CLEVELAND, OH – The Indians’ roster will expand from 25 to 40 on September 1, which means the team will add some new faces for the final month of the season.
Carlos Carrasco
will be activated for the first time since his leukemia diagnosis, which should give the bullpen a boost, but that isn’t the only pitcher in the Indians’ organization who could help down the stretch.
James Karinchak is a rising star in the minor league system. He has 69 strikeouts in 28⅓ innings this season.
Karinchak got off to a sizzling start this season for Double-A Akron. He didn’t allow a run in 10 appearances. Opponents posted a 0.61 batting average against him.
“Looks like a video game,” manager Terry Francona
said earlier this year. “It’s going to be interesting because of his stuff. He’s got plenty of fastball. I mean plenty – like 97-98 and a breaking ball that’s like a curve ball/slider – a hard curve ball. He’s got two pitches that are just like wipeout pitches.”
His success in Akron led to a promotion to Columbus. His hot start continued, as he didn’t allow a run in his first three appearances for the Clippers.
Unfortunately for Karinchak, he landed on the 7-day injured list with a strained hamstring in May. The injury disrupted his great start to the season and it led to some struggles on the mound.
Karinchak allowed six earned runs and issued six walks in his first four appearances following the hamstring injury. The video game-like numbers weren’t there and he looked vulnerable.
The 23-year-old responded to the adversity and has looked dominant in his recent outings.
Karinchak has 20 strikeouts in his last seven appearances, allowing just two runs. His ERA has dropped from 8.59 to 5.28 over that span. He’s a power arm, who throws extremely hard and could add another element to the Indians’ bullpen. Adding two relievers (Carrasco and Karinchak) that throw in the mid 90’s or harder would give the Tribe a much-needed boost over the final month of the season.
Columbus Clippers RHP James Karinchak struck out the side in his one inning work tonight vs Louisville.Season - 28.1 (IP) 69 (SO) 21.94 (SO/9)Career - 100.1 (IP) 181 (SO) 16.24 (SO/9)@jkarinchak21 #Indians #KWatch pic.twitter.com/1S8nkQji3M
— Indians Prospective (@indiansPro)
August 27, 2019 Karinchak was the 30th ranked prospect in the Indians organization coming into the season according to MLB Pipeline.
Once the rosters expand to 40 on September 1, promoting a youngster like Karinchak is a no-brainer for the Indians’ front office. He’s been dominant when healthy and is talented enough to help them in high leverage situations.
Hand’s Back
Remember when Brad Hand was a liability? The Indians’ closer has registered four straight saves. He hasn’t given up a run in those outings, allowing just two hits. He’s looking more and more like the dominant closer everyone watched earlier this season.
Hand's velocity was down, with his four-seam fastball topping out at 92.3 mph
according to Statcast. His fastball was 90.3 mph on average Thursday, which is 2.5 mph
less than his season average. It's worth monitoring, but isn't something that prevented him from having success against Detroit.
Hand is second in the American League with 33 saves. Some will discount his recent success since it was against the Royals and Tigers, but sometimes the opponent doesn’t matter. Hand needed to get back on track and get into a rhythm. He’s done that, which is exactly what the Indians hoped he would do.
Frankie the Leader
Francisco Lindor continues to impress, both on and off the field for the Tribe. The four-time All-Star has at least one hit in 11 straight games and was responsible for both runs in the Indians’
2-0 victory over the Tigers on Thursday.
“We’re on a mission,” Lindor said on Wednesday night. “We’re trying to win the division and we’re not gonna stop until we accomplish that. And if we don’t, (we’ll do) whatever it takes to be in the playoffs.”
The Indians’ best player has emerged as a leader in the clubhouse this season. Lindor hit his 25th home run on Thursday, which means he’s the 11th player in Indians’ history to reach that mark in three straight seasons.
Lil' oppo boppo to extend Francisco's hit streak to 11 games.#RallyTogether pic.twitter.com/B0UxnE9r5C
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians)
August 29, 2019 With José Ramírez out with a broken hand, the team needs Lindor to have his best month of the year, if they’re going to accomplish their goal of winning the AL Central and making a playoff run in October.
