Cleveland Indians: 3 players the Tribe should call up in September

James Karinchak – reliever, Columbus Clippers (AAA)

James Karinchak was the story of the Indians farm this summer before an injury shelved him for over two months from May 10 until July 16, when he began a rehab assignment. Prior to the injury, Karinchak was talked about as seemingly on the fast track to the majors.

From April 5 to May 10 he pitched 13 innings, giving up just five hits and no runs. The real eye-popping part of his stat line was the fact he struck out two-thirds of the batters he faced in that span (32 of 48).

The injury that shelved Karinchak for two months slowed him down, as one would expect. He struggled to find his footing some after coming back from the injury. From July 24 to August 3 he pitched just 3.1 innings but gave up four hits and eight runs, (seven earned), while striking out nine of 22 batters faced.

Karinchak was a far cry from what he was pre-injury but has since found his footing. Since August 7, in his last seven appearances, he has a stat line of 9.0 innings pitched, five hits, two runs, 20 strikeouts and four walks facing 36 batters.

The Indians bullpen is still ranked as the number one pen in the majors but rankings can lie. Brad Hand is struggling to find footing and the pen as a whole is 28th in the majors in strikeouts and 12th in average against.

Karinchak could help the cause but the Indians could wait to roster him as he is not Rule 5 Draft eligible in the winter, while our next guy is.

Cam Hill – reliever, Columbus Clippers

Hill is a Rule 5 draft eligible player this year. They could take the September call-up time to put him on the 40-man roster to protect him and then call him up to see what he has in the majors.

In 20 appearances in Columbus, Hill has a 3-2 record, 3,.77 ERA, 47 K, 11 BB, 27 hits and 13 ER. His ERA has taken a major hit in his last two appearances where he has given up seven runs on six hits in just 0.2 innings pitched.

In his previous 18 appearances, he gave up just 20 hits and six earned runs over 30.1 innings pitched. If the Indians want to see what he has, now would be the time.

The team would have to feel comfortable that his last couple outings are not indicative of a decline from his entire body of work. The bullpen is strong this season but with some guys struggling as of late, it never hurts to see another arm.

Hill won’t come in and be Andrew Miller in 2016, but he could help give some guys more rest than they would without the extra arms. It also gives the Indians a look at a young arm they could use in 2020 and beyond.

Daniel Johnson – outfielder, Columbus Clippers

Daniel Johnson was a piece involved in the trade with Washington that sent Yan Gomes to D.C. Johnson has torn up the minor leagues since coming over and is pushing for a 2020 outfield position.

Many fans have wanted to see him with the big league club and rightfully so. He played well in Akron early to earn the call up to Columbus and has taken every opportunity there to elevate even further.

He is slashing .313/.378/.502 in Triple-A with eight home runs and 43 runs batted in at the time of this writing. He has also stolen six bases and has a very good 123 wRC+.

Johnson is the Indians 16th rated prospect in their farm system but has performed like a top 10 guy. The Indians outfield got a boost with Oscar Mercado‘s call up mid-season and he has played well overall but he hasn’t been elite.

The team also went out and got Yasiel Puig at the deadline who is holding down the everyday right field duties. Where Johnson could see time in September would be either platooning with Mercado or in left field in place of Greg Allen‘s days in the field when Tyler Naquin does not play.

Guys like Eric Haase, Jake Bauers, Logan Allen and Bobby Bradley also get an honorable mention as they all have big league experience in the big leagues and could offer some depth in the last month of the season.

Unlike in recent years, the Cleveland Indians are in the midst of a pennant race and every day matters the rest of the season. This will keep them from getting younger guys much of a look but the guys mentioned throughout this piece could actually help the team as they try to catch Minnesota and pursue October baseball.