Cleveland Indians: 2 prospects who need to be added in September roster expansion

Nolan Jones, Cleveland Indians No. 3 Prospect

The first player that comes to mind is Triple-A third baseman Nolan Jones, who just recently fell from the throne as Cleveland’s top prospect. This isn’t necessarily due to any kind of regression or his talent not translating to the upper minors, but it comes down to one simple question; what are you going to do with him?

Jones is a natural third baseman, but the organization has experimented with him lightly in the outfield where his arm strength at the hot corner should translate somewhat well to a corner outfield spot.

The obvious roadblock is Tribe superstar Jose Ramirez being entrenched at third base, but regardless of the debate about where to put him in the field, there’s plenty that Jones can bring to the lineup. Through 95 games at Triple-A Columbus this year, Jones has displayed a level of patience that can’t be taught to most prospects in their age 23 season. Jones has drawn 56 walks so far, a number that would be leading the 2021 Indians in 20 fewer games than anyone else has played.

His patience is a double-edged sword, however, as Jones has struck out 119 times so far in 2021. Despite that, Jones has a .417 SLG to go with a .225 batting average, which is a bizarre combination to begin with. Almost exactly half of his hits this season (37/73) have gone for extra bases, and his 24 doubles this year would be second on the Indians to Jose Ramirez’s 26. Clearly there’s still some kinks to iron out in his approach, but the swing appears ready for a test drive against Major League pitching.

Gabriel Arias, Cleveland Indians No. 4 Prospect

The other player that Cleveland needs to call up next Wednesday is Gabriel Arias, the 21-year-old shortstop that came over as part of the return package for Mike Clevinger. Arias skipped Double-A altogether thanks to the pandemic shortened 2020 campaign, but spent the year training at the alternate site with Cleveland’s other top prospects and earned an every day role with Triple-A Columbus.

More from Away Back Gone

• Cleveland Guardians tantalizingly close to locking up AL Central tiebreakers
• Cleveland Guardians: Terry Francona becomes meme in profanity-laced ejection
• Say goodbye to defensive shifts and hello to bigger bases, pitch clock in 2023
• Cleveland Guardians: Shane Bieber second-fastest to 800 strikeouts in major-league history
• The next week will make or break the Cleveland Guardians’ season

Arias has played 90 games this season for the Clippers, slashing .273/.344/.424 with 17 doubles and 10 home runs. He’s played the majority of his time at shortstop, but has logged games at both second and third base. Arias has an elite arm, so moving him around the infield to accommodate Ramirez and Jones wouldn’t be too difficult for Cleveland.

Without either Jones or Arias playing a single Major League game, the idea of Cleveland rolling out a lineup with Jones playing third, Arias at shortstop, Ramirez at second and Bradley at first already sounds more exciting than the Tribe’s current plug-and-play mentality. Miller and Rosario have been eaten alive by short-hops up the middle, so this lineup should be a significant defensive improvement.

Now, I know this has been hard this season, but I’m still an optimist. There’s a strong possibility that both Jones and Arias’ bats translate to the big leagues, and could help put some insulation around Ramirez, who has largely carried the team in 2021. These are the types of situations and lineups the Indians need to explore when September rolls around. It will be far more important to give Nolan Jones and Gabriel Arias a taste of what they’ll likely be facing a lot of in 2022 than it will be to chase the postseason.