Indians Prospect Insider

Superstar first baseman Prince Fielder is a Detroit Tiger. No matter how many times people hear that it still sends a chill down the spine of Cleveland Indians fans.
When the news broke last Tuesday fans of every team in the AL Central teams closed their eyes and hoped it was some sort of sick joke. But it is real as Fielder has since already been introduced to the Detroit public. He is a Detroit...

Some news, notes, and thoughts from my Indians notebook…
Prince of Tides
It has been an offseason of shocking signings. First the Miami Marlins went crazy in early December spending a lot of money on three players, and then the Los Angeles Angels came out of nowhere to land the top free agent prize first baseman Albert Pujols.
On Tuesday things got even crazier as it...

Here are the final winter ball statistics for all Cleveland Indians players participating in fall/winter ball out in the Arizona Fall League, Colombia Winter League, Dominican Winter League, Panama Winter League, Venezuelan Winter League, Puerto Rico Winter League, and Australian Baseball League. I have included all playoff stats for those players below that pitched in their respective league's playoff...

The Cleveland Indians announced yesterday afternoon that they signed reliever Dan Wheeler to a minor league deal. The 34-year old Wheeler is a 12-year veteran right-hander who has spent most of his career with the Tampa Bay Rays. He spent last season with the Boston Red Sox, going 2-2, with a 4.38 ERA, while striking out 39 batters and walking only eight in 49 1/3 innings pitched.
The move...

Well, with the signing of Prince Fielder the Detroit Tigers certainly sent a shot across the bow to the Cleveland Indians for the 2012 season and beyond. But in reality that is all it was, a warning shot.
Yes, the Tigers are a major favorite to win the division now, but just ask the Boston Red Sox if throwing a bunch of money around in the offseason is any sort of guarantee for the postseason.

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I have to confess: I’m a sucker for left-handed pitchers.
It has nothing to do with any great disdain for right-handed pitchers or any real reason whatsoever other than the fact I have always loved watching a baseball game when a lefty is thrown on the hill. With the game so right-handed dominated, it is like watching the game through a mirror as everything is backwards.
I’m...

Editor's Note: This is the first posting from Jim Piascik here at the IPI. He will be writing about all things Cleveland this season with a special focus on Double-A Akron.
Despite the fact that the Cleveland Indians’ top 4 prospects are either no longer prospects (Jason Kipnis and Lonnie Chisenhall) or with the Colorado Rockies (Alex White and Drew Pomeranz), there are still...

Editor's Note: This is the debut piece of another new writer on the IPI, Sean Mahon. He will be writing about various topics surrounding the Cleveland Indians for the site.
If you take a look around the AL Central, you’ll notice a household list of tenured first baseman: Paul Konerko and his 13 seasons with the White Sox, Justin Morneau and his nine with the Twins, Miguel Cabrera and his...

Today we wrap up the 2012 Scouting Videos series with the 12th and final batch of Cleveland Indians 2012 scouting videos. Here are the the previously posted volumes:
Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4
Volume 5
Volume 6
Volume 7
Volume 8
Volume 9
Volume 10
Volume 11
I shot tons of video of over a 100 players this...

Around the Farm (ATF) takes a quick look at some of the daily performances by Indians prospects. This is a special winter ball version of ATF that recaps all the offseason action by Indians players in the Caribbean Leagues. The positions listed below are where the player was playing in the game.
Here is the rundown of what Indians players in winter ball did yesterday. Looking at the schedules...

Some news, notes, and thoughts from my Indians notebook….
Identity crisis
By now everyone has heard the news from Thursday which caught the entire Indians’ organization and an entire fan base by surprise.
Indians right-handed pitcher Fausto Carmona had just finished up his stint pitching in winter ball in the Dominican Republic and was getting ready to renew his...

Around the Farm (ATF) takes a quick look at some of the daily performances by Indians prospects. This is a special winter ball version of ATF that recaps all the offseason action by Indians players in the Caribbean Leagues. The positions listed below are where the player was playing in the game.
Here is the rundown of what Indians players in winter ball did yesterday.
Australian Baseball...

This is the first piece from Andy Nichols, one of three new IPI writers that will be debuting over the next several days. He is a college student and will be writing about the Indians.
The Cleveland Indians went to the bottom of the eighth inning down 2-1 to the Boston Red Sox, the popular World Series pick among fans and baseball experts.
With the game broadcast on national TV, a young...

Around the Farm (ATF) takes a quick look at some of the daily performances by Indians prospects. This is a special winter ball version of ATF that recaps all the offseason action by Indians players in the Caribbean Leagues. The positions listed below are where the player was playing in the game.
Here is the rundown of what Indians players in winter ball did yesterday.
Australian Baseball...

Today the Cleveland Indians announced that they have signed free agent outfielder Ryan Spilborghs and infielder Gregorio Petit to minor league contracts with non-roster invitations to Major League spring training camp.
Spilborghs, 32, has played in 619 total games at the Major League level - all with the Colorado Rockies - and owns a career batting average of .272 with 86 2B, 12 3B, 42 HR and...

Many voices have shouted from their teepee’s about what the Indians should do at the not-so-hot corner.
Carlos Pena and Casey Kotchman are available and potential fits, but are both eft-handed and would exacerbate an already heavily tilted Tribe lineup. Matt LaPorta is the struggling, not-so-green prospect, but riat least he hits from the right side of the dish. It is very easy to say...