Written by Tony Lastoria

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Now broken down into two pieces (one ran Thursday, one on Sundays), Lastoria's Indians minor league updates are as good as anything on the web. If you're like me, and are too busy to analyze every freaking Tribe minor league boxscore ... this column is a great place to get caught up on everything that happened in the last week in five minutes time. Minor Recaps: Goleski Finally Rebounds

(For games from Thursday May 4 through Saturday May 13)

Minor League Player of the Week:

Ryan Goleski (OF- Kinston): .542 avg (13-24), 2 2Bs, 2 HRs, 17 RBIs

Goleski is a prototypical right-fielder in that he has a cannon for an arm to go along with power at the plate. Goleski was impressive this past week, not only hitting over .500, but piling up 17 RBIs in just seven games. Before his breakout week, however, Goleski was off to a slow start as in 19 games he was hitting a paltry .193 and only had 2 HRs and 6 RBIs. The slow start was not encouraging, especially considering that he is coming off a disastrous 2005 campaign at Kinston where he hit .212 with 17 HRs and 67 RBIs. Hopefully this past week is a sign that he is starting to rebound to his 2004 form when he hit .295 and led the entire Indians farm system in HRs (28) and RBIs (104) at Class A Lake County. After his torrid week at the plate, he is now hitting a very respectable .296 with 4 HRs and 23 RBIs.

Honorable Mention: Jeremy Sowers (SP- Buffalo), Chuck Lofgren (SP- Kinston), Kevin Kouzmanoff (3B- Akron)

Buffalo Roundup:

Team Stats: The Bisons went 5-6 for the week, and currently stand at 19-19 on the season in 3rd place in the Northern Division of the International League (IL)…. Offensively, Buffalo’s recent struggles offensively have dropped them to 4th in the league in hitting with a .255 average, and are Buffalo is 7th out of 14 teams in pitching with a 3.40 ERA.

League Top 10’s: Lou Merloni 9th in batting average (.324) and 6th in OPS (.911)….Jason Dubois tied for 2nd in RBIs (26) and tied for 5th in HRs (6)….Ryan Garko tied for 2nd in RBIs (26)….Ben Francisco tied for 5th in HRs (6)….Jeremy Sowers tied for 1st in wins (5), 1st in innings pitched (52.0), and 3rd in ERA (1.21)….Ben Howard tied for 1st in saves (8).

Player Notes: The HR drought ended for Andy Marte Friday night when he connected for his first HR of the season. The HR came on his 118th official at-bat and 138th plate appearance of the season….Left-handed starting pitcher Jason Stanford was excellent Thursday, allowing no runs through 6 innings before allowing 2 runs in the 7th….Ramon Vazquez Replacement Alert: Merloni continues to hit as he is hitting .324 with 3 HRs and 12 RBIs, and he also has a very good .911 OPS…..Jason Dubois has 43 strikeouts in 123 at bats….Andy Marte has 38 strikeouts in 125 at bats.

Noteworthy Year-to-Date Stats:

Jason Dubois (OF): .285 avg, 9 2Bs, 6 HRs, 26 RBIs, .859 OPS
Ben Francisco (OF): .262 avg, 6 2Bs, 6 HRs, 18 RBIs, .778 OPS, 7 stolen bases
Ryan Garko (1B): .261 avg, 7 2Bs, 4 HRs, 26 RBIs, .811 OPS
Andy Marte (3B): .240 avg, 9 2Bs, 1 HR, 7 RBIs, .667 OPS
Franklin Gutierrez (CF): .255 avg, 10 2Bs, 2 HRs, 10 RBIs, 7 stolen bases
Jeremy Sowers (SP): 5-1, 1.21 ERA, 52 IP, 29 Ks, 1.23 WHIP
Jason Stanford (SP): 1-3, 3.82 ERA, 33 IP, 27 Ks, 1.24 WHIP
Andrew Brown (RP): 2-0, 2.08 ERA, 21.2 IP, 18 BBs, 20 Ks, 1.38 WHIP

Akron Roundup:

Team Stats: Akron continues to roll going 5-2 this week, and are currently are 22-12 on the season good for 1st place in the Southern Division of the Eastern League (EL)….Offensively, the Aeros are ranked 1st in the league with a .279 batting average, and on the pitching front are ranked 8th in the league out of 12 teams with a 3.36 ERA.

League Top 10’s: Kevin Kouzmanoff leads the league (by 89 points) with a .422 batting average, is 2nd in OPS (.998)….John Van Every is 8th in hitting (.309), 3rd in OPS (.950)….Eider Torres is 10th in hitting (.298) and tied for 3rd in stolen bases (15)….Todd Donovan has been out awhile, but still ranks 2nd in stolen bases (17)….Ryan Mulhern is tied for 8th in HRs (5) and is 4th in RBIs (22)….Brad Snyder is tied for 8th in HRs (5) and is 9th in RBIs (19)….Adam Miller is tied for 1st in wins (4) and is 10th in Ks (37)….Eddie Mujica is 3rd in saves (8).

Player Notes: Brad Snyder and Ryan Mulhern continue to pile up the strikeouts, in 127 at bats Snyder has 45 Ks and in 128 at bats Mulhern has 41 Ks….Eider Torres continues to show promise, and is a utility infielder candidate in the near future. Not only can he play SS or 2B, he has speed (15 stolen bases) and handles the bat well (.298 avg)….Bullpen Alert: Lefty Rafael Perez, after a rough start to the season, has settled in nicely. To date he has a 2-4 record with a 4.71 ERA, and 33 Ks in 36.1 IP….Tom Mastny also is making a name for himself in the bullpen, as he has a 1.17 ERA and 29 Ks in 23 IP.

Noteworthy Year-to-Date Stats:

Kevin Kouzmanoff (3B): .422 avg, 7 2Bs, 1 HR, 13 RBIs, .998 OPS
Jonathan Van Every (OF): .309 avg, 9 2Bs, 3 3Bs, 4 HRs, 19 RBIs, .950 OPS
Ryan Mulhern (1B): .297 avg, 9 2Bs, 1 3B, 5 HRs, 22 RBIs, .831 OPS
Brad Snyder (OF): .252 avg, 4 2Bs, 2 3Bs, 5 HRs, 19 RBIs, 4 stolen bases, .754 OPS
Adam Miller (SP): 4-1, 3.35 ERA, 37.2 IP, 37 Ks, 1.06 WHIP
Nick Pesco (SP): 2-1, 4.82 ERA, 28 IP, 24 Ks, 1.43 WHIP
Eddie Mujica (RP): 1-0, 8 saves, 0.00 ERA, 19 IP, 17 Ks, 1.05 WHIP

Kinston Roundup:

Team Stats: Kinston is playing the best ball out of the four minor league Indians affiliates as they went 6-3 on the week, and currently are 23-11 on the season which is good for 1st place in the Southern Division of the Carolina League…..Offensively, Kinston ranks 1st in the league with a .271 team batting average, and are 1st in pitching in the 8-team league with a 2.92 ERA.

League Top 10’s: Brian Barton is 1st in hitting (.344), tied for 1st in HRs (6) and 1st in OPS by 90 points (1.079), tied for 7th in stolen bases (9)….Ryan Goleski is 4th in RBIs (23), 6th in OPS (.893), 8th in walks (18)….Trevor Crowe is 1st in walks (28), 2nd in stolen bases (14) and 8th in RBIs (21)….SS Brian Finegan is 7th in stolen bases (9) and 10th in walks (16)….Stephen Head is 2nd in RBIs (26)….Chuck Lofgren is tied for 1st in wins (5), 4th in ERA (1.93), tied for 5th in Ks (36) and 6th in WHIP (1.07)….Joe Ness is 7th in ERA (2.53), tied for 5th in Ks (36) and 7th in WHIP (1.09)…Scott Lewis is tied for 5th in Ks (36)....Jensen Lewis is tied for 1st in wins (5).

Player Notes: With the numbers he is piling up and where he ranks in several statistical categories, Brian Barton might be the Carolina League MVP to date. He currently has a 21 game hitting streak, and if he keeps up his production could be in line for a promotion soon to Akron….After almost two weeks of action, Michael Aubrey is still healthy. He has played basically every other night, and in 6 games is hitting .190 (4-21). The average is not a concern, as the power he is showing (2 2Bs and 2 HRs) is an encouraging sign for a player with chronic back and leg issues….Scott Lewis continues to dominate, but isn’t racking up IP because he is plagued by bicep tenderness so the Indians have him on a strict 60-75 pitch count….3B Matt Whitney has 37 Ks in 90 at bats.

Noteworthy Year-to-Date Stats:

Brian Barton (OF): .344 avg, 6 2Bs, 1 3B, 6 HRs, 16 RBIs, 9 stolen bases, 1.079 OPS
Argenis Reyes (2B): .288 avg, 6 2Bs, 3 3Bs, 0 HRs, 19 RBIs, 8 stolen bases, .707 OPS
Trevor Crowe (OF): .280 avg, 7 2Bs, 2 HRs, 21 RBIs, 28 BBs, 14 stolen bases, .799 OPS
Stephen Head (1B): .256 avg, 7 2Bs, 4 HRs, 26 RBIs, .739 OPS
Jensen Lewis (SP): 5-2, 4.58 ERA, 37.1 IP, 26 Ks, 1.29 WHIP
Chuck Lofgren (SP): 5-2, 1.93 ERA, 37.1 IP, 36 Ks, 1.07 WHIP
Joe Ness (SP): 3-0, 2.53 ERA, 32 IP, 36 Ks, 1.09 WHIP
Scott Lewis (SP): 0-1, 0.66 ERA, 27.1 IP, 36 Ks, 0.80 WHIP

Lake County Roundup:

Team Stats: The Captains went 3-6 for the week, putting them at 18-17 on the season and in 3rd place in the Northern Division of the South Atlantic League (SAL) standings….Offensively, the Captains are ranked 11th in the league out of 16 teams in hitting with a .243 average, and are ranked 4th in pitching with a 3.40 ERA.

League Top 10’s: Kevin Dixon is 2nd in ERA (.136) and 5th in WHIP (0.98)….James Deters is 10th in IP (41).

Player Notes: As you can see in the league top 10’s, the Captains are a bad offensive team. Not one single player is in the league top 10 in any meaningful category. The loss of outfielder John Drennen to injury hurt, but the problem here is a serious lack of talent. There are currently no Top 30 ranked prospects in the Captains lineup, and only two players in all on the roster (pitchers Cody Bunkelman and Carlton Smith)….After this week, the Captains may not have any top performers since Dixon was promoted to Kinston a few days ago….After winning player of the week honors a week or so back, 1B Fernando Pacheco is back to sucking (to put it bluntly). He is hitting .184 on the season….After a weeklong hot-streak when he came off the DL, catcher Josh Noviskey has slumped to a .231 average….What in the world happened to Juan Valdes? Two years ago he was being hyped because of his speed and potential, yet to date he has 2 stolen bases and is hitting .226 with a .577 OPS…..Did I mention this Captains lineup is horrible? The team leader in OPS has a .741 OPS.

Noteworthy Year-to-Date Stats:

Matt Fornasiere (2B): .280 avg, 4 2Bs, 1 3B, 1 HR, 12 RBIs, .741 OPS.
Niuman Romero (SS): .274 avg, 4 2Bs, 1 3B, 0 HRs, 14 RBIs, .692 OPS
Jose Constanza (OF): .269 avg, 3 2Bs, 2 3Bs, 1 HR, 6 RBIs, 10 stolen bases, .739 OPS
Mike Conroy (OF): .252 avg, 4 2Bs, 1 3B, 4 HRs, 18 RBIs, .741 OPS
James Deters (SP): 2-1, 3.51 ERA, 41 IP, 40 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
Kevin Dixon (SP): 2-1, 1.36 ERA, 39.2 IP, 21 Ks, 0.98 WHIP
Carlton Smith (SP): 1-1, 2.25 ERA, 16 IP, 14 Ks, 0.94 WHIP