Tribe signs C Roberto Perez to four-year deal

Indians signed C Roberto Perez to a four-year contract extension with club options for 2021 and 2022.
He'll receive $9 million guaranteed and just over $21 million if both options are exercised. Perez has batted an underwhelming .220/.318/.355 in the majors to this point, but he draws rave reviews for his defensive work. The Indians now have their top two catchers under team control for a while.

Apr 2 - 1:43 PM

What a difference from a few years ago. Two quality pitcher friendly catchers. Although their bats are questionable at best, the defensive and pitcher handling ability doesn't make anyone want to go back to the days of Carlos Santana behind the dish.

Only 5 votes on the poll: How many games will the Indians win in 2017?

GET YOUR VOTE IN!

Surprised the Indians release Tim Cooney, LHP picked up over the winter from Cardinals. He was NO. 2 prospect on the Cards list before last season, missed the whole year with injury. Rated No. 17 for Indians this year, injured still in spring training, he could have gone on the 60-day DL.

Looking at the list of farm system managers and coaches in the minors. Find a number of ex-Tribesman still in the baseball business, not sometimes well up into their 50s.

AAA Manager: Glenallen Hill, he's 52.
AA: Manager: Mark Budinzski, he's in Akron, got about that far in the Tribe farm system
Ryan Garko
Joe Mikulik, played in our minors and then on the "replacement Indians" during a spring training strike
Low A Managers: Pat Osborn, 3B couldn't hit a lick, working for the Yankees now; Wyatt Toregas, did he get a few major league games in?, with the Pirates system
Short Season A: Jared Head, minor league lifer who the Indians promoted one September if I am correct
Rookie Ball: Omar Ramirez, OF, might have got as far as Akron, with the Royals now

Some hitting coaches, most of whom couldn't hit when they were players
Rouglas Odor and Justin Toole working for the Indians
Lou Marson is at AAA for the Angels, Eddie Taubensee with the Giants in Low A

Pitching coaches, most of these guys were in the majors many decades ago. I guess pitching coaches have longer careers. Hope they earn enough to support their families.
Rod Nichols, age 52, AAA with the Cubs
Dave Burba, AA for the Rockies
Doug Jones, Rookie league for the Rockies Age 59
Steve Kline, AA, Giants
Don Schulze, AA, A's, age 54.
Mel Harder, Royals, Class A, age 107. Just kidding on that one. [wild guess and I got his age right]

On this date in 1996 - Albert Belle shows off his arm by hitting Sports Illustrated photographer Tony Tomsic in the hand prior to a game between the Indians and Blue Jays at Jacobs Field. The angry Indians outfielder had told the photographer to stop taking pictures of him doing pre-game stretches and Tomsic complied. Belle then throws a ball from the outfield that breaks the skin of the photographer's hand in two places and draws blood. Prior to the season, Belle had been fined $50,000, the largest single-player fine in major league history, for his tirade against a television reporter prior to Game Three of the 1995 World Series.

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports that the Indians talked to Michael Brantley about possibly moving to first base before they signed Edwin Encarnacion.

Heyman writes that Brantley "made it clear he’d much prefer to stay in the outfield." It's an interesting note and something that could conceivably be revisited should Carlos Santana walk as a free agent next winter.

Brantley is a solid defensive outfielder, but a move to first base would seemingly give his shoulder a better chance to hold up.

Mark says - I understand them wanting to know what their options were at the time, but his bad shoulder is not his throwing shoulder so I'm not so sure that was the reason it was discussed.

Indians have approached Santana about an extension

Inside Baseball — AL: Indians next extension target

By Jon Heyman Posted on Apr 6, 2017

...

Cleveland Indians

Word is, the Indians quietly will try to extend Carlos Santana, who is a year away from free agency, at some point. Kendrys Morales ($33 million, three years) and Mark Trumbo $37.5 million, three years) could be reasonable comps. And although not every hitter did that well this past winter, Santana has the advantage of versatility; he can bat 1st or 4th, is a switch hitter and can play multiple positions (though hitting is obviously the specialty). The Indians ran up their payroll beyond normal this winter following the World Series, but they do love Santana.

They will also try to keep excellent reliever Bryan Shaw.

The Indians talked to Michael Brantley about whether he’d consider a move to first base this winter, well before they signed Edwin Encarnacion. And while Brantley is a team guy he made it clear he’d much prefer to stay in the outfield. Indians people say the offer wasn’t necessarily made to preserve Brantley’s reconstructed shoulder but was more related to winter flexibility, though in the end there were many more good first basemen available than outfielders.

Give Brantley credit for making the opening bell. So I should admit he beat my expectation, as he did last year when he made Opening Day (but played only 11 in total). And good for him. He is also hitting up a storm in the first couple games. But while they say he’s had “no setbacks,” it’s clear there remains considerable concern. He obviously had a very significant shoulder injury, and two surgeries, and someone around the team detected that for the first time he looked just a tad tentative going after a ball that was hit to the wall, considering his career history of playing with reckless abandon. Indians people meanwhile say they felt “panicked” even seeing him bracing himself against the wall with his outstretched hands.

For my money, Terry Francona’s the best manager in the game. He’s kind of a managing savant.

Cody Allen might be the most under-rated closer, or even player, in the game. As one scout says, “He’s really good for someone who never throws the ball over the plate.”

Yandy Diaz, the Cuban defector who won third base by hitting .458 this spring, is a nice story. He signed for $300K in 2013 and had a big year in the minors last year.

Roberto Perez was to make $52,500 but instead gets $9 million for four years; he gets $550K this year, $1.5M in ’15. $2.5M in ’19 and $3.5M in ’20. There’s a team option for $5.5M in ’21 with a $450K buyout, and for $7M in ’22, also with a $450K buyout. The base in ’20 can increase by a maximum of $3M based on some rather lofty escalator incentives. He gets a $2M bump for MVP, $1M for end to 5th in MVP, $500K for 6th to 10th, $250K for a Silver Slugger and $250K for a Gold Glove. He has similar but not exact escalators for ’21 and ’22. Good to have confidence in oneself. (Actually, the Indians have this clause for several players.)

This team looks real good, and may need to find another party planner, with celebrations to come and Napoli gone.

https://www.fanragsports.com/mlb/inside ... on-target/

This team looks real good, and may need to find another party planner, with celebrations to come and Napoli gone.

It that's the only piece that's lacking, I feel pretty good.

the Indians quietly will try to extend Carlos Santana, who is a year away from free agency, at some point. Kendrys Morales ($33 million, three years) and Mark Trumbo $37.5 million, three years) could be reasonable comps

Wonder what a quiet $35,000,000 deal looks like? how does it compare to a noisy contract extension?

as for long-term 1b and dh, those could be Yandy Diaz jobs. Although if he's got the right approach for it, Tito could easily get Diaz 500 at bats floating from 1st to 3rd to left to right to DH. No one is better at getting everyone on the team ample at bats.

Never worry about positions. If you hit, you play.

Chisenhall playing for the Clippers in Louisville tonight.

Take your time, Chiz. Really.

Kipnis is scheduled to begin rehab assignments too. He is going to DH for Akron Sunday. Play 2nd for Akron Monday. Get Tuesday off. Then play Wednesday at a spot TBD.