Am I dreaming here?

I have been following the Indians minor league teams for a long, long time.

So what I am about to say next comes with a lot of experience behind it.

I have never been so excited about the prospects I am hearing about in the Arizona League.

Every year there are 2, 3, maybe even 5 guys I find interesting. 

But this year, there are just so many guys I am excited about.   Having two AZL teams was the best move the Indians have made in their minor league system in a while.

Forget that both teams have a winning record.

Forget that some of the guys are a little older.

There are exciting prospects putting up great numbers.   Consider this list:

Rainer Diaz - a catcher hitting .400.  Francisco Mejia hit .305 in the AZL and the Indians were extremely excited about him.

Brayan Rocchio - There were supposed to be two guys coming out of Latin America who signed last year who were supposed to be players to watch: George Valera and Aaron Bracho.   Well the latter got hurt and the former has disappeared from the lineup.   In the meantime Rocchio has vaulted up in performance.   As a SS who is hitting, he is a guy to watch.

Bo Naylor - The early returns on this guy are that he can hit and he take a walk.   He looks every bit of a HS first round pick playing in the AZL and they are giving him playing time at different positions, something they should have done earlier with Mejia.

Raynel Delgado - Didn't know what to think when the Indians gave this guy $900,000 when he was projected as only a 3rd or 4th round pick.   But he looks good now, especially as a middle infielder who can hit.

Korey Holland - While he may be a long development process guy, he is showing signs that he can run, hit and take a walk.  He Ks way too much but as a late round pick, he looks worth the gamble we made on him.

Gionti Turner - His performance could be a mirage in the Arizona sun as he isn't exactly an on-base machine.   But the most coarse of stats, batting average, looks really good for him and, like Holland, as a low-round high school signee, he looks worth the money we paid him, especially since he, too, is being trained to play multiple positions.

Marcos Gonzalez - He is becoming a hitting middle infielder and, as such, is exciting.

Jonathon Rodriguez - Another work in progress like Holland, he is perfectly positioned to lag about a year to a year and a half behind the other guys on this list, giving the Indians more of a pipeline if they take the opportunity to let him develop slowly.

Michael Cooper  - Like Turner, basically a lottery ticket late round pick (but in 2017) he is looking solid this year.

Michael Jerez - Old for a Latin player in this league, you still have to like what he is doing in the AZL.   He is starting to hit for average, has shown good power this year (his second in the league) and is taking a walk.   Although not high on my list due to his age and previous experience, I like him.   In previous years he would have been one of my top prospects on this team.

There are other guys who you could name: Quentin Holmes, Valera, Bracho, Lenny Torres, Ethan Hankins, Ignacio Feliz, Yefferson Yannuzzi, Matt Turner, Dante Mendoza and Bryan Lavatisda.  There are probably more Latin pitchers and like Oviedo last year, I can't ferret them out by their raw numbers.  

But when I can pull 20 names out of the air of guys I like on our two AZL teams, it is pretty impressive, especially when none of those guys are extremely old or experienced for this league.

So, for those of you looking years down the road, it is very bright in the distance and it IS from an on-coming train...filled with Indians prospects.