2 K, 2 BB. When Cooper gave up a 2nd inning solo HR last night, it represented the first earned run allowed by the righty out of Wichita State in 20 2/3 IP in the Carolina League, dating back to last season of course (H/T to Mudcats play-by-play man Darren Headrick on twitter). He’s my pick for breakout SP in the system this year, and was the hard-luck loser last night in a 5-1 Mudcats defeat.
Francisco Lindor, SS-CAR: 1-4, R. Only one hit for Lindor last night, who’s season line is now all the way down to .444/.524/.611 in 5 games for the Mudcats.
Joe Wendle, 2B-CAR: 1-4, 2 K. Wendle has now hit in four straight, and is hitting .368/.381/.579 with one HR and 5 RBI for the Mudcats this season.