Cleveland Sports Forum

Tribe had the Out-Man on the mound in the seventh.

I'm looking forward to locking him up for several years. The Victor Martinez trade turns out to have been a good one. [Although I imagine Hagadone is just about out the door.]

Seems like the candidates for the 25-man roster are probably about 27 guys now. Most teams would have to drop one of these 13 pitchers, but Tito likes a huge bullpen, so Pestano and Wood may not be competing for one job:

Starting: Masterson, Kluber, McAllister, Salazar, Carrasco or Tomlin
Relieving: Axford, Allen, Shaw, Outman, Rpczynski, Carrasco or Tomlin [he has an option but he's been too good to send down], Wood and/or Pestano [Atchison apparently still has a chance. Hagadone may have to be DFAs but they may be tired of waiting for his consistency]
Catching: Gomes and Santana
Infield: Swisher, Kipnis, Cabrera, Aviles, Chisenhall [although he still has an option available] and Santana [but he only counts once]
Outfield: Brantley, Bourn, Raburn, Murphy [pretty unimpressive spring]
Rest of the Bench: 1 or 2 of Francoeur, Johnson, Sellers [it seems Adams and Carson have less chance]

The choices are for the 5th starter; the 7th reliever; and the ho-hum choices for the utility guys.

Not sure if I've seen a post noting Bourn's hamstring injury returning postsurgery. If he cannot run, he's not going to be a very effective player.

Worry No. 1 for 2014.

Indians center fielder Michael Bourn has a strained left hamstring and it's possible it'll affect his status for the beginning of the season.

Bourn told reporters he believes he'll be just fine to start the season and manager Terry Francona said, "I wouldn't be surprised if it was a few days more than that," when asked if Bourn would miss three to five days (cleveland.com).

So with the beginning of the Tribe's season coming exactly two weeks from Monday, there's certainly enough time for Bourn to be fully recovered. Of course, just weeks away leaves very little wiggle room in terms of any linger issues or setbacks.

Bourn had offseason surgery to repair an injury in his left hamstring, but he told reporters this strain is in a different spot and therefore unrelated.

After signing a four-year, $48 million deal last spring with the Indians, Bourn hit .263/.316/.360 (93 OPS+) with 21 doubles, six triples, six homers, 50 RBI, 75 runs and 23 stolen bases. He still played good defense in center, but it was a pretty big step back from his All-Star season in 2012.

If Bourn does need to miss a little time, Michael Brantley can handle center with Ryan Raburn filling in at left field.

4 more returned to the minors: Guilmet, Herrmann, Hynes (pitchers) and Adams (IF) remain on the 40-man roster and are optioned to Columbus. Some of them are candidates to be DFA's if time comes to add someone off a minor league roster to the 25-man crowd (e.g. Johnson, Francoeur, Harang)

Outfield: Brantley, Bourn, Raburn, Murphy [pretty unimpressive spring]

I wouldn't be surprised if that were the extent of the outfielders.

Aviles is seeing a LOT of time in the OF this spring. Suspiciously so IMO.

Swisher can also swing out there, obviously in a pinch. Opens up a spot elsewhere.

I'm devastated if this is true:

Extension Talks Between Masterson, Indians Fall Through
By Steve Adams [March 20, 2014 at 8:49pm CST]

A long-term deal between the Indians and No. 1 starter Justin Masterson seemed highly likely to materialize when reports surfaced that Masterson had proposed a three-year extension to Cleveland. However, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that talks between the two sides have fallen through after Cleveland did not accept the three-year offer, which had an annual value under Homer Bailey's $17.5MM mark. Free agency now seems likely for Masterson, says Rosenthal (Twitter links). Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer hears the same, tweeting that talks between the two sides "are over."

Masterson is already under contract for the 2014 season after agreeing to a one-year, $9.7625MM contract to avoid arbitration this offseason. A three-year extension would have bought out the 2015-17 seasons -- Masterson's age-30 through age-32 seasons. The three-year term is almost certainly lower than what Masterson can expect in free agency next offseason, even if he rejects a qualifying offer.

A three-year deal worth $51-53MM seems like a reasonable price to pay for Masterson, who has turned in an ERA south of 3.50 in two of the past three seasons and established himself as one of the best ground-ball pitchers in the game. Cleveland isn't a deep-pocketed club though, and they spent at an uncharacteristic level last offseason to sign Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher to four-year commitments. It's unclear if that spending spree is related to the Masterson situation, though.

If Masterson does reach the open market next offseason, that's bad news for the likes of James Shields, Max Scherzer and Jon Lester (if Lester does not reach an extension of his own), as it would add another quality arm to the top of the free agent crop.

See yah!

Trade him now.

As stated earlier, the handwriting for backup outfielders was on the wall with Aviles spending time out there in spring training. It's too bad because I REALLY like Francoeur's fielding, and potential bat vs. left handers.


Jeff Francoeur - OF - Indians

Indians released OF Jeff Francoeur.

The 30-year-old had a relatively solid spring, slashing .286/.359/.429 with a homer and 10 RBI. With the lack of quality outfield depth around the league, there's a chance that other teams would be willing to take a shot on Francoeur still.

Wow, between Aviles and Johnson, they have huge versatility. Both guys play everywhere!


Elliot Johnson - 2B - Indians

Indians general manager Chris Antonetti announced Saturday that Elliot Johnson has won a bench spot on the team's Opening Day roster.

The 30-year-old utilityman can attribute that roster spot to a strong Cactus League season where he slashed .350/.381/.650 with a pair of homers and eight RBI in 40 at-bats. He holds no fantasy value outside of insanely deep AL-only formats.

Saw DENVER LOU yesterday in Lakeland. He asked me to say hello to everyone still here on the forum.

I am sure you did get some catching up with Lou.

Gotta admit I am shocked if this is true:

Chris Cotillo ‏@ChrisCotillo

Nyjer Morgan has made the #Indians, according to his agent @MSMsports.

C.C. Lee - R - Indians

Indians optioned RHP C.C. Lee to Triple-A Columbus.
Lee was unable to crack the Indians' Opening Day bullpen despite posting some decent numbers this spring in Cactus League play. He should be up eventually.
Mar 24 - 1:15 PM



Trevor Bauer - S - Indians

Indians optioned RHP Trevor Bauer to Triple-A Columbus.
Bauer displayed improved velocity this spring, but the results still weren't there. He yielded nine runs -- eight earned -- on 12 hits and five walks in seven Cactus League innings. The 23-year-old right-hander will continue working on his craft in the minors.
Mar 24 - 1:14 PM

Bryan LaHair - 1B - Indians

Indians reassigned 1B Bryan LaHair, C Luke Carlin, and 1B David Cooper to minor league camp.
No real surprises among this round of cuts. LaHair needed surgery this offseason on his wrist and didn't really get a chance to prove himself this spring. The 31-year-old could become useful at some point for the Tribe.
Mar 24 - 1:11 PM


Aaron Harang - S - Indians

Indians released RHP Aaron Harang.
Harang asked to be cut Monday after the Indians informed him that he would not be on the Opening Day roster. The 35-year-old right-hander posted a 2.00 ERA in four outings this spring in the Cactus League and should be able to catch on with a new team rather quickly.
Mar 24 - 1:08 PM


Michael Bourn - OF - Indians

Michael Bourn (hamstring) will open the 2014 regular season on the 15-day disabled list.
Bourn needed surgery on his left hamstring in mid-October and then began experiencing tightness in that same area last week. The Indians want to make sure he's 100 percent before putting him into their everyday lineup. Bourn's value relies heavily on speed, so this is all very concerning for both fantasy owners and the Cleveland front office.