Browns trade for Pro Bowl punter Andy Lee, release Spencer Lanning
June 6, 2015The Grit Squad: Cavaliers-Warriors Game 2, Behind The Box Score
June 8, 2015Jose Ramirez, who has had a rough first-third of the 2015 season, was optioned by the Cleveland Indians down to the Triple-A Columbus Clippers after Sunday’s series finale against the Baltimore Orioles. Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan first reported the news. No official announcement or corresponding move had been announced as of 5:30 p.m. EST.
Ramirez, who is still only 22 years old, entered Sunday batting .180/.247/.240 in 170 plate appearances over 46 games. His offensive numbers arguably were the worst of any regular in the majors. Last season, he produced a .262/.300/.346 line in 68 games, mostly down the stretch. He was a very productive minor league contact hitter in his time before that.
The Indians, now 27-29 after Sunday’s 7-3 loss, are off until Tuesday night against the Seattle Mariners. That could provide ample time for the long-awaited promotion of top prospect Francisco Lindor. The Puerto Rico native, ranked as a top-10 prospect in all of baseball, was the No. 8 pick in the 2011 MLB Draft.
In 90 Triple-A games entering Sunday, Lindor was batting .270/.327/.391 with 13 doubles, five triples, seven homers, and 11 steals. The on-base and stolen base efficiency, in particular, were way down from his 109 games in Double-A Akron. He’s a full year younger than Ramirez and has always been the higher pedigree prospect.
We should learn more over the next 24-48 hours about the Indians’ plans. Sports Illustrated’s Ben Reiter wrote about Lindor and the Super Two deadline back in late April. FanGraphs’ Paul Swydan theorized just the other day if Cleveland was being too conservative with their superstar prospect. mid-April 2014, I made the plea for Lindor to stay in the minors and receive more seasoning. Now, it appears the time is finally here.
Stay tuned to the Columbus Clippers Twitter account. Because this “Goodbye Columbus!” headline could mean more than just a home run after Sunday night’s Clippers game.
GOODBYE COLUMBUS! @Lindor12BC hits a solo shot to give the Clippers a 2-1 lead! #ClipShow pic.twitter.com/wAEt66Fkaq
— Columbus Clippers (@CLBClippers) June 1, 2015
6 Comments
Mike Aviles is most capable of handling the job for a while. We need the extra pop in the lineup anyway. No worries , no hurries. I’d rather see Lindor sometime after the All- Star break and only to see him as a back up to Aviles and Chisenhall.
Kinda easy to see this coming with tomorrow’s off day. I though Chisenhall might be on the verge of being sent down, too. He ended Saturday’s game with 3 straight strikeouts and started Sunday’s with 2 K’s. And topped it all off with 2 errors on the hot corner. If Urshela hadn’t been so injury prone in winter ball, he may have taken over at third by now. Even as it is, calling up a replacement-level guy like Michael Martinez may even be an upgrade over Chiz right now.
Agreed, been pleased with Mike over there.
That offense needs help badly.
Chisenhall sent down as well, according to Tony Lastoria/IBI. Zach Walters and Giovanny Urshella on the way up.
Excited for Urshella, who has been hitting well for Columbus and apparently now has his back issues under control. Highly regarded defender, so just needs to be a decent 8 hitter to be worthwhile. Walters, not so much. I’m not convinced he’ll ever learn how to work a count, but I guess he plays enough positions to help flexibility with Aviles now the everyday SS. And Ramirez should be starting in Columbus if he’s not starting here.
I will miss Lonnie, Poopface Ramirez, not so much. It says something about the state of our minor league cupboards when we keep bringing Zach up to try to figure out his .059 AVG/OPS.