THIRD BASE

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" height=100 BGCOLOR="#CCCCFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="06c00640egdysm.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000066" FACE="Arial" ><B>INDIANS PROSPECT WATCH</B></FONT><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000099" FACE="Arial" ><B> </B></FONT><B>    |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="INDIANS PROSPECT WATCH"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id17.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="CATCHER"><U>CATCHER</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="FIRST BASE"><U>FIRST BASE</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="MIDDLE INFIELD"><U>MIDDLE INFIELD</U></A>   |   <B>THIRD BASE</B>   |   <A HREF="id27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="OUTFIELD"><U>OUTFIELD</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id29.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="RIGHTHANDED STARTERS"><U>RIGHT-HANDED STARTERS</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id30.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="LEFTHANDED STARTERS "><U>LEFT-HANDED STARTERS </U></A>   |   <A HREF="id31.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="RIGHTHANDED RELIEVERS"><U>RIGHT-HANDED RELIEVERS</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id32.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="LEFTHANDED RELIEVERS"><U>LEFT-HANDED RELIEVERS</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id34.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DOMINICAN AND VENEZUELAN PROSPECTS"><U>DOMINICAN AND VENEZUELAN PROSPECTS</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id37.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DAILY HIGHLIGHTS"><U>DAILY HIGHLIGHTS</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id36.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="STAT AND OTHER LINKS"><U>STAT AND OTHER LINKS</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id35.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="NEWS AND NOTES"><U>NEWS AND NOTES</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" height=380 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>THIRD BASE</I></div> <div> Updated 8/16/01</div> <bR> <div> <B>Mike Edwards </B>(24) has steadily climbed through the system and has developed into a decent prospect. Unfortunately he had elbow surgery in April and was back in July but quickly separated his shoulder while rehabbing at Mahoning Valley. He shook that off quickly and rejoined the Aeros a couple of weeks ago and has hit .333 with some power since coming back. Edwards is steady at third and looks like he could hit for a decent average at the Major League level. His future depends on how much power he can continue to develop. <B>Corey Erickson </B>(24) filled in at third for Akron during Edwards absence and has demonstrated his evolving power with 21 home runs. He has struggled otherwise though, hitting only .229 with an OBP of only .289. Erickson has also played some second base and first base, which could help him land a big league roster spot someday if he can improve his strike zone judgment and  raise both his batting average and his on-base-percentage. The Indians acquired <B>Troy Cameron</B>(23) from Atlanta in the Rocker deal and he has hit the ball hard since landing in Kinston. Cameron, a switch hitter, has tailed off recently to lower his batting average to .265 in his 47 games with the Indians, but he has 7 home runs and an OPS of .855. Cameron has a history of striking out a lot and has whiffed 39 times in 170 at-bats. He has however walked 30 times, so the K/BB ratio is encouraging. As we've seen with Jim Thome, strikeouts can be tolerated as long as production is high and the player also draws a lot of walks. <B>Corey Smith</B> (19), the Tribes #1 pick in 2000, has delighted the Indians with his 2001 performance at Columbus. Corey is hitting .266 with 16 home runs and 79 RBI. Smith has extraordinary power potential and his upside is tremendous. Smith has committed 37 errors at third, but most of them came early and he has continued to improve. Look for him around 2004 in Cleveland. An eventual move to the outfield is a possibility. Corey is currently ranked the Indians 3rd best prospect, but since Sabathia and Baez were ranked 1-2 ahead of him, and both are now entrenched with Cleveland, Smith is the defacto #1. <B>Francis Finnerty</B> (20) is a switch hitter with some power potential, but he's hitting only .175 with 1 homer in 37 games at Mahoning Valley. Injuries have slowed him this year, and he's still young enough to rebound. <B>Matt Knox</B> (21) and <B>Scott Threinen</B> (20) have manned third base at Burlington. Knox, a mid round selection by the Indians this year is another guy with power potential. Knox is hitting .222 with 9 doubles and 2 home runs in 171 at-bats. Threinen was an 11th round pick by the Indians in 2000 out of a Minnesota high school. He signed too late to play in 2000, so he's making his debut this year. He was hitting .167 through 8/14, but went 3 for 4 on 8/15, so his average is on the upswing and he may finally be adjusting to professional pitching and wood bats. Scott is a guy who could develop rapidly once he gets his feet wet.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> Corey Smith is obviously the top prospect at this position, but Edwards, Cameron and Threinen all have potential, though Edwards is getting to the point where his age works against him. I'm not ready to count out Finnerty, either.</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="56" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="44"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="44" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>