Written by Al Ciammiachella

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Around the Farm takes a quick look at how some of the prospects throughout the Indians system performed in yesterday’s games. As always, the positions listed below are where the player was playing in yesterday’s games.

Yesterday was a better day in the system, as the farm teams went 2-1 with some outstanding individual performances. The best individual performance actually came in the lone loss, as Drew Pomeranz “earned” a no-decision despite throwing a gem. 

Cory Burns, RP-AKR: S (4), IP, R (0 ER), 2 H, 3 K

OK, now this is just getting ridiculous.  Burns has appeared in four games this season.  He has thrown four innings.  He has four saves.  He’s allowed four baserunners.  The fours end there though, because Burns has walked ZERO batters and struck out ELEVEN. I’m bad at math, but I think he’s struck out 11 of the 12 outs he has recorded so far this year, and has an 11/0 K/BB ratio.  Burns was almost human last night, allowing a pair of hits (both singles). But if there were such a thing as an unearned hit, both of those would have been as they came with 2 outs and after an error on a routine grounder by SS Juan Diaz.

Drew Pomeranz, SP-KIN: 5 2/3 IP, R (0 ER), H, 8 K, 2 BB

Pomeranz had his second straight dominant start yesterday, and the only hit he allowed was to the final batter that he faced on the day.  Pomz now has 17 K in 11 IP, his first 11 IP as a professional.  Expect Pomz to be on the Alex White plan; pitch in Kinston for the first month or two of the season, then move up to Akron and finish out the year there. He’s likely on an innings limit of around 150, so when he does get moved up to the Aeros, make sure you get out and see him early.  This kid is the real deal.  He still needs to continue to develop and refine his changeup in order to be an effective pitcher at the big league level, but he’s showing that his 93-96 MPH fastball and 12-6 spike curve are enough to make hitters in the lower levels of the minors look foolish.

Mike Rayl, SP-LCC: W (2-0), 6 IP, H, 6 K, 2 BB.

It was a good day for the pitchers in the system yesterday. Rayl has an even 11 K in his 11 IP this season for the Captains, and has yet to allow a run. He’s allowed a total of 2 hits. The 6’5” lefty was a 15^th round draft pick in 2009 and put up a 2.81 ERA for short season Mahoning Valley last year. He throws a low-90’s fastball, a curveball and changeup. He’s got a good chance to stick in the rotation in the long term, and still should fill out his frame and add a couple of MPH on his fastball. 

 

• Joe Gardner, SP-AKR: W (2-0), 5 IP, ER, 3 H, 2 K, 4 BB. Gardner with his typical 7-1 GO/FO ratio, but an atypical 2/4 K/BB ratio.  It’s early, but Gardner has 8 BB in 11 IP. We’ve all see pitchers with dominant sinkers lose their ability to command the pitch in the past; hopefully Gardner gets back on track in his next start.
• Nick Hagadone, RP-AKR: 2 IP, H, 3 K. That’s now 6 IP without a walk or an earned run for the big lefty. He’s struck out 6 and allowed just two hits.  Could be in Columbus quickly at this rate.
• Jason Donald, 3B-AKR: 2-4, R, SB. Solid rehab appearance for Donald who is working his way back from a wrist injury.
• Matt McBride, 1B-AKR: 3-3, 2B, RBI, BB, R. McBride reached base on all four plate appearances, and is hitting .296 for the Aeros on the season.
• John Drennen, RF-AKR: 2-3, HR (1), RBI, BB, R, K. Drennen with his 1^st bomb of the season, and has his average up to .250.
• Adam Abraham, 3B-KIN: 1-3, HR (3), RBI, R, K. Abraham now with HR in three games in a row for the K-Tribe. He had the only extra base hit, run scored and RBI for Kinston yesterday in their 2-1 loss.
• Gio Urshela, 3B-LCC: 3-5, 2B, RBI, 2 R. For a prospect known more for his glove, Urshela sure is putting up an impressive line with the bat. He’s now at .393/.469/.500 and has hit in 6 of the Captains 7 games this year.
• Jesus Aguilar, 1B-LCC: 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI, R. Just another day in the office for BBJA. He doesn’t turn 21 until June, and is a sleeper prospect with as much raw power as any corner infielder in the organization.
• Alex Lavisky, C-LCC: 2-5, R, 3 K. Well, his BIABP was 1.000. Lavisky came back with a multi-hit effort after a much-needed day off, but still struck out three times. He now has 10 K in 24 professional AB.