Cleveland Indians: With Owen Miller called up, who's next in Columbus?

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Rene Rivera #46 of the Cleveland Indians (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images) /

With the Cleveland Indians calling up Owen Miller, who’s next in Columbus?

At the beginning of the season the top prospects from the Cleveland Indians organization that started the year with the Columbus Clippers were players like Oscar Mercado, Nolan Jones and Bobby Bradley. However, as we’ve now surpassed the 25% mark of the season, the players that are playing well in Columbus aren’t the names we expected. In fact, the ones we expected to do well are the ones struggling.

Instead the prospects emerging from the masses in Columbus and getting the call up to the big leagues have been Nick Sandlin, Harold Ramirez, Sam Hentges, Jean Carlos Mejia and most recently Owen Miller. Other moves have been made as well, like the addition of Rene Rivera when Roberto Perez went down, but in terms of prospects almost each name called up wasn’t on the radar only two months ago.

Take Miller for example. Due to him arriving via trade during the COVID season, we had yet to see him as a member of the Cleveland Indians. While names like Jones and Ernie Clement received the infield attention during the offseason, Miller flew under-the-radar until he burst onto the scene this season and quickly found his way to Cleveland. He was able to slash .406/.457/.609 in Columbus, moving his name to the top of the list for players who could be called up. Once a spot became available, he got the call.

With the hot bat of Miller now in Cleveland, who’s the next name that could emerge from the minor league masses and surprise fans of the Tribe? There’s a few more layers than a player just performing well. There needs to be a need for them in Cleveland at the same time. Even so, here’s three names to watch that could get a shot in the majors if they can continue to play well in Columbus.

Manager Terry Francona #77 of the Cleveland Indians (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

Kirk McCarty, P

One name that is currently flying under-the-radar in the minor league system of the Cleveland Indians is left-handed starting pitcher Kirk McCarty. At 25-years old, McCarty was a seventh round pick by the Tribe in the 2017 MLB Draft out of Southern Miss, working his way up through the minors since. Despite being undersized for a starting pitcher, standing just 5-foot-8, McCarty has started off the 2021 season strong in Columbus.

Through his first four starts, McCarty has been able to compile a 3-0 record and has looked rather impressive in each start. He’s been able to pitch at least five innings in each appearance, now up to 23.2 on the year. He’s also been able to toss a scoreless start that lasted six innings and has allowed five or fewer hits in each start as well.

Perhaps what is more impressive is that he’s walked more than one batter in a game just once so far this season and has only five walks through four starts, a mark much better than any other prospect the Tribe has tried out this year on the mound. McCarty has also managed to throw at least 60% of his pitches for strikes in each outing.

What could end up being the barrier for McCarty is that he isn’t currently on the Tribe’s 40-man roster. The 40-man is currently full, and that’s with Roberto Perez moving to the 60-day IL to make room for Miller. When Miller was still in Columbus we talked about what it would take to get him added to the 40-man and outside of the Perez move, there were few options available.

Ryan Lavarnway #36 of the Miami Marlins (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

Ryan Lavarnway, C

The veteran catcher on the Columbus Clippers’ roster, Ryan Lavarnway has been playing rather well in Columbus. Like McCarty, he isn’t on the 40-man roster at the moment but a change in guard at the catcher position could potentially open up a spot for him.

Lavarnway has been a spot starter in the majors for the better part of the last decade, but has never reached 50 games in a single season. In fact, he hasn’t even reached double-digits since 2015 when he played 27 games for the Atlanta Braves. However, he’s looking rather impressive at the plate in Columbus and still offers a strong defensive option behind the plate.

Over 12 games with Columbus, Lavarnway is slashing .304/.347/.652 with five home runs and 15 RBI. Even when he was in the majors for a five-game stretch last season with the Miami Marlins he was slashing .364 across the board in the limited action.

Now, Rene Rivera has posted a similar line in Cleveland since being called up, batting .313/.353/.375 over eight games. Granted those are both small sample sizes, but if the Cleveland Indians are looking for a temporary offensive boost from the catcher position while not sacrificing the defense, Lavarnway and Rivera could push Austin Hedges and his line of .136/.197/.227 off the roster.

Scott Moss #74 of the Cleveland Indians (Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images) /

Scott Moss, P

Of the three players on this list, only one is currently on the 40-man roster of the Cleveland Indians and that’s Scott Moss. Arriving as part of the Trevor Bauer trade, the 26-year old left-handed pitcher could be on the cusp of getting his opportunity in Cleveland, especially with at least one spot in the rotation up for grabs.

The Tribe still haven’t announced a starter for Wednesday’s contest against the Tigers and with Moss already on the 40-man it could end up being him. Moss last pitched for Columbus on May 20, so there’s ample rest for him to make his Cleveland debut if needed.

Over three starts this season, Moss hasn’t gone beyond the fourth inning and has totaled only eight innings. However, he’s been rather steady, never allowing more than two runs in a start including a scoreless appearance to begin the season.

One thing that could hurt Moss is that he does have a habit of walking batters, having six walks through eight innings this year. However, given that he’s already on the 40-man roster and he has the rest to make a spot start, he could get the call very soon, maybe even later this week.

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Cleveland Indians: With Owen Miller called up, who’s next in Columbus?

With the Cleveland Indians calling up Owen Miller, who’s next in Columbus?

Kirk McCarty, P

Ryan Lavarnway, C

Scott Moss, P

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