Cleveland Indians 2017 Top Prospects: 10 more names to know

Our Cleveland Indians top prospect countdown is complete but here are ten more prospects that fans should know entering the 2017 season.

For the last month, we’ve done our Cleveland Indians 2017 top prospect countdown. From Logan Ice to Bradley Zimmer, we went in-depth with all our top 30 prospects and even named ten other prospects to our just missed list.

However, there are still plenty of prospects that are names to follow and here are 10 names I think fans should know and pay attention to going into 2017 (listed in alphabetical order).

Shawn Armstrong – RHP

Shawn Armstrong is easily the most recognizable name on this list. He’s spent parts of the last two seasons in Cleveland but has maintained his prospect (and rookie) eligibility.

He’s appeared in 18 games with the Indians the last two years, posting a 2.41 ERA. In the minors, Armstrong has shown an aptitude for strikeouts. In 263 1/3 innings, he’s struck out 357 batters (12.2 per nine innings).

The problem with Armstrong, and why he didn’t appear on our top prospect countdown, is that with the strikeouts, comes a ton of walks. He’s walked 135 batters in his six minor league seasons. He struggled even more with walks in 2016, walking over five per nine innings at Triple-A Columbus.

Armstrong did have a very good spring, however, and he won a job with the big league club. He definitely looked better this March, showing more control. If he’s able to carry that over to the regular season then he could finally become a lockdown, late-inning reliever. I still have my doubts with him but there’s no denying he’s got wipeout stuff.

Matt Esparza – RHP

Matt Esparza was a 14th-round pick out of the University of California-Irvine in 2015. Despite average stuff, Esparaza has proven to be a steal at that spot.

He posted a 2.30 ERA in 2015 with Mahoning Valley before posting a 3.36 ERA in 2016 between Lake County and Lynchburg. Most impressive has been the strikeouts. He’s posted a 9.6 strikeout per nine innings ratio in his two professional seasons and led all Tribe minor leaguers with 141 in 2016.

Esparza will head back to Advanced-A Lynchburg to start the 2017 season. If he continues to pitch like he did in 2016, a promotion to Double-A Akron very well could be in his future this summer too.

Todd Isaacs – OF

Once dubbed “the fastest man in college baseball”, Todd Isaacs has been very good for the Indians as a 19th-round pick.

A native of the Bahamas, Isaacs got some international exposure after the season last year, as he was part of Team Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic qualifier (the Bahamas does not field its own team, making them eligible to play for Great Britain). They did not qualify for the tournament that took place this March, though, losing out to Team Israel.

With the Indians, Isaacs struggled in 2015 but broke out this past year hitting .333/.384/.514 at Short-Season Mahoning Valley. He used that 80-grade speed to steal 20 bases in just 44 games, though he was also caught 14 times. He has played all three outfield spots but left field has been his primary position, despite the elite speed.

Isaacs still has a lot of work to be more than just a speed demon but 2016 was a great step in that direction. He will get his first taste of full-season ball in 2017, opening in Class-A Lake County.

Leandro Linares – RHP

Leandro Linares joined the Cleveland Indians back in 2013 when he was signed out of Cuba. He was a huge signing for the Tribe, receiving $950,000, which made him one of the largest international signings ever by the organization. However, the right-handed struggled for the first two years with the club, posting earned run averages of over 6.5 in both 2014 and 2015.

Things finally seemed to click for Linares in 2016, though, as he was moved to the bullpen full-time.

The 23-year-old split the season across three levels, appearing at Short-Season Mahoning Valley, Class-A Lake County, and Advanced-A Lynchburg. He made 23 appearances and posted a 1.21 ERA in 44 2/3 innings. He also struck out over 11 per nine innings while walking under 2.5 with a WHIP of just 0.85.

Related: Recapping the 2017 prospect countdown

Linares isn’t the youngest pitcher in the lower levels but he has three good pitches and the stuff to believe he could rise now that he’s figured things out. He’ll begin 2017 back at Lynchburg and has a chance of reaching Double-A.

Micah Miniard – RHP

Micah Miniard was drafted in the eighth round in 2014 out of high school in Kentucky. Miniard is a big kid, standing 6-foot-7 at just 20 years old.

The Indians have moved slowly with Miniard, starting him in Rookie Ball and at Short-Season Mahoning Valley the last two seasons. Because of this, he’s only thrown 153 2/3 innings since joining the club in 2014. He’s posted a respectable 3.87 ERA in that span.

He throws a very good fastball that can touch 97. He can also throw more of a sinker and has a breaking ball and changeup, the latter two of which are still a work in progress. He has enough of an arsenal to think he can stick as a starter, but the fastball to move to the bullpen if it comes to that. Still very young, he’ll begin the year in full-season ball at Class-A Lake County.

Thomas Pannone – LHP

Thomas Pannone was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the ninth round in 2013 out of the University of Southern Nevada. He’s never been one of the more heralded prospects in the Tribe system, but the 6-foot tall lefty had a breakout 2016 season.

He’s always been great at limiting base hits, but he posted a 2.57 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 133 innings this summer. He began the season repeating Class-A but eventually found himself at Advanced-A Lynchburg, where his numbers actually improved.

After a hot spring, where he was one of two minor league starters to allow zero runs (Adam Plutko being the other), Pannone will return to Lynchburg to begin the 2017 season. His stuff still makes it hard to project him as a big league starter but there’s value in getting outs and keeping guys off the bases. The 22-year-old will attempt to reach Double-A this summer.

Eric Stamets – INF

Eric Stamets made our “just missed” list in 2016 but I couldn’t quite fit him on the list again this year. Still, he’s one of the best defensive infielders in the system.

A natural shortstop, he played some third base and second base in 2016 after getting called up to Triple-A Columbus. He will never be a big league starter but his defense is good enough that he could potentially be a big league utility infielder. He will open in Columbus once again and depending how things go, could find his way to Cleveland (though an injury or two would likely have to occur).

The Dublin, Ohio native will head back to Columbus to open the 2017 season. With Erik Gonzalez returning as well, Stamets won’t likely get much time at shortstop, but rather get time as the utility infielder and possibly starting second baseman.

There are even more names I could throw out at you (Daniel Salters, Sean Brady, Marcos Gonzalez, etc) as this Cleveland Indians system is just that deep. I strongly encourage our readers that if they live near any of the Tribe’s minor league affiliates to make at least one trip to see some of these kids.

Next: A positional breakdown of the AL Central

Each level could compete for a league championship again this season and few organizations can make that claim. The system is definitely not the best in baseball but is still arguably one of the deepest.