The Cleveland Indians today announced the following transactions relative to the 2021 40-man Major League roster:  

• Selected the contract of INF GABRIEL ARIAS from Triple-A Columbus. 
• Selected the contracts of INF ERNIE CLEMENT, INF NOLAN JONES and RHP ELI MORGAN from Double-A Akron. 
• Selected the contract of RHP CARLOS VARGAS from the Single-A Mahoning Valley Scrappers.

Arias, 20, was acquired by Cleveland from San Diego on August 31 in a nine-player trade. The 2020 Padres Spring Training and Summer Camp non-roster invitee spent the 2020 campaign between the San Diego and Cleveland Alternate Training Sites and participated in the fall development camp in Goodyear, AZ in October. His last Minor League game action occurred in 2019, spending the year at Single-A Lake Elsinore where he batted .302 (144-for-477) with 21 doubles, 4 triples, 17 home runs and 75 RBI (.339/.470/.809). He finished third in the California League in RBI and total bases (224), fourth in batting average and hits, and sixth in slugging pct. (.470). He is currently ranked the sixth-best prospect in the Indians system according to MLB Pipeline.

Jones, 22, was Cleveland’s second round selection (55th overall) out of Holy Ghost Prep High School (Bensalem, PA) in the 2016 MLB Draft. MLB Pipeline and Baseball America consider him the top prospect in the Indians system according and 38th overall among all Minor League prospects in MLB (MLB Pipeline). Nolan spent the 2020 campaign at the Alternate Training Site in Lake County, appearing in nine games this spring as a non-roster player. The Langhorne, PA native spent the 2019 season between Single-A Lynchburg and Double-A Akron, hitting a combined .272 (117-for-430) with 22 doubles, 15 home runs and 63 RBI in 126 games (.409/.442/.851). He earned organizational all-star honors (MLB.com), led the entire Minor Leagues in walks (96) and was a 2019 Futures Game participant in Progressive Field.  

Clement, 24, spent 2020 at the Alternate Training Site in Lake County after being a non-roster invitee to Spring and Summer Camp. He spent most of the previous campaign in AA Akron, hitting .269 (109-for-405) with 16 2B, 3 3B, 1 HR, 28 RBI and 17 steals in 101 games between Akron and Columbus. After the season, he played all around the diamond in the Arizona Fall League, batting .261 (12-for-46) with a 2B, 3 RBI and 4 runs in 13 games. The Pittsford, NY native was Cleveland’s fourth round choice in the 2017 MLB Draft out of the Univ. of Virginia. 

Morgan, 24, also spent 2020 at the Alternate Training Site. He split the 2019 season across three levels, making 18 of 25 starts with Akron. For the year, he went a combined 9-6 with a 3.39 ERA in 26 games (140.2IP, 124H, 53ER, 40BB, 146SO). He led the system in innings, was second in strikeouts and earned an organizational all-star nod from MLB.com. Prior to the season, Eli was named as having the fest change-up” in the system (Baseball America). The Rancho Palos Verdes, CA native was the club’s eighth round selection in the 2017 MLB Draft out of Gonzaga.

Vargas, 21, last pitched in 2019 for short-season Mahoning Valley in the New York-Penn League. The Moca, Dominican Republic native went 6-4 with a 4.52 ERA in 15 starts (77.2IP, 73H, 39ER, 71SO) for the Scrappers, finishing third in the NYPL in innings and wins and tied for eighth in strikeouts. Carlos, named the 11th-best prospect in the Arizona Rookie League after the 2018 season, owns a two-year professional ERA of 4.34 in 25 games/24 starts (54ER/112.0IP). He was signed as an amateur free agent in October 2015.

Following today’s five additions, the 40-man roster now consists of 40 players.