Indians: 3 players who could be called up and break out in 2021
By Chad Porto
3B – Nolan Jones
Nolan Jones might be ready to come up and take over at third base. While Jose Ramirez is the obvious incumbent, the facts are that he’s played everywhere on the infield other than first base. With openings at second base and presumably shortstop, the idea that Ramirez could be moved over does exist and should be explored.
This would get Jones ready for a callup to start the season. In the minors, he was a .283 career hitter, across 340 games on various levels. He hit 38 home runs, and 171 RBI’s during that stretch. He’s a real strong bat, but he does have a propensity to commit errors at the hot corner. He’s only ever played five other games at something other than third and that was at shortstop, where he committed two errors.
The Indians are a team that survives and thrives off of pinpoint pitching and sure-fire defense. Jones would need to clean up his mistakes if he was going to be worth bringing up so soon. If he did come up, the possibility of him having an Evan Longoria type season, where the rookie third-basemen becomes the centerpiece of the offense is entirely likely.
It’s also just as likely that he’s more akin to Bradley Zimmer than the Rays greatest player.