Call to the pen
Fansided

Cleveland Indians call up top prospect Bradley Zimmer

By Tim Haberin

Mar 18, 2017; Surprise, AZ, USA; Cleveland Indians center fielder Bradley Zimmer makes his way to third after an errant throw as he stole second during the second inning against the Kansas City Royals at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 18, 2017; Surprise, AZ, USA; Cleveland Indians center fielder Bradley Zimmer makes his way to third after an errant throw as he stole second during the second inning against the Kansas City Royals at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

In the wake of a couple injuries, the Cleveland Indians have promoted top prospect Bradley Zimmer. The outfielder will make his debut tonight.

The Cleveland Indians announced that they have called up top outfield prospect Bradley Zimmer among a series of roster moves. Zimmer will make his major league debut tonight against the Tampa Bay Rays at Progressive Field, batting ninth and playing center field.

Zimmer’s promotion became increasingly feasible as the Tribe deals with injuries to its outfielders. Cleveland placed Abraham Almonte on the 10-day disabled list today due to a biceps strain. Brandon Guyer hit the DL over the weekend with a sprained wrist, and he’s expected to miss four to six weeks.

MLB Pipeline currently ranks Zimmer as Cleveland’s top prospect and the #19 prospect in all of baseball. A first-round draft pick by the Indians in 2014, the 24-year-old had been off to a nice start this season with Triple-A Columbus. Through 33 games, Zimmer was slashing .294/.371/.532 with five home runs, 14 RBI and nine stolen bases. He had also collected 11 doubles and two triples.

Those early numbers are encouraging news after a 2016 season most evaluators considered a mixed bag. Zimmer batted .250/.365/.425 with 15 homers, 62 RBI and 38 steals in 130 games last year between Double- and Triple-A. He noticeably struggled after being promoted to Columbus, though, posting a .654 OPS and watching his strikeout rate rise to 37.3 percent over 37 contests.

More from Call to the Pen

However, Zimmer has consistently demonstrated an ability to combine power and speed throughout his minor league career. In 2015, he knocked 16 homers, drove in 63 runs and swiped 44 bags, all personal bests to this point.

MLB.com praises Zimmer for his “average-or-better tools across the board” and believes he has the potential to be a 20/20 guy at some point in the future. Based on what he has shown in the minors, that certainly appears well within the realm of possibility. Until last summer, Zimmer and Clint Frazier formed a promising duo of young outfielders in the Cleveland system, but Frazier was of course traded to the Yankees in the Andrew Miller deal.

There’s no telling how long Zimmer’s current stay with the big league club will last, but he has the opportunity to make a good first impression. Tonight’s outfield features Michael Brantley in left field, Zimmer in center and Lonnie Chisenhall in right, and that might be the usual configuration Cleveland goes with for the time being.

Next: Encarnacion nudged from Tribe's cleanup spot

The Indians are 20-17 and find themselves in a tight race in the AL Central a month and half into the season. They’re a half-game behind the surprising Twins for the top spot in the division, but even the last-place Royals are just 4.5 games off the pace. Winners of their last two, Cleveland will hope Zimmer’s arrival helps them start building some momentum.

Home/Cleveland Guardians