Cleveland Indians: Five players to watch on the Columbus Clippers

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Starting pitcher Logan Allen #54 of the Cleveland Indians, Columbus Clippers (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

Five players to watch with the Cleveland Indians Triple-A Columbus Clippers

The minor league baseball season is just around the corner for the Columbus Clippers and the rest of the affiliates of the Cleveland Indians. After not having a 2020 season, these clubs and players alike are itching to get back on the field in games that aren’t alternate site tune-ups. As for the Tribe, the timing of the season couldn’t be more perfect as more holes are starting to show on the current roster.

The Triple-A schedule is an interesting one this season, never playing a game on a Monday. Teams will play six-game series, all in one location, before using Monday as a travel day. For the Clippers, they begin on the road against the Louisville Bats (Cincinnati Reds) and will play six games in Louisville, spanning from May 4 until May 9. From there, it’s an off day on Monday to travel before six home games against the Omaha Storm Chasers (Kansas City Royals) from May 11 to May 16. It’ll be different, but it’ll get the job done just as well.

Having a minor league season will give players the opportunity to not only develop, but showcase themselves to the major league clubs. Some of these players haven’t played a competitive, major league affiliated game since September of 2019, about 20 months ago. There’s been alternate sites, fall and winter leagues and stuff like that, but playing a game that counts for the organization that you’re part of brings with it a whole different atmosphere.

For fans of the Cleveland Indians, eyes will be on the Columbus Clippers rather closely. A fifth starter is still needed for the rotation and offensive production has been hit or miss all season long. The hope will be that someone emerges in Triple-A and can provide a spark in Cleveland. When that call could come is obviously unknown, but strong play could force someone to dial their number.

Nolan Jones

Since the 2020 season ended, and probably even before then, we’ve brought up Nolan Jones close to once a week. He’s the No.1 prospect in the organization for the Cleveland Indians while also being the No. 31 prospect in all of baseball. The catch is that we have yet to see him in a Columbus Clippers uniform with his highest experience being 49 games with Double-A Akron during the 2019 season. Now, we get that chance.

While Jones has been a hot name to talk about, there’s more questions than answers about his game at the moment. Being a third baseman, Jones is roadblocked in the major leagues so it might take a position change to get him up to Cleveland. While we’re excited to see him play in Columbus, it’s just as exciting to see where he plays in Columbus.

Jones has been rumored to be in the mix for time at both first base and in the outfield, which could fast-track his road to the show. Whichever one of the two he takes to the quickest could be where he makes his major league debut. If it’s first, then he could simply take over for Jake Bauers. If it’s the outfield, then perhaps he bumps Josh Naylor to first.

Regardless, Jones will be the top name to watch on the roster of the Columbus Clippers. Being the top prospect in the organization, fans want to know how close he is to being up in Cleveland and if he can help solve the early offensive struggles.

Oscar Mercado

It was just a couple seasons ago in 2019 when Oscar Mercado burst onto the scene in Cleveland and made it seem like maybe the center field position was set for the future. However, after struggling through the 2020 campaign, Mercado finds himself back with the Columbus Clippers and having to prove himself all over again.

During the 2019 season, Mercado logged 25 doubles, 15 home runs and 15 stolen bases while maintaining a .269/.318/.443 slash line. However, in the shortened 2020 campaign he only managed one double, one home run and three stolen bases while his slash line plummeted to .128/.174/.174.

Mercado’s role in the majors this season is slipping away as well. It doesn’t look like Eddie Rosario or Naylor are going anywhere and Jordan Luplow has been on fire of late leaving really just the fourth outfielder spot up for grabs. Ben Gamel originally had it, but was demoted turning the spot over to Amed Rosario. The Tribe also called up Daniel Johnson on May 1 when Franmil Reyes went on the paternity list.

It’s become apparent that Mercado is rather deep on the outfield depth chart at the moment, but if he can find his swing again from the 2019 season he can move up that list.

Logan Allen

After getting a spot on the Opening Day roster, Logan Allen struggled through his first five starts in what resulted as a demotion before even getting out of the month of April. What could be part of Allen’s hardships is that he only pitched 10.2 innings during the 2020 season, all of which came out of the bullpen. Jumping into the starting rotation after over a year without starting isn’t easy, so maybe all Allen needs is time.

Going down to the Columbus Clippers, Allen will be able to relax a bit and settle back into a starting role. However, he shouldn’t take too long to do so as the Cleveland Indians have other prospects they can turn to as their fifth starter that might push Allen out of the conversation.

Sam Hentges is already up in the majors and is the club’s No. 25 prospect while Cal Quantrill could get a shot at it as well. The Tribe also has Scott Moss on their 40-Man roster, the organization’s No. 26 prospect, who could get a look as well.

The good news for Allen is that the team picked him at the beginning of the season. If he can begin to show signs of turning it around in Columbus, then he could be recalled to the majors to see if a second run will be different from the first.

Ernie Clement

The Cleveland Indians have witnessed some of their new arrivals struggle early on this season and that includes shortstop Andres Gimenez. While the hope is that Gimenez finds his groove, a surge from a minor leaguer could change the tides. One player with the opportunity to do that is Ernie Clement.

Being a middle infielder, Clement is part of a crowded room in the minors that includes No. 2 prospect Tyler Freeman and No. 5 prospect Gabriel Arias who is also on the 40-man roster. However, for Clement his service time isn’t as important as Freeman and Arias which gives him the upper hand to get the call up if one is considered.

Clement only has three games with Triple-A Columbus from the 2019 season, so giving him more experience at that level will be key. In 2019, majority of his games came at Double-A Akron where he slashed .261/.314/.322 over 98 games. He’s also played over 200 games at shortstop in the minors, but his glove isn’t as steady as you might like to see.

If Gimenez continues to struggle, then Clement might get a shot. Especially if he starts to light it up in Columbus at any point during the season.

Bobby Bradley

It seems like it’s been a full two years of asking when Bobby Bradley would get an extended stay with the Cleveland Indians. Probably because it has been almost two years. The No. 18 prospect in the organization, Bradley only has 15 games of major league experience. Despite the struggles of Bauers, Bradley isn’t helping his case by having his own struggles at the alternate site. However, maybe putting a Columbus Clippers uniform back on can shift the tides.

In 2019 with Columbus, Bradley blasted 33 home runs in addition to 23 doubles to slash .264/.344/.567 over 107 games played. At the time, it seemed clear that he was the first baseman of the future for the Tribe, but recent hiccups have delayed those plans.

Bradley only played 15 games in the majors during the 2019 season before not making a single appearance in 2020. Over those 15 games he had just two home runs, but managed to log five doubles, for a .303/.314/.636 slash line. With that being said, current production speaks louder than stats from two year ago and that’s what is holding Bradley back.

If he can find his bat again in Triple-A, similar to Mercado, Bradley could start to apply more pressure for a call up to take over first base in Cleveland.

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