CLEVELAND -- The Indians organization is well represented in MLBPipeline.com's Midseason Top 100 Prospects list released on Tuesday, as Francisco Mejia and Triston McKenzie have once again been ranked among the top prospects in baseball.
After beginning the season as the No. 40 overall prospect, Mejia jumped up to No. 16 in the latest rankings. Mejia, 21, has been heralded as one of the top developing prospects after making headlines with his 50-game hitting streak in the Minors last season. This season with Double-A Akron, the switch-hitting catcher has posted a .322/.370/.531 slash line with 10 homers, 17 doubles and 36 RBIs.
Meanwhile, McKenzie also made a significant jump on the list. The right-handed pitcher moved up to No. 24 from No. 77. The 19-year-old has gone 9-4 with a 2.86 ERA and 134 strikeouts against 35 walks in 18 starts (103 2/3 innings) for Class A Advanced Lynchburg this season.
Notable players not on this list for Cleveland include center fielder Bradley Zimmer -- ranked 22nd among the top 100 prospects in the preseason list -- who has played with the Indians since being recalled from Triple-A Columbus on May 16 and is no longer eligible. In addition, first baseman Bobby Bradley has dropped out of the top 100. Bradley was ranked No. 95 in the preseason list.
Indians top 30 midseason prospects
With Zimmer -- the Indians No. 1 prospect in the preseason -- in the Majors, Mejia, McKenzie and Bradley are now the team's top three prospects, respectively. Shortstop Yu-Cheng Chang is ranked fourth (No. 11 preseason), and third baseman Nolan Jones is fifth (No. 6 preseason), rounding out Cleveland's top five in the midseason rankings.
Other notable players on the Indians' list include third baseman/outfielder Yandy Diaz improving to No. 6 from No. 10, outfielder Wil Benson dropping to No. 9 from No. 7, and left-hander Brady Aiken -- who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2015 after being selected No. 1 overall in 2014 -- falling from No. 5 to No. 25.
Six of the Indians' 2017 Draft picks cracked the organization's top 30 rankings. The Tribe's top two picks in this year's Draft, outfielder Quentin Holmes (pick No. 64) and shortstop Tyler Freeman (pick No. 71), were ranked seventh and 19th, respectively.
The other four Draft selections ranked were Ernie Clement (15th), James Karinchak (16th), Johnathan Rodriguez (24th) and Mike Rivera (27th). Additionally, two of Cleveland's international prospects signed on July 2 were included in the organization's top 30, as outfielder George Valera (26th) and shortstop Aaron Bracho (29th) made the cut.
The ranking of baseball's top prospects is done by MLBPipeline.com Draft and prospect experts Jonathan Mayo, Jim Callis and Mike Rosenbaum, who compile input from industry sources, including scouts and scouting directors. It is based on analysis of players' skill sets, upsides, proximity to the Majors and potential immediate impact to their teams. Only players with rookie status are eligible for the list. Players who were at least 23 years old when they signed and played in leagues deemed to be professional (Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Cuba) are not eligible.