Indians Prospect Countdown: #45-41
45. Matt Langwell, RHP
DOB: 5/6/1986
Height/Weight: 6-2/225
Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Acquired: 11th round
pick in the 2008 draft
2012 Stats: 4-0, 3 SV,
2.74 ERA with 81 K and 27 BB in 69 IP between Akron and Columbus
Scouting Report:
Langwell started out the 2012 season back in the Eastern League, but after 14
1/3 innings in which he allowed just one earned run he was promoted to AAA
Columbus. With the Clippers, Langwell posted a 3.29 ERA and racked up 63 K in
54 2/3 IP, putting him at the doorstep of the big league roster in his 5th minor
league season. It was the second consecutive year that he finished the year in
Columbus, but has yet to get the call to the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.
Langwell is a
straight-up reliever, featuring a simple but effective two-pitch arsenal of a
fastball and slider. The fastball sits in the 91-94 MPH range, and his slider
is in the low-80’s. It’s not a complicated repertoire, but it is effective in
short bursts out of the bullpen. He’s at his best when he is locating the
slider well, keeping it down and away from righthanded hitters. He was a
starter at Rice University, but after his first year as a pro the Indians
transitioned Langwell to the bullpen where he has remained for the rest of his
minor league career.
Prior to 2012, it was
looking like Langwell might top out as a AAA reliever. But his K rate jumped to
10.6 per 9 IP last year, the highest K/9 of his minor league career. He lowered
his ERA by a quarter of a run from 2011 to 2012, and gave up fewer hits and
walks per 9 IP as well. Langwell put himself squarely in the discussion for a
major league role as early as 2013, and he got an invite to big league camp
this spring to compete for a job out of Goodyear. It’s likely that Langwell
will be back with AAA Columbus to start off the 2013 season, but he’s in the
mix for a call-up to The Show should the big club need a righthanded reliever
in 2013.
Glass half-full: A setup
man at the major league level
Glass half-empty: A
setup man at the AAA level
.jpg) |
| Photo Credit: Al Ciammaichella |
DOB: 10/29/1989
Height/Weight: 6-3/190
lb.
Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Acquired: Off of waivers
from the LA Angels in 2012
2012 Stats: 0-7, 10.24
ERA with 30 K and 40 BB in 29 IP between high-A Inland Empire and Carolina
Scouting Report: Looking
purely at the numbers, you’re probably wondering why in the world Martinez is
even on this countdown. I admit, the stat line is…not pretty. But there’s a
good explanation, I promise. Martinez was originally signed by the Angels as an
international free agent in 2007 out of the Dominican Republic. He finally
arrived stateside in 2009 after pitching in the Dominican Summer League, and in
his first season in the US he went 4-2 with a 3.33 ERA, 102 K and 38 BB in 67
2/3 IP. I say again, 102 strikeouts in just 67 2/3 IP. He followed that up by
striking out 141 (and walking 76) in 103 1/3 IP for Cedar Rapids in the low-A
Midwest League in 2010, and despite the control problems Martinez was a top-10
prospect in the Angels organization. In 2011 he threw just 2 1/3 innings before
being shut down with a lingering shoulder injury that cost Martinez the last
month of the 2010 season as well. He never needed surgery, but the Angels tried
to play it as safe as possible with their young pitcher.
Why did the Angels
exercise so much caution with Martinez? Well, one look at his fastball tells
you pretty much everything you need to know. Martinez sits comfortably in the
94-96 MPH range with his plus-plus heat, touching as high as 99. It’s an
outstanding offering with a lot of life, and as you can tell by the walk totals
he sometimes has problems controlling the pitch. In addition to the fastball,
Martinez has a slider that can flash plus or sail to the backstop, or pretty much
anything in between. When both pitches are on, Martinez is pretty much
unhittable. When they’re not, he walks pretty much everyone in sight.
I never like to “scout”
by looking at raw numbers, but in Martinez’s case they really do tell most of
the story. He’s struck out 398 and walked 213 in 304 career minor league
innings pitched. He has an electric arm, one of the best in the system, but if
he can’t maintain some level of control then all of the velocity in the world
won’t do him any good. The Indians designated Martinez for assignment in
November, removing him from their 40-man roster. It’s going to be a long road
for Martinez, but he absolutely has all of the raw talent necessary to be an
elite closer at the major league level. He’s a very nice, soft-spoken kid who
wants nothing more than to get back to his old 2010 self, and if the Indians
developmental staff can harness his talent, then they’ll have really stolen a
player from the Angels. He’s a long shot to make it to The Show, but it’s a
shot worth taking due to his immense raw talent.
Glass half-full: A
closer at the MLB level
Glass half-empty: The
yips persist and he never makes it out of AA
+(800x658).jpg) |
| Photo Credit: Al Ciammaichella |
DOB: 5/10/1989
Height/Weight: 6-2/190
lb.
Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Acquired: 9th round
pick in the 2008 draft
2012 Stats: 9-8, 1 SV
with a 3.46 ERA, 76 K and 16 BB in 96 1/3 IP between Lake County and Carolina
Scouting Report: Cooper
was a 9th round selection in 2008 out of Wichita State, and the
former Shocker began the 2012 season in Lake County. After just one appearance
for the Captains, he was promoted to Carolina where he threw 94 of his 96 1/3
innings last year. He pitched the first half of 2012 out of the Mudcats
bullpen, but transitioned his way into the starting rotation in August to close
out the year. Cooper really came on after the all-star break, going 8-4 with a
2.97 ERA in 63 2/3 IP in the 2nd half of the season, striking
out 50 and walking just 11. He did a much better job locating the ball within
the strike zone, giving up 3 HR in the 2nd half after allowing
5 bombs in 30 1/3 IP prior to the all-star break.
Cooper has a deep
arsenal that he uses to attack hitters, throwing both a 2 and 4-seam fastball,
slider, cutter and curveball. The 4-seamer sits comfortably in the low 90’s,
and he can reach back for more. The 2-seamer is a tick slower, but has very
nice arm-side run. His litany of breaking balls make him especially tough on
righthanded hitters, as Cooper posted an ERA almost a full run lower against
righties than against lefties last season. He has excellent stamina and
endurance, maintaining his stuff deep into starts and not losing his velocity
or the sharpness in his breaking stuff even after getting into the 6th or
7th inning of his starts.
Cooper is a big,
athletic pitcher with an extremely clean, repeatable delivery. He has a variety
of pitches to keep hitters off balance, and does an excellent job pounding the
strike zone and letting his defense help him out. He’s not a huge strikeout guy
but because he doesn’t issue many free passes he can afford to pitch to contact
more than most guys. He’s comfortable starting or relieving, but I think that
he definitely has a starter’s arsenal and should stick in the rotation for the
foreseeable future. I saw Cooper pitch twice last year, and both times he was
lights-out for the Mudcats. He closed out the 2012 season with 20 straight
innings without allowing an earned run, striking out 16 and walking just two in
that timeframe. He was named the Carolina League Pitcher of the Week on August
27 for his efforts, and really went out on a high note in 2012. Hopefully he
can carry that momentum over to 2013, and he should get a chance to do just
that with the Akron Aeros to start off the season. He’s a bit of an
under-the-radar guy in the organization right now, but if he can have a 2013
similar to the 2nd half of his 2012 season, he’ll make a huge
leap in these rankings come next offseason.
Glass half-full: A
strike throwing, innings eating starter
Glass half-empty: A
strike throwing, innings eating swingman out of the bullpen
+(800x409).jpg) |
| Photo Credit: Al Ciammaichella |
DOB: 7/21/1990
Height/Weight: 5-10/200
lb.
Bats/Throws: Left/Right
Acquired: 4th round
pick in the 2011 draft
2012 Stats:
.232/.332/.397 with 9 HR and 53 games between Lake County and Carolina
Scouting Report: Lowery
signed quickly after he was drafted in 2011, and was able to play a full season
with the NYPL Mahoning Valley Scrappers. He made the NYPL All-Star team, and
finished the season with 6 HR and a .792 OPS in 69 games. Based on that performance,
the Indians decided that the 21-year old catcher was ready to skip low-A and
take on the high-A Carolina League, and he was the Mudcats opening day catcher
last season. Lowery struggled with Carolina, hitting just .222/.315/.325 with 2
HR in 59 Carolina League contests, and the Indians decided to send him down to
Lake County to try and get the young backstop to relax and just be himself.
Lowery responded with much better numbers in part-time action with the
Captains, going for a line of .248/.358/.504 with 7 HR and 28 RBI in 39 Midwest
League games. It was an encouraging recovery for Lowery, who had really been
struggling with the Mudcats in the first half of the 2012 season.
Lowery won the Johnny
Bench Award in 2011 as the nation’s top collegiate catcher. He hit .359 with 24
HR at James Madison University, and was voted as the top defensive catcher in
the Colonial League by the opposing coaches. He has an average hit tool and
above-average power from the left side. He has more success against righty
pitching than lefty, but doesn’t have platoon splits. He has a patient approach
and a good eye at the plate, drawing 52 walks in 98 games last year. He does
need to make more contact, striking out 110 times last season (including 71 in
59 Carolina League games). It was surprising to see so many strikeouts for
Lowery, as he whiffed just 56 times in 69 games with the Scrappers in 2011.
Skipping low-A is a challenge for any player, and for a 21-year old catcher who
needed to worry about defense in addition to offense, it just proved to be too
much for Lowery to handle.
Defensively, Lowery has
a strong arm and good feet. His arm is so strong that he sometimes makes throws
to 2B from his knees, something that the Indians coaching staff would prefer he
eliminated from his arsenal. He moves well behind the plate and does a nice job
handling a pitching staff. His arm actions can get a little loose, and the
Indians would like him to clean those up to improve his pop times on throws to
2B. He projects as an average defensive catcher, and most of his value should
eventually come from his bat.
Lowery is a good athlete
and a talented hitter. Last season’s struggles in Carolina are likely to be the
exception, rather than the rule for Lowery at the plate. His power is legitimate,
and his hit tool is better than we saw with the Mudcats last year. He should be
able to cut down on the strikeouts, and the batting average and OBP will take
corresponding jumps if he can just improve his contact rate. Lowery will play
most of the 2013 season as a 22-year old, so even after a rough 2012 it’s not
like he’s that far behind the developmental curve. He struggled with some of
the advance breaking stuff that he was facing for the first time, but now that
he knows what to expect he could have a much better year in a repeat tour of
the Carolina League. He should again start off with the Mudcats, and it will be
very interesting to see how much Lowery has grown and improved during the
offseason.
Glass half-full: An
offense-oriented starting catcher
Glass half-empty: An
offense-oriented backup catcher
DOB: 7/19/1987
Height/Weight: 6-2/215
lb.
Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Acquired: From the Blue
Jays as part of the Esmil Rodgers deal in 2012
2012 Stats:
.204/.264/.367 with 4 HR and 13 RBI in 43 games for Toronto; .328/.380/.557
with 13 HR and 59 RBI in 79 games for AAA Las Vegas
Scouting Report: A
native of Brazil, Gomes had by far the best offensive season of his career for
AAA Las Vegas last year, propelling him all the way to the major leagues for a
43-game audition with the Blue Jays. Prior to 2012, the last time Gomes posted
an OPS over .800 over a full season was in 2009, when he split time between the
Rookie League and low-A and finished with 2 HR and an .809 OPS. Did he suddenly
discover a hidden problem in his swing and fix it for the 2012 season? Probably
not; the Pacific Coast League has always been known as a hitters league, and
the Blue Jays affiliate part in Las Vegas is an absolute hitters paradise with
dry desert air and cozy dimensions. All offensive numbers produced in Vegas
have to be taken with a rather large grain of salt. Still, the 24-year old
didn’t exactly embarrass himself in his big-league audition, and should compete
for a roster spot out of Goodyear in 2013.
Defensively, Gomes is a
versatile player who appeared in games at catcher, 1B, 3B and outfield for the
Blue Jays last season. He runs very well for a catcher, and his speed is
probably a tick above average overall. He has a strong arm and a clean release,
gunning down 31% of would-be basestealers for his minor league career.
Gomes participated in
the Indians Winter Development Program this offseason, a program that typically
features less experienced prospects than Gomes. His willingness to come to
Cleveland in December for the program is a good sign that Gomes is excited
about carving out a role for himself in his new organization, and Gomes has
done everything the Indians have asked of him since they acquired him last
fall. He’s the first Brazilian-born player to play in major league baseball,
and naturally has claim to the first hit and first home run by a Brazilian
player. Despite that success, Gomes is not playing with Brazil’s World Baseball
Classic team, preferring to stick around in Indians camp and fight
his way towards a roster spot. He’s not likely to make the team out of Spring
Training unless they carry three catchers, but if injury should befall Carlos
Santana or Lou Marson, Gomes would be the first catcher called up to replace
them. He’ll likely play most of 2013 in the friendly confines of Huntington
Park in Columbus, where he should continue to put up impressive offensive
numbers at the AAA level.
Glass half-full: A
backup catcher with some pop
Glass half-empty: A
super-utility player with some pop
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