Cleveland Indians: 3 prospects who can help the team in 2017

The Cleveland Indians sit atop the American League Central division, but injuries and slumps may lead to the team needing to call up a few prospects.

On a Cleveland Indians team that has already seen multiple prospects called up before the second week of May, what are the names of the next few guys fans will be seeing in Cleveland in 2017?

With the infield basically locked down and with the starters in place (with either Trevor Bauer or Mike Clevinger as the fifth starter), the outfield and bullpen are the two likely places the Indians’ faithful will see some new faces.

Starting with the outfield, Yandy Diaz and Tyler Naquin are the two obvious choices for guys who will be up and down this season. Diaz was recently recalled and Naquin was hitting the cover off the ball in Columbus before he went down with injury.

If Abraham Almonte and Brandon Guyer continue to struggle at the plate, these two guys will get the most at-bats.

Because each of these has been with the team already this season, the new guy for the casual fans will be Bradley Zimmer. Zimmer was the Indians’ number one selection in the 2014 draft and is at Columbus this season. He’s got the talent to be a MLB-caliber player, but he cannot seem to stop striking out.

In 101 plate appearances this season, Zimmer has struck out 34 times. This is surprisingly a slightly lower percentage than last season, but this is becoming a serious issue.

Zimmer has speed, a good glove, good range, and some power, but he just doesn’t put the ball in play enough. His .255 batting average will keep him at Triple-A for a little while longer, but if something drastic happens in Indians outfield, he could come up early.

In reality, he will probably be a September call-up, and we may get to see the beginning of this future, young outfield.

Moving to the bullpen, two guys jump off the page compared to the rest of the Clippers roster. Kyle Crockett and Jeff Johnson are two names to remember going forward. Crockett, of course, has played with the Indians before, but many fans forget he is only 25. He has had a great season thus far for the Clippers, posting a 2.03 ERA while pitching in 12 games.

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As a lefty, Crockett will be secure in his job for a while. If Boone Logan falters, or someone else goes down, Crockett looks to be back to his 2014 form when he posted a 1.80 ERA with the MLB club.

He is keeping the ball down much better this season, as his 4.25 groundouts to flyouts, is by far his best in his career. His last two years (in which Crockett struggled), have seen that number much closer to one.

Crockett is keeping the ball down and in the park, and it is doing well for the team and his stat sheet. If he pitches like this the rest of the way, he too will be up in Cleveland in September.

The last guy to look for on the Indians in the near-future is Jeff Johnson. He has posted an ERA of 2.77 in 13 innings and he seems to be ready for a shot at the majors. A 27-year-old drafted in 2011, Johnson has consistently kept his ERA around 2.50 as he rose through the Indians organization.

Two seasons ago, Johnson posted a 1.05 ERA in 51 games, and that was the year after he had Tommy John surgery. Because of the amazing strength in the Indians bullpen, it will be difficult for Johnson or Crockett to break through.

Guys like Shawn Armstrong and Joseph Colon already making appearances makes the task even more difficult, but if both continue to have sub-3 ERA’s and pitch well in tough situations, they could be a huge part of the playoff push.

Next: Yandy is back

The Indians bullpen has a myriad of great pitchers, but depth is what wins championships. Johnson and Crockett may not see Cleveland until September, but the fact that the Indians have them in wings takes a lot of pressure off the front office.