The Shapiro/Antonetti/Chernoff policy of overvaluing prospects showed up in the Frazier negotiations. Time for a change.
Maybe the Browns can lend them some of the analytics gurus.

Hillbilly wrote:I'm still pissed (and JR too I think) that we didn't put together a package for Frazier.

Agreed, Civ.

Yep. Not only a good player, but a great personality.

A greater personality than Swisher? Or just a greater player?

Frazier tailed off significantly at the end of the last 2 seasons - maybe that had something to do with it - since the Tribe is big into analytics...

Interesting note Vic. Good to see you here. [Vic Power might have been my favorite Indian before Vic Davalillo appeared on the scene; I loved the way he swung the bat in his warm-ups and he was a great first baseman.]

May be, Vic. I didn't realize that till you mentioned it and I went and looked.

I knew he tailed off after the ASG, but didn't remember him doing that last year. As for Swisher's personality, his "rah-rah" act was wearing thin, esp. since he wasn't producing. Frazier's walk-up song is Sinatra's "Fly me to the moon." Gotta love that!

Boy is Vic right:

2014

1st half 270/353/500 OPS 853
2nd half 247/312/396 OPS 708

2015

1st half 284/337/585 OPS 922
2nd half 220/274/390 OPS 664

If his contract has an incentive for making the All Star team he should cash in that. But not quite the performance history if you're looking to making a playoff drive.

Prospect Spotlight: Yandy Diaz

After just his second season of pro ball, Yandy Diaz has put himself on the map as a possible future long term solution at third base in Cleveland. His consistency at the plate and successful transition to the hot corner have turned many heads, particularly in the last season in Double-A Akron. The IBI's Jake Dungan examines the Cuban native's breakout season and whether he's the future at the hot corner for the Tribe.

Third base has been a revolving door for the Indians in recent years with Jack Hannahan, Lonnie Chisenhall, Carlos Santana, Mike Aviles, Jose Ramirez and Giovanny Urshela taking reps at the hot corner since 2011. Heading into the 2016 season, Urshela is currently slated as the starter at third, although the Tribe is also exploring external options such as veterans Juan Uribe and David Freese. But what does the farm system have as far as future third base options?

Yandy Diaz was signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Cuba in September of 2013. After playing for parts of three seasons with Villa Clara as part of of the Cuban National Series where he batted .277 with three homers and 41 RBI's in 131 games. His primary appeal from the beginning was his plate discipline as Diaz drew 65 walks versus 54 strikeouts in CNS play while posting a .412 on-base percentage. That trend continued in his first professional season in Single-A Carolina where the infielder posted a 35-49 strikeout-to-walk ratio with a .396 OBP in 338 plate appearances.

Unfortunately, a wrist injury cut Diaz's season short in 2014, so with only 76 professional games logged, he was still somewhat of an unknown when he reported to Double-A with the RubberDucks to start 2015. He wouldn't stay unknown for long, however, as by the end of May, following a mediocre start in April, Diaz was batting .292 with an impressive .394 OBP. He wasn't hitting for much power at that point with only four extra base hits, but his 29 walks against just 24 strikeouts were drawing more attention to his advanced plate approach.

Between May and August, Diaz batted .325 with seven home runs, 49 RBI's, 11 doubles, four triples and 50 runs scored in 111 games. He also maintained, and even improved, his plate discipline drawing 67 walks while only striking out 55 times, helping to add up to a superb .423 OBP. In that span, his monthly batting average only fell below .300 once (.295 in July) and his OBP never dropped below the .400 mark.

If that isn't impressive enough, through his Double-A campaign as a whole before being promoted to Columbus late in the year, the 24-year-old went back-to-back games without getting on base only twice with both coming within the same week's span in April. Plus, Diaz went hitless in back-to-back contests just four times in 132 games in Akron while going more than two games without a hit just once, which was a three-game span in July where he still drew two walks and scored a run in six at-bats.

Regardless of those impressive numbers, the question many were asking during the season and still continue to ask now is can Diaz hit for more power? With him being six-foot, two-inches and 185 pounds and playing a traditional power position, that question is understandable. My answer to you is yes he can and he can potentially do it without sacrificing his sound approach.
Why? Take a look at his August statistics. They were by far his best month as far as power and run production as he clubbed four home runs and six doubles in 27 games while knocking in 20 runs, giving him a much more respectable .529 slugging percentage. What's so remarkable is that August was also his best month in the batting and on-base department with a .356 and .447 slash line, respectively. Additionally, his walks were still ahead of his strikeouts at 16-14. In fact, between the All-Star break and his promotion to Triple-A, Diaz posted OPS of .872 compared to the .790 mark he had accumulated in the first half. If you want to measure his power splits specifically, he had an ISO of .153 in the second half compared to the .059 mark he compiled prior to the break.

It's also worth considering that Diaz played in a pitcher's park in Akron, which seemed to be especially unkind to hitters in 2015, as RubberDucks players and coaches often pointed out over the course of the season. There wasn't a considerable difference between his slugging percentage at home and on the road (.398 vs. .407), but six of his seven home runs did come away from Canal Park. Getting a longer look in the more hitting-friendly confines of Huntington Park in the upcoming season will hopefully put more of his power on display.

If there is one area Diaz needs to improve, it would be on the defensive side of the ball, which seems odd since he was voted the top defensive third baseman in the Eastern League in 2015 by managers and writers. His throwing mechanics were an area specifically addressed by Akron manager Dave Wallace as he pointed to a tendancy to not step into his throws and thus not having as good accuracy as he would otherwise. However, with Diaz's arm strength, it's not a major surprise that he's trying to muscle all his throws across the diamond. [ Can Any One Say Aramis Ramirez ??? ]

Diaz is currently being groomed as a third baseman, but he came out of Cuba as a utility player who played in the CNS as second baseman, but has also spent a lot of time in the outfield. His athleticism and arm strength were primarily what led to the Indians moving him to third base, as it is an area of need both in the farm system and in Cleveland. However, if the organization so chooses, Diaz can profile at multiple other positions if his long-term home winds up not being at the hot corner.

But for the time being, Yandy Diaz will remain the Indians' top third base prospect as he projects to begin the year with the Clippers. And if his plate discipline and offensive consistency persist and his power continues to develop, mark my words, you could be witnessing the rise of another very special player in Cleveland.

[ I Would Like To See The Indians Take More Interest In These Cuban Defectors. They Play In The Best Of Competitive Environments, Not Just In Their National League But In All Of The Highly Competitive International Venues. These Players Do Not Need A Lot Of Time In The Minor Leagues Before They Can Qualify For The Major League Scene As We All Have Seen ]

I'd trade some offense that Diaz may offer for the great defense Urshela provides. Gio probably has more power. Yandy clearly better on-base skills. Neithe can run.

Neither can run?

Were they both stricken by Polio or something?

You must not have seen Diaz yet, Civ. He's a big guy, 6'2" 220+, but also a good athlete. He's no Lofton but he can run a little.

I know you like Gio, Civ, but I really think Diaz will be taking that job from him. Probably later this season.

.

Could Yandy Diaz Be a Future Solution at Third Base?

Danny Madden | On 17, Jan 2016

Coming into the season, the name Yandy Diaz was not one that anyone had really heard much about. In the league for just one season, he hadn’t quite made a name for himself just yet. That might not be the case anymore, as Diaz has worked his way up the ladder and is now a legitimate option for the Indians, possibly sooner rather than later.

Diaz was signed by the Indians prior to the 2014 season. He started out that year in High-A Carolina. During his time there he only played in 76 games due an injury in his wrist. In that small sample size though, Diaz had hit .286/.396/.367 with seven doubles, five triples, and two home runs. Even in a small size such as it was in 2014, he still showed off some fantastic on-base abilities, while also hitting for average.

In 2015, he started off the season with the Double-A RubberDucks, where he would spend almost the entire season. After suffering the wrist injury in 2014, it was unknown how Diaz would come back in 2015. With little knowledge of how he could handle the MiLB compared to when he was playing in Cuba, there was certainly mystery behind what Diaz would actually bring to this team. What he ended up bringing was way more than probably anyone could have anticipated.

He ended his time at Double-A Akron hitting .315/.412/.408 in 132 games. He hit 13 doubles, five triples, seven home runs, and stole eight bases.

Let’s put an image of Diaz together quickly. He stands at 6’2”, approximately 225 lbs, and he is built like a machine. For a guy his size, one would expect a lot of power and little to no speed on the base paths. On the contrary, Diaz is opposite of that assumption. He’s quite fast for how large he actually is, and he’s smart on the base paths. He can steal a base when he wants to, or try to leg out a double into a triple. It’s surprising how well he moves on the bases for his size, but it goes to show how intelligent he is.

While Diaz is big and strong, he does not hit for a ton of power. His on base percentage actually was higher than his slugging percentage, if that shows anything at all. It seemed as though Diaz started to figure out how to drive the ball more as the season went on. In the first half, Diaz hit six doubles, three triples, and two home runs. In the second half, he hit seven doubles, two triples, and five home runs. He started to figure out that he didn’t always need to hit the ball for contact and that he could give the ball some lift if he altered his mechanics just slightly at the plate. It started to show, and it could be something to develop going forward.

The most promising tool that Diaz brings though is his on base abilities. Not only does he have a great swing to make contact with the ball, but his plate discipline is off the charts. He never seemed to get into a slump at the plate. He managed to have an OBP over .400 and a batting average over .300 in almost every month. There was one month each where they both dropped below those thresholds. In that month, he hit .295 and his OBP was at .375.

His ability to get on base is where Diaz thrives the most. He ended the season with a total of 78 walks to 70 strike outs. He led the Eastern League in walks, and it was a larger margin over Brock Stassi before Diaz was called up to Triple-A, but then ended the season with only more walk than Stassi.

Where the power is lacking, he makes up in making contact and providing superb defense at third base. He is also a right-handed bat, which could help out the Indians in the future as it seems that they’re always searching for right handed batters.

In 2015, Diaz his .349/.426/.434 against left-handed pitching.

He was called up to Triple-A Columbus near the end of the regular season. As the Clippers were heading to the playoffs, they wanted to utilize Diaz in their lineup. Unfortunately, Diaz struggled in his short time in Columbus. In four games, he hit .158/.158/.263 with two doubles and an RBI.

As of right now, the Indians are planning on starting the season with incumbent third basemen Giovanny Urshela. It’s well known how amazing Urshela’s defense is, but he struggled at the plate during his time in Cleveland. Diaz is not yet ready to make the jump to Cleveland, but there’s always that chance that if Diaz comes out swinging at spring training, and Urshela continues to struggle at the plate, then Diaz may start the season in Cleveland. Being more realistic, Diaz is more likely to be a September call up at the earliest, but probably won’t see any major league time until 2017.

Regardless of when he gets there, he’s the next best option for third base going forward and he’s putting together a pretty strong case of why he should be there. Should Urshela struggle at the major league level, and manager Terry Francona decides that he’d rather keep infielder Jose Ramirez as a utility infielder over a third basemen, then Diaz could get his time sooner rather than later.

It’s time that people really get to know Diaz, because he’s a guy that could be sticking around in Cleveland for many years to come.

Just read that only 2 Tribe minor leaguers have had seasons in which they have walked more than they struck out in the last 5 years. Lindor and Yandy Diaz.

Diaz has did it twice.

Hence my man crush on him.

OK, he can run. And he's on on-base machine. But not a particularly impressive defender. I'd be interested in seeing him work at 1st base, where he could fill in until Bradley reaches the majors. I'm biased toward excellent defense

Diaz is very good defensively too. The above article I posted went as far as to call his defense "superb". I haven't seen enough of him myself yet to say for sure but the one time I saw him he did fine. Nothing memorable one way or the other. I did see enough of him to tell he runs well enough that he is not a station to station guy. He's not a burner but he can score from 2nd, or go 1st to 3rd.

Team needs help offensively, especially at the corners and especially from the right side. Gonna take more than great defense for Gio to hold him off.