From Cincinnati to Akron, Bradley Zimmer will not return to Lynchburg, Virginia to continue his first full professional season since MLB.com's eighty-eighth top prospect has been promoted to Double-A from Single-A Advanced.
Zimmer, who was drafted from the University of San Francisco with the twenty-first pick in the 2014 MLB Draft, has been recognized as one of the best players in Minor League baseball even though he has not seen a single pitch in Double-A thanks to his great play this season. Unlike most, the twenty-two year old has a unique set of skills that include contact and power hitting as well as speed on the basepaths and a strong throwing arm. In fact, the Cleveland Indians' third top prospect is tied with the second most stolen bases by a speedster in a level of Single-A Advanced or higher.
While some may have expected this kind of success, the Indians have been surprised with Bradley's great play so early in his career as Cleveland's scouting director Brad Grant said, "He's more athletic than we even thought. It's been really amazing to see how quickly he can pick up and apply adjustments in center field and on the bases. His first step is extremely quick, and he can cover a lot of ground with his strides. The bat has obviously progressed as hoped and the power is really coming on."
Coming into today, the outfielder is batting .304 with ten home runs and thirty-eight RBIs in seventy-seven games and has started the 2015 California/Carolina All-Star Game in addition to the 2015 All-Star Futures Game as a member of the United States' team (went 0-2).
Zimmer is expected to make his Double-A debut for the 47-44 Akron RubberDucks of the Eastern League (four games behind Western Division leading Bowie) Wednesday night in Erie, Pennsylvania against the SeaWolves.