The Cloverdale Clovers pitching staff looked as stable as any in the Roger Dorn Baseball League entering 2020, but a shortened season did its fair share of damage to multiple arms on the roster. While still talented, the Clovers jumped at the opportunity to strengthen the unit on Tuesday night, announcing the acquisition of right-hander Kyle Hendricks (2/$29) from the Maltese Falcons.
The Clovers will receive Hendricks as well as 4th and 5th Round Picks in 2021 from the Falcons in exchange for prospect Royce Lewis (Minors), right-hander Carlos Martinez (2/$2) and a 2021 2nd Round Pick.
Hendricks put together another strong campaign as he was one out away from leading the entire league in innings in 2020. He posted a 2.55 ERA while only allowing eight walks in 81 1/3 innings of work, proving well worth the $29 option for 2021. Hendricks has never had an ERA higher than 3.95 or a WHIP higher than 1.19. That type of consistency makes Hendricks an extremely valuable fantasy asset, even if he doesn't miss as many bats as other frontline starters.
Hendricks is set to be joined by Jack Flaherty (2R/$3), Sonny Gray (2FA/$5), Mike Soroka (2R/$3) and likely activation Jesus Luzardo (Minors) in a deep and affordable rotation. Soroka is coming off a torn Achilles while Flaherty performed below his usual production in 2020 leaving GM Chris Shelley to look for some more certainty from the starting unit. The club had also expected the rise of Michael Kopech by 2021 but he opted out of the 2020 season and is set to start this season in the Minors.
Lewis was the first overall pick in the 2017 draft but hit a bump in his ascent to the majors in 2019 after some offseason workouts led to a breakdown in his mechanics at the plate. Lewis is a plus-plus runner who projected to hit for average without a ton of power, but before the 2019 season, he adopted a high leg kick and big hand movement, but instead of driving the ball more he would bail out more often and make weak contact on stuff away. The Twins have worked with him to get him more online so he can work toward the middle of the field, making better quality contact and letting him use his legs more often.
Lewis is rough at shortstop, with all of the athleticism and speed to play there but well below-average actions and instincts; the Twins have tried Lewis a little in center but plan to continue to work him at shortstop. There’s a ton of natural ability here, and just restoring Lewis’ swing from 2018 would go a long way to demonstrating the type of player he can be.
Everything that could go wrong did go wrong for Carlos Martínez in 2020. When he was on the field, the right-hander was putrid. Of course, multiple injury list designations also put him on the sidelines for most of the season around a 9.90 ERA in five appearances. Now in 2021, Martínez is going to have to fight for his rotation spot and won’t be given one. The good news is that the 29-year-old flamethrower participated in the Dominican Winter League and pitched well in his second start for the Aguilas Cibaenas striking out six over six scoreless innings against the Toros del Este. Martinez only appeared as a starter in 2020 making him only SP-eligible to start 2021.
In addition to Lewis and Martinez, the Falcons nabbed a second round pick and now hold multiple selections in each of the first two rounds of the 2021 Reserve Draft as they continue to their efforts to rebuild a younger roster.
Lewis slots in as the 2nd ranked prospect in the Falcons Farm System, right behind activation-ready second baseman Nick Madrigal.
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