Sizemore's intensity shortened career in Cleveland

Published: Monday, October 31, 2011, 9:51 PM Updated: Monday, October 31, 2011, 9:58 PM
By Bill Livingston, The Plain Dealer

Much of the fan mail to players on the last Indians team to reach the playoffs went to the one who was hardest to reach. Grady Sizemore's locker at Progressive Field was in front of a huge pillar. Baskets of bubble gum, sunflower seeds, and, back in the day, chewing tobacco, were perched on the top of a large counter next to the pillar. The fan letters went there.

That mail will be delivered to a different address as of Monday, when the Indians declined to exercise their option on the injury-plagued outfielder's contract. What will remain are memories of a proud, private man who always gave his best and who, by so doing, was not built to last.

To speak to Sizemore in the Indians clubhouse, you had to squeeze past the counter and the pillar, stepping carefully over the feet of the players sitting on stools near him, and lean into the crowd of reporters customarily sardined into the space. You had to listen closely, for he spoke in a whispery rush of words.

Sometimes, you can learn a lot about a person from his lair. Not from Sizemore.

He did not really enjoy interviews. He underplayed his performance when talking about himself because he was convinced nothing he said could matter more than what he did. The game had taken almost all he had to give, anyway.

He was a favorite not only for his dashing looks but also for his dusty, diving style of play. Sizemore played all-out, as hard as he could, day-in, day-out. He missed nine games, total, from 2005-08. He led the American League in 2006 in the biggest thing for which a leadoff man is responsible -- runs scored. He led the league in plate appearances in the World Series near-miss season in 2007.

He played with the desperate hustle of someone on the fringe of the roster, not the center fielder who was probably the Central Division's best player in those years. He never took a game for granted, becoming a 30-30 man in home runs (33) and stolen bases (38) in 2008, when the sell-off began of the players who made 2007 possible.

Sizemore played as if it meant too much to him to throw away a single at-bat or to leave even one extra base untaken. He led the league in doubles in 2006. He ran every ball out, from spring training to October's bright lights.

The covenant he had with the game was not broken at his choosing. The intensity that made him so good also is what made the brilliance short-lived. The walls he ran into, the doubles he legged out in a cloud of dust and the players he bowled over wore him down.

The memories will be of Sizemore crashing to the plate on a wild pitch in the "Bug Game" in the playoffs against the Yankees in 2007, upending pitcher Joba Chamberlain as he covered the plate, making Sizemore the very symbol of the upset the Indians were springing.

And they will be of Sizemore, a native of Seattle, tearing toward the plate in his hometown, from second base on a single to right field, where lived Ichiro Suzuki, with all that speed of his own and all that arm.
Speed kills, and the death blow in that game was delivered when the flying Sizemore beat the sizzling throw for the winning run.

And they will be of Sizemore, slamming into the fence with such force against the Angels that an overhead camera shot showed the boards of the fence here buckling from the impact.

Sizemore was a candle, burning at both ends, not from too many late nights, but from too much fire. Elbow, groin, both knees -- he endured five operations in three years. It diminished him as a player and made extending his contract a poor risk for a small-market team like the Tribe.

Yet he played the game the way the most driven players have played it from the time of Pete Reiser and Enos "Country" Slaughter, through Pete Rose to today's era of enormous contracts. He played the way we would have if we had been good enough, squeezing every drop out of his talent.

In the Indians' minor-league complex in Goodyear, Ariz., every kid trying to make the big-league roster for years has walked past a photo of Sizemore, his face contorted, his body straining, running it out. Because nothing else would do. Because nothing else was honorable.

About the Tribe ...

Terry Pluto

1. There has been some speculation that the Indians may trade Chris Perez, because they have Vinnie Pestano as a possible closer. Working against that is the free-agent market, which is rich with closers -- Ryan Madson, Jonathan Papelbon, Francisco Rodriguez, Heath Bell, Francisco Cordero and Joe Nathan. For all the fans' complaints about Perez, he was 36-of-40 in saves, that 90 percent mark being No. 4 in the AL. He also has converted 46 of his last 50 saves in one-run situations, which is a superb 92 percent.

2. A very attractive reliever is Rafael Perez, who was 5-2 with a 3.00 ERA in 2011. He's a 29-year-old lefty with a career 3.64 ERA. Many teams are desperate for lefty relievers, and the Indians have Nick Hagadone as a possible replacement. They also have veteran Tony Sipp (who also could be available). It would be a surprise if Sipp and Rafael Perez both return.

3. The Indians also may be in position to deal Joe Smith (3-3, 2.01 ERA). The only AL relievers with better ERAs were Dave Robertson (1.08), Greg Holland (1.80) and Mariano Rivera (1.91). The Indians are stacking up young bullpen arms. They believe Zach Putnam is big-league ready. While he wasn't promoted in September, the Tribe would not be shocked if Chen Lee makes the team out of spring training. He was 4-0 with a 2.27 ERA at Class AAA, fanning 43 in 32 innings. He threw in the 92-95 mph range with a nasty slider.

4. Now recovered from reconstructive elbow surgery, Hector Rondon is pitching well in winter ball. Once a hot prospect as a starter, the Indians have moved him to the bullpen for 2012.

5. It was a classy move for Tribe General Manager Chris Antonetti to fly to Arizona to tell Grady Sizemore in person last week that the Indians would not pick up his $9 million option. They met for lunch, and Antonetti delivered the news early. He offered to leave if Sizemore was upset, but Sizemore said to stick around. They talked for more than an hour. Sizemore said he wanted to stay with the Tribe, but also understood the business part of the game.

6. The Indians told Sizemore they were open to him coming back on a contract with incentives. Sizemore said he would consider it, but first his agent wanted to see what was available on the open market. Odds are long he will return.

7. Why did the Indians pick up Fausto Carmona's option for $7 million, and add Derek Lowe at $5 million? Because they believe (as do many other teams) that the market for mediocre starting pitching will be outrageous. The first indication is Washington signing Chien-Ming Wang for $4 million. He had major shoulder surgery in July 2009, and didn't pitch again until late this season. He has started only 20 games the past three years.

8. The Tribe's 2010 Opening Day rotation was Justin Masterson, Josh Tomlin, Carlos Carrasco, Mitch Talbot and Carmona. By September, only Carmona and Masterson were still in the rotation. Carrasco and Talbot are out of the picture for 2012.

9. Yes, the rotation seems set with Ubaldo Jimenez, Masterson, Tomlin, Lowe and Carmona. But Jeanmar Gomez, Zach McAllister, David Huff and others will have their chance. These guys get hurt. Odds are one will have a miserable season. You usually need at least eight starters to make it through a season. Last year, the Tribe had eight pitchers start at least 10 games ... and that doesn't count Alex White, who went down with a finger injury after three starts.

10. While the Indians will bid on some free agents, they have a much better chance of finding a hitter via a trade where they pick up part of the contract. The Tribe did that with Kosuke Fukudome last season when he was acquired from the Cubs, and are paying $5 million of Lowe's $15 million salary in 2012.

Cabrera loses out on gold but wins silver

On Tuesday night in front of a live television audience Major League Baseball and ESPN unveiled the 2011 Gold Glove winners for both the American and National Leagues. Shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera and right-handed pitcher Fausto Carmona were both finalists in the American League at their respective positions and in the end neither one of them won.

Cabrera ended up losing the Gold Glove to Erick Aybar of the Angels, and Carmona lost it to Mark Beurhle of the White Sox. But the news was better on Wednesday night as Cabrera won the Silver Slugger Award for the best offensive performance by a shortstop in the American League.

A lot of Indians fans considered it an upset that Cabrera did not win a Gold Glove and wondered how he could lose it after so many highlight worthy plays this past season that had him a part of ESPN’s Web Gems segment all season. But five or six highlight plays do not make a good defender as it is the consistency day in and day out, and compared to other shortstops Cabrera was just a little short and did not measure up. Had he won there would have been many people – including me – wondering how he won it.

There is no doubt that Cabrera had a breakout season offensively and that he was the heart and soul of the Indians this past season, and he was rewarded as such with the Silver Slugger Award on Wednesday. But he still has yet to live up to the promise he had defensively when the Indians acquired him back in June of 2006. Back then he was considered an excellent defender with great range and hands, but so far in his big league career he has been average to slightly above average at best as a defender.

Cabrera did not rank well in just about every stat category this season among American League shortstops. Among 12 shortstops who qualified he ranked 6th in fielding percentage (.976), tied for the 4th most errors (15), and was 6th in total chances (617). He did not rank well among other more advanced fielding stats either as he was 10th in range factor (4.08) and dead last in ultimate zone rating (-11.8). In fact, his 2010 season defensively was arguably better with a .972 fielding percentage, 4.57 range factor and -7.7 UZR.

The statistics did not support Cabrera as being the top shortstop in the American League in 2011. Fans may say he passed the “eye” test to them, but there is also a huge bias there with him being an Indian. Not to mention that highlight plays can often create a false perception on how well a player is playing over the course of the season.

Also, the “eye” test is just as flawed as any of the new and old fielding stats. How does one truly quantify what a good defensive performance is? Was that performance evenly compared against the other players at the same position? Was too much stock put into what were perceived to be a handful of great plays? Or were those great plays the result of the player getting a poor jump on the ball or because they have limited range?

Baseball has always been a game based on stats as people have used them to judge both hitters and pitchers since the game was invented, but due to the lack of very good traditional stats for fielders there has always been a lot of grey area in truly evaluating the defensive performance of a player. Sometimes the best defenders are those who consistently make the routine plays day in and day out and are not as flashy simply because they make it look easier because of far greater range, quickness, hands, and by reading balls better off the bat.

As for Carmona’s inclusion as a finalist for the American League Gold Glove for pitchers, I can’t explain that one at all as I do not recall him ever being considered a good defender. In fact, his own teammate Josh Tomlin is arguably two or three times the defender and probably should have been up for the award instead and it would not have been a surprise if he won it. Carmona’s inclusion is yet another reminder of how the voting system and who ultimately wins a Gold Glove is seriously flawed.

Cleveland Indians, Worms' No. 1 Enemy

The arrival of Derek Lowe to the Tribe completes a collection of ground-ball pitchers baseball has never seen

By Jonah Keri POSTED NOVEMBER 8, 2011

It was a move buried in agate type, if the Internet actually had agate type. The Cleveland Indians traded a B prospect for a 38-year-old pitcher coming off a 5.05 ERA season, plus some cash. But by picking up Derek Lowe for the 2012 season, the Tribe have taken on a rare experiment: They're trotting out a collection of ground-ball pitchers that might be unrivaled in baseball history.

In adding Lowe to a rotation that also includes Justin Masterson and Fausto Carmona, the Indians will feature three of this year's top eight ground-ball-inducing starters. Throw in Ubaldo Jimenez and his above-average ground-ball rate and the Indians will field a staff unlike any other in the game. In a perennially weak division where little edges can mean a lot, the Indians may have found a new path to success, and just maybe a 2012 playoff berth.

To understand how extreme the Indians' staff figures to be, let's dive into some numbers. Lowe triggered grounders on 59 percent of the balls in play hit against him in 2011, Masterson 55.1 percent, and Carmona 54.8 percent. Over the past three seasons, Lowe, Masterson, and Carmona put up composite ground-ball rates of 58 percent, 56 percent, and 55 percent, respectively, three of the four highest marks in baseball. With apologies to some of the Tommy John-led staffs and other grounder-heavy rotations of the past, publicly available ground-ball data goes back just a decade. In that time, only five other teams have deployed three starters with GB rates of 50 percent or higher — four of them Cardinals staffs led by sinkerball fetishist/guru Dave Duncan. None had a higher aggregate ground-ball rate among its top three starters than what Lowe, Masterson, and Carmona put up this year. Jimenez's 47.2 percent GB rate was his lowest in any full season, but he's still above 50 percent for his career. The Indians' top four thus came in well above league-average ground-ball rates: 44.4 percent in 2011, 43.8 percent over the past 10 seasons.

So how does a team parlay a legion of ground-ballers into success? At its simplest level, the benefit of inducing a grounder is that it's much less likely to go for an extra-base hit and impossible to go for a homer.1 Pitchers who induce a lot of ground balls, without racking up many strikeouts, might be able to keep their pitch counts down, thus enabling them to go deeper into games and save their bullpens. Ground-ball pitchers can also be a relative bargain: Every team, the Indians included, would most prefer a pitcher who strikes out a ton of batters and doesn't walk many. But a staff full of Cliff Lees would wreck almost any team's budget. Find five Jake Westbrooks instead, and you might still see decent results at a fraction of the price.

We've learned a lot more about pitching over the past few years, particularly that what we used to simply call pitching also involves defense, luck, and other factors. To leverage a staff full of ground-ball pitchers,2 it would make sense to field an infield full of vacuum cleaners. None of the Indians' projected starting infielders grade out as elite defenders, at least not by Ultimate Zone Rating.3 But they're still a solid bunch. The Indians see Jason Kipnis, the young second baseman entering his first full big league season next year, as average with the potential to be above-average defensively; ditto for 2011 rookie third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall. UZR hates shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, but the Tribe think he's a lot better than the league-worst defender UZR says he was last season. Meanwhile, utility infielder Jack Hannahan projects as a near-elite gloveman by virtually any measure.

There's good news and bad news with that Indians infield defense. The good news is that the Indians allowed a .242 batting average on ground balls last season, ranking among the 10 best defensive teams in that regard. The bad news is twofold: First, what you see is probably what you get with the Indians' infield, as Kipnis, Cabrera, and Chisenhall figure to be entrenched as starters — so trying an extreme alignment of superelite defensive infielders isn't a viable option. Second, let's say Indians pitchers generated 200 more grounders per season than the rest of the league — an aggressive prediction. Now, say they turned ground balls into outs at a rate 4 percent above league average, another optimistic call. Under that scenario, assuming Indians infielders converted 80 percent of grounders into outs instead of the league average of 76 percent, you'd generate 160 more ground-ball outs in a season. On the other hand, if those 200 extra balls in play were fly balls that didn't leave the park, that could work out even better, since fly balls drop for hits far less often then ground balls do. All of which is to say, the direct effects could be minimal.

The Indians still have ways to better leverage the tendencies of their pitching staff, though. They could start Hannahan at third base instead of Chisenhall every time Lowe toes the rubber, maximizing their infield defense. Conversely, if and when the fly-ball-heavy Josh Tomlin starts, they can play their best defensive outfielders and go for an offense-first alignment in the infield. Who the Indians play in that outfield, as well as at first base, remains a mystery at this early date. Assuming he's recovered from last year's injuries, Shin-Soo Choo should be the starting right fielder. Michael Brantley could start in center if Grady Sizemore returns, though the Indians could also go after someone better. Meanwhile, left field and first base figure to be wide open, depending on how the Tribe deploy Carlos Santana and if they think Ezequiel Carrera and Shelley Duncan have any lasting value. If the Indians wanted to go to extremes, they could chase a (pre-2011) Adam Dunn type to play left, trading defense for offense when their four ground-ball starters take the mound, then subbing in a better defender when Tomlin pitches.

The next step could be to stock the bullpen with ground-ball artists, especially if they, too, come cheap. Shawn Camp tossed 66 innings with a respectable 3.91 FIP last year and a 53.5 percent GB rate (55 percent career), and could make less than the already affordable $2.3 million he pulled in for 2011. Potentially more expensive but also more enticing options could include submariners Brad Ziegler (3.38 FIP, 62.4 percent GB rate for his career, 2.55 and a sky-high 68.6 percent in 2011) and Kameron Loe (2.80 FIP, 63.3 percent GB rate in 2011, his career year).

How far the Indians take their ground-ball strategy remains an open question with Hot Stove season just getting started. Like every other team, the Indians' goal is to acquire good pitching first and foremost. But with their likely-to-be-limited payroll, loading up on ground-ballers could be a market inefficiency worth exploring to the fullest.

As for Lowe, Cleveland will pay just $5 million of the veteran right-hander's $15 million walk-year salary in 2012. That 5.05 ERA he posted last year could be misleading, too. Lowe stranded just 65.9 percent of his baserunners in 2011, a figure that can be exacerbated by shaky bullpen support and random statistical variation. Ditto for his .327 batting average allowed on balls in play, the second-highest mark of his career and a number that may well regress to better results in 2012. His walks were up, but Lowe also flashed his second-best strikeout rate in a decade, while doing his usual commendable job of keeping the ball in the park. Indians staff believe that even at age 38 adjustments can be made, with Lowe changing his pitch distribution and sequencing, and correcting a tweak in his delivery that helped yield some ugly results late last season. With his sinker remaining one of the game's heaviest, the Indians are optimistic they've found a pitcher who won't show his age.

"We didn't acquire Derek Lowe with the specific goal of adding another ground-ball pitcher to our staff," said general manager Chris Antonetti. "While we like that attribute about him, the primary driver was our belief that we had an opportunity to acquire a very durable starter4 that seemingly had a down year qualitatively. We think Derek will perform better in 2012 than he did in 2011."

If Antonetti's prediction pans out and their worm-burning staff excels, we'll say the same about the Indians. You've been warned, AL Central.

Jonah Keri's new book, The Extra 2%: How Wall Street Strategies Took a Major League Baseball Team from Worst to First, is a national best-seller. Follow him on Twitter at @JonahKeri.

I think I prefer ground ball pitchers, but here is an interesting read with opposing points of view. I'm pasting the beginning, with a link to the full article, graphs and all:


Why Fly-Ball Pitchers May Be Better Bets Than Ground-Ball Pitchers

By Eriq Gardner //

One of the fundamentals in evaluating starting pitching is to focus on three key areas where pitchers hold a measure of control over their statistical production:

The ability to retire batters via strikeouts

The ability to limit base-runners by avoiding the issuance of walks

The ability to limit home runs by keeping the ball on the ground

Pitchers who do a good job at these three things are commonly assumed to be very skilled. Pitchers who do these things well but don’t have a superb ERA to match are seen as unlucky.
Makes sense. However, we’re not quite certain that ground-ball pitchers are better fantasy baseball assets than fly-ball pitchers. Perhaps slightly more valuable, yes, but not as profitable. Confused? Read on…
We examined statistics from starting pitchers between 2006 and 2010 to get an idea what kind of production we could expect from starters who were elite at keeping the ball on the ground versus starters who were terrible at keeping the ball on the ground. We put the pitchers into four quartiles:

Pitchers with elite ground-ball skills (above 47 GB%) including stars like Felix Hernandez and Chris Carpenter and lesser ones like Paul Maholm and Aaron Cook.

Pitchers with above-average ground-ball skills (about 44.5%-47%) including stars like Tim Lincecum and CC Sabathia and lesser ones like Joe Saunders and Jeff Suppan.

Pitchers with below-average ground-ball skills (about 40.5%-44.5%) including stars like Jake Peavy and Cole Hamels and lesser ones like Kevin Millwood and Kyle Lohse

Pitchers with terrible ground-ball skills (below 40.5%) including stars like Jered Weaver and Matt Cain and lesser ones like Jarrod Washburn and Oliver Perez.


Now, let’s look at each of the categories.

First up, here’s a look at ERA for each of these groups. You’ll notice that the ground-ball “elite” have a superior advantage over the rest of the field. It’s easy to understand why. Pitchers who don’t give up a lot of fly balls save themselves from the trouble of allowing many home runs, which tends to very unhealthy to a pitcher’s ERA.
However, also notice that pitchers with “terrible” ground-ball rates perform better in ERA than pitchers with “below-average” and nearly as well as “above-average” ground-ball rates.


http://bloombergsports.mlblogs.com/2011 ... -pitchers/

And of course the defensive quality of the infielders is a stat that deserves to be figured in determining the effectiveness of fly ball versus ground ball pitchers.

Sandy Alomar Jr. to interview with Red Sox today, Cubs on Friday
Published: Wednesday, November 09, 2011, 8:12 AM Updated: Wednesday, November 09, 2011, 8:15 AM
By Paul Hoynes, The Plain Dealer

A busy week for Indians bench coach Sandy Alomar Jr. just got busier.
Alomar will interview with the Red Sox today and the Cubs on Friday for managerial openings on each team.
Theo Epstein, the Cubs' new president of baseball operations, fired manager Mike Quade shortly after taking the job Oct. 21. Terry Francona resigned from the Red Sox following their historic September collapse. The Associated Press reported Tuesday that Francona interviewed with the Cardinals for the St. Louis manager's job.

Alomar just finished his second year on manager Manny Acta's coaching staff. He was promoted from first-base coach to bench coach on the last day of the regular season.
The Red Sox, under new GM Ben Cherington, have interviewed Phillies bench coach Pete Mackanin and Milwaukee hitting coach Dale Sveum. Boston will interview Toronto first-base coach Torey Lovullo on Friday and Detroit bench coach Gene Lamont on Saturday.

Lovullo managed eight years in the Indians' system before leaving in 2009.

Mike Maddux, pitching coach for Texas, was scheduled to interview Tuesday with Boston, but withdrew for family reasons. Maddux is scheduled to interview with the Cubs today.

The Cubs have also interviewed Mackanin and Sveum. Boston's list of candidates is similar to the Cubs' because Cherington and Epstein put it together before Epstein left the Red Sox to join the Cubs.

Alomar has never managed at any level, but the same could be said before current managers Robin Ventura (White Sox), Joe Girardi (Yankees), John Farrell (Blue Jays), Kirk Gibson (Diamondbacks), Don Mattingly (Dodgers), Ozzie Guillen (Marlins) and Bud Black (Padres) were hired. Alomar was a six-time All-Star as a catcher for the Indians and was a finalist for the Toronto job last year.

So far, Alomar is the only minority candidate scheduled to interview in Boston and Chicago. Teams are required to interview minority candidates.

Take a look: Indians scouts watched Cuban defector, center fielder Yoenis Cespedes, work out Friday in the Dominican Republic. They will watch him again later this week. He's expected to be declared a free agent in the near future. . . . It has been reported the Indians have signed catcher Hector Lunar, a 17-year-old free agent from Venezuela. The Indians are still checking Lunar's age and identity.

“You’ll be a hard act to follow, a bitter pill to swallow, you’ll be tough to replace”
By Anthony Castrovince/MLB.com

There was no great outcry of emotion or objection when the Indians cut the cord with Grady Sizemore last week.

What was once deemed in the industry to be the most team-friendly contract in the sport was cut a year short when the Indians opted not to exercise their $9 million option on Sizemore. That decision was met, predictably, with a shrug, soon washed over by the collective discourse over the Browns’ latest loss and the preparation for their next one.

Once the face of a franchise, Sizemore became an injured afterthought. A would-be weapon in the stash, perhaps, if he could ever stay on the field long enough to make a sustained impact, but few realistically planned on that plot.

Heck, even the online message board where the smitten women known as Grady’s Ladies once discussed his dimples and fawned over his physique had become overrun with spam ads — the Internet’s answer to urban blight.

It was a shame, too, because there was a time, not long ago, when Sizemore represented endless possibility for the Indians. He was the final and, it seemed, most meaningful piece of the Bartolo Colon prospect haul. A 30-30 guy and perennial Gold Glover, with marketable looks, to boot.

His coming-out party had come just three days after his first callup, in 2004. In the ninth inning of a Saturday nightcap of a doubleheader with the Royals, Grady came to the plate as a pinch-hitter in the ninth and lined the game-winning single into center.

“It was an exciting time for me,” he said after that big hit, and he said this with all the enthusiasm you might muster when you get tube socks for Christmas.

That was — is — Grady, though. The man was baseball’s most boring interview off the field, yet one of its brightest lights on it. And it was, for those of us who trekked the country to track the Tribe, a true pleasure to watch him play at his peak. An exciting time, indeed.

Sizemore’s still in what are considered to be his prime years, and there is the very real possibility that the team that signs him (don’t count on it being the Indians) will get a steal of a deal. But so clouded has that possibility become, in the wake of yet another knee surgery and the admirably reckless disregard for his personal health with which Sizemore plays, that a thin-walleted team such as the Tribe can’t afford to throw big bucks at that particular wheel of chance. Barring a shock in which the Indians are the highest bidder, Grady will be somebody else’s project, somebody else’s if-come.

But what of that great, gaping hole in the Indians’ outfield?

That’s where the mystery lies, and that’s the topic gaining traction on the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.

The Indians’ primary outfield options, at present, are Shin-Soo Choo, a five-tool talent coming off a one-star season, and Michael Brantley, a bud who still has yet to bloom. In a season smeared by a DUI arrest, broken thumb and, finally, injured oblique, Choo regressed from a .300 average/.400 on-base percentage star-in-the-making to a .259-hitting question mark, just as his arbitration price tag is rising. Brantley, meanwhile, has not shown anywhere near the on-base ability in the big leagues that he did in the Minors, and he’s coming off surgery to repair a broken hamate bone in his hand. Both have big upside, if healthy, and the Indians are going to need every bit of that upside in this outfield.

Beyond that pair, the Indians have Shelley Duncan, a terrific teammate who was a valuable contributor down the stretch in 2011. But at present, they seem likely to relegate him to some sort of left field/first base/backup DH concoction, especially with Travis Hafner disabled list stints now in the realm of annual tradition. And lastly, they have Ezequiel Carrera, your typical light-hitting speed-and-defense type, with the important caveat that he made some puzzling defensive gaffes last season. He’s not an everyday player. Not yet, anyway.

This is what the Indians have in the wake of the Sizemore era, and it’s probably not nearly enough power and run-production for a team that had the fifth-lowest slugging percentage in the league — and the third-lowest among AL outfields — last season.

If only they had another Sizemore looming in the Columbus cupboard with a bold bat, fresh legs and stale quotes. If only.

What the Indians have, instead, is an almost barren Triple-A outfield. Trevor Crowe, a former No. 1 pick, was banished back there after missing almost the entire season following shoulder surgery. Nick Weglarz was once this organization’s great red-headed hope, ever since he hammered second-deck blasts at a pro workout at Progressive Field before the 2005 Draft. But he’s spent the better part of the past two seasons on the shelf. The only other appealing possibility in the upper levels of the farm is Thomas Neal, acquired when Orlando Cabrera was sent to the Giants this summer, but his numbers from Double-A upward leave quite a bit to be desired.

So the struggle to stock the system has caught up with the Indians, and they’ll have to search outside.

No easy task. It’s dark out there. And $5 million of the money saved on Sizemore has already been allocated to Derek Lowe.

Every indication is that the Indians don’t envision Brantley as a regular center fielder, perhaps not trusting his arm or instincts. Sizemore, of course, never had much of an arm, either, even in those dazzling days before his knees gave out. So perhaps the Indians could deem Brantley’s D to be livable, if it comes down to it. For now, though, their plan appears to be Brantley in left and a player to be named in center.

Trying to fill either position in free agency is a challenge. The last time the Indians went outside the system to fill an everyday outfield spot, it was a bum-backed Trot Nixon. Before that, it was a two-headed monster known, unaffectionately in these parts, as “Dellichaels” — David Dellucci and Jason Michaels.

Remember that the Dellichaels platoon was brought in to replace Coco Crisp when he was shipped to Boston. And now Crisp is viewed as the top center fielder on the open market (which says a lot about the market). This was the first year Crisp managed to stay healthy since ’07, but he had a .314 OBP. Endy Chavez and Cody Ross are also both available, but Chavez hasn’t played regularly since 2008 and Ross hasn’t played center a great deal.

The Tribe’s best option, clearly, is to look for a trade or wait for the non-tender situations to settle. If defense is the primary concern, the Rays’ B.J. Upton was a rumored target of the Tribe over the summer, but he’s going to make $7.6 million this year.

Two options that might make a lot of sense for the Indians are Andres Torres and Angel Pagan. Both regressed in 2011 after a strong 2010. With their arbitration costs rising, Torres and Pagan could be released by the Giants (who just acquired Melky Cabrera) and Mets, respectively. If so, the Indians ought to investigate.

Another option is trying to lure back Kosuke Fukudome, who was a nice piece post-Trade Deadline. But right field is his natural spot, and he’ll likely be looking for a multi-year deal.

If the Indians decide to stick Brantley in center, their options for left field aren’t much better. There is power available in Josh Willingham and Ryan Ludwick. The downside is that Willingham is in line for a multi-year deal as the top option on the market, and Ludwick, another Tribe target in July, had a drastic decline in slugging percentage the last three seasons, from .591 in ’08 all the way down to .363 in ‘11.

One possibility, however slight, could be Delmon Young, as the Tigers might seek to address their leadoff needs with a left fielder and cut him loose, despite his impressive output for them down the stretch. It’s doubtful they’d deal him in the division, though.

When you run through the gamut of possibilities, you see why the Sizemore decision was a tough and tricky one for this team. When you look at their system, you see why the Indians are taking a hard look at Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes, even if their chances of outbidding everybody for what has become a hot commodity seem slim.

The Sizemore era is over, and it ended with a whimper. But the hardest part is not saying goodbye to Grady.

The hardest part is replacing him.

~AC

We had Hector Luna. Now we might add Hector Luner. Same name if you lve in Boston.

civ ollilavad wrote:We had Hector Luna. Now we might add Hector Luner. Same name if you lve in Boston.

Good one Civ!

Cleveland Indians reviewing options as winter meetings approach: Paul Hoynes analysis
Published: Saturday, November 12, 2011, 7:29 PM Updated: Saturday, November 12, 2011, 7:29 PM

By Paul Hoynes, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- MLB's general managers and owners meetings begin Monday in Milwaukee. There will be much talk about negotiations on a new basic agreement which is expected to be done before the Dec. 11 deadline.

The sale of the Houston Astros is still waiting for approval by the owners, while a new owner must be found for the Dodgers now that the tumultuous Frank McCourt era has seemingly ended. There are two free agent first basemen who will be the subject of much attention. Within the next two or three months Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder will go from being extremely rich to mega rich.

Then come the Indians, who already started the postseason by trading for veteran right-hander Derek Lowe from Atlanta to settle the starting rotation. GM Chris Antonetti will use his remaining resources, be it cash or players, to acquire offense.

"We're looking to improve the position player side of the roster," said Antonetti.

The Indians finished the 2011 season ninth in the American League in runs at 704, ninth in batting average at .250, tied for ninth in homers at 154, 10th in hits at 1,380 and 10th in slugging percentage at .396. Yes, that's a trend and, yes, there are still 14 teams in the AL.

Surveying the lineup, the only Indians player who could have started for St. Louis or Texas in the World Series was shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera. He led AL shortstops in RBI, doubles and was tied for first in hits. Cabrera ranked second in homers. Thus Antonetti's concern.

The Indians finished second in the AL Central this year with 80 wins. It was an 11-win improvement from 2010. It's been four years since the Indians last took the division. In that time, it has taken an average of 91 victories to win the Central. The Indians need another 11-game improvement to get there, which is quite a leap, but not as big as Arizona (+29), Milwaukee (+19), Pittsburgh (+15) and Detroit (+14) made this past season.

By not exercising Grady Sizemore's $9 million club option, Antonetti was given some money to work with. He spent $5 million on Lowe. The remaining $4 million isn't going to go a long way on the free-agent market, which means Antonetti is going to have to make another trade if ownership doesn't slip him additional funds.

The payroll will jump from $49 million to close to $70 million for 2012. A big part of the increase will go to Chris Perez, Rafael Perez, Joe Smith, Cabrera, Justin Masterson, Jack Hannahan and Shin-Soo Choo. Tony Sipp didn't qualify as a Super Two player.

Chris Antonetti knows the biggest need for the Indians this winter: Some bats -- preferably right-handed -- for the middle of the lineup.

Antonetti and manager Manny Acta are looking for more production from the corner spots -- first and third base, left and right field. They need an outfielder to replace Sizemore and a first baseman, because it sounds as if incumbent Matt LaPorta is going to have a tough time keeping his job.

The Indians have flexibility at first because catcher Carlos Santana can play there. They have the same thing in the outfield because Michael Brantley can play left and center field. From an offensive point of view, Brantley is a better fit in center. He hit just .266 (120-for-451) with seven homers and 46 RBI. They can probably handle third with some combination of Lonnie Chisenhall and Hannahan.

Here is a look at the free-agent market concentrating on the Indians' needs.

First base

Albert Pujols, St. Louis. 2011 salary: $14.5 million.
Skinny: He would solve all the Indians problems: right-handed hitter, good defender and base-runner. But at $25 million a year (or whatever he's going to get) it's not happening.
What are the chances? If Pujols played for the Indians in 2011 at his estimated 2012 salary, their payroll would have been only $75 million, at least $25 million short of Detroit, Chicago and Minnesota.

Prince Fielder, Milwaukee. 2011 salary: $15.5 million.
Skinny: Not as perfect a fit as Pujols because he hits left-handed, but the Indians would make due.
What are the chances? Not happening.

Michael Cuddyer, Twins. 2011 salary: $10.5 million.
Skinny: Another great fit. Right-handed hitter who can play first, second and the outfield.
What are the chances? Indians could go multi-year with Cuddyer, but not at over $10 million a year.

Carlos Pena, Cubs. 2011 salary: $10 million.
Skinny: Doesn't hit for average, but has big power. Coming off one-year deal with the Cubs.
What are the chances? Would Pena, 34, take less if the Indians gave him a multiyear deal?

Casey Kotchman, Rays. 2011 salary: $775,000.
Skinny: He hit .306 in 563 at-bats for the Rays. Good on-base and slugging percentage.
What are the chances? Doesn't look like much of an upgrade over Matt LaPorta, who had more homers and RBI in 211 fewer at-bats.

Derrek Lee, Pirates. 2011 salary: $7.25 million.
Skinny: He's a right-handed hit who still has pop at 36. Injuries are a concern.
What are the chances? If he's sound, might be worth a look. Broke his wrist with the Pirates late last season.

Outfielders

Carlos Beltran, Giants. 2011 salary: $19.3 million.
Skinny: Dangerous hitter, who is mostly a right fielder at this point in his career. Turned down proposed trade to Cleveland last season.
What are the chances? Zilch.

Yoenis Cespedes, Cuban defector.
Skinny: Indians watched him in a workout late last week and were impressed with combination of power, speed, strength and athletic ability. Probably won't be declared a free agent for another two months.
What are the chances? Rumors say Cespedes, a center fielder in Cuba, could sign a $30 million deal. Enough said.

Nori Aoki, Yakult Swallows.
Skinny: Swallows making three-time Central League batting champ available through posting process. Aoki, 29, is a left-handed hitting center fielder.
What are the chances? The Indians know Aoki because they have a working agreement with the Swallows, but posting price plus salary would be too high.

Grady Sizemore, Indians. 2011 salary: $7.4 million.
Skinny: Indians said they'd consider re-signing Sizemore for a smaller contract.
What are the chances? Unless no one else is interested, Sizemore is gone.

Jason Kubel, Twins. 2011 salary: $5.25 million.
Skinny: A foot injury limited Kubel last season, but he has power and run-producing ability. Played mostly right field and DH for Twins.
What are the chances? Worth a look. Sounds like he wants to stay with the Twins, but can they keep Cuddyer and him?

Josh Willingham, A's. 2011 salary: $6 million.
Skinny: Seeking multiyear deal. Doesn't sound as if he'll return to Oakland.
What are the chances? Indians would probably have to overpay to get him, but he'd look good in right field. Struggles against lefties.

Kosuke Fukudome, Indians. 2011 salary: $14.5 million.
Skinny: He played hard and well for Tribe after they acquired him from the Cubs. He just didn't hit a whole lot.
What are the chances? Indians like him, but they need more production.

Coco Crisp, Athletics. 2011 salary: $5.75 million.
Skinny: Crisp, healthy for the first time in four year, turned in a decent year for Oakland. Led the AL with 49 steals.
What are chances? Indians wouldn't have much punch with Crisp in center and Brantley in left.

Cody Ross, Giants. 2011 salary: $6.3 million.
Skinny: He can play all three outfield spots, bats right-handed and has decent power. What are the chances? Melky Cabrera trade probably means Ross isn't going to return to Giants.

On Twitter: @hoynsie

Looking for Lumber

Written by Paul Cousineau

Now that the dust has settled on the North Coast after the option decisions and the acquisition of Derek Lowe, the focus has turned to what the Indians are going to do to add position players and, specifically, how the Indians are going to “replace” Grady Sizemore (and I’m still of the belief that Grady will start going SuperSizemore again in 2012, you know…because I’m a Clevelander) in the OF and how the Indians are going to shore up their hole at 1B. This being the off-season, flush with rankings of FA and with reports linking every FA to nearly every team, much of the focus to date has inexplicably been on that FA market with Paul Hoynes even devoting a whole column to the FA market for OF and 1B (in which he writes that Josh Willingham would “look good in right field”, apparently forgetting about the Indians RF, who was an elite player in the three years prior to 2011...you know, The BLC), while ignoring the fact that the Indians aren’t likely to add veterans (or anyone) of much significance via FA.

While that idea that marquee FA are unlikely to end up in Cleveland shouldn’t come as a surprise and only leads the “DOLANZ R CHEEP” crowd to cle.com en masse, let’s think about how teams like the Indians add value to their team while minimizing risk (contracts that last too long) and how the last couple of moves by the Indians have involved a particular type of acquisition. Those recent acquisitions involved adding a player who had signed a regrettable contract that was entering the last year of said contract, with their team looking to get out from the financial albatross that they strapped around their own neck.

Remember Fukudome last year?
Lest you forget, Kosuke Fukudome earned more than Hafner did in 2011 and was a disappointment in Chicago, largely because of the money paid to him and the expectations that accompanied that salary. With lower expectations (and a low price tag), he was a revelation of sorts in Cleveland, mainly because he represented an upgrade over the “Zeke and Shelley Show” and because those preconceptions about his monetary worth didn’t play a role in how he was perceived as it was on the North Side.

Now, I’m not saying the Indians should re-sign Fukudome as he’s now back out on the FA market and the Indians would have to overpay for his services, when they were able to basically take him off of the Cubs’ hands last year, for a nominal price. But the Fukudome deal is just one example…does the scenario sound familiar in terms of the Lowe addition with the Braves looking to move a player and willing to absorb money in the process?

If you’re talking about essentially signing Lowe to a one-year deal for $5M, it makes it pretty understandable, particularly when you consider that the detritus of the FA starting pitcher market is going to look for 2-year deals or incentive-laden deals while the Indians’ risk with Lowe is minimized to a 1-year, $5M deal while giving up a non-prospect. Truthfully, I know I’m not breaking any new ground here as there was a blurb in Terry Pluto’s Sunday column a couple of weeks ago along these lines that may have gotten overlooked (and I’m not talking about Pluto using the save “statistic” as a justification for C. Perez as the closer, which is like saying that Dave Huff’s 11 wins in 2009 were a “good sign”) as it was the final bullet point:
While the Indians will bid on some free agents, they have a much better chance of finding a hitter via a trade where they pick up part of the contract. The Tribe did that with Kosuke Fukudome last season when he was acquired from the Cubs, and are paying $5 million of Lowe’s $15 million salary in 2012.

Realizing that Pluto’s Sunday Notes column comes from conversations with the Indians every week, how does this revelation get buried as the last bullet point and why is there still so much focus on THIS FA class as Carlos Pena and Josh Willingham continue to get all of the attention, despite the fact that they’re unlikely to come to Cleveland?

If you think it was just a concept in passing that Pluto was passing along, realize that Pluto led with it again in his most recent Sunday piece(which, again, generally comes from the team) as he wrote:
The best way for the Indians to add an outfielder who can hit is through a trade. Yes, fans can demand that they spend a lot of money to sign a free agent such as Michael Cuddyer, but it’s not going to happen.

Of course, Pluto then went on to again look at the underwhelming FA market that is “not going to happen” in adding an OF as the names that everyone keeps saying (Willingham, Pena, Ludwick, Lee, Kotchman, etc.) are examined and revealed for what they are – flawed options that are going to cost too much in terms of money on the FA market and (this is important) that are probably going to command more than one-year deals when they aren’t really all that deserving of them. For a team like the Indians, whose financial flexibility is a key to their success as this new “core” of players matures and evolves, the prospect of giving Josh Willingham a 3-year deal is more than unsavory and, if you’re following along here, it’s pretty likely that these 3-year deals aren’t being given all that much thought at the corner of Carnegie and Ontario as perhaps a different strategy is at play.

So why are we still talking about the FA market if we’ve all seen this movie and know how it ends up?
Really, if nobody else is going to connect these dots, let’s pull out the ol’ pencil and start connecting here…

Which brings us all back to how this team is going to add bats if they’re unlikely to via FA. Truthfully, my astute friend Tyler e-mailed me this idea a few weeks back (prior to the Pluto articles) saying that perhaps the “answer” to where the Indians add bats to this team isn’t on the FA market or a “blockbuster” deal, but in players that would essentially be other teams’ salary dumps, as both Fukudome and Lowe were. As Tyler wrote me, “They’re expensive in upfront cash but low in long term risk. It’s either cash or bust in terms of talent acquisition. Given that ... it seems that payroll relief deals are the cheapest route available. Give us your perennially disappointing, your over-priced, your moderately wounded ...”

Maybe “cash or bust” isn’t the accepted Modus Operandi of this organization and “perennially disappointing”, etc. is not exactly inspiring, but he’s exactly right…

The names that the Indians are going to be targeting are the guys that maybe have one-year left on their existing deal (as Lowe did) or who underperformed their original contract (as Fukudome did) meaning that their current team may be looking to move their salary to jettison what they deem as flotsam and jetsam. Perhaps some of those guys are on the list of potential FA after the 2012 season, seen here, and the trade is the way to get them here.

Right off of the bat, I’ll ignore Carlos Lee and Bobby Abreu on the list due to their defensive…um, stylings and while the name that practically jumps off that list belongs to “BJ Upton”, as Anthony Castrovince wrote in a piece last week (that deserves a full read and I’ll wait right here until you finish…OK, done?), Upton is “going to make $7.6M this year” and he’s not going to come cheap in terms of prospects, even if he’s essentially a one-year rental. The Rays are looking to stockpile their cupboard with more prospects and the Indians having to give up prime prospects AND pay Upton $7.6M in arbitration (and don’t think that the Rays are throwing money in) for one year of playing doesn’t seem like the best use of resources.

Rather, what the Indians should be doing is targeting players like the ones that AC goes on to mention in the piece:
Two options that might make a lot of sense for the Indians are Andres Torres and Angel Pagan. Both regressed in 2011 after a strong 2010. With their arbitration costs rising, Torres and Pagan could be released by the Giants (who just acquired Melky Cabrera) and Mets, respectively. If so, the Indians ought to investigate.

Pagan is particularly interesting, because of his ability in the OF and his speed…plus the fact that the Mets were rumored to be discussing non-tendering him, meaning that he could perhaps be had for a pittance. For a player that posted a 3-year cumulative line of .294 BA / .344 OBP / .441 SLG / .785 OPS from 2008 to 2011, that may be a player that could fill a hole in the Indians’ OF.

Maybe a player like Pagan is underwhelming in terms of the desire to add a middle-of-the-order RH bat, but there are other players that would (and should) interest the Tribe. Perhaps those guys aren’t players you want on long-term deals or even on incentive-laden deals, but they’re productive enough that if a team is looking to jettison them or save some money, the Indians can pick up the remainder of their salary (or a portion of it) and get some production out of these players that would dwarf what could be legitimately expected of internal options without any future commitment to them past this year.

Just like they did with Fukudome and Lowe (and even DeRosa back before the 2009 season), perhaps could do with another player in the final year of his deal who may be available this off-season and could step into the Indians’ void in the OF and lineup and represent an upgrade over the internal options without tying up money for the next few years – Marlon Byrd.

Just for some background here, Byrd is scheduled to make $6.5M in 2012, the final year of the three-year contract he inked before the 2010 season. While his 2011 (.719 OPS) was his worst season since 2006, he accumulated a .294 BA / .350 OBP / .456 SLG / .807 OPS from 2007 to 2010, with some of that time spent in the AL as a Ranger. While it is true that Byrd is not a HR hitter (21 HR combined in the last two years), he’s averaged 30 2B over the last 5 years and could represent that player that could be had for lower prospects or whose current team may kick in money on his 2012 salary that the Indians have focused on recently.

Now is Marlon Byrd going to change the balance of power in the AL Central?
No, but I could assure you that he’d be an upgrade over Zeke Carrera or even Shelley Duncan as an everyday OF. Maybe that isn’t enough for those who still have visions of that “BIG RH BAT” in their heads, but Byrd is a RH hitter that can play CF who is going to hit more than Coco Crisp (who will probably get a multi-year deal this off-season because of the dearth of OF options on the FA market) or Juan Pierre. For some perspective here, if Juan Rivera is getting $4M from the Dodgers after posting an OPS of .701 last year and a .721 OPS in 2010 and THAT’s the going rate for a marginal OF on the FA market…um yeah, maybe the FA market isn’t the place to be.

Perhaps you would prefer BJ Upton to a Marlon Byrd if the Indians are going to make a move for that one-year rental (considering that Upton’s going to earn about $1.1M more than Byrd in 2012), but consider the following lines put up by each over the last three years:
BJ Upton: 2008-2011 – 1,876 PA
.240 BA / .322 OBP / .408 SLG / .730 OPS averaging 17 HR and 22 2B per season

Marlon Byrd: 2008-2011 – 1,711 PA
.285 BA / .334 OBP / .437 SLG / .771 OPS averaging 14 HR and 35 2B per season

Maybe a guy like Upton offers more “upside”, but if we’re talking about recent performance or what can be expected for one year only in 2012, a veteran hitter like Marlon Byrd would be the preference here. Additionally, the Rays feel that they have a valuable commodity in Upton that they’ll auction off to the highest bidder (in terms of prospects) while the Cubs likely feel that they’d like to give a young player a shot in the OF and would likely move Byrd for lesser prospects or would subsidize some of the remaining money on Byrd’s contract.

Admittedly, Byrd is a flawed player who actually hits RHP better than LHP despite being a RH hitter, but in case you don’t remember, the Cubs have a new power structure in place, and the new regime has no ties to Marlon Byrd. As Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer try to get out from under some contracts and start to re-make the Cubs in a manner that will help them compete in the long-term, maybe they look at a player like Cord Phelps and throw some money in with Byrd to net a player like Phelps, who could step into their 2012 starting lineup and fill an organizational hole while the Indians deal from a position of strength (middle infield depth) to fill a 2011 hole, even if it largely represents a short-term fix.

Perhaps you think that a longer-term fix is preferable to adding a player like Byrd (or someone else of his ilk, made available on the Trade Market) and I wouldn’t disagree with that. Of course, I still think that the Indians are going to add two position players this off-season via trade, one of the “long-term” variety and one from the “band-aid” category with the “long-term” answer still coming from wherever Pujols/Prince land and the dominoes that fall as a result.

Realizing that I’ve been harping on this for a while, it is worth noting that pretty much every national outlet is reporting that the Marlins are interested in Pujols and/or Fielder (though more likely Prince) and that they can upgrade pretty significantly, despite the fact that they have Gaby Sanchez as their current 1B. Of course, as the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Tom Haudricourt writes, “Even though the Marlins have a first baseman in Gaby Sanchez, he isn’t Prince Fielder. You could move him elsewhere or trade him or whatever.”

Yes…trade him. To Cleveland, for relievers. Maybe one in particular.
While I know I’ve floated this out there a couple of times, if the Indians could flip Chris Perez for Gaby Sanchez, it would represent a coup for the team in terms of moving Perez before he starts to get expensive in arbitration and finding a long-term solution at 1B. Though I’ve been told that this is pie-in-the-sky thinking and that teams don’t REALLY value closers this much, that there’s no way any team would move an under-club-control 1B for one, realize thatthe Blue Jays are telling folks that they have “sticker shock” at what FA closers are looking for and “may turn to the Trade Market instead”.

With SO many teams looking for closers or bullpen help (Red Sox, Mets, Angels, Rangers, Cubs, Giants, and…ahem, the Marlins) and in light of the fact that the Phillies just gave Jon Papelbon a FOUR YEAR DEAL worth $50M, this FA closer market is about to go bananas and the trade market for closers is going to look awfully attractive to a team that doesn’t want to tie up that much money and that many years in the closers out there on the FA market.

Ultimately, the Indians (still) need to find a couple of bats and FA probably isn’t how they’re going to add them as they can allow the Trade Market to come to them, whether that be teams looking to move veterans on the last year of their deals (like Byrd) or to take advantage of a “FA Closer Market Gone Wild” to sell high on Chris Perez to perhaps solve one of their positional holes. They have fungible pieces in the middle of their infield (and Asdrubal is not “fungible”…just trust me on that) and in their bullpen to find some trade partners to add bats.

Those bats may not come in the form of Mike Cuddyer or Derrick Lee or Carlos Pena (which means it doesn’t attract the attention of making that FA “splash”), but if recent history is any indicator, the Indians might be able to get creative on the trade market to add players like Marlon Byrd and Gaby Sanchez to their roster. If they are able to add players that upgrade their lineup significantly (and Byrd and Sanchez are both significant upgrades) and do so without locking themselves into overpaying players on the FA market, they could set themselves up for a nice run at the 2012 season and even beyond.

Other links available at the source:

http://www.theclevelandfan.com/clevelan ... for-lumber

It will be a working winter for Ubaldo Jimenez: GM/Owners meeting chatter
Published: Wednesday, November 16, 2011, 3:01 PM Updated: Wednesday, November 16, 2011, 4:36 PM
By Paul Hoynes, The Plain Dealer


MILWAUKEE, Wis. -- News and rumors from MLB's GM/owners meetings at the Pfister Hotel.
It's not an accident that the Indians assigned a strength coach spend the winter in the Dominican Republic this winter to work with Ubaldo Jimenez, Carlos Santana, Fausto Carmona and other players in the organization.

Jimenez, acquired in the big July deadline deal with the Rockies for pitching prospects Drew Pomeranz and Alex White, took a vacation to Spain last offseason in the middle of his throwing program. After reporting to spring training, his suffered a hip injury that turned his season upside down.

A baseball person from outside the Indians organization put it bluntly when he said, "He needs to work
this winter."

Still no word on whether Jimenez will pitch winter ball.

Recognized: Manny Acta finished fourth in the AL Manager of the Year voting Wednesday by the Baseball Writers Association of America. Tampa Bay's Joe Maddon won the award followed by Detroit's Jim Leyland and Ron Washington of Texas.

Acta received three second place votes and seven third place votes. Two members of the BBWAA from each AL city voted on the award. Acta led the Indians to a second-place finish and an 11-game improvement in the AL Central this year.

The Indians improved from 69 victories in 2010 to 80 in 2012.

Plan B: If the Brewers can't retain Prince Fielder, they will consider Matt Gamel at first base.

Merry Marlins: The Florida Marlins, headed into a new ballpark, have been active this winter. They've held negotiations with prime free agents Mark Buehrle, Albert Pujols and Jose Reyes.
It's clear their $57 million payroll from last season is on the rise.

"With the payroll increasing, I think it's our job to open up all the doors that make sense and try do
whatever we can to make the team better," said GM Larry Beinfest. "We're looking for good players, period."

The Marlins have a new manager in Ozzie Guillen. They'll be playing in a new ballpark with new uniforms and what could be a revamped roster.

"I know this thing kind of came out of left field for a lot of people that we've reportedly been so aggressive early," said Beinfest. "But we want to be aggressive and improve."

Patience: Matt LaPorta, whose inconsistency with the bat has put his future in doubt with the Indians, is represented by agent Scott Boras.

"Power in the big leagues is the last tool to come," said Boras. "That's Matt's forte. If you look at a lot of young power hitters, you have to give them a significant number of at bats to know what direction that's going to go. I think that's the plan the Indians have for him."

LaPorta hit .247 (87-for-352) with 23 doubles, one triple and 11 homers in 107 games last season. Since the Indians acquired him from Milwaukee in the CC Sabathia trade, LaPorta is hitting .238 (216-for-909) with 51 doubles, 30 homers and 115 RBI.

At the end of the season, LaPorta was told by manager Manny Acta and GM Chris Antonetti that he would have to come to spring training and win the first base job.

Open door policy: The Phillies declined the options on starter Roy Oswalt and reliever Brad Lidge for 2012. GM Ruben Amaro says the door is still open on them returning, but isn't going to make any predictions.

"Lidge might still get an opportunity to close somewhere. I hope he does," said Amaro. "We haven't closed the door on him."

As for Oswalt, Amaro said, "We haven't shut the door. I just don't know if he is going to be able to fit into what we're going to do. We don't have unlimited funds. Our next big issue is to try to deal with the shortstop situation."

Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins is a free agent.

Come one, come all: The Phillies, along with just about every other team, are in the Dominican Republic looking at Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes.

The Indians saw him last week and were impressed.

Two questions. How close is Cespedes to the big leagues? Can he hit big league pitching.

"We've had people watch him," said Amaro. "He's definitely an interesting athlete."

As to whether he'd need time in the minors, Amaro said, "We're having people assess that right now."

Concerning Cespedes' ability to hit big league pitching, Amaro said, "It's very hard to evaluate. That's why we're doing a private workout."

What gives? New GM Terry Ryan told Twins reporters that his team will enter he 2012 season with an estimated $100 million payroll. What's unknown is if that will include
free-agent outfielders Michael Cuddyer and Jason Kubel.

New role: GM Kenny Williams said reliever Chris Sale is scheduled to join the White Sox's starting rotation in 2012.

New arrivals: Tribe President Mark Shapiro arrived at the meetings Wednesday. Owner Larry Doland and son Paul are scheduled to check in as well. The owners portion of the meetings start today.

Indians aim to re-sign Grady SizemoreEmailPrintComments8ESPN.com news services
The Cleveland Indians and outfielder Grady Sizemore are on the verge of agreeing on a one-year deal, sources told ESPN.com's Buster Olney.

The Indians declined a $9 million option and allowed Sizemore to become a free agent less than three weeks ago.

Sizemore, 29, has generated interest from at least eight teams and appeared ready to let the market play out over the coming weeks. But the Indians moved to the front of the line Friday.


Sizemore

"The Indians came at us with an aggressive offer,'' agent Joe Urbon told ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick. "Grady has always maintained that he would be interested in returning to Cleveland.''

Sizemore, who began his career with Montreal in 2000, came to Cleveland with Cliff Lee and Brandon Phillips in 2004 as part of a six-player trade that sent Bartolo Colon to the Expos. He emerged as a star at age 22 and made three straight All-Star teams from 2006 through 2008, but in recent years he's had trouble staying on the field because of injuries.

Sizemore hit .224 with 10 homers in 71 games this year, and the Indians recently declined his 2012 option and paid him a $500,000 buyout.

Since becoming a free agent, Sizemore has generated interest from the Philadelphia Phillies, Colorado Rockies, Boston Red Sox, Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants and New York Yankees -- teams that viewed him as an intriguing bounce-back candidate on a one-year deal. Those clubs either called Urbon to express interest in Sizemore or asked to check out his medical records as a prelude to contract talks.