He is a solid defender, a reliable RBI man, solid OPS, no signs of career decline. 3 years doesn't take him beyond his late-mid-career.

Gotta find a way to deal for Abreu! Looks like the only chance we have of reaching the playoffs. Too bad we couldn't deal for Ozuna. Ozuna was my number 1 on my Christmas wish list. Now it's Abreu. Hosmer will do now.

Jason Kipnis - 2B - Indians

Matt Ehalt of The Record reports that "there is nothing currently brewing" in regards to the Mets and trade talks for Jason Kipnis.

Chris Cotillo of SB Nation reported Thursday that there was "traction" between the Mets and Indians on a trade involving Kipnis, but Ehalt is evidently hearing otherwise.

The Mets are looking for a second baseman and Kipnis would be a buy-low candidate after he hit only .232/.291/.414 during an injury-shortened 2017.

joez wrote:Gotta find a way to deal for Abreu! Looks like the only chance we have of reaching the playoffs. Too bad we couldn't deal for Ozuna. Ozuna was my number 1 on my Christmas wish list. Now it's Abreu. Hosmer will do now.

joez - now you are being silly. Remember our division? The Central - the one where 3 teams are outright tanking - in part because of the Tribe?

There is no way in hell Hosmer (Boras client) will be in Cleveland, you can be sure of that.

This team can afford to be patient. Hell, they did their best work last year being patient. EE was signed....December 22 and that was in a normal offseason where the whole thing wasn't held up by Boras AND the Ohtani/Stanton fiasco.

Austin Jackson signing last year? January 25!

Heck, the BJ (Melvin) Upton signing this year is way earlier then they ordinarily operate. And this front office does pretty damn well for themselves!

Remember the adding of Jay Bruce? That was smart - and very late.

This is a team with their ticket punched to the playoffs. Let the other teams rush to bad signings - the Indians have done verrry well not doing that.

Civ ... you are correct, compensation pick after 1st round.

civ ollilavad wrote:He is a solid defender, a reliable RBI man, solid OPS, no signs of career decline. 3 years doesn't take him beyond his late-mid-career.

And by the way Philly is VERY much a hitter park. He'll love it.

So, were the Indians given a chance to match the Phillies offer, as was promised?
If so, I guess it was too rich for their blood!

Apparently or maybe they have other places for that money?

It’s so frustrating they don’t post their plans here!

Yeah, what's up with that? We are the ones that pay to watch them, after all!

Meanwhile, here are some guesses about our plans:

Indians Scribbles: Carlos Santana, trade rumbings -- Terry Pluto
Updated 5:22 PM; Posted 3:00 PM

By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer

terrypluto2003@yahoo.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Scribbles in my Cleveland Indians notebook as they return from the winter meetings and Carlos Santana signs with Philadelphia:

1. The Indians thought they were close to at least one trade, possibly two. I believe at least one of the deals was with the Chicago Cubs. It's no secret the Cubs want starting pitching. The Indians have six big league starters. If you count Ryan Merritt -- that makes seven.

2. The Cubs have an excess of position players. Kyle Schwarber and Javier Baez are two names mentioned in connection with the Tribe. Baez is a middle infielder. In the 2011 draft, the big debate in the Tribe front office was between selecting Baez or Francisco Lindor. The Indians picked Lindor at No. 8. Baez was the next selection, the Cubs grabbing him.

3. Schwarber is a 24-year-old outfielder. He had knee surgery in 2016. The lefty hitter is marginal defensively. He hit 30 HR with 59 RBI in 486 plate appearances in 2017. He also struck out 150 times, batting .211 (.783 OPS). Assuming the Indians lose Jay Bruce, it's possible Schwarber could fill that role.

4. I heard the Indians asked about Ian Haap, who is a very interesting player. He is only 23. As a rookie, Haap batted .253 (.842 OPS) with 23 HR and 68 RBI in 413 plate appearances. He played second base and the outfield. He's a switch hitter. He was a first-round pick in 2015. There is a lot of common ground for the Tribe and Cubs to talk trade. Something could easily happen between the two teams in the next few weeks.

5. The Cubs recently signed free agent starter Tyler Chatwood to a three-year, $38 million deal. He was 8-15 with a 4.69 ERA with the Colorado Rockies last season. His career mark is 40-46 with a 4.31 ERA. He had Tommy John elbow surgery in 2008 and again in 2014. Salazar should have real appeal to the Cubs, despite his injury history and inconsistency.

6.With the signing of Carlos Santana by the Phillies ($60 million for three years), it makes the Indians even more likely to be active in the trade market. It's why I think there could be a deal for a hitter with the Cubs.

7. Santana was a very consistent hitter with the Tribe, but it's hard to make a strong case for paying him $20 million annually to stay here. He received an Edwin Encarnacion contract.

8. One of the reasons the Indians signed Encarnacion a year ago was protection against Santana leaving after the 2017 season. He is not a regular first baseman, but can play there at times. He had one error in 23 games in 2017. In 2016 with Toronto, he played 75 games at first.

9. As of now, the Indians also have Michael Brantley and possibly Lonnie Chisenhall who can play some first base. I've thought Yandy Diaz could play there if that was designated as his one position.But I still expect the Indians to sign and/or trade for a hitter.

10. The Indians knew Bryan Shaw would be well paid. The reliever signed a three-year, $27 million contract with the Rockies. That wasn't a surprise. They also knew Joe Smith would attract a lot of interest. He signed a two-year, $15 million deal with Houston. Smith's lucrative contract did surprise many people in baseball.

11. The Indians know they will miss Shaw and Smith, but they were not going to match those deals. They want to keep money available in case they have a chance to re-sign Carlos Santana or acquire someone else.

12. The Tribe has Andrew Miller and Cody Allen for the back-end of the bullpen. Middle relievers are Nick Goody, Zach McAllister, Dan Otero and Tyler Olson.

13. If they don't trade Salazar, they will have seven starters. I'm keeping Ryan Merritt on the final roster. He is out of minor league options. They could put anyone from Mike Clevinger to Josh Tomlin to Salazar to Merritt in the bullpen.

14. The Tribe knows it's easier to find starters than relievers. And starters can be converted into relievers. So that's part of what will be happening in training camp. The Indians will be looking for some young arms to help in the bullpen.

15. Because they have Miller and Allen, they have two established closers. So they don't need someone to pitch the ninth inning and deal with the pressure of closing. The question will be what pitcher can earn the confidence of manager Terry Francona, who loved Shaw.

16.There are some vague Jason Kipnis rumors -- mostly with the New York Mets. Not sure what to make of that. He is guaranteed $30 million over the next two seasons. Former Tribe pitching coach Mickey Callaway is the Mets new manager, so that could be part of the interest in Kipnis.

17. The Indians love to bring in players such as Melvin Upton Jr. He signed a $1.5 million deal, not guaranteed. In 2016, he batted .238 (.693 OPS) with 20 HR and 61 RBI between San Diego and Toronto. He also stole 27 bases. Last year, he suffered a major thumb injury and needed surgery. He played only 12 games in Class AAA.

18. Upton is 33. He has had an up-and-down career after being the No. 2 pick in the 2002 draft. A right-handed hitter, the Indians would use him vs. lefty pitchers -- much as they did Austin Jackson last season. They did talk to Jackson, but the free agent outfielder is waiting to see if someone makes him a good deal.

Well, based on that Upton will likely platoon with Zimmer. Offense can come and go but great range defensively in CF

Earlier reports said the Tribe was waiting on Santana.

Now that is over seems something in the hitter area may come sooner than later.

Doubt it will happen, but he'd be a nice low risk option to divide up 1B with EE.


Adrian Gonzalez - 1B - Braves

Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that the Braves plan to designate Adrian Gonzalez for assignment.

The only reason that Gonzalez waived his no-trade clause to be included in the Matt Kemp deal, is that the Braves' promised him that he would become a free agent once the deal was completed. The 35-year-old is expected to be fully healthy for spring training, but will now have to find another team willing to give him a shot.

And if the Dodgers are covering a lot of his salary I'd like this low risk addition as well. Right handed bat and plays corner OF.

Matt Kemp - OF - Dodgers

Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Dodgers' plan is to flip Matt Kemp elsewhere in an effort to save more money.

The Dodgers swung a massive five-player deal with the Braves on Saturday, but it looks like their primary goal in doing so was to save money to avoid luxury tax implications and set themselves up better for the 2018 free agent class.

Kemp is still owed $43 million over the next two seasons, and the club may have to eat some of that in order to deal him elsewhere.

TFIR wrote:I'm gonna say right handed, very athletic option for the OF. Potential alternative to Austin Jackson.

Melvin Upton - OF - Indians

Indians signed OF Melvin Upton to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports says Upton will earn $1.5 million if he's in the majors. Upton, 33, hit only .244/.306/.333 over 12 minor league games in 2017 while battling injuries.

With Michael Brantley (ankle) unlikely to be ready for Opening Day and Jason Kipnis apparently on the trade block, Upton should have a shot to make the team.

Here's a longer article on that:

Melvin Upton, Cleveland Indians agree to minor league deal with spring training invitation

By Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com

phoynes@cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio - You never know what is going to happen in baseball.

Remember Tyler Naquin's inside the park homer against the Blue Jays? Of all the good things that happened to the Indians in 2016, Naquin's game-winning, inside-the-parker was the signature moment. In a season that didn't end until Game 7 of the World Series, that's saying something.

Now the man that made it all possible, Melvin Upton Jr., the outfielder formerly known as B.J., has come to terms on a minor-league deal with the Indians. Not only that, could be competing for a job in the same outfield as Naquin.

Upton, reportedly, still has to pass his physical.

On Aug. 19, 2016, Jose Ramirez hit a game-tying homer with one out in the ninth off Toronto closer Roberto Osuna. Naquin followed with a drive off the top of the wall in right field. Michael Saunders went back to the wall, but couldn't make the catch as the ball angled sharply into vacant right center field.

Upton, playing center field, took forever to reach the ball. When he did, he fell. By that time Naquin was already planning his head-first slide into the plate and his "Rock On" salute to the heavens.

The right-handed hitting Upton, 33, last played in the big leagues in 2016. He hit .238 (117-for-492) with 20 homers, 61 RBI and 27 steals in 33 attempts. If he makes the big-league club out of spring training, he'll make $1.5 million.

Upton, in November of 2012, signed a five-year, $72.5 million contract with the Braves that proved to be a disaster. He played 12 games for the Giants at Class AAA Sacramento last season, but asked for his release following thumb and shoulder injuries.

The Indians have received high returns on low-risk contracts to veteran outfielders over the last couple of years. Rajai Davis paid big dividends in 2016 as did Austin Jackson last season. Can the Indians get lucky again with Upton, a veteran of 12 years in the big leagues, whose peak seasons are behind him?

The fact that Upton hits right-handed is a good sign. The Indians are loaded with left-handed hitters in the outfield, including Michael Brantley, Naquin, Bradley Zimmer, Lonnie Chisenhall and, perhaps, Jason Kipnis.