Cleveland Indians' 2014 All-Prospect Team

The minor league seasons are coming to a close. With most teams' top prospects either participating in late-season action at the big league level or in the various minor league playoffs, the time has come to reflect and look back on the 2014 season.

To do so, I've created an "All-Prospect Team" to highlight some of the best performances from each position around the diamond. Some of these names will look familiar, but some lesser-known prospects quietly put up fantastic seasons.

So, let's give these guys their 15 minutes and take a look at their individual accomplishments from the 2014 season.

Pitcher: Ryan Merritt, 2014 Stats, (A+)

Arguably the least-known player of the group, Ryan Merritt was easily the best pitcher in the Cleveland Indians' farm system this season. Normally, it would be difficult to put much stock in a 22-year-old dominating hitters at the High-A level, but Merritt's performance was downright impressive.

The young lefty allowed just a 2.58 ERA and 0.95 WHIP over a healthy 160.1 inning workload. In addition to his sparkling ERA and WHIP, the Texas native put up season averages of 7.1 K/9, and 5.08 K/BB while allowing just 1.4 BB/9 and 7.2 H/9.

Merritt showed enough to earn a spot on the Double-A Akron roster to start next season, but he'll need to continue his dominance in order to catch up to other pitchers in his age group.

Either way, it was a solid season for an otherwise unknown Tribe lefty.

Catcher: Eric Haase, 2014 Stats, (A, A+)

Another unknown who made waves in the Indians' farm system this season is catcher Eric Haase.

Over 93 games between the Single- and Double-A levels, Haase managed a .255/.322/.439 slash line while amassing 17 home runs, 20 doubles, four triples, 48 RBI, 52 runs scored and a 103-33 K/BB ratio.

Haase doesn't have the most prolific stat line, nor does he have the hype of fellow catching prospect Francisco Mejia, but what he does have is a significant amount of pop. Over his 93 games, the Michigan prep product logged 92 hits; 18.5 percent of those 92 hits were home runs, and a whopping 44.5 percent were for extra bases.

Haase struck out a bit too much this season, logging a 25.9 percent strikeout rate. He did show some plate discipline, however, collecting walks in 8.3 percent of his plate appearances.

In addition to his solid performance at the plate, Haase was outstanding behind the plate, throwing out 30 percent of would-be base stealers.

Haase needs to show better pitch-recognition skills as he advances through the system, but this year went a long way toward earning him a spot with the Double-A club next season.

First Base: Jesus Aguilar, 2014 Stats, (AAA, MLB)

Jesus Aguilar may very well have had the best season of any prospect in the Indians' farm system.

Over 129 games played between the Triple-A and MLB levels, Aguilar compiled a .296/.387/.491 batting line with 19 home runs, 31 doubles, 79 RBI, 70 runs scored, and a 105-68 K/BB ratio. Aguilar flashed impressive power, logging a .511 slugging percentage in 118 minor league games—a career best—with an impressive 38.5 percent of his hits going for extra bases.

Aguilar's 105-68 K/BB ratio also suggests some improvement in his plate discipline. The 24-year-old slugger's 68 walks created a full-season best 12.9 percent walk rate, while he was also able to keep his strikeout rate below the 20-percent mark.

Though his performance at the big league level hasn't been very inspiring, Aguilar made a strong case for inclusion on the 25-man roster come Opening Day 2015.

Second Base: Zach Walters, 2014 Stats, (AAA, MLB)

Zach Walters overall stat line isn't as impressive as his minor league one.

Over 67 minor league games this year, Walters worked to a .310/.367/.619 slash line with 17 home runs, 22 doubles, five triples, 56 RBI and 42 runs scored. At the professional level, Walters has struggled to a .176/.240/.420 slash line with nine home runs, 15 RBI and 15 runs scored.

At each level, Walters has struggled with pitch selection and plate discipline. Over five minor league seasons, the 25-year-old owns a 23.4 percent strikeout rate, and the most recent two seasons suggest that he has done little to change his free-swinging nature—25.7 percent in 2013 and 22.9 percent in 2014.

Walters is a boom-or-bust prospect, and that's evident when you look at his power output in comparison to his swing-and-miss potential. The University of San Diego product shows great power potential for the position—20.5 percent of his hits were home runs—but his big league strikeout rate of 32.7 percent suggests he is totally overwhelmed by big league pitchers.

Walters profiles as a Danny Espinosa-type player, meaning that he has a high ceiling, but it's totally dependent on the development of his hit tool and his pitch-recognition and pitch-selection skills.

Third Base: Giovanny Urshela, 2014 Stats, (AA, AAA)

Against significantly older competition, Giovanny Urshela put up some gaudy numbers at the Double-A and Triple-A levels.

At the Double-A level, Urshela dominated over 24 games, posting a .300/.347/.567 slash line, with five home runs  nine doubles and 19 RBI. The 22-year-old earned himself an early-season call-up to the Triple-A level, where he continued to shine, slashing .276/.331/.473 with 13 home runs, 27 doubles, six triples, 65 RBI and an outstanding 51-30 K/BB ratio.

All in all, Urshela appeared in 128 minor league games and totaled a .280/.334/.491 batting line with 18 home runs, six triples, 36 doubles, 84 RBI and a sparkling 67-36 K/BB ratio.

Urshela has impressive command of the strike zone, and although he doesn't walk much—4.4 percent career walk rate—he also doesn't strike out much either—12.2 percent career strikeout rate.

Urshela also flashed some solid power this season, totaling extra-base hits in 11.4 percent of his plate appearances.

As a third baseman, the Colombia native has also shown improvement, committing just nine errors over 284 chances between Double-A and Triple-A—a full-season best for the young third baseman.

Shortstop: Francisco Lindor, 2014 Stats, (AA, AAA)

The most prolific and well-known prospect on the list, Francisco Lindor's spot as the best-performing shortstop in the Indians' system is well-deserved.

Between the Double-A and Triple-A levels, Lindor managed a .276/.338/.389 slash line with 11 home runs, 62 RBI, 75 runs scored, 28 stolen bases and a 97-49 K/BB ratio. Lindor had arguably his best all-around season, posting career-best marks in home runs, RBI, total bases and stolen bases, while also committing a full-season best 16 errors.

Lindor's season is not without fault, however, as he struck out at a career-worst 17.1 percent rate. In addition to this drawback, Lindor also tallied an unimpressive 63.6 percent rate when attempting to steal a base.

Despite all that, Lindor was a prime candidate to be called up to the big league level. Unfortunately though, the 20-year-old will not be making his big league debut any time in 2014, as manager Terry Francona confirmed through his statements to Cleveland.com's Zack Meisel.

Fans who were hopeful for a 2014 debut will have to wait for Opening Day 2015, but at that time, Lindor will undoubtedly be handed the starting shortstop gig.

Outfield: Bradley Zimmer, 2014 Stats, (A-, A)

Selected 21st overall in the 2014 MLB draft, Bradley Zimmer hit the ground running as a professional.

Over 48 games between Low-A Mahoning Valley and Single-A Lake County, Zimmer slashed .302/.400/.492 with six home runs, 20 extra-base hits (six home runs), 32 RBI, 34 runs scored, 12 stolen bases and a 33-21 K/BB ratio.

Zimmer also showed off some solid defensive prowess as a center fielder, logging just three errors compared to three assists on 107 chances.

Zimmer projects as a possible five-tool player, and he displayed all five of those high-upside tools in his first professional season.

Outfield: Tyler Naquin, 2014 Stats, (AA)

Though he appeared in just 76 games over the course of the 2014 season, Tyler Naquin staked his claim as one of the top outfielders in the Indians' system. The 23-year-old put up a stellar .313/.371/.424 batting line—batting average and slugging percentage were career-bests—with 21 extra-base hits, 30 RBI, 54 runs scored, 14 stolen bases and a 71-29 K/BB ratio.

Naquin also flashed an impressive defensive game, logging a whopping nine outfield assists over just 185 chances in center field.

The former Texas A&M Aggie spent some time on the shelf due to injury, but he's a shoo-in for Triple-A Columbus next season, and the possibility remains for Naquin to help round out the big league roster early next season.

Outfield: James Ramsey, 2014 Stats, (AA, AAA)

James Ramsey was the return piece from the Justin Masterson trade. The 24-year-old has a likely future as a fourth outfielder on a contending team, but this year, he showed potential for much more.

Over 95 games between the Double-A and Triple-A levels, Ramsey displayed power far greater than his fringe-average grade would suggest, as his .509 slugging percentage was a single-season best by a 69-point margin.

All in all, Ramsey totaled a .295/.382/.509 slash line with 16 home runs, 23 doubles, 52 RBI, 64 runs scored and a 100-44 K/BB ratio.

One thing Ramsey did not do, however, was cut down on his strikeout rate. Over his three minor league seasons, Ramsey has a bloated strikeout rate of 24.3 percent. This year, the Florida State University product managed 24.5 percent rate.

Ramsey, as a Triple-A player, is in very close proximity to a big league call-up. While he hasn't made the jump yet, there's a strong possibility Ramsey ends up on the Indians' active roster by mid-2015 at the latest.

All stats are current through play on Sept. 10, 2014, unless otherwise noted and come courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.