Mike Bacsik (23) gained points with the Tribe hierarchy with a gutty relief stint in the Indians stunning 15-14 comeback victory over the Mariners. He got hit early and often when he first came in, but settled down and pitched 5 innings of gutty 2- run baseball after that to eat up some innings and save the Indians bullpen. He's 10-5 with a 3.57 ERA in the Buffalo rotation this year. Bacsik is not going to overpower anyone, he's more of a location and control guy a la Tom Glavine. Manual mentioned he needed to work on his breaking ball a little more. Bacsik is certainly a candidate to be with the big club in 2002. Jason Stanford (24)), and undrafted free agent signing last year, was named the Tribe's Minor League pitcher of the year in his debut season. Stanford started out strong this year but ran into some back problems which put him on the shelf for awhile. He has not been as effective since coming back, though he denies his back is the reason. Stanford is not overpowering but relies on a boring slider and location. Jason is 5-10 with a 4.37 ERA and a K/BB split of 90-35 at Akron. Also in the Akron rotation is Matt White (23)) who also does not possess a lot of heat but he has made progress in learning how to pitch this year. White is 8-9 with a 4.64 ERA. He only has 63 strikeouts in 128 innings, which makes one wonder how his stuff will translate to higher levels. Brian Tallet (24) is one of the jewels of the farm system. Not unexpectedly, since he came from a high-powered College program at LSU, has started a quick zip through the system. Tallet is 9-6 with a 2.83 ERA at Kinston this year, and has fanned 152 in 149 innings. I'm a little surprised the Indians haven't sent him up to Akron yet. Tallet has 3 above average pitches and could arrive in the majors as early as sometime in 2002. Shane Wallace (20) might be the best prospect the Indians have but unfortunately had Tommy John Surgery in the middle of the year. Before he went down he was having a monster season for his age at Kinston, posting a 10-2 record with a 1.61 ERA in 84 innings with 60 strikeouts to only 16 walks. The Tommy John surgery puts a big if on his future, but if he can come back from it he's a top prospect who definitely would have crashed top prospect lists next year. Mike Spiegel (25) has pitched well this year at Kinston, but he's older than most of his competition so he's a long shot to advance much further. At Columbus, Brandon Matheny (22) has fashioned a successful season. Matheny is 7-5 with a 2.55 ERA and is worth keeping an eye on. Oscar Alvarez (21) has shown glimpses of potential going 5-9 with a 4.17 ERA. Alvarez is out of our increasingly strong Venezuelan program. 2001 supplemental 1st round pick (37th overall) Derek Thompson (20) only made 2 starts this year before succumbing to a knee injury and undergoing surgery. Thompson has lot of upside with a fastball in the low-90's and a plus changeup and slider for his age and experience. 2001 5th round pick Marcos Mendoza (20) has a nasty slider, is sneaky fast and has begun his pro career at Mahoning Valley with a 3-2 record in 8 starts, with a 2.06 ERA. Victor Kleine (22) is a strong- armed lefty who is working on mastering his control. He's 1-5 with a 4.13 ERA and in 51 innings he has struck out 45 but has issued 22 walks. Mariano Gomez (19), an undrafted FA signing out of Honduras, is struggling as the only left-hander in the Burlington rotation. Gomez has gone 2-8 with a 6.46 ERA but has struck out 53 in 54 innings, He has miles to go but has long-term possibilities.