Last Wednesday I watched Francisco Mejia hit a walkoff single to give the Columbus Clippers a win over the Norfolk Tides. That was fun. As of last night, folks in Cleveland can see him now too, because the Indians called him up before their game against the White Sox.
Mejia didn’t play -- maybe he got sidetracked at Grandpa’s Cheese Barn on the way up I-71, which happens to us all -- but he’s likely to see action soon. The Tribe’s top prospect is taking the roster place of injured catcher Roberto Perez and they didn’t call him up just to ride pine.
Not that it’s certain he’ll catch. There are some questions about his defense behind the plate and the Indians have had him playing a good bit of outfield down here in Columbus. He’s only 22, so you don’t want to say the guy has a future as a DH, but he may have a future as a DH. Too soon to say.
Mejia has struggled a bit at the plate in the early going at Triple-A, but last year he raked at Double-A, earned himself a cup of coffee with the big club and hit well again in the Arizona Fall League. With the Indians starting to pull away in the AL Central, as most folks figured they would, it’s a pretty decent time to see if he responds to major league pitching.
