By Pete Cava
PBR Indiana Correspondent

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After a ten-year odyssey through four different organizations in nine minor league cities, catcher Nevin Ashley finally made it to the big leagues this September.   

Ashley, a Vincennes native, was one of five Indiana-born players who reached the majors in 2015.  Other Hoosier natives who made big league debuts this season were White Sox second baseman Micah Johnson, Twins pitcher Alex Meyer, Rangers outfielder Ryan Strausborger and Phillies hurler Jerad Eickhoff.   

Ashley spent seven seasons in the Tampa Bay chain after the Rays drafted him in 2006.  In 2009 he was picked for the Arizona Fall League’s all-prospect team, and in ’09 and 2010 Baseball America named him the top defensive catcher in the Tampa Bay organization.  A broken right hand in 2012 limited Ashley to 35 games at Durham (AAA International).  He became a free agent after the season and bounced around from the Reds organization in 2013, to the Pittsburgh chain in 2014, and to the Brewers’ system for this year.  

Along the way, Ashley twice had a taste of life in the majors.  He traveled with the Rays during the 2010 postseason as a possible backup catcher in the event of injuries.  The Pirates summoned Ashley from Indianapolis (AAA International) in June 2014, but never activated him.     

In 94 games this summer with Colorado Springs (AAA Pacific Coast), Ashley batted .306 with eight home runs and 61 runs batted in.  After the last game of the year, he was planning to join his wife and son in Evansville when the Brewers purchased his contract.  “Since I was a kid, I dreamed of this,” Ashley told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Haudricourt.  “Throughout the year, I kept grinding and it turned out.  I'll take this detour any day.  It's a dream come true.” 

On September 9 in Miami, the 31-year-old Ashley was behind the plate for the Brewers.  His first major league at-bat came in the second inning, and he lashed a 1-1 delivery from Marlins right-hander Tom Koehler for an RBI double.  “It's been 10 years waiting,” Ashley told reporters, “so it was definitely a good feeling.” 

Compared to Ashley’s route, Micah Johnson’s rise to the majors was meteoric.  The 24-year-old Indianapolis native, who prepped at Park Tudor School and played college ball at Indiana, reached the big leagues after just three minor league campaigns.  Johnson entered pro ball in 2012 with Great Falls, Mont. (rookie Pioneer), and in 2013 he led the minors with 84 stolen bases.  This year he emerged from spring training as the White Sox’s everyday second baseman and hit .270 in 27 contests.  Inconsistent defense led to a mid-May demotion, but he rejoined Chicago in September.  

Greensburg native Alex Meyer has been one of Minnesota’s top prospects since the Twins acquired him from Washington after the 2012 season.  The Nationals had made him their first-round pick (23^rd overall) in 2011.  Last spring the 6-foot-9 Meyer was competing for the fifth spot in Minnesota’s rotation.  He opened the season with Rochester, N.Y.  (AAA International), where he pitched mostly out of the bullpen.  Promoted to the Twins at the end of June, the 25-year-old made two relief appearances before returning to the minors.  Meyer played for Greensburg High School and University of Kentucky.   

A 16^th-round pick out of Indiana State University in 2010, Elkhart Memorial High School alum Ryan Strausborger was batting .278 with 27 stolen bases at Round Rock (AAA Pacific Coast) when the Rangers summoned him in August.  “I'm excited, I'm ready to get out there and get my feet wet,” the 27-year-old Elkhart native told MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan.  “It's the opportunity of a lifetime.”  

Right-hander Jerad Eickhoff, an Evansville native, was Strausborger’s teammate at Frisco (AA Texas) in 2013-2014 and at Round Rock this season.  The Rangers traded Eickhoff to the Phillies organization on July 31 in an eight-player deal that brought left-hander Cole Hamels to Texas.  Promoted to Philadelphia on August 21, the 25-year-old Eickhoff joined the Phillies rotation and went 3-3 with a 2.65 ERA in eight starts.  Eickhoff, who was selected by Texas in the 2011 draft, starred at Evansville Mater Dei High School and Olney (Ill.) Central College.    

Two more players with Indiana ties made their big league debuts this year – New York Mets catcher Kevin Plawecki and Kyle Schwarber, a catcher/outfielder for the Chicago Cubs.  Plawecki, a Hinsdale, Ill., native, played for Westfield High School and Purdue University.  Schwarber, born in Middletown, Ohio, played collegiate ball at Indiana.  Schwarber and Micah Johnson were teammates on the 2012 IU team that finished second in the Big Ten. 

With Johnson, Meyer, Strausborger, Eickhoff and Ashley debuting this year, a total of 369 Hoosier natives have now played big league baseball.  Here’s a quick look at the five newest Indiana-born major leaguers:  

Micah Drew Johnson, second base, Chicago White Sox.  Debut:  April 6, 2015.

Born:  December 18, 1990, Indianapolis.  Lives:  Indianapolis. 

High School:  Indianapolis Park Tudor School.  College:  Indiana University. 

Height:  6-0.  Weight:  210.  Bats:  left.   Throws:  right. 

Drafted:  White Sox, 2012 (9th round).  

Alex John Meyer, pitcher, Minnesota Twins.  Debut:  June 26, 2015. 

Born:  January 3, 1990, Greensburg.  Lives:  Greensburg.   

High School:  Greensburg High School.  College:  University of Kentucky. 

Height:  6-9.  Weight:  225.  Bats:  right.   Throws:  right. 

Drafted:  Washington Nationals, 2011 (1st round – 23^rd pick).  

Ryan Lee  Strausborger, outfield, Texas Rangers.  Debut:  August 5, 2015.    

Born:  March 4, 1988, Elkhart.  Lives:  Osceola.   

High School:  Elkhart Memorial High School.  College:  Indiana State University.

Height:  6-0.  Weight:  185.  Bats:  right.   Throws:  right. 

Drafted:  Rangers, 2010 (16th round).  

Jerad Joseph Eickhoff, pitcher, Philadelphia Phillies.  Debut:  August 21, 2015.    

Born:  July 2, 1990, Evansville.  Lives:  Evansville.   

High School:  Evansville Mater Dei High School.  College:  Olney (Ill.) Central College.

Height:  6-4.  Weight:  240.  Bats:  right.   Throws:  right. 

Drafted:  Texas Rangers, 2011 (15th  round).  

Nevin Robert Ashley, catcher, Milwaukee Brewers.   Debut:  September 9, 2015.   

Born:  August 14, 1984, Vincennes.  Lives:  Evansville.   

High School:  North Knox High School (Bicknell).  College:  Indiana State University.

Height:  6-1.  Weight:  215.  Bats:  right.   Throws:  right. 

Drafted:  Tampa Bay Rays, 2006 (6^th round).  

Pete Cava is the author of Indiana-Born Major League Baseball Players:  A Biographical Dictionary, 1871-2014, now available from McFarland