Written by Al Ciammiachella

Al Ciammiachella

Moncrief 800x744Carlos Moncrief, RF-CAR: 1-4, HR (15), RBI, R, 2 K.

Before this season started, I predicted that Moncrief would be a 20/20 guy for the Mudcats. So far so good, as through 88 games he has popped 15 HR and swiped 15 bags. In his last 10 games, he's hit an impressive .361/.452/.806 with 5 HR, 12 RBI and 3 stolen bases. Moncrief is a converted pitcher, and as you'd expect he has a cannon for an arm in RF. I'd love to see some sort of competition where he and 2012 1st round draft pick Tyler Naquin try to gun down runners at 3B from the RF corner. In addition to the arm, Moncrief has an intriguing power/speed combination, and is a plus athlete in the outfield. His hit tool is lagging behind his overall package as he's struck out 110 times in 305 AB, but he does have a decent approach as he has 43 BB. He's a four-tool player at this point, and is still just 23-years old so even starting out his career on the mound didn't set him too far back. He's a really interesting prospect and it was a great call by the Indians developmental staff to put a bat in his hands and see what would happen. He's an under the radar guy that I think will sneak up on some of the national prospect gurus if he can replicate this success next year in AA.

Scott Barnes, RP-COL: 1 1/3 IP, 3 K, BB. It will be interesting to see if the Indians keep Barnes in the bullpen or transition him back to the rotation this offseason. This year was his first pitching in relief, and I still think he can be a starter long-term.

Matt LaPorta, 1B-COL: 2-4, BB. Funny, I haven't heard many calls for LaPorta to be called up to the MLB roster as the team's savior lately. He's hitting .200/.237/.343 with 1 HR in 17 July games...that probably has something to do with it. In fact, he hasn't hit over .300 in a month since April.

Jared Goedert, 3B-COL: 2-5, RBI, R, 2 K. Goedert is hitting .378/.425/.486 with a HR and 5 RBI in his last 10 games, and his overall AAA OPS is up to .843.

Cord Phelps, 2B-COL: 1-3, 2B, BB, 2 R, SB, K. Phelps is hitting .263/.353/.429 with 10 HR and 39 RBI this season, and is of course completely blocked at his primary defensive position for the forseeable future in this organization.

Matt Packer, SP-AKR: W (2-0), 7 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 8 H, 3 K. Packer has made two starts with the Aeros, winning both. He's thrown 13 1/3 AA innings, allowing 2 runs on 13 hits with 10 K's, and he's yet to issue a walk to an Eastern League hitter this season. It's good to have the 24-year old southpaw back and pitching again.

Preston Guilmet, RP-AKR: S (17), IP, H, 2 K. After a rare blown save in his last appearance, Guilmet proved to have a closers' memory last night when he went out and struck out a pair in recording his 17th save of the season.

Juan Diaz, SS-AKR: 1-3, 3B, RBI. The Aeros only managed four htis as a team last night, and Diaz's RBI triple was a big hit in the 4-2 victory. He's hitting .275/.293/.625 with 3 HR, 8 RBI, 3 doubles and a triple in his last 10 games.

Grant Sides, RP-CAR: IP, H, K. Sides has made 10 appearances with the Mudcats, allowing just 1 ER in 12 1/3 IP. He's struck out 13, allowed 7 hits and walked 7. As long as he can minimize the walks going forward, he's going to be an effective relief arm.

Bo Greenwell, LF-CAR: 1-4, K. Greenwell now has an organizational-best 14 game hitting streak going for the Mudcats. He's hitting .351/.411/.505 overall in 29 Carolina League games, and seems to make more sense for AA Akron than Tyler Holt right now, who's struggling in the Eastern League.

Luis Morel, SP-MVS: W (2-1), 5 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 4 H, 4 K, BB. Morel started the season in the Arizona League and was called up to the Scrappers on June 18. He's made four appearances in the NYPL with yesterday being his first start, and has a 3.86 ERA in 14 IP with 8 BB and 14 K. 

Josh Martin, RP-MVS: 3 IP, H, 3 K, BB. As a senior sign, Martin didn't command much of a signing bonus. He's showing that money isn't everything though, as he's sporting a 3-1 record, with a 3.49 ERA, 26 K and 7 BB in 28 1/3 IP for the Srappers.

Tyler Naquin, CF-MVS: 2-4, 2B, RBI, BB, 2 R, SB. In 20 games this month, Naquin is hitting .276/.409/.395 with 5 doubles, 2 triples and 3 stolen bases. By all accounts, he's adjusted extremely well to CF and the organization is optimistic that he can stick in CF long-term.

Joe Wendle, DH-MVS: 2-5, HR (2), 2 RBI, R. The only thing I like as much as catchers is Division II players finding success in the pros. Wendle is hitting a solid .315/.380/.519 with 2 HR, 10 doubles and 18 RBI in 28 NYPL games.

Robel Garcia, 2B-MVS: 2-4, 2 R. Garcia has put together his best stretch of the season, hitting .333/.395/.394 in his last 10 games. Between low-A and short-season ball, he's played in 91 games on the season, hititng .216/.307/.296 with 3 HR.

Dillon Howard, SP-AZL: 4 IP, 9 R (2 ER), 7 H, 2 K, BB. This is such an AZL line it's not even funny. Tough to read much into numbers like these.

Dorssys Paulino, SS-AZL: 1-4, 2B, RBI, K. Can't believe he's still just 17. Again, complex numbers aren't something you can really "scout" off of, but a .337/.400/.592 line for a kid his age is extremely encouraging.