Down on the Farm Report: Nick Weglarz

Last week it was announced that two Indians Minor Leaguers will represent the World Team in the 11th annual All-Star futures game on All-Star weekend on July 12 at Busch Stadium. The two players are catcher Carlos Santana who is the Indians number one rated prospect according to Baseball America and outfielder Nick Weglarz who was rated by Baseball America as the number 3 Indians prospect leading into the season. Both of which are teammates on the Indians Double A Akron Aeros squad. If you watched any of the World Baseball Classic this year you might remember the 21 year old Weglarz as he started in left field for team Canada. Nick also played for the Canadian team in the 2009 Summer Olympics in China as well.

The Indians selected Weglarz in the 3rd round of the 2005 Draft out of high school (Ontario, Canada). In his pro debut in 2005 at rookie level Burlington, at 17 years of age Weglarz held up well and hit .231 with 2 HR and 13 RBI in 141 at bats. In 2006, he played only one game for the rookie level Gulf Coast League (GCL) Indians as he was sidelined for the entire season with a broken hand. Weglarz is one of only a handful of players under 20 to have an OPS in the South Atlantic League of .892 or higher in the last 15 years. Here is what several sites have said about the young up and comer:

Indians Prospect Insider "Weglarz is a developed hitter with above-average hand-eye coordination, and he loves low pitches so he can extend through it either away or down and in. Weglarz has some flaws in his swing that will need to be tinkered along the way, but his long arms and good bat speed generate tremendous power."

Scoutingbook.com said he is, "A smart, savvy hitter with strong arms and developing power, Weglarz uses very fast hands to work the bat through the zone quickly, with line-drive power to all fields. His swing lacks the loft of a true power-hitter, though that may come soon as his large frame continues to fill out: In 2007 he produced 24 long balls in 127 games as a 19 year old in A ball. He took a step back when bumped up to high-A in 2008, but he's still a very young player with a lot to learn, so some growing pains are expected. A first-baseman in high school, the Indians have been using him in left field, though that experiment may soon end: his glove and arm are not better than average. While he continues to work on his power swing, his advanced plate discipline looks puts him firmly in the Future Youkilis Junior Achievers camp for now."

This year Weglarz started out the season playing for the Double A Akron Aeros as he spent all of 2008 in Single A Kingston. Although he started out slow by hitting below .100 in the month of April his numbers have really come around in the last two months as he has been on fire. Since May 1st he is batting over .320 for the Aeros. As of today he is hitting .261 and is leading the team in RBI's with 55. His OPS is .900. Furthermore, he was selected as the Eastern League Player of the week back on May 18th and then again this past week ending June 26th. Weglarz was at his best in the three-game series against Trenton last week. Weglarz hit .700 (7-10) in the series, homered in all three games, drove in eight runs, and collected his first four-hit game of the season Wednesday before becoming just the 12th player in franchise history to draw four walks in a game Thursday.

Since Weglarz is only 21 you can only expect more great things out of him. With the Tribe basically being all but out of it in 2009 it would be nice to see them bring up two other prospects from Triple A Columbus in Michael Brantley and Matt LaPorta so they can get some big league experience. The Clippers have been playing Brantley a lot more in left field so hopefully this is a sign that he will come up and get some experience as I would rather watch him than Ben Francisco. Benny boy is just terrible and I am tired of watching him as he is a minor leaguer at best. Bruce Drennen talked about him last night on All Bets Are Off saying that Francisco might be a nice kid but he has to go. I will be amazed if he is on a big league club next year. With this in mind, if either LaPorta or Brantley get called up you can probably expect that Nick Weglarz will be on the first bus to Columbus to play for the Clippers.

All of Ohio is a Winner

Quick game recaps from the Minor League affiliates of the Indians today as all 4 Ohio teams won. Many stars of the game for each team so let's get right into it...

Indians win 6-5 over the Tigers

A win is a win, even though my heart was pounding out of my chest, which is very unnecessary for a May 1st game. Maybe The Tribe just needed to get through that pesky month of April, put their crappy performances behind them, and move forward. Let's forget Jensen Lewis meltdown and slow bus trip to Columbus (along with Perez) and focus on the positive. Saturday may be a pretty exciting day for some Major League Debuts.

• Carl Pavano: 7 1/3 IP, 2 ER 5 Hits, 0 Walks, 3 K's. Hot Carl pitched a gem, making his longest start since 2005. Pavano commanded his pitches and was able to keep his stuff low in the zone. I believe he will be up and down all year, but I think he may be better than I think as his best buddy on the team (Cliff Lee) may be a good positive influence on him. He also could get bombed for 9 runs against Red Sox next week. What do I know (see below)
  
• David Dellucci: 4-5, 2 doubles. Double D came back with a bang. If as the DiaTribe refers to him as (the Looch) can be a positive bat off the bench and fill in for injuries, he may be able to salvage his Tribe career. One game does not make a season, so I will watch with cautious optimism. Give Davey some credit, but hold the applause until mid June.


• Jhonny Peralta: 2-5, HR, 2RBI. Jhonny woke up today and stopped over thinking at the plate. It's May so Peralta is happy April is over.


• Kerry Wood: Picked up his 5th save in 5 save opportunities. Went 1,2,3 and threw some wicked sliders and curves. They had a great gameplan against Laird and Inge to not show the fastball too much. He is worth every penny of his $10 million dollar salary (that's for you Jonny).

The Columbus Clippers rattled the Durham Bulls today 14-1, scoring 10 runs in the last two innings. Andy Marte hit a grand slam as the Clips wave goodbye to three of their starters (more on that later)

• David Huff: 6 IP, 4 hits, 2 walks, 4 k's, 0 earned runs. Is setting up to be the next starter called up to Cleveland


• Luis Valbuena: 2-4 BB, HR, 3 RBI. Continues to mash in Columbus and will be a welcomed addition to the big league club.


• Jordan Brown: 4-5 HR, 3 RBI. Guy hits everywhere he goes, just unfortunately for him be with the Indians.


• Chris Gimenez: 3-5 HR, 3 RBI. Has been raking as of late after his early season struggles. Will be an option for the Tribe sometime this summer.

The Akron Aeros won in extra innings today 8-6 to improve their record to an amazing 17-4.

• Chuck Lofgren: 5 IP, 4 hits, 4 walks, 1 earned run, 3 K's. Lofgren is slowly getting back on the organizations' radar with every quality start.


• Jerad Head: 2-4, HR, 3 RBI. Big late inning homerun to propel Akron to victory for the infielder.


• Nick Weglarz: 3-5. 2 doubles, HR, 2 RBI. Finally had a breakout game as he has been struggling mightily all season. The Canadian is a top 10 prospect and will bounce back to his usual form. Still only 21.

The Lake County Captains had a big win tonight against Kannapolis 8-3.

• Nate Rechnagel: 4-5, double, triple. The Wolverine has been crushing the ball at a .370 clip.


• Abner Abreu: 3-5, triple, 2 RBI. 19 year old right hand hitting Dominican is one to watch for the Captains and is ranked 15th best Indians propect by Indians Prospect Insider.

Tomorrow is another day, but let's enjoys these performances for what they are, a day in the life of a long baseball season.

Future Heroes: Cleveland Indians Minor Leaguers Show Promise

The more I watch the Cleveland Indians' minor league position players (Beau Mills pictured left) compete this spring training, the more I have become impressed. With the WBC adding 2 more weeks to Cactus League actions, plenty of minor leaguers from all levels have appeared in games. Granted, there is only been a weeks' worth of games, but I have a strong feeling of good things to come for many of these guys. Here are just some of the highlights...

Luis Valbuena: Yet to get a hit in 8 at bats, but has looked great at second and short stop around the bag. Saw him hit in the cages and the ball really popped off of his bat.

Trevor Crowe: Switch hitter has batted already 15 times and looks to be a viable candidate for the 4th outfield spot. Needs to show consistency at the plate, but covers a lot of ground in center and in left.

Beau Mills: Hit his first Cactus League home run Wednesday off of Chad Gaudin which was described as a moon shot. .357 batting average in 14 AB's, driven in 4 runs to go with a double and a triple. Mills has had some issues with the flip play with the pitcher covering first. Definitely needs to refine his fielding skills, but his bat looks almost ready.

Michael Brantley: Played a decent outfield, has 3 hits in 12 AB's, seems to be a slap hitter know so he should fill out his lean frame. Hopefully AAA won't be a major adjustment for him as he is only 21 but the coaches seem to feel his work ethic will allow him to progress smoothly.

Here is some footage of Brantley in the cage...



Stephen Head: Cranked a home run in first cactus game against the Giants, looks good at first base and besides his error in right seems to be a future 4th outfielder/utility guy of value.

Matt LaPorta: 4 hits in 11 at bats, hit a home run off of Dan Haren, and seems to be playing ok out in left field. Future Tribe slugger should see action with the big league club sometime this summer.

Wes Hodges: 3 for 11, going to be playing a lot with Mark DeRosa in the WBC. Needs to work on all facets of his defensive game but still seems to be the Tribe's future third baseman.

Jordan Brown: 3 for 9, with a home run and 2 runs batted in. Seems to be the forgotten man this camp as he was left off of the 40 man roster. Jordan has something to prove and I believe can be an everyday first baseman somewhere in the league, just probably not in Cleveland.

Chris Gimenez: Has played all over the field this spring (Catcher, 3rd, Outfield), while 2 of his 3 hits have been doubles. Gimenez will be seen up with the Indians sometime this year as his versatility is outstanding. OBP is .538, a stat he has excelled in at every level.

Carlos Santana: Shown a rifle for an arm, is gaining a lot of valuable experience working with the big league club. Santana has looked over matched at times, but has drawn 3 walks in 11 plate appearance which shows he is staying patient and not trying to over impress.

Nick Weglarz: 21 year old Canadian is 0 for 4 but gained some important time watching the studs of the big league club. It will be interesting to see how many at bats he gets in the WBC for Team Canada.

Here is some game footage of Weglarz in action...



Carlos Rivero: Soon-to-be 21 year old went 2-3 with a double and an RBI in his first game playing in a Major League game with the Indians. Top 10 Tribe Prospect will start the year in Akron and may be a name to watch.

It will be interesting to see how many of these guys contribute to the big league club in the future. I would imagine someone between Hodges, Mills, LaPorta, and Weglarz will be moved for pitching as they are all similar type players (as is Head,Brown, and Michael Aubrey). The Indians have really went away from overloading camp with the hangers on (Graffanino, Merchan, and Valdez type) and given their young guys shots at major league pitching. These prospects will be donning the blue and red in the next few years so get used to their names now so you have the pleasure of saying, "I remember that guy from Spring Training!"