Written by Al Ciammiachella

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Austin Adams, SP-AKR: W (10-10), 7 IP, 5 H, 7 K, 3 BB.

One of my favorite prospects in the organization, Adams can run his fastball up into the triple digits. He regularly sits in the mid-90s with his fastball, and has a power curve that is especially effective against righties. The keys for Adams will be refining his command and improving his changeup, which will help him keep his pitch count down and go deeper into games. On the season, Adams is now 10-10 with a 3.78 ERA, 125 K and 63 BB in 131 IP. Adams is slated to pitch in the elite Arizona Fall League this offseason, where he’ll likely work out of the bullpen. The Indians still see him as a starter though, and he’s a definite top-20 guy in the organization right now.

 

Jared Goedert, 3B-COL: 2-4, HR (12), RBI, R.

Goedert has quietly put together an impressive month of August for Columbus. After homering in now 3 straight games, Goedert is hitting .386/.463/.714 (1.177 OPS) in 21 August games. He’s still a righthanded CI bat with some pop, and if not for an unfortunate oblique injury this spring would have likely had a shot to play in Cleveland at some point this season. He’s not on the 40-man roster, so a call up to the show when rosters expand is possible but unlikely. Still, Goedert has something to offer at the major league level, the only question is when he’ll get a chance to play and with who.

 

• Paolo Espino, SP-COL: W (2-1), 7 IP, 2 H, 7 K. Espino turned in his best start of the season, and is now 2-1 with a 3.95 ERA for the Clippers. In 27 1/3 AAA innings, Espino has 25 K and 7 BB. Seems like he’s been around forever, but still just 24 and very much putting himself on the map as a SP prospect.
• Nick Hagadone, RP-COL: IP, K. Perfect inning for Hagadone, who’s now up to 50 K in 44 2/3 AAA innings and 74 K in 67 1/3 innings overall this year.
• Josh Judy, RP-COL: IP, K. Judy now with 5 consecutive scoreless appearances, and a 3.38 ERA on the season.
• Cord Phelps, 2B-COL: 1-5, HR (14), 2 RBI, R, K. I’d much rather see Phelps back in Cleveland as the UTL infielder with Kipnis on the DL as opposed to Luis Valbuena. Of course, I’d rather see Brian McPeek as the UTL infielder over Luis Valbuena, so that’s probably not saying all that much.
• Jered Head, LF-COL: 2-4, HR (24), RBI, R. Head cooled off in July, posting a .750 OPS overall which was his worst month of the season. He’s picking things back up here in August, hitting .293/.312/.627 in 18 games this month.
• Paul Phillips, C-COL: 2-3, RBI, R, K. Can’t have an ATF without a catcher.
• Cory Burns, RP-AKR: S (32), IP, H. Burns inches closer to the org lead in saves, but still trails Kinston’s Preston Guilmet.
• Juan Diaz, SS-AKR: 2-4, 2B, 2 R. Diaz is hitting .324/.390/.432 in his last 10 games, with a HR and 2 RBI.
• Marty Popham, SP-KIN: W (6-2), 7 IP, ER, 2 H, 8 K, 2 BB. Dominant start for Popham, who’s only blemish was a solo HR allowed in the bottom of the 6^th. Now has 91 K in 92 2/3 IP for Kinston on the season.
• Kyle Landis, RP-KIN: S (3), 2 IP, H, 5 K. Landis picked up right where Popham left off, striking out 5 of the 7 hitters he faced.
• Roberto Perez, C-KIN: 1-4, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 K. After a career month of June that saw Perez hit .309/.434/.485, the defensive superstar has faded at the plate hitting around .205 in July/August. Perez has had a couple of nagging injuries, and his performance at the plate in the pitcher-friendly Carolina League has to be considered a step forward in his development.
• Luigi Rodriguez, LF-LCC: 1-4, 3B, 2 RBI, R, 2 K. The speedy converted 2B has been solid in Lake County, putting up an overall line of .280/.346/.344 as a 18-year old in low-A.
• Enosil Tejeda, RP-MVS: S (10), IP, 2 K. The 22-year old Scrappers closer has a 3.41 ERA and an impressive 51 K in just 29 IP this year. He’s holding New York-Penn League hitters to a .179 batting average in his 24 appearances.
• Bryson Myles, LF-MVS: 2-3, 2 BB, 3 R, SB, K. Myles is working on a modest 7-game hitting streak that’s seen him go 10-24 with 8 BB and 4 K.
• Tony Wolters, SS-MVS: 1-4, RBI, 2 R. The 19-year old Wolters is hitting .302/.392/.384 overall in the NYPL, with a HR, 19 RBI, and 17 SB.
• Jordan Smith, RF-MVS: 1-4, 2B, 4 RBI, K. Smith only had one hit yesterday, but it was a big one. He cleared the bases with a double in the 6^th inning, giving the Scrappers a lead that they would not relinquish.
• Elvis Araujo, SP-AZL: W (9-1), 5 IP, 2 H, 2 K, BB. The 6’6” Araujo is an intriguing prospect, as right now he looks like a skinnier CC Sabathia, but the first thing the 20-year old needs to do is prove that his injury issues are behind him.
• Trevor Crowe, CF, AZL: 0-2, BB, R, 2 K. No hits, but a step forward in his rehab nonetheless as Crowe played the first 5 innings in the field for the first time since being cleared for baseball activities.
• Leonardo Castillo, 1B-AZL: 2-4, 2 R, BB. One of the more impressive hitters in Arizona, Castillo turned 18 in July and has put up a .313/.346/.464 line with 4 HR and 26 RBI.