On September 1 the MLB will expand each team's roster from 25 players to 40, enabling each squad to call up minor league prospects to gain some big league experience. Here are a few names we should be looking out for.
Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti let it be known a few weeks ago that fans would be seeing prospects Joc Pederson and Alex Guerrero on September 1. Pederson, an outfielder who the team couldn't call up earlier because of their abundance at the position, is batting .307 in Triple-A Albuquerque with 33 homes runs, 78 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. This season he became the first 30-30 player in the Pacific Coast League since 1934 and won the League MVP award as well as Rookie of the Year honors at 22 years old.
Second baseman and Cuban defector Alex Guerrero was signed by the team in the offseason to a four-year, $28 million deal. He has also shined in Triple-A Albuquerque, batting .328 with 14 home runs and 47 RBIs in 64 games. The 27-year-old missed five weeks of the minor league season after Dodgers catcher Miguel Olivo bit part of his ear off during a fight in the dugout. The team was also planning to call Guerrero up much earlier to play somewhere in the middle infield, but Dee Gordon has been having a great season at second base and SS Hanley Ramirez has been surprisingly healthy for most of the year.
Speaking of shortstops, the Cleveland Indians may call up their top prospect in Francisco Lindor. They made that somewhat clear during the trade deadline when they sent off then-shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera to the Washington Nationals to make room later on in the year for Lindor. Cleveland promoted second baseman Jose Ramirez to the team late in July (he debuted last September) and he's been playing shortstop since Cabrera's departure, batting .254 with 13 runs scored in 38 games.
In 122 games split between Double-A Akron and Triple-A Columbus, Lindor is batting .276 with 72 runs scored, 10 home runs, 60 RBIs and 28 stolen bases. The 20-year-old is regarded as the best defensive shortstop in the minors, but nothing is set in stone right now in terms of his promotion to the MLB. Cleveland has Jason Kipnis at second base, so if they wish to continue playing Jose Ramirez then they'll likely have to split playing time between him and Lindor.
Chicago White Sox pitching prospect Carlos Rodon has been another name widely considered to be promoted to the major leagues this year, but general manager Rick Hahn has not yet made a decision. However, this year alone, Rodon has played in the Rookie League, Single-A Winston-Salem and Triple-A Charlotte, so these promotions may indicate his arrival to the MLB soon. The left-hander has a 2.75 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 19.2 innings in the minor leagues since his debut on July 22.
Check out MiLB.com for the latest prospect news.
