Cleveland Indians: 3 Columbus Clippers who could be called up this season

Oscar Gonzalez, OF, Cleveland Indians

The Indians are not nearly as deep in the minors with outfield talent as they are infielders, and the prospects the team does have high hopes for are mostly Double-A and lower. Recent promotion Richard Palacios is the only other top 30 outfield prospect according to MLB.com currently in Triple-A with Daniel Johnson, so it’s somewhat surprising the first choice for the outfield is outside the top 30 list. Cleveland fans, meet Oscar Gonzalez.

Gonzalez signed with the Indians as a member of the 2014 international class, and has worked his way to Triple-A Columbus at just 23-years-old. The best news about him? Gonzalez has been a hitting machine at almost every level of the minors in his six-year pro career.

He has a career slash line of .282/.311/.435 across all levels of the Tribe organization, and a .311/.347/.544 slash line in 2021 split between Akron and Columbus.

The other good news about Gonzalez? Unlike some other outfielders in recent memory in The Land, Gonzalez has mashed both right and left-handed pitching in his time in the minors. He has an excellent track record his entire pro career, but so far has hit .314 against righties and .293 against Southpaws in 2021. Coming in at 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, there’s plenty of power to be packed into a frame that’s already hit 110 doubles and 53 home runs in the minors.

To further build on his hitting prowess, Gonzalez currently leads the entire farm system in hits, home runs, RBIs and slugging percentage. If there’s an area to watch with Gonzalez, it’s a 23.3% strikeout rate paired with just a 3.7% walk rate, pointing to a player that makes a ton of contact, but needs some patience at the plate.

He’s played just 22 games with the Clippers this season, so it may be premature to throw him to the wolves this September, but we’ve seen the alternatives outside of Harold Ramirez this year. He couldn’t possibly be any worse.

Gabriel Arias, INF, Cleveland Indians

So far, in a very limited sample size, it would appear the Cleveland Indians are the early winners of the 2020 Mike Clevinger trade. Josh Naylor showed plenty of flashes this season before a gruesome leg injury, and Cal Quantrill turned a corner in July and blossomed into an actual major league caliber starting pitcher. The book is still out on Logan Allen, but the next player to tip the scales of this trade is Gabriel Arias.

Arias didn’t play in 2020 like most minor-leaguers, but upon arriving with Cleveland this spring he jumped from High-A ball in the Padres system all the way to Triple-A Columbus at just 21-years old. He’s primarily a shortstop with plenty of experience at the hot corner, and even a handful of games logged at second base.

Arias’ defense has come a long way in a relatively short time after committing 67 errors between rookie ball and High-A in the Padres system to registering just 10 so far in Triple-A.

His bat has also been developing nicely as the Triple-A season has progressed, slashing his way to a .280/.357/.451 line after an abysmal May to begin the year. He’s chipped in 14 doubles and nine home runs in 72 games this season, doing most of the damage in July where he slashed .310/.361/.520 in 26 games.

For Arias to transition from High-A to Triple-A after not playing all of 2020 has been nothing short of impressive, and if he can come close to his last full season of production at one level that saw him slash .302/.339/.470 with 21 doubles, 17 home runs and 75 runs driven in then he will be a legitimate threat.

Arias is the prospect that I personally have the highest hopes for in Cleveland’s current farm system. He represents a very flexible infield option with a still developing hit tool that could use some major league seasoning this September. The Indians would have to get creative if they intend to keep Owen Miller and Ernie Clement on the roster, but Arias may very well take the job by force if given an opportunity.

Nolan Jones, 3B/OF, Cleveland Indians

I mean, who else did you think I was going to put here? Nolan Jones is Cleveland’s top prospect, a second round pick in the vaunted 2016 draft class that has already produced Shane Bieber, Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac.

Like Arias, Jones has climbed the ranks of the Indians’ farm system quickly, jumping to Triple-A in 2021 after not playing at all in 2020 and having just 49 games at the Double-A level in 2019. His bat has yet to flash it’s full potential with Columbus, but at just 23-years old there’s plenty to be excited about.

Jones displays a level of patience at the plate that can’t be taught, registering an impressive 14.6% walk rate in Triple-A this season. He’s drawn 44 walks this season, helping balloon his slash line to .219/.346/.419, but his eye needs to improve alongside his incredible patience since he has a 37.5% strikeout rate this season.

Despite the low batting average in 2021, Jones still boasts an impeccable .419 SLG with 31 of his 55 hits on the season going for extra bases (21 doubles and nine home runs).

The issue the Indians have run into with Jones is what do you do with him at the big league level? Jose Ramirez has been the de facto third baseman for quite some time now, and the team has experimented with Jones in the outfield in the minors playing 22 games in right field for the Clippers this season.

There are several options for Jones should he get the call in September, but the leader in the clubhouse is probably playing the majority of his time at a corner outfield spot to learn the quirks of Progressive Field as best he can.

Jose Ramirez can more than likely step in at second base and play borderline Gold Glove defense, but the sheer amount of second baseman knocking on the door in the minors, plus the two already splitting time there now point to Jones being the right fielder of the future.

His arm strength from third base should translate nicely as long as he learns to track fly balls quickly, but regardless of what position he plays it’s long overdue for Jones to get a chance this season.