Cleveland Sports Forum

I saw Joe's buddy Jody Gerut limp-wrist one about 30 feet from RF.

Report: Indians 'very willing' to trade Justin Masterson
By Mike Axisa | Baseball Writer
July 28, 2014 4:09 pm ET



Despite being only 3½ games out of a wild-card spot, the Indians are "very willing" to trade Opening Day starter Justin Masterson before Thursday's non-waiver trade deadline, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports. Cleveland is looking for young, controllable starting pitching in return.

There is a wrinkle to trading Masterson: He is currently on the disabled list with a knee injury. He is due to return Friday, however, and players can be traded while injured. Jesse Crain went from the White Sox to the Rays while hurt last year, and a few years ago Jake Peavy went from the Padres to the White Sox while on the DL. It's not a deal-breaker, just an obstacle.

Masterson, 29, is due to become a free agent this winter, so he would be a pure rental. The Indians would likely make him a qualifying offer after the season to ensure they receive draft pick compensation if he signs elsewhere, but another team would not be able to make a qualifying offer if he's traded. Simply put, the Indians need to receive something more valuable than a supplemental first-round pick to come out ahead.

In 19 games and 98 innings this season, Masterson is 4-6 with a 5.51 ERA. His walk rate (5.1 BB/9) is way up and his sinker velocity (90.5 mph) is down noticeably from last year (93.1 mph). Despite that, Masterson is missing bats (8.5 K/9) and getting ground balls (58.5 percent). He has also been a workhorse, throwing at least 180 innings every year from 2010-13.

Plenty of teams are looking for starting pitching, so, if nothing else, the Indians should receive lots of phone calls about Masterson. Teams like the Yankees, Orioles, Blue Jays, Angels, Dodgers and Cardinals could all use some rotation help.

Jim Thome honored and even 'a little uncomfortable' about the Cleveland Indians giving him a statue -- Terry Pluto


CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A Jim Thome statue at Progressive Field?

"I'm not sure how to feel about it," said Jim Thome. "You never start playing baseball thinking about a statue."

Understand that Thome feels "overwhelmed" and "incredibly thankful" that the Indians picked him to be so celebrated. The other player similarly honored is Bob Feller.

"That's just surreal," said Thome. "I'm kind of uncomfortable because there were so many great players when I was with the Indians. It a great gesture, and I'm still having a hard time getting used to it."

The Tribe will unveil the statue at Saturday's 7:05 p.m. game with the Texas Rangers. The statue will be near Heritage Park, and the first 12,500 fans will receive a replica.

Thome began talking about growing up in Peoria, playing baseball with a buddy.

"We'd find a wall, paint a (square) strike zone on it," he said. "Then we'd play baseball with a tennis ball -- pitching to a batter who stood in front of the wall. You just play because you love it."

One of the reasons the Indians picked Thome for a statue is that he's the team's all-time home run leader with 337. His 612 career homers will probably produce a first-ballot induction into the Hall of Fame. He played 1,399 games for the Tribe.

"Playing for the Indians was living a dream," he said. "I remember playing in high school, playing American Legion ball, then playing in junior college -- and wondering if I'd get a chance to play pro ball."

Scout Tom Couston signed Thome for $15,000. He was picked in the 13th round in the 1989 draft, the 331st player selected. Thome said Couston approached him between games of a doubleheader when Thome was with Limestone Junior College.

"I had a bad first game and I was down because I knew some scouts were there," said Thome. "Tom came up behind me. I started to turn around, and he said to keep staring straight ahead. He didn't want anyone to know I was talking to him."

Couston asked if the Tribe drafted Thome, would he sign a contract?

"I said I sure would," said Thome.

And he did.


COMING UP

But Thome was no one's prime prospect. He was 6-foot-4 and about 200 pounds. He was long arms and legs and only 18 when picked by the Tribe. He batted .237 in his first season in rookie ball, no homers in 186 at bats.

"I thought I could play in the majors, but I didn't know," he said. "This game is humbling."

Thome began to hit in 1990. He came up to the Indians in September of 1991. He went up and down from the minors in 1992. He opened the 1993 season in Class AAA Charlotte before finally coming to Cleveland to stay in August of that season.

"I remember those times," he said. "I had trouble defensively at third. (Former Tribe coach) Buddy Bell helped me so much. Charlie (Manuel) helped me to learn to hit for power. But on days like this, you reflect ... I would get down on myself, but Buddy and Charlie -- they had faith in me."

It was Bell who helped him become an adequate third baseman.

Want to win a bet? Ask who was playing third and caught a pop up for the final out on September 8, 1995, when the Indians clinched the Central Division -- heading to the postseason for the first time since 1954.

It was Thome.

He also raved about how Manuel taught him to be a pull hitter and that produced all the home runs. He smiled when recalling some of Manuel's names for him: "Thome Dome" and "Thomenator" being Thome's favorites.

Thome then talked about all the great players with the Tribe in the middle 1990s: Kenny Lofton, Albert Belle, Carlos Baerga, Eddie Murray, Sandy Alomar, Omar Vizquel, Manny Ramirez and so many others.

"Sandy was always great with me," said Thome. "He helped me with my confidence. He's a natural leader. Eddie Murray was a quiet leader. I learned from him not to let anything that happened on the field change my attitude. Albert was so intense, so focused. Other teams got mad when Kenny would draw a walk and then flip his bat up and let it fall on the plate -- that energized us."
There was so many guys back then just as deserving of a statue as me. I hope (the statue) can represent those great teams and great times.

Thome paused then said, "There was so many guys back then just as deserving of a statue as me. I hope it (his statue) can represent those great teams and great times. We went to the World Series twice. We won a lot of games. It was not one or two guys, we had great teams."

THE STATUE

Some fans are as conflicted about the Thome statue as Thome -- because he was one of several stars of that era. There also is the way Thome left the Tribe as a free agent after the 2002 season and signed with Philadelphia. Thome said things about wanting to spend his entire career with the Tribe, then took a much higher offer from the Phillies.

Yes, the Indians made Thome an offer with $62 million guaranteed over five years. The Phillies delivered $87 million for six years.

The Tribe was rebuilding and tearing down the payroll. The front office was almost relieved when Thome went to Philadelphia, because his contract would have been a huge bite out of an ever-shrinking budget.

But fan reaction was harsh.

"I understand that, I really do," said Thome. "It hurts when someone leaves."

Thome came back to the Tribe near the end of the 2011 season.

"I admit, I felt anxious," he said. "I didn't know how people would receive me. In that first game, I got a standing ovation. I still think about that. I get goose bumps talking about it right now. It made me feel so good."

Thome admitted that the statue brings back some of the same fears.

"I never wanted to hurt anyone," he said. "The fans have always treated me great. I really want this (the statue) to be a way of giving something back to them. They were as much a part of those great teams in the 1990s as anyone -- we fed off their energy."

THE BOTTOM LINE

I'm one of those who question the decision to build the statue. But I also know Thome didn't ask for it.

In the offer that the Tribe made for him in 2002, a statue was one of the perks mentioned. I discovered that when researching my book "Dealing." I received a copy of the Tribe's final offer.

Back then, the statue meant nothing to Thome.

"I never played baseball for statues," he said. "I played because I loved the game. I love coming to the park. I love going out for a steak dinner with the guys after the game. I love everything about baseball."

Now 43, Thome is a special assistant to the general manager with the Chicago White Sox. He likes the job and the time it gives him to be with his children -- Lila and Landon. He lives in the Chicago area.

"But at some point, I may want to do more with baseball (in terms of coaching)," he said.

Thome made baseball history the same way he played: Don't brag. Respect the game. Have a grateful heart. This doesn't make a "good story," unless your idea of a good story is about good people doing good things.

Perhaps the statue can represent some of those virtues.

In a 2011 story after Thome hit his 600th homer as a member of the Twins, I interviewed his former manager, Mike Hargrove, who said that if Thome "played in Boston or New York, they'd build a statue to him."

Now, they are doing it in Cleveland.

"And I can never thank everyone enough for how they have treated me," said Thome. "I really mean that."

What could we get for Masterson? Is there a similar OF who's going to be a free agent this winter we can sway for?

Ramsey headed to Tribe in Masterson trade

Outfielder was Cardinals' No. 6 prospect before deal to Cleveland

By Sam Dykstra / MiLB.com

The outfield situation in the upper levels of the Cardinals farm system got a little less crowded Wednesday afternoon.

St. Louis have dealt No. 6 prospect James Ramsey to the Indians for right-handed starter Justin Masterson, the clubs announced. MLB Network's Peter Gammons first reported that Masterson was being traded to the Cards, and the New York Post's Joel Sherman was the first to add that the Tribe was getting Ramsey in return.

Ramsey was a prime candidate to be moved this trade deadline season given the Cardinals' depth in the outfield.

Taken 23rd overall out of Florida State by St. Louis in 2012, the 25-year-old left-handed hitter was hitting .300/.389/.527 with 13 homers and 36 RBIs over 67 games during his second season with Double-A Springfield at the time of the trade. His .916 OPS would be tops in the Texas League had he enough at-bats to qualify. The center fielder, who has also played in both right and left this season, missed 22 games following a shoulder injury suffered in a collision with the outfield wall in mid-May. He also missed time in June due to a intercostal muscle strain.

Despite his rosy numbers, the Cardinals kept him in Double-A because prospects Stephen Piscotty and Randal Grichuk and veterans Thomas Pham and Shane Robinson -- each of whom owns an OPS of .793 or better in the PCL -- were already fighting for playing time in Triple-A Memphis.

Just after the deal was announced, the Indians assigned Ramsey, who played one game in the PCL last season, to Triple-A Columbus.


Ramsey -- a 2014 Futures Game selection -- didn't budge from his spot at No. 6 in the Cardinals system when MLB.com updated its prospect rankings earlier this week and has since been moved to No. 5 among Indians prospects.

His best tool, according to the website, is his speed, which was given a 60 on the 20-80 scale. However, the former Seminole has only swiped four bases this season and 23 across three seasons in the Minors. His best attribute might be his plate discipline. Ramsey posted a .373 on-base percentage last season and has improved on that with a .389 mark this season.

Masterson, who came to the Indians in their deadline deal with the Red Sox for Victor Martinez five years ago, became the headliner this time around.

The 29-year-old right-hander, who posted a 3.45 ERA in 2013, was 4-6 with a 5.51 ERA, 93 strikeouts and 56 walks in 19 starts (98 innings) during a down year with the Tribe. A knee injury had kept him out of the Cleveland rotation since July 7. In two rehab starts with Columbus, Masterson's struggles continued with the 6-foot-6 hurler giving up seven runs on nine hits and eight walks in two starts (11 2/3 innings).

He is slated to make his Cardinals debut Saturday.


Sam Dykstra is a contributor to MiLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

Is Asdrubal Cabrera on the move?
July 31, 2014 by Scott Barzilla Leave a Comment

There is nothing more frustrating than being stuck in the middle. The Cleveland Indians are stuck in the middle. They made it to the playoffs last year during the last week of the season and they are standing in nearly identical shoes this year. They are competing with the Royals for second place in the AL Central division. Right now, second place in the AL Central would be good enough to fish come October.

They could add a major arm and potentially leapfrog enough teams to get back into the playoffs. However, their farm system is a bit thin and they could potentially deal a veteran and replenish that farm system. It is becoming increasingly obvious that Asdrubal Cabrera is on his way out. Francisco Lindor was just promoted to AAA, so he could potentially be called up to take over. They also could wait until the offseason to make the deal.

Before we look at potential suitors for Cabrera, we should take a look at what kind of player another team may be getting. Rating Cabrera creates problems. He was a Web Gem dandy a few years ago, but the defensive metrics are less than kind. With the proliferation of statistics available to average fans, there was a significant backlash against Cabrera. So, is he the star he looked like a few years ago or the bum that people seem to think he is?

In this day and age, a shortstop with a .700 OPS is not half bad. Offense has been down and shortstop is a down position right now in the game. Cabrera has something offer a contending team in need of a shortstop. While fantasy owners can’t necessarily consider the defense, real teams must. Before we start playing matchmaker, let’s look at the fielding numbers.

NUMBERS

As is usually the case, the truth is somewhere in between. 2013 was a horrible season for Cabrera all the way around, but he has returned to something resembling mediocre with the glove. Couple that with a 98 OPS+ and you have yourself an attractive shortstop for teams that are lacking one. Now, let the games begin.

The Contenders

The Favorite: Detroit Tigers

This just makes too much sense. The Tigers have nothing at shortstop because they have been ravaged by injuries. MLBdepthcharts.com has Eugenio Suarez as the current regular. He did rate in the top ten for prospects in the Tigers system according to Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus, but the Tigers farm system is hardly loaded with any kind of talent right now. Even putting an average shortstop in place of Suarez could make a difference come playoff time. After all, Cabrera is on pace to hit about 15 home runs. Having that kind of production on the bottom of the lineup could make the difference.

It Makes Sense: Oakland Athletics

Let’s be honest. All of Billy Beane’s moves over the last couple of seasons indicate that he thinks this collection of guys will be the first ones to break through the Divisional Series glass ceiling. Jed Lowrie is the current shortstop, but he can play second and third in a pinch. Eric Sogard is the second baseman and that can’t sit well with Beane. Adding Cabrera would give them a stronger everyday lineup and increase the bench depth at the same time. Of course, this is what we would call reasonable speculation since the A’s have never been mentioned as a suitor.

Ramsey -- a 2014 Futures Game selection -- didn't budge from his spot at No. 6 in the Cardinals system when MLB.com updated its prospect rankings earlier this week and has since been moved to No. 5 among Indians prospects.

Ahead of him are Lindor, Frazier, Zimmer and in my ranking Francisco Mejia. He would be about even with Naquin. I have not seen the MLB.com list.

MLB.Com rates them:

Lindor, Frazier, Naquin, Zimmer, Ramsey, Ramirez, Mejia, finally a pitcher Sheffield, Gonzalez and rather remarkably Joe Wendle.

That makes 4 middle infielders; 4 outfielders; 1 catcher; and 1 18-year-old pitcher. The only other pitchers who could rate in the bottom of the top 10 would be Adam Plutko, and who else is it we drafted this year?
Second ten could include Shawn Morimando, Cory Anderson, Mitch Brown. But the pitching is very very thin. That's why I expected a pitcher for Cabrera.

Cabrera is almost worthless. Why would you expect anything of value for him ?

Tribe had to pay all of his salary to get a slightly above average prospect.

Cant believe the bottomless pocket NY Yankees would have not given us more. They picked up Drew instead, he is below the Mendoza line.

From Indians Baseball Insider ...

Asdrubal Cabrera was a guy who everyone knew would be traded. His expiring deal and the Indians depth at shortstop made it pretty clear he would end the season with another team.

Indians fans grew to dislike Asdrubal over the years. It got to the point where fans could not see the value in him despite what the numbers showed. Is Asdrubal a great player? No. He isn’t really a good player anymore.

Cabrera is just a good player for shortstop. There are so few shortstops that can post an OPS near .700 anymore. Half the league can’t find such a player. People say he had a down year and wasn’t worth much, yet he was still top 10 among all shortstops in OPS and home runs. Yet the dislike runs deep, and I am sure the comments section for this piece will reflect that.

The other thing which should have helped the Indians in a deal is the fact that there were a lot of teams looking for up the middle help and there were not a lot of players on the market. It was basic supply and demand.

The Indians received a single player back from the Nationals in Zach Walters, a utility bat. In 2013 he was the 10th rated prospect for the Nationals by Baseball America. He has played a few games in the majors but has been a guy who has bounced back and forth from the minors.

Walters is a mixed bag as player.

The positives on him are excellent pop for a middle infielder. He lead the entire International League in home runs last year with 29 and is on pace for 30 home runs again this year. He also has a very strong arm which has allowed him to play all over the infield. He is a switch-hitter who has played shortstop, third, and second in the minors. He has legit power. He has taken a step forward this year in almost every stat, but it is also his third year in Triple-A.

The downside is outside of the power I don’t see any average skills with the bat. Last year his strikeout to walk ratio was 6:1, one of the worst I have ever seen in a player. It has improved this year to 3:1 this year, but again, this is after 200 games in Triple-A. Another point is he is much stronger from the left side so in spite of being a switch-hitter he doesn’t help the team issues from the right side. Typically by now a player who teams consider a priority player would have had more than 47 at bats in the majors.

The Indians have had some success with lesser players in deals over the years. Yan Gomes was a virtual no one in prospect circles before the Indians targeted him. In Walters maybe the Indians feel his improvement this year is legit and just not the results of a player repeating the level. He brings some much needed power to the Indians organization and some versatility.

The upside to Walters is pretty much Mike Aviles but with much more pop and worse on-base skills. Again, to me that is his ceiling at this point, but then again I thought Gomes was a future backup as well. So hopefully I am wrong here too.

I just can’t be as happy as I was yesterday as Ramsey was a much better prospect. As a matter of fact, Ramsey is one of the top three prospects to be traded at this year’s deadline, at least to me.

You're right Rusty; Asdrubal was not worth a lot and the kid we got is probably fair value. I just expected them to look for a pitcher of similar prospect standing. (Kluber was around No. 10 in the Padre system when we got him for Westbrook for example.) (Soto was not rated in Tigers list when we got him for Peralta)

By Zack Meisel, Northeast Ohio Media Group
on August 01, 2014 at 7:30 AM, updated August 01, 2014 at 7:34 AM


Cleveland Indians stress no 'white flag,' but lack of deadline additions suggests more mediocrity to come: Zack Meisel's musings


CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Will the Indians invite LeBron James to throw out a ceremonial first pitch at Progressive Field this season?

"I'm sure we'll extend that offer," said team president Mark Shapiro, "as long as he doesn't wear a Yankees cap when he does it."

Perhaps an offer to join the starting rotation should follow. Here are five observations following the Tribe's 6-5 loss to the Mariners.

1. Deadline dealings: The Indians won't be worse off without Justin Masterson and Asdrubal Cabrera. Neither player boosted the club's performance much during the first four months of the season. The front office was not going to extend a qualifying offer of $15 million to either player, so dealing them for prospects who may or may not pan out made sense.

That said, the Indians' trade deadline transactions won't make the club better off in 2014, either. Manager Terry Francona and general manager Chris Antonetti stressed that the team wasn't raising a "white flag" with its roster decisions, but failing to acquire a right-handed bat or a starting pitcher (or two or three) may suggest otherwise to those remaining in the clubhouse.

"There were two or three other things, in particular, that if we could've executed, we would've felt even better about," Antonetti said. "Some of those would've been impacting our Major League team directly, but unfortunately we weren't able to get to the finish line on them."

2. One more month: Antonetti did -- whether intentionally or unintentionally -- employ a bit of a stall tactic. Would the addition of a middle-of-the-rotation starter have put the Tribe over the top? Maybe not. Now, though, the Indians have another month until the waiver deadline, which allows Antonetti to wait and see if the club trends in one direction or the other.

If the Indians rattle off a stretch of winning baseball, he can scour the waiver wire in search of supplementing parts. If the club flounders, he can pawn off a few pieces.

3. Purgatory: Granted, the Indians have offered zero evidence that they will catch fire or freeze up. The club's consistent display of inconsistency foretells another two months of mediocrity. Four teams stand ahead of Cleveland in the race for the second American League Wild Card spot: Toronto, New York, Kansas City and Seattle.

4. Rotating: As things stand, the Indians' rotation is Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer and then pray for showers. Zach McAllister owns an 0-4 record and 9.88 ERA over his last seven big league starts. Danny Salazar and T.J. House are slated to pitch the next two days. Those two, McAllister and Josh Tomlin have played musical chairs for the last two months. It appears as though that will continue through August and September as the Tribe searches for viable options in the rotation.

5. Up north: After their acquisition of southpaw David Price on Thursday, the Tigers now boast the last three AL Cy Young Award winners (Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Price) and the last three AL Most Valuable Player Award winners (Miguel Cabrera twice, Verlander). The Indians and Tigers are in different stratospheres when it comes to payroll and talent. Detroit has a realistic shot at the Fall Classic, so GM Dave Dombrowski swung for the fences, as he has done in the past.

Kluber and Bauer and pray for showers. That's about it.

OK, there is hope with Salazar.

But the big difference from last year is that last year Kazmir and Ubaldo were veteran guys. Masterson as well (although he did end up injured). This year, it's young guys and that's likely a road block to any long winning streak like last year.

Tribe won't rush Lindor despite Cabrera trade

By Alec Shirkey / MLB.com | 8/1/2014 1:27 A.M. ET

CLEVELAND --

With Asdrubal Cabrera set to become a free agent at the end of the season, there was always the possibility that the Tribe would part ways with him before Thursday's non-waiver Trade Deadline.

Given the organization's wealth of young infield talent waiting in the wings, that possibility slowly morphed into an inevitability that the 28-year-old would find himself with another club sooner rather than later.

In the immediate, Cabrera's departure gives infielder Jose Ramirez a chance at more playing time, while utility man Mike Aviles is also expected to work himself into the mix at shortstop. In the not-too-distant future, however, the move likely expedites top prospect Francisco Lindor's ascension to the Majors.

Lindor is in the midst of a strong season in which he hit .278 with a .352 on-base percentage and 25 stolen bases at Double-A Akron before earning a promotion to Triple-A Columbus earlier this month. The young shorstop is off to a hot start with his new affiliate as well, having hit .323 with two homers through eight games.

The Indians' front office played coy about Lindor's chances of getting called up before the season ends. Should the former first-round Draft pick continue progressing at his torrid pace, however, the organization could be hard-pressed to keep him in the Minors.

"With Francisco, our focus is what's best for him developmentally," general manager Chris Antonetti said Thursday. "He's just now getting his first exposure to Triple-A and we're continuing to work with him on his development and his improvement. But I think right now, for us, it's Mike Aviles and Jose Ramirez at shortstop. As I've said, we were able to make this type of trade because of our belief in those two guys."

"That's been a consistent message with us to Francisco, to focus on his own development and continuing to improve and work each day as a player. Because that's the thing he can control."

The versatile Aviles has played seven of his 72 games this season at shortstop and filled in capably earlier this month when Cabrera missed a few games due to lower back spasms. Ramirez, considered the club's sixth-best overall prospect by MLBPipeline.com, has spent much of his season with Columbus, where he's hit .302 with five homers and 19 steals.

Ramirez, 21, has proven himself a capable defender throughout his professional career, but he has not adjusted his offensive game to the Major-League level as quickly. Through 16 games across two stints with the Indians this year, the switch-hitter is just 8-for-44.

"Any time you're young, whatever you get thrown at you, and then you go back, it all helps," Tribe manager Terry Francona said. "Forgetting that this kid's really young and his grasp of the language is improving, and as it does keep improving, that will help, too. The one thing we always worry about is the pace of the game, especially for young guys. Then when you don't speak the language, the game can really go fast. That's the one thing that doesn't happen with Jose."