I should have said "until lately" instead of "always"

HUNTER WOOD
RP, TAMPA BAY RAYS

Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports reports that the Indians have acquired Hunter Wood from the Rays.
No word yet on what the Rays may receive in return. The 25-year-old hurler owns a 2.48 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 24/7 K/BB ratio across 29 innings at the big league level this season.

Cleveland Indians trade for Tampa Bay’s INF Christian Arroyo and RHP Hunter Wood
Updated Jul 28, 8:35 PM; Posted Jul 28, 7:38 PM


The Indians made a trade with Tampa Bay, acquiring infielder Christian Arroyo and right-hander Hunter Wood.


By Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Indians, in a trade with Tampa Bay on Sunday, acquired infielder Christian Arroyo and right-hander Hunter Wood. Arroyo is on the 60-day disabled list with a right forearm injury and is not expected to play for the big-league club this year.

If Arroyo does make it back, it won’t be until late September. He will be examined by the Tribe’s medical team in the near future.

The Tribe sent minor outfielder Ruben Cardenas and 2019-2020 international slot money to the Rays to complete the deal.


Arroyo, a right-handed hitter, was the Giants’ No. 1 pick in 2013. He made his big-league debut in 2017.

This year with Tampa Bay he hit .220 (11-for-50) with two homers and seven RBI in 16 games. At Class AAA Durham he hit .314 (38-for-121) with eight homers and 29 RBI.

He has been on the injured list since June with tendinitis in his right forearm.

Wood is 1-1 with a 2.48 ERA in 19 games with the Rays. He’s struck out 24 in 29 innings. He also appeared in eight games at Durham, posting a 7.59 ERA.

The Rays selected him with the 29th pick in the 2013 draft.

“We are excited to add Hunter and Christian to our organization," said Chris Antonetti, Indians president of baseball operations, in a release. "Hunter has pitched in a variety of roles throughout his major league career over the last two seasons, relying on his fastball-cutter-changeup mix. Although Christian is currently rehabbing from an injury, we really like his bat-to-ball skills and defensive versatility to play a number of infield positions. We believe both players have a chance to contribute to our Major League team in the near future.”

Hunter could be added to the Tribe’s bullpen before or after Wednesday’s trading deadline. Right now they Indians have a lot of balls in the air, including deciding what to do with Danny Salazar.



At the moment, Hunter was optioned to Class AAA Columbus. Jefry Rodriguez, to make room on the 40-man roster, was moved to the 60-day disabled list.

Indians Acquire Hunter Wood, Christian Arroyo
By Mark Polishuk | July 28, 2019 at 6:41pm CDT

6:41PM: The two teams have officially announced the trade. Jefry Rodriguez will move to the Indians’ 60-day injured list to create roster space. The Rays will get $250K in international bonus funds, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweets.

5:16PM: The Indians have acquired right-hander Hunter Wood and infielder Christian Arroyo from the Rays in exchange for minor league outfielder Ruben Cardenas and some international signing money. Yahoo Sports’ Tim Brown (Twitter link) was the first to report that Wood was being dealt to Cleveland, while Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter) added the other particulars of the swap.

Wood, who turns 26 next month, has a 2.48 ERA, 7.4 K/9, and 3.43 K/BB rate over 29 innings for the Rays this season. ERA predictors such as FIP (4.19), xFIP (5.10) and SIERA (4.52) are much less impressed with Wood’s work, perhaps due to his lack of strikeouts and large amount of fly balls generated, as Wood has only a 29.4% grounder rate. On the plus side, Wood is allowing less hard contract and issuing fewer walks than he did in his 2018 rookie season. While not a premium reliever, he’ll add even more depth to a Tribe bullpen that is already one of the game’s best.

As a young arm controlled through the 2024 season, Wood isn’t an insubstantial piece for the Rays to be giving up, particularly to a Cleveland team who is currently battling Tampa for a wild card position. Still, the Rays had to open up a 40-man roster spot for the newly-acquired Eric Sogard, and Wood wasn’t a critical member of the relief corps. The righty was one of several members of the Tampa-to-Durham taxi squad over the last two seasons, as the Rays frequently shuffled pitchers back and forth between the majors and Triple-A.

Sogard’s arrival makes Arroyo even more expendable, as Arroyo already wasn’t going to be a factor for Tampa until mid-August due to a 60-day injured list placement due to forearm tendinitis. It wasn’t long ago that Arroyo was ranked as one of the more highly-touted prospects in the sport — MLB.com ranked Arroyo within their top-90 prospect list every year from 2016-18, topping out at 81st prior to the 2018 season.

Originally drafted 25th overall by the Giants in 2013, Arroyo was the centerpiece of the prospect package sent from San Francisco to Tampa in the 2017-18 offseason for Evan Longoria. Unfortunately for Arroyo and the Rays, his two seasons at Tropicana Field have been plagued with injuries, and he has appeared in just 16 games in a Rays uniform. Arroyo is still only 24, and with only 251 career MLB plate appearances to go on, there’s still plenty of time for him to realize his potential.

Arroyo has played mostly second and third base in recent seasons after beginning his pro career as a shortstop, so the Indians have some flexibility in how they choose to deploy Arroyo at the big league level. It could be that the Tribe simply uses Arroyo as a multi-position player, or they could direct him more specifically towards second base (if Jason Kipnis’ club option isn’t exercised for 2020, as expected), third base (if Jose Ramirez is moved back to second base to replace Kipnis) or potentially even shortstop, if Cleveland explores the big splash that would be a Francisco Lindor trade in the offseason.

Cardenas was a 16th-round pick for the Tribe in the 2018 draft. The Cal State Fullerton product wasn’t ranked by MLB.com as a top-30 prospect in Cleveland’s system, though Cardenas is off to a nice start in his pro career, hitting .292/.366/.469 with 10 homers over 524 plate appearances. He has spent all of this season at the Indians’ A-ball affiliate in Lake County.

Rangers Return Rule 5 Pick Kyle Dowdy To Indians
By George Miller | July 28, 2019 at 4:42pm CDT

The Rangers have returned right-handed pitcher Kyle Dowdy, who was chosen in December’s Rule 5 Draft, to the Indians, per a club announcement. He had been designated for assignment on Thursday and was offered to his original club after clearing waivers.

Originally chosen by the Mets in the Rule 5 Draft, Dowdy was subsequently claimed off waivers by the Rangers. Before landing on the injured list with an elbow impingement, he contributed 22 1/3 innings, including one start, for the Rangers, striking out 17 batters but walking 18.

Dowdy, 26, will return to the Indians organization and has been assigned to Double-A Akron.

In parts of 7 minor league seasons Arroyo has slashed .293/.340/.435 Struck out like once every 6+ at bats. This year prior to getting hurt he had hit the most homers he ever had in 1 season at 10.

Nothing eye popping. He has played 2B, SS, and 3B. Might make a good utility infielder next year.

as recently as 2018 Arroyo was rated No. 4 prospects in the Giants system with a 60 grade as a hitter. He think he lost his minor league status after 2018 which explains his disappearance from the lists in 2019.

But while looking for him, I found Andrew Valasquez rated No. 19 for the Rays this year, and graded as a good prospect for a utility player as a decent OF and IF. We picked him on waivers and he's been on a rehab assignment in Arizona hitting well but apparently not quite ready for return to AAA

Well if you want to go back to A ball Arroyo had some nice slash lines and looked promising. But when he hits AA ball in 2016 he slashed .274/.316/.373.

In 2018 in AAA he slashed .235/.286/.341

In 2017 he had 91 good at bats in AAA so maybe he isn't just an A ball player.

Tampa had to clear a roster spot . Indians helped out but asked for Arroyo to sweeten the deal. Great guy to take a chance on to become a utility infielder.

smart deal from our side; Cardenas might become useful but I don't see him being another Anthony Santander.

Well too early to know what he will become but I like Cardenas more than Santander at same stage of career. But that’s ok, I like that we acquired a useful young arm in the bullpen. Wood could end up another Cimber type for us.

Well, except that he pitches like a normal human being. I just mean a guy who can add reliable depth to our pen and locked up for quite a while. He is not eligible for free agency till 2025.

$250K in international bonus funds was the most valuable part of the deal.

2 or 3 of the Tribe's recent transactions have involved dumping international bonus money. I guess it's "use it or lose it" money.

Analyze this: Rays trade Christian Arroyo, Hunter Wood to Indians for minor-league OF Ruben Cardenas
By Josh Tolentino and Zack Meisel 2h ago 4

The Rays opened up a few roster spots Sunday when they shipped infielder Christian Arroyo and reliever Hunter Wood to Cleveland in exchange for minor-league outfielder Ruben Cardenas.

The next two days — as we approach the July 31 deadline — will be telling for both Tampa Bay and Cleveland – a pair of teams in the American League wild-card hunt.

Let’s analyze the latest deal.

Why the Indians made the trade

The Indians front office prides itself on turning other teams’ trash into its own treasure. OK, it’s probably more like turning other teams’ gently used players into its own moderately productive major-leaguers. If this trade reminds you of the Indians’ heist of Oscar Mercado from last summer, it’s because it fits a similar framework.

The club isn’t banking on Arroyo offering much this season — he’s on the 60-day injured list. But he’ll likely be one of several candidates, along with Yu Chang and any other future trade acquisitions, to replace Jason Kipnis next season. They’ve recently targeted position players with some minor-league success or pedigree who ran out of opportunities or whose clubs ran out of patience: Daniel Johnson, Jordan Luplow, Mercado. Arroyo was a top-100 prospect as recently as last season. Perhaps the Indians can unlock the 24-year-old’s potential.

Wood will head to Triple-A Columbus, though he is another reliever who could offer a lift later this year or next season. Who knows what the future holds for veterans like Dan Otero, Tyler Clippard, Oliver Pérez or even guys without options, such as A.J. Cole and Tyler Olson? There will be some roster casualties in the coming weeks as Danny Salazar and Corey Kluber rejoin the fold — and if James Karinchak earns a promotion, or if the Indians swing another trade. It always helps to have a stash of big-league-ready arms. Wood throws his fastball in the mid-90s and relies on a slider that averages about 86 mph.

Who is Ruben Cardenas? And why did the Indians deal him?
The Indians selected Cardenas in the 16th round of the 2018 draft. He had posted a .284/.343/.475 slash line for Class-A Lake County, joining forces with Will Benson and Tyler Freeman to give the Captains a formidable trio in the middle of the lineup in the first half. The Athletic’s Emily Waldon recently profiled the 21-year-old Cardenas.

The outfield remains a sensible position for the Indians to target on the trade market this week or this winter, but Mercado, Johnson, Luplow and Jake Bauers are all young. They clearly deemed Cardenas expendable as they attempt to balance the farm system. Their upper levels needed some talent, but the lower levels are full of intrigue. Meanwhile, the Rays have shown the ability to get the most out of their prospects — they have the league’s No. 1 farm system, according to Baseball America.

Why the Rays made the trade

Arroyo will forever carry with him his Tampa roots, but the Rays decided to finally move on from the “other” piece of the Evan Longoria trade.

The biggest thing that hurt Arroyo, outside of his inconsistency, was his inability to stay healthy. He appeared on the Injured List three times last season with Triple-A Durham and is currently on the 60-day IL with a right forearm issue. Even if Arroyo could have gotten back to full strength again this season, he fell down the depth chart during his time away from the club. Matt Duffy is finally back from his hamstring injury, and rookie Mike Brosseau has been a pleasant surprise since being called up in June. Both Duffy and Brosseau are right-handed bats, just like Arroyo, and they’ve been producing at a higher clip, not to mention other right-handed-hitting infielders Yandy Diaz, Daniel Robertson and Willy Adames.

Before the forearm injury, though, Arroyo never found consistency at the plate, and he had a few questionable moments playing at third base. One American League scout who saw Arroyo multiple times before he got hurt said Arroyo could be a solid bench player for Cleveland but noted that he still has a lot of potential he needs to tap into to become a more consistent player at the big-league level.
Reliever Hunter Wood should get an opportunity to pitch some important innings for the Indians down the stretch. (Jay Biggerstaff / USA Today)

Dealing Wood was a more surprising move considering the Rays need bullpen help, but the club also needed a 40-man roster spot to add Sogard, and Wood is out of options after this season. Teams never like to move on from home-grown products (Wood was drafted by Tampa Bay in the 29th round of the 2013 draft), but considering how the Rays use their pitchers between Durham and the big-league club, the more options a player has, the better suited the club will be. The 25-year-old Wood will add some youth to a veteran-heavy Cleveland bullpen.

The Rays also are getting some international signing money from the Indians.

Buckle up, we’ve got ourselves an old-fashioned race for the AL Central crown

Zack Meisel 4h ago 9

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Within one minute of each other on Sunday afternoon, Miguel Sanó and Carlos Santana launched three-run homers in the tops of their respective first innings.

The games unfolded about 500 miles apart, but the Indians and Twins have a sense of what the other is doing. Santana’s blast, on his first hack since healing his sore left shoulder, handed the Indians a 3-0 head start. Sanó’s shot pushed the Twins’ early lead to 5-0.

What we have here is an old-fashioned chase for the AL Central crown, the sort of high-speed pursuit typically reserved for the league’s other five divisions. The Indians have whittled the once-mountainous Twins advantage to a two-game edge. And in a little more than a week, Terry Francona’s troops will file into Target Field for their most momentous regular-season series in recent memory.

The Indians have paid attention. They have watched the Twins’ games when the schedule permits, glanced at the standings on their phone, talked openly about their new role as the hunter and as the target of skeptics’ ire.

“This team has been circling those games,” said Jason Kipnis, who sported a shirt that read “We believe that we will win, 2019” after his grand-slam performance on Saturday night. “This team has had one focus and one focus only the last two months and that’s been chasing down these Twins, and we did it even faster than maybe we might have thought.”

Much of the deficit-shaving has transpired over the last two weeks, after the Twins took two of three at Progressive Field following the All-Star break. A Charmin-like schedule has certainly aided the Indians’ cause as they storm the top of the division. They have feasted on the Royals and Tigers in the past six weeks, and the degree of difficulty will increase exponentially over the next month. But at least they have capitalized; they own the best record in baseball since the calendar flipped to June.

“A lot of people are going to (say) we’re doing this against K.C. or Detroit or the White Sox without good, winning records,” Kipnis said. “But those are the same teams the Twins are playing. We’ve won series against the Yankees, Boston and the Twins themselves. It’s not like we’re just not beating anyone that’s good. We’re just trying to win the game that’s in front of us. Even when you play teams with bad records, there are slip-ups, there are mistakes. There’s stuff that happens. We’re just coming to play every day and it’s just not letting that happen. Even when you’re playing the lower-record teams, to win this many games, and to win the games you’re supposed to, this often, is a real tip of the cap to this clubhouse.”

Remaining schedules
Cleveland: 3 vs. KC, 6 vs. DET, 7 vs. CHI
Minnesota: 10 vs. KC, 10 vs. DET, 9 vs. CHI

Ah, but there’s one particular matchup that holds more weight than all of those lopsided clashes: The Indians and Twins still square off 10 more times. Should one team claim the bulk of those meetings, that could swing the division a certain way.
(Nick Turchiaro / USA Today)
So what has fueled the Indians’ charge following their early-season limp to a 29-30 start, which placed them 11.5 games behind the Twins?

The bullpen, full of aging soft-tossers and matchup-based relievers, has maintained its grip on the lowest ERA in the league. The group boasts a 3.30 ERA, miles ahead of second-place San Francisco’s 3.78 mark.

The outfielders have lengthened and strengthened Francona’s lineup. Oscar Mercado has planted himself in the thick of any AL Rookie of the Year dialogue, and Tyler Naquin, when his body cooperates, has hit everything in sight.

“We knew that our outfield, people from the outside were doubting us a lot,” Mercado said. “Just the fact that we’re able to go out there and compete every day at a high level and prove people wrong, we love that.”

As Mercado chatted with reporters on Saturday night, Naquin walked past and quipped, “He only had four (hits),” referencing the rookie’s 4-for-5 showing. About a week earlier, Mercado notched his first career five-hit effort. Naquin was quickly informed that Mercado had, in fact, just finished complimenting his teammate, so there was no need to needle him.

“He’s been nothing short of amazing, especially lately,” Mercado said.

And then there’s José Ramírez, whose resurgence is perhaps the most critical development. The diminutive dynamo has posted a .348/.389/.696 slash line during the past six weeks, with nine home runs and only 10 strikeouts. He slugged a homer in each of the four games in Kansas City last weekend.

“I feel like everybody’s been on the edge of their seat waiting on him to come back,” Mike Clevinger said. “And some people started to doubt whether it was, and now it’s here and there’s no better timing than now, for sure.”

The scorching stretch coincides with the birth of his daughter, Isabella. When I asked if the newborn is a good-luck charm, Ramírez replied: “Of course. She’s a blessing.”

Mercado has marveled from across the dugout, the clubhouse and the field.

“I wasn’t on the team last year,” Mercado said, “and I keep asking him, ‘Man, is this kind of what it (was like)?’”

Now, the roster isn’t flawless, and it’s up to the front office to attempt to enhance it this week. Even Kipnis admitted he’s far from a prototypical No. 4 hitter, but the current roster configuration has resulted with him batting in the cleanup spot against right-handers.

“I don’t claim to be a four hitter,” Kipnis said. “I’m well aware that’s just how the lineup has dictated itself with the personnel we have here. That’s just how we’re trying to do it. I know I’m not your ideal four hitter. Even I’d rather have someone in there with a little more thump. But when you get good at-bats up and down the lineup, it almost doesn’t matter. You just put people where you can and if it’s working and we’re scoring runs, you don’t try to mix it up.”

The Indians figured the Twins would present more of a threat in the AL Central than any team has the last couple of years. That said, an 11.5-game deficit was new territory for a club that has captured the last three division titles. They weathered the storm and started to sort out the roster, determining who could help and who wasn’t needed.

And now, with two months to decide the victor, it’s on.

“We’re a dangerous team right now,” Mercado said, “and we know that.”

Remaining schedules
Cleveland: 3 vs. KC, 6 vs. DET, 7 vs. CHI
Minnesota: 10 vs. KC, 10 vs. DET, 9 vs. CHI

29 for Twins, 16 for Indians; even more important, vs Det and KC along: 20 for Twins, 9 for Indians; that's a big advantage! We'll have to take them on in the one-on-one matchups to win the division