Cleveland Sports Forum

forgot Juan Carlos Mejia in the Lynchburg pitching lineup. One of the better prospects on this team; only got into 9 games last season

And I guess Luke Wakamatsu returns after hitting 150 last year, unless they give up on him completely

Hillbilly will like this

5. Starting pitching depth keeps growing
We’ve heard a lot about Zach Plesac, Aaron Civale, Logan Allen, Scott Moss and Triston McKenzie, but the Indians’ young starting pitching depth continues to grow. Sam Hentges, ranked as the club's No. 15 prospect by MLB Pipeline, has already caught Francona’s eye in his bullpens and batting practice sessions.

“You look at him and it’s easy to dream a little bit,” Francona said. “ ... Sometimes his cutter still kind of, between his cutter and his slider, can kind of get mixed up a little bit. But that’s why they have the Minor Leagues. When he figures that stuff out, he’s gonna go quick.”

https://www.mlb.com/indians/news/indian ... servations

Mandy Bell @MandyBell02
The Indians are inviting third baseman Nolan Jones to Major League camp. He had surgery on his thumb in October and is ahead of schedule in his rehab. The team wanted to reward him for his hard work by extending him a non-roster invite.

Hentges made into the Tribe's Top 10 list last off season and really hit a wall in akron. Control was bad and ERA over 5. Plenty of talent to try to harness.

prospects in action yesterday

CLE MAJ Benson, Will PH-DH 2 0 0 0 .000 only 1 strike out
CLE MAJ Bradley, Bobby 1B 1 0 1 0 .200
CLE MAJ Chang, Yu SS 3 0 0 0 .222
CLE MAJ Jones, Nolan 3B 1 0 0 0 .000 BB (3) that makes 3 walks in 6 appearances
CLE MAJ Rocchio, Brayan SS 1 0 0 0 .000 first appearance with the big guys

CLE MAJ Hentges, Sam 1 1 1 0 1 1 0.00 L (0-1)
CLE MAJ Karinchak, James 1 0 0 0 0 3 0.00

prospects in action Thursday:

CLE MAJ Bradley, Bobby 1B 1 1 1 2 1.000 HR (1)
CLE MAJ Clement, Ernie 2B 2 0 0 0 .000 but you can be sure he really hustled
CLE MAJ Freeman, Tyler PR-SS 2 1 1 1 .500

Clement = Pedroia type

TFIR wrote:Clement = Pedroia type

Steroids ?

Clement only has 3 home runs in 3 minor league seasons so I doubt it. If he’s juicing he’s doing it wrong!

Oh, just a small guy.... PEDroia will always stand for steroids to me !

absolutely

George Valera

https://twitter.com/Indians/status/1234552656150061057

Bobby Bradley

https://twitter.com/Indians/status/1233885483760906245

And Bryan Rocchio

https://twitter.com/indiansPro/status/1 ... 4077422593

And Ray Delgado with a base knock

https://twitter.com/indiansPro/status/1 ... 9743757312

How Indians are preparing Nolan Jones to be their third baseman of the future

Zack Meisel Mar 2, 2020 12
GOODYEAR, Ariz. — Nolan Jones’ teammate first pointed out the man standing atop the hill. Jones recognized him, though he was surprised to see him. He remembers saying, “Holy cow.”

John McDonald remembers arriving long before first pitch and immediately noticing how Jones stood out as the leader and the star shortstop of Holy Ghost Prep High School.

That day served as the springboard for a relationship that has played a pivotal role in preparing the Indians’ top prospect for a major-league future. The club sees Jones as its eventual third baseman, and perhaps as a cornerstone of Terry Francona’s lineup.

Their interest in Jones swelled once they deployed McDonald to one of his high school games. Now, the coach and player regularly text about certain defensive plays or adjustments or footwork reminders. They even refer to each other on occasion as “dad” and “son.”

McDonald spent 16 years in the big leagues, nearly half of that time with the Indians. His longevity was a testament to his steady glove at second, short and third. Now, he patrols the Indians’ minor-league affiliates as the organization’s field coordinator. Since the Indians selected Jones in the second round of the 2016 amateur draft, McDonald has worked closely with him on his defense at third base.

And that’s where the Indians are confident he’ll remain.

“I know that he knows he’s come a long way over these last four years,” McDonald said.

It has been a process. Jones played shortstop in high school in Pennsylvania, where hard-hit balls rarely whizzed his way. Aside from a handful of games during his first professional season, Jones has manned the hot corner, where hitters regularly spray 110 mph bullets in his direction.

“It’s like, ‘What do you do besides close your eyes and just hope it goes in your glove?’” he said.

Well, he has learned there are preparations he can make to set him in a better position to react. Jones singled out his “pre-pitch setup” as the most critical area of instruction McDonald has provided. They have studied video and completed countless drills aimed at increasing his range, improving his timing and making his first step more efficient.

Upon the shift to third base, Jones’ initial strategy on fielding line drives was to … pray.

“I would literally just stand there and hope it went in my glove,” he said. “Now, I’ve been learning — I’m not good at it yet, but I’ve been learning how to take one quick step to make it a more comfortable position.”

McDonald said Jones’ strong suit is his backhand. Backed by a strong arm, Jones has no trouble veering to his right to scoop up a groundball.

“He has a big body, a lot of levers, long arms, long legs,” McDonald said. And that makes it imperative, he added, that Jones has every part moving in the right direction so he can make an accurate throw.

McDonald lauded the 21-year-old’s work ethic, saying Jones “digs in on things he’s not good at” while also expending energy to stay sharp on skills he has already mastered.

“We’ve seen major strides defensively,” Indians general manager Mike Chernoff said. “We feel like he’s a really good defender over there.”

At the plate, Jones exhibits almost unparalleled patience. He owns a .409 on-base percentage, the result of a yearly hefty walk rate. He drew 96 free passes in 2019, more than any other minor leaguer. Overall, Jones’ slash line sits at .283/.409/.448.

Reliever Jared Robinson, also in big-league camp, has had a front-row seat to watch Jones the past two seasons. Robinson has marveled at Jones’ ability to resist chasing pitches outside the strike zone.

“He’s that cobra, that mamba,” Robinson said. “You never know when he’s going to strike. He’s not up there swinging at crap in the dirt. He can hit to all fields. He’s not just a pull hitter who’s trying to smack a home run every time.”

Jones tallied 15 home runs and 22 doubles in 126 games last season. The Athletic’s Keith Law surmises he’ll wind up with “20-25 homer power” and said Jones gives off a Kris Bryant vibe.

If Jones has one kryptonite, it’s left-handed pitching. His numbers against southpaws have tumbled each season, plummeting to a .151/.324/.274 clip in 2019. He did battle right thumb pain last year, until he underwent ligament surgery in October. He rehabbed in Arizona all winter.

The Indians planned to extend him an invitation to big-league camp once his thumb fully healed. One morning last month, McDonald directed Jones to Francona’s office. Jones thought he might be in trouble. Francona thought Jones had already been relayed the news.

Instead, Francona surprised Jones with the invitation, and Jones later walked into the clubhouse, where a navy No. 95 uniform was hanging at a locker on the far wall.

“To see his eyes light up,” Francona said, “I think you need to take a second to enjoy it, because you don’t have enough of those.”

It’s rare for a player to earn an opportunity in big-league camp after spring training has already commenced.

“Hopefully it’s the start of many conversations for those two over the next 10 years,” McDonald said.

Jones sits atop most Indians prospect rankings and resides in the upper half of many publications’ Top 100 lists. Triston McKenzie occasionally teases him for dethroning him as the organization’s top guy. A survey of Jones’ teammates, though, reveals his attitude doesn’t reflect that of a player who has bought into his own hype. That could stem from being one of four athletic children in his family. His older brother plays hockey at Penn State. His younger sister is headed to Penn State to play center field on the softball team. His younger brother plays hockey and baseball in high school.

“He’s super humble, super grounded,” pitcher Sam Hentges said. “He’s everything you want in a teammate.”

And it might not be long before the Indians’ major-leaguers are saying the same thing.

“This is a kid,” Chernoff said, “with a big future in front of him.”

Sorry about posting this. Did not know TFIR was posting in Articles.