Cleveland Indians: Top 30 Prospects Countdown, 16-20

No. 19: Carlos Vargas

A 6-foot-3 right-handed pitcher, Carlos Vargas is just 21-years old and we really haven’t witnessed much of him yet with only 25 appearances in the minors. Even so, the Indians felt like they saw enough of him to add him to the team’s 40-man roster and bring him out to Spring Training. While he’s already been placed in the minors, being in Goodyear at 21-years old should be enough to turn heads.

Pitching 10 games in the Arizona Rookie League in 2018 and then 15 for Mahoning Valley in 2019, Vargas put together a strong stat line, most notably his 112 strikeouts over 112 innings pitched while walking just 48. There’s still work to be done given that he through 14 wild pitches and hit another five batters, but the framework is there for him to have success.

During Spring Training he pitched just one inning on record according to baseball-reference.com. In that inning he gave up one run on two hits while striking out one. Again, there’s plenty of time for him to improve, but the early returns both in stats and just the fact that he’s on the 40-man and in Goodyear at 21 is intriguing. He very well could become a name to watch.