Cleveland Sports Forum

i'm pretty sure anyone can replace an injured player. but I welcome Logan Allen getting one start to see how he's coming along. He's had some very promising scouting reports. And I am looking forward to the day when we can offer a starting rotation with 2 lefthanded Logan Allens and really puzzle the oppostion. {drafted his namesake this year and both now appear in our Top 30 prospect list]

What I haven't found anywhere, maybe just not looking hard enough is the list of all the players at the Alternate Sites. Indians.com lists the 40 man roster but not the list of the guys in Eastlake. BA would be the most likely source.

Here's a BA piece on Alternate Sites:

The cancellation of the minor league baseball season has left thousands of players out of work. Only the few dozen selected by each organization for a spot in their 60-man player pools have had any formal development since spring training was shut down March 12. That might be about to change.

Sources have indicated to Baseball America that MLB is considering allowing teams to add roughly 15 additional players to their player pools.

Currently, teams are allowed to have 28 players on their major league rosters. That means there can be no more than 32 players at each alternate site at a given time, which is not enough to play full intrasquad games every day.

The Red Sox’s current alternate training site roster, for example, lists 29 players. Seventeen are pitchers and four are catchers. If you’re counting, that leaves just eight other position players—six infielders and two outfielders (Cesar Puello and Jarren Duran).

The lack of players and imbalance in roster composition leads to a few less-than-ideal situations. First, the games are usually less than nine innings. Two players BA spoke with this week said intrasquads have been roughly five innings each day. In a year when innings and at-bats are paramount, that’s not optimal.

Second, the uneven distribution of position players and pitchers—necessitated in some cases by the desire to have a mix of upper-level, veteran players who can contribute in the major leagues as well as some of the organization’s top prospects—means either players are going to have to play out of position or coaches will have to fill in as players on a regular basis. With plenty of players, including many lower-level prospects for whom the 2020 season could have been instrumental, readily available, adding roughly 15 players to each team’s player pool would quickly alleviate that problem and allow teams to play full intrasquad games with players only.

More players at alternate sites also gives teams more protection in case of injuries or COVID-19 outbreaks. The 2020 season has already seen 95 players make their major league debuts, including many who would not have gotten the chance if not for outbreaks on their parent clubs.

Marlins righthander Humberto Mejia, for example, made his first career big league start despite never pitching above high Class A after Miami returned to play following an outbreak that jumbled their Opening Day roster.

There is also still the question of whether there will be an Arizona Fall League, either in its traditional form or an expanded version with a companion league in Florida. There are many questions about whether such a league can be done safely, and multiple front office officials have also said they fear it may be cut for cost purposes. If there is no fall prospect league or instructional leagues for player development, then adding more players to a player pool would become even more important.

Even for players who are working out at alternate sites, innings and at-bats are going to be stunted since games at those facilities didn’t begin until after the league restarted following protracted negotiations between MLB and the MLBPA.

Former first-round pick Triston McKenzie set for Indians debut
By Zack Meisel 2h ago 6
CLEVELAND — At some point Saturday afternoon, before Triston McKenzie scans the empty seats and digs his cleats into the dirt in the center of the mound at Progressive Field, he’ll receive a message from the Indians’ assistant pitching coach.

Ruben Niebla has followed the same ritual for a long list of starters who have debuted for the Indians during his two decades of involvement with the organization’s pitching factory. Niebla drove to Cleveland to watch Adam Plutko and Aaron Civale make their first starts. When Zach Plesac debuted at Fenway Park last season, Niebla texted him that he didn’t need to succumb to his jitters because Niebla felt nervous enough for both of them.

Niebla can recall attending Josh Tomlin’s first start in 2010, a seven-inning gem against the Yankees during Alex Rodriguez’s pursuit of his 600th home run.

“It’s that same, joyous feeling of watching a guy that’s gone through some trials, tribulations,” said Niebla, one of the few members of the Indians’ traveling party who has witnessed a McKenzie outing. “Especially with Triston’s path — it’s going to be very rewarding.”

McKenzie, 23, last appeared in an official game on Aug. 30, 2018, back when a gallon of milk cost $2.92 and a U.S. postage stamp cost 50 cents. For the first time in 723 days, the statistics he registers on Saturday will be glued to his Baseball Reference page.

Injuries wiped out McKenzie’s 2019 season and stranded him in Goodyear, Ariz., where he played Call of Duty, Overwatch, Apex and Madden to break up the daily monotony at the team’s complex. For more than a year, he made near-daily trips to the weight room and the trainer’s room in Goodyear before grabbing a Chipotle burrito and a video-game controller.

An upper back strain marred the first few months of McKenzie’s 2019 campaign. Then, a pectoral strain ended his year before it ever began. It was a disheartening development, but McKenzie said he couldn’t lose sight of “the light at the end of the tunnel.”

On Saturday, he’ll finally step into that spotlight. It might not be a permanent shift; the Indians have a handful of moving parts they’ll need to sort out over the next few weeks, as Mike Clevinger and Zach Plesac toil away in Eastlake.

The Indians have been encouraged with McKenzie’s progress at the club’s alternate site. They could have tabbed Logan Allen or Scott Moss for the start against the Tigers. Instead, they’re handing the ball to the organization’s former No. 1 prospect, a string bean-shaped right-hander who wields a mid-90s fastball and a sharp curveball.

Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said he doesn’t know much about McKenzie, other than what a clubhouse attendant told him: that he “has a big arm, throws (with) a long arm, really high hand and lets her fly.”

“I know he’s about 6-foot-5 and he’s really skinny,” Gardenhire said.

Carl Willis has never seen McKenzie pitch in an actual game, only in bullpen sessions and live batting practice. McKenzie was scheduled to appear in the Cactus League in March before the pandemic spoiled those plans. He has stretched out to about five innings and 85 pitches in Lake County.

“In his outings at Lake County,” Willis said, “he doesn’t just go out and try to get hitters out. He is using the time to improve himself. He’s had situations there where he gets into counts and maybe he could blow a guy away with his fastball or bounce a curveball, but yet he’s throwing changeups, he’s throwing sliders. And it’s because he understands that when he takes this next step, he’s going to have to be able to do those things. It’s one of the things that makes our staff as successful as they are: that we can be somewhat unpredictable and throw different pitches in counts that most guys are throwing a fastball. A lot of maturity on Triston’s part.”

That’s a pillar of the Indians’ pitching development pipeline. When Shane Bieber was thriving at Double-A Akron a few years ago, he was initially perplexed as to why the team wanted him to test out a changeup. They insisted it would benefit him once he reached the majors, providing him with another out pitch that would dive low and away from left-handed hitters. Bieber spent several years refining it until he felt comfortable throwing the pitch to big leaguers.

McKenzie was considered a top-50 prospect by Baseball America, MLB Pipeline and Baseball Prospectus entering both the 2018 and ’19 seasons. He owns a 2.68 ERA in 60 minor-league outings, with nearly 11 strikeouts per nine innings.

Niebla lauded McKenzie’s fastball, which sits in the 92-96 mph range and rises 20-22 inches. He also praised McKenzie’s curveball, which dips 15-17 inches. McKenzie tunnels the two pitches, so if he exhibits pinpoint command — releasing the two pitches from the same spot and starting toward the same direction — a batter will have to decide to swing before knowing whether the pitch will rise two feet or tumble toward the dirt.

McKenzie also throws a changeup and, within the last year, has implemented a slider. The Indians’ pitching team has supplied him with feedback about optimal velocity, shape, depth and other analytical features.

“We’re obviously very confident in (his) strengths,” Willis said. “We don’t want to overload Triston or any young starter with information and cloud their thought process and have them try to do things that they’re probably going to be able to do in the future, but they’re not quite there yet. Because you do finish development at the major-league level.”

And for a guy who hasn’t appeared in a game in two years, that’s especially true. So how will he overcome that?

“I think that’s a good question,” Niebla said. “I think that’s a question that we all kind of had. I think that’s a question that might be going through his head, as well.”

There’s plenty of intrigue, plenty of mystery. And there’s plenty of uncertainty about how McKenzie fits into the equation beyond Saturday.

But for at least one evening, the Indians will watch their 2015 first-round pick make the leap to the majors.

(Photo: LG Patterson / MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Carlos Santana, King of Free Passes: Indians’ veteran slugger on historic pace


By Zack Meisel Aug 20, 2020 6
If you scroll for hours, you’ll find Carlos Santana’s name buried near the bottom of the batting average leaderboard. He owns the 10th-lowest average among qualified American League hitters at .197.

And yet, with a powerful blend of patience and magic, Santana boasts the seventh-best on-base percentage in the AL (.408).

In 24 games, Santana has totaled 10 singles, two doubles and three home runs, including his International Space Station-scraping blast that vaulted the Indians to victory in Pittsburgh on Tuesday. He has also drawn a league-high 27 free passes, which places his walk rate at 26.2 percent, leaps and bounds higher than his already-healthy annual rate. And that’s after failing to draw a walk in his last three games, his longest drought of the season.


It’s such a simple premise: Hack away at a pitch tossed into the strike zone and rest your bat on your shoulder when the baseball plunges to the dirt or spins toward your ankles. Santana follows that script better than anyone. No qualified hitter has offered at a lower percentage of pitches. (Yandy Díaz ranks third; Alex Bregman, Mike Trout and Christian Yelich aren’t far behind.)

Of course, it’s a much more difficult task than outlined here. According to a Popular Mechanics piece, even a 90-mph fastball reaches home plate in about four-tenths of a second. And, really, that’s the velocity of a lot of sidewinding sliders in today’s game. So, in the amount of time it takes a person to blink, a batter must attempt to recognize the pitch escaping the hurler’s hand, determine if it’s bound for the strike zone and, if so, initiate a swing.

“Easier said than done, for sure,” Indians teammate Jordan Luplow said.

In a normal, 162-game season, Santana would be on pace for about 182 walks. That would rank third in major-league history, behind a pair of Barry Bonds seasons and just ahead of totals compiled by Bonds, Babe Ruth, Mark McGwire and Ted Williams.

A quick aside: Bonds walked an absurd 232 times in 2004, a season in which he turned 40 years old and posted a T-ball-like .362/.609/.812 slash line. More than half of those walks were of the intentional variety.

Teams were terrified that Bonds, Ruth and McGwire would deposit their pitches on the other side of the outfield fence. Santana has hit three home runs this season, including two in his last two games. He just has a rare knack for refusing to cater to the pitcher’s demands.

“Everybody knows I’m going to be patient and take a lot of walks,” Santana said. “But I see the ball great. I try to swing at my pitch and I know I’m patient, but (I take it) one thing at a time.”

Santana has offered at 15.3 percent of pitches outside of the strike zone this season, per Baseball Info Solutions. That’s about half of the league average and a steep drop from his already-low rate.

Percentage of pitches Santana swings at outside the strike zone
Santana’s O-Swing percentage: 15.3 percent
League average: 29.8 percent

How often Santana makes contact when he swings at a pitch outside the strike zone
Santana’s O-Contact percentage: 69.0 percent
League average: 60.6 percent

How often Santana swings and misses
Swinging strike rate: 6.8 percent
League average: 11.2 percent

“You want guys to control the strike zone,” manager Terry Francona said. “If you have hitters that control the strike zone, you’ll swing at strikes. They’re probably going to walk, they’re going to get themselves in hitter’s counts, they’re going to get better pitches to hit, not just go up there trying to walk. That’s not necessarily the goal. You’ve seen Carlos for a long time. He takes some hellacious swings when the ball’s in the strike zone, but he tries not to leave the strike zone because he knows he can’t do much with it.”

Only six big-league hitters have seen more pitches per plate appearance this season. He has reached a 3-0 count in 9.7 percent of his trips to the batter’s box, which ranks seventh in the majors. To the delight of those who champion the sport’s unwritten rules, Santana has not swung at a 3-0 pitch this season.

“He’s patient at the plate and he’s perseverant to try and put good at-bats together,” Sandy Alomar Jr. said. “He gives himself a chance every at-bat. He goes deep into counts and he feasts on mistakes.”

As a result, even when he’s in a funk at the plate, as had been the case before his pair of three-run blasts this week, he can still reach base at an impressive clip. Earlier this month, Santana passed Tris Speaker for second place on the Indians’ all-time walks list. He sits 147 free passes behind Jim Thome for the top spot on the leaderboard.

“Look at this year,” Santana said. “The average is a little down, but the walks have been able to help my team. It’s helped everything, especially now. Baseball has changed (over) the past five years. Right now, I think walks are very important.”


Indians first baseman Carlos Santana and starting pitcher Aaron Civale celebrate after beating the Pirates on Wednesday at PNC Park. (Charles LeClaire / USA Today)
Final Thoughts
• The Indians rotation receives all of the attention, but the bullpen has posted a 2.63 ERA, which ranks third in the majors behind the Dodgers and Athletics. The Phillies bullpen sports an 8.11 ERA. Cleveland’s relievers rank fourth in strikeout rate, second in walk rate and second in home run rate.

• Aaron Civale said he hadn’t thrown a complete game since high school before he went the distance Wednesday night in Pittsburgh. Civale threw 109 pitches, an array of sinkers and cutters and curveballs and changeups. Pirates hitters offered at 15 of his 26 curveballs. They came up empty on nine of those 15 swings.

Cleveland starters’ strikeout-to-walk ratios this season:
Aaron Civale: 32 strikeouts, 3 walks
Shane Bieber: 54 strikeouts, 6 walks
Zach Plesac: 24 strikeouts, 2 walks
Carlos Carrasco: 35 strikeouts, 14 walks
Mike Clevinger: 15 strikeouts, 10 walks

• The Indians are 12-0 this season when they score at least three runs.

• The players’ dugout jam sessions commenced on Sunday afternoon in Detroit. Ever since, players have produced a steady beat by pounding the dugout railing with their hands, water bottles or anything they can find. Alomar referred to Carlos Carrasco and Franmil Reyes as the “captain cheerleaders.”

“Is that part of the unwritten rules, too?” Alomar joked. “No, I like it. It gets monotonous when you’re sitting there listening to the speakers and the same sequence of noises from the speakers. So the guys are starting to motivate each other.”

• Speaking of unwritten rules, Delino DeShields Jr. offered this in the aftermath of the Fernando Tatis Jr. saga:

“In order for our game to grow, we can’t stay in the same place that we were in 30, 40 years ago. We have to develop and start bringing a different vibe to the sport. … I think the game is changing. We have to adjust. MLB, we had a slogan a couple years ago, ‘Let the kids play.’ We have to follow through with that. Let us do what we do. Have fun. If you get upset at players just enjoying the game, then I don’t know, maybe it’s not for you.”

Cleveland starters’ strikeout-to-walk ratios this season:
Aaron Civale: 32 strikeouts, 3 walks
Shane Bieber: 54 strikeouts, 6 walks
Zach Plesac: 24 strikeouts, 2 walks
Carlos Carrasco: 35 strikeouts, 14 walks
Mike Clevinger: 15 strikeouts, 10 walks

omitted Adam Plutko 9 strikeouts 3 walks
can now add: Triston McKenzie 10 strikeouts 1 walk

CLEVELAND -- It may take manager Terry Francona a little longer than he’d like to rejoin the Indians, but according to president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti, the outlook is bright.

The Indians released more details regarding Francona’s condition on Tuesday, explaining that doctors at the Cleveland Clinic found clots in his blood that required a last-minute procedure on Friday to insert a stent to help his blood flow.

“Tito is in the process of recovering from that,” Antonetti said. “The outlook is obviously very good, but he’s banged up from the procedure.”

Francona has been battling minor gastrointestinal issues over the past 11 months, which was the reason for his first absence from the Tribe from Aug. 2-9. After the team’s road series to Detroit (Aug. 14-16), he returned for more evaluations at the clinic. In that process, they realized he had some clotting in his veins.

The Indians had been updating Francona’s status on a series-by-series basis and didn't speculate on a potential return date, but now the team has stated that it may take a while before Francona is able to get back to the ballpark.

“He’s in the process of recovering, but he’s still pretty sore -- in fact, very sore,” Antonetti said. “That’s not unexpected, but it will just take him a little while to feel better. So he’s on the path to recovery, but it may take a little bit of time for him to get back into the dugout.”

BA ranks Cleveland No. 5 in their "midseason" power rankings and names, surprise surprise Bieber as team MVP

Midseason MVP: Shane Bieber, RHP — The AL Cy Young Award is Bieber’s to lose with room to spare. He is 6-0, 1.35, both best in the league, and leads the majors with 75 strikeouts in only 46.2 innings pitched.

[Maybe he'll finish second and third, too.]

White Sox, Indians Reportedly Discussing Mike Clevinger Trade
By Anthony Franco | August 30, 2020 at 12:03pm CDT

The White Sox and Indians are “actively involved” in trade talks surrounding Cleveland right-hander Mike Clevinger, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Jon Heyman of MLB Network adds the Braves, Yankees, Padres and Dodgers among Clevinger’s pursuers, adding that the right-hander has a “good chance” to be dealt.

As recently as Friday, it seemed unlikely Clevinger would go anywhere, with Cleveland apparently setting an extremely high price tag on him. The price tag seemingly remains high. Heyman hears that Cleveland would want big league talent in return (Twitter link), while Robert Murray reports that the initial ask was “four quality prospects.”

Clevinger’s violation of the Indians’ coronavirus protocols and subsequent demotion are well-known at this point and have made him an interesting trade candidate, although there’s no urgency (at least from an on-field perspective) for Cleveland to move him. Clevinger is controlled through 2022 via arbitration and has offered front-end production for most of the past four years.

The Braves and Yankees have been known to be targeting starting pitching, and Heyman adds that the Padres are seeking another starter. The Dodgers, meanwhile, are targeting players with multiple years of control, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Bill Punkett of the Orange County Register), so Clevinger fits the bill.

The White Sox are also in the market for starters (even more so with Gio González hitting the injured list this afternoon), although a Clevinger deal would be extremely surprising. Players of his caliber with multiple years of control are seldom traded within the division, even less often between two immediate contenders.

We know clevinger knows where to party in Chicago But that sounds like an unlikely trading partner
What kind of rumor doesn’t mention any names on the other side?

trade buzz

Indians of course are on the list of 5 potential landing spots for Joey Gallo. Not my kind of player, but who am I to judge


On one hand, Gallo has not been doing a lot to pump up his trade value of late. He entered Sunday with only a .629 OPS over his previous 21 games, dropping his season line to .188/.339/.436 -- good for a league-average wRC+ of 100 -- with his usual pile of strikeouts. He’s still making elite contact when he gets the bat on the ball, but the results haven’t been there.

On the other hand, Gallo is only 26, he’s under club control through the 2022 season, and as recently as 2019, he was playing at an MVP-caliber level until injuries intervened. Until being placed on the injured list last June 2, Gallo was batting .276/.421/.653, ranking eighth in the Majors in wRC+ (164), tied for fifth in homers (17) and tied for fourth in FanGraphs WAR (2.9).

ON the other hand, MLB.com projects Gallo trade to Tampa. Also suggest Reds will "give in and trade Bauer" Don't project any Cleveland deals.

Padres Acquire Mike Clevinger, Greg Allen In Nine-Player Trade With Indians

By Steve Adams | August 31, 2020 at 11:50am CDT

Four trades in 48 hours wasn’t enough for Padres general manager A.J. Preller. The Padres announced Monday the acquisition of right-hander Mike Clevinger, outfielder Greg Allen and a player to be named later from the Indians in exchange for a six-player package of outfielder/first baseman Josh Naylor, catcher Austin Hedges, right-hander Cal Quantrill, minor league shortstop Gabriel Arias, minor league left-hands Joey Cantillo and minor league infielder Owen Miller.



When Summer Camp was booting back up, a trade sending Clevinger out of Cleveland at a time when the Indians sat atop the AL Central standings would’ve seemed far-fetched. The club had already dealt away Trevor Bauer and Corey Kluber in the past 12 months, setting Clevinger up as a front-of-the-rotation workhorse.

Much has changed since that time, however. Clevinger drew ire from organizational higher-ups not only for breaking Covid-19 protocols but then taking a flight with the team rather than being forthcoming about his actions. That led to Clevinger being optioned to team’s alternate training site alongside Zach Plesac, who also violated protocols but was found to have done so before traveling with the club. Reports after the pair was optioned indicated that some teammates were so furious with the pair that they threatened to opt out of the season if Clevinger and Plesac were permitted to rejoin the club right away.

All the while, the Indians were receiving better-than-expected performances from other arms. Shane Bieber had already established himself as an above-average starter, but he’s ascended to bona fide Cy Young and MVP-caliber performance in the first month of play. Righty Aaron Civale has become the latest Cleveland pitching prospect to rise from obscurity to what looks like a high-end arm (3.72 ERA, 3.07 FIP in 46 innings). Carlos Carrasco is rounding back into form after last year’s frightening battle with leukemia. Triston McKenzie punched out 10 hitters in an electric MLB debut. And the aforementioned Plesac turned heads himself prior to being optioned (1.29 ERA, 24-to-2 K/BB ratio in 21 innings).

That hardly makes Clevinger expendable, but the Indians do seemingly have the depth to field a strong rotation even when subtracting one of the most talented pieces. And while Clevinger may have fallen out of favor a bit with the organization and/or teammates, there’s little denying that he is indeed among the game’s more talented arms. Dating back to 2017, the 29-year-old has compiled a 2.97 ERA and 3.43 FIP with averages of 10.2 strikeouts, 3.4 walks and 0.94 home runs allowed per nine innings pitched.

Beyond Clevinger’s high-end performance on the mound, his remaining club control only added to his allure among other clubs. He’s earning $4.1MM in 2020 — which prorates to about $1.48MM (with $617K yet to be paid) — and is controlled for an additional two seasons beyond the current campaign. For the Padres, that means that their rotation over the next two-plus seasons will feature a blend of Clevinger, Chris Paddack, Dinelson Lamet, MacKenzie Gore, Luis Patino and Zach Davies (though Davies is controlled only through 2021). It’s an enviable stockpile of arms — one that doesn’t even acknowledge the likes of Joey Lucchesi, Michel Baez and Adrian Morejon. Of course, some from that trio could yet be shipped out in trades to address other areas of need.

While Clevinger is the clear headliner of this deal — and perhaps of the entire 2020 trade deadline — he’s not the only piece going to San Diego. The Friars will also pick up four-plus years of control over the 27-year-old Allen. He’s out to a rough start in 2020 and has yet to really hit much in parts of four big league seasons, but Allen is a switch-hitting speedster with an above-average glove and experience at all three outfield spots.

He’s unlikely to push for a starting job, but Allen is a nice bench piece who can provide a late-inning jolt on the basepaths, a defensive upgrade or a more advantageous platoon matchup. He’ll need to improve upon a tepid .239/.295/.344 career slash if he’s to stick with the club into his arbitration years, but he won’t be arb-eligible until after the 2021 season, so he can be a solid reserve option next year at just north of the league minimum.

If Waldron is indeed the third piece headed to San Diego in the deal, he’s more of a long-term play than anything else. The 23-year-old was the Indians’ 18th-round pick in 2019 and posted a strong 2.96 ERA with a 57-to-4 K/BB ratio in 45 2/3 innings last year in his lone pro season. However, he did so as a college arm pitching at Rookie ball and Short-Season Class-A, where he was comfortably older than the majority of his competition. It’ll be much more telling to see how he performs against more advanced competition in 2021, but the early results are still of some note. Waldron wasn’t in the Indians’ pool, hence his inclusion as a PTBNL.

Turning to the Indians, they’ll get a high-volume return — but one that does not contain any of the Padres’ top-ranked prospects. It always seemed likely that for the Indians to move Clevinger, they’d need to acquire MLB-ready talent that can step right onto the roster. They’ll receive just that in Naylor, Hedges and Quantrill at the very least, and Miller probably isn’t too far behind.


The 23-year-old Naylor was the No. 12 overall pick by the Marlins back in 2015 and was already traded once in the deal that sent Andrew Cashner from San Diego to Miami. He’s yet to cement himself as a big league regular but has fared quite well in the upper minors. The Padres haven’t exactly given Naylor an extended audition, but he’ll now presumably receive that in Cleveland. To this point in his career, Naylor is a .253/.315/.405 hitter in 317 MLB plate appearances. That’s not eye-catching production, but scouting reports have in the past credited him with plus-plus raw power and a potentially above-average hit tool. He hit .314/.389/.547 in Triple-A last year and .297/.383/.444 in a pitcher-friendly Double-A setting a year prior.

Naylor’s long-term home on defense could be either left field or first base, but with Carlos Santana and Franmil Reyes currently occupying first and the DH slot, respectively, Naylor seems likely ticketed for left field. In some ways, this is reminiscent of Cleveland’s bet on first baseman/outfielder Jake Bauers, but the club will hope for better results out of Naylor than they’ve received from Bauers so far. There’s certainly everyday upside present with Naylor, who can be controlled all the way through 2025, but it does seem a bit surprising that Cleveland brass didn’t focus on a more established young hitter.

Also going to Cleveland is Hedges, a 28-year-old defensive standout who has never provided much offense in the big leagues. The former top prospect has shown a bit of pop — career-high 18 homers in 2018 — but in total owns just a .199/.257/.359 slash through 1339 trips to the plate with San Diego. He’s obviously not a clear upgrade over Roberto Perez, but the Indians now possess two of the game’s very best defenders behind the dish.

Hedges, in fact, is widely regarded as MLB’s premier defensive catcher. Hedges was MLB’s best pitch framer in 2019, per Statcast, and has graded out at elite levels in that regard in each season of his career. He’s also thwarted 32 percent of stolen-base attempts against him while consistently drawing above-average marks for his pitch blocking abilities at Baseball Prospectus. Hedges is controlled through the 2022 season.

Quantrill, 25, brings another former first-round pick (eighth in 2016) and top prospect to the Indians organization. He’s shined in 17 1/3 frames as a multi-inning reliever in 2020 (five runs, 18-to-6 K/BB ratio), but he also struggled in a rotation role a year ago.

Quantrill has a low-spinning sinker (which is good for a sinker, as opposed to a four-seamer, where high spin is preferred) and has generally limited hard contact well, per Statcast. He may not have found his groove yet in the big leagues, but the Indians develop more quality arms than the vast majority of teams in the league. Getting their hands on a former top pick who was once a rather well-regarded prospect could yet yield some strong results, and Quantrill, like Naylor, is controllable through 2025.

Among the pure prospects headed to the Indians in this deal, Cantillo and Arias are regarded a bit more highly than Miller, though all three rank firmly in the middle ranks of an absolutely stacked farm system. Cantillo, 20, was a 16th-round pick in 2017 who has elevated his stock with a strong showing to this point in his pro career. He split last season between Class-A and Class-A Advanced, working to a combined 2.26 ERA with 11.6 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen writes that he’s currently tracking as a back-end starter but has a projectable frame that could allow for further growth and add some extra life to his pitches.

Arias, also 20, is regarded as an elite defender at short with some questions about his abilities at the plate. Baseball America ranked him ninth in the deep Padres system, praising his surprising raw power but noting that his current inability to lay off breaking balls out of the strike zone leads to untenable strikeout numbers. Arias is young, though, and he hit .302/.339/.470 in Class-A Advanced last year, so the tools are clearly there. Depending on how the bat progresses, he has everyday upside at shortstop.

Miller, 23, plays second base, shortstop and third base, and he turned in a solid .290/.355/.430 showing in a very tough Double-A setting last year. Miller has hit at every minor league stop and struck out at just a 15.4 percent rate in Double-A last season. MLB.com tabs him as a potential regular at second base, citing an arm that doesn’t quite play as a regular shortstop, or a utility man who can play three infield spots with a quality bat. He’s yet to make his big league debut, but Miller is the closest of the three minor leaguers in this deal.

We might not see a more franchise-altering deal than this at the 2020 deadline. For the Indians, it’s the type of trade fans are used to, painful as it might be. They’ll shed a player whose arbitration salary is on the rise and replace him with a bevy of young talent — a luxury that was possible due to the team’s superlative record in terms of developing starting pitching. They’re still in the driver’s seat as far as a potential postseason berth goes, but the club is quite likely weaker for the balance of the 2020 campaign. The long-term benefits should help the club sustain its long run of contending seasons in the AL Central, but that’ll be more of a challenge in and of itself as each of the White Sox, Tigers and Royals near the end of arduous rebuilding efforts.

The addition of Clevinger to an already formidable Padres rotation mix only further solidifies them as a win-now club for the foreseeable future, and they’re now a clear-cut postseason favorite in the NL. And unlike the last time the Padres went on an aggressive win-now tear, the Padres have the young foundation necessary — fronted by superstar Fernando Tatis Jr. — to support their recent wave of high-profile veteran acquisitions. They’ve completed a dizzying five trades since the weekend began — including a seven-player swap with Seattle last night — to remake an already strong club. The “Rock Star” GM is back, it seems, and the Padres certainly appear to be positioned better than they have been at any time in Preller’s tenure.

Ryan Spaeder reported last night that a deal sending Clevinger to Padres was in the works, though as of last evening he’d heard of some potential holdups in the deal. Robert Murray first reported that the deal was done (via Twitter). MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, ESPN’s Jeff Passan, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller all broke varying elements of the other players involved in the deal (all links to Twitter).

Indians Designate Domingo Santana
By Connor Byrne | August 31, 2020 at 2:00pm CDT

The Indians announced that they’ve designated outfielder Domingo Santana for assignment. The move makes room for newly acquired outfielder Josh Naylor, catcher Austin Hedges and right-hander Cal Quantrill, whom the Indians got from the Padres on Monday.

The 28-year-old Santana joined the Indians last winter for $1.5MM off back-to-back lackluster seasons with the Brewers and Mariners, but his attempt at a rebound hasn’t worked in 2020. Before the Indians booted him from their roster, Santana batted .157/.298/.286 with a pair of home runs in 84 plate appearances. His contract includes a $5MM option for 2021, but considering his production so far, the Indians surely would’ve bought him out for $250K had they kept him in the fold.

What Terry Pluto's been told:

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Another year, another trade-deadline deal with the San Diego Padres. The Indians send starter Mike Clevinger, outfielder Greg Allen and a player to be named later. How does it look, especially with the Indians adding six players?

. In terms of immediate impact, Zach Plesac will replace Clevinger in the starting rotation. The Indians also don’t have to worry about the approximate $8 million in salary Clevinger will receive next season.


2. Josh Naylor will help as an outfielder/first baseman. He is the older brother of Tribe minor league catcher Bo Naylor. He’s had some MLB experience, hitting .253 (.720 OPS) with 9 HR and 36 RBI in 112 career games.


3. Naylor is only 23. The lefty hitter has played some left field, but he’s probably best at first base. At 5-foot-11 and 250 pounds, he has battled weight problems. He looks like a hitter, batting .293 (.850 OPS) in 224 games at the Class AA/AAA levels. He hit 29 HR in that span.


4. The Indians outfield is so bad, Naylor will probably get a chance to play right away. The other big league-ready player is veteran catcher Austin Hedges. He’s a career .199 hitter (.616 OPS) in 406 MLB games. He’s considered an excellent defensive catcher. He has to be an upgrade over Sandy Leon and Beau Taylor as a backup. Those two are 6-for-67 (.089) this season.


5. They added 25-year-old righty Cal Quantrill to the bullpen. He has a 2.60 ERA in 17 innings this season. The Indians like San Diego pitchers. They grabbed Corey Kluber from the Padres’ Class AA team in 2010 as part of what was supposed to be a minor deal. Kluber won two Cy Young awards for the Tribe. They picked up reliever Phil Maton from the Padres last year. He has a 1.96 ERA with the Tribe in 19 games as a reliever dating back to last September.


6. The Padres tried to make Quantrill a starter, but he struggled. They sent him to the bullpen late last season, and he has a 1.80 ERA as a reliever. He looks like the kind of pitcher who helps the Tribe.

7. Before dealing with the main part of the deal – the prospects – I approach this trade with confidence because Tribe President Chris Antonetti and GM Mike Chernoff are good at these type of deals. They tell you their entire organization works at finding top prospects from other teams available in trades.


8. The Indians also deal with teams who are trying to make a playoff push. The Padres have not been to the postseason since 2006. They have been in a trading frenzy the last few days. At the time of the Clevinger deal, they had added eight players and dealt 14 in four separate deals. They have a prospect-rich system and they are dealing young players to add veterans for right now.


9. The Indians picked up Franmil Reyes in a three-way deal involving the Padres and Reds at the 2019 trading deadline. They gave up Trevor Bauer, who is heading to free agency at the end of this season. Right now, you’d trade Bauer straight up for Reyes, who is hitting .351 ( nope that's his on base pct; he's batting 289] .847 OPS) with 7 HR and 23 RBI.


10. The Indians also added starting pitching prospects Logan Allen and Scott Moss in that 2019 deal. I really like Moss. They picked up veteran OF Yasiel Puig, who is out of baseball right now. The idea was trading a key starting pitcher (Bauer) for players who can help immediately (Reyes, Puig) and prospects for the future.


11. This is the same type of present/future trade. The Indians like Naylor as a hitter and Quantrill in the bullpen. Hedges brings help as a catcher. Clevinger is a superb starter when he’s healthy. He will be very good for the Padres.


12. In 2018, the Indians traded one of their prospects Francisco Mejia to the Padres for relievers Brad Hand and Adam Cimber. Hand has been the Tribe’s closer. Mejia (.302 at Class AAA) has always hit in the minors. But he’s had problems at the big league level for the Padres, batting .225 (.670 OPS) with 12 HR in 127 games over three seasons. He is 3-for-38 this season. He’s also had trouble defensively as a catcher.


13. The Indians have traded several top prospects since 2016, including Justus Sheffield, Clint Frazier and Mejia. None has found his spot in the majors. I think Frazier will hit if given regular at-bats. Mejia looked like a natural hitter with the Tribe.


14. Now comes the fun part as we switch back to the current trade: The three prospects involved. The top is Gabriel Arias, considered “one of the most gifted shortstops in the minors” by Baseball America. The 20-year-old is Baseball America’s No. 7 prospect in the Padres’ system. “Evaluators predict multiple Gold Gloves for Arias if he can hit enough to play every day.”

15. Arias has not played above the Class A level. He batted .302 with 17 HR in the hitter-friendly California League in 2019. Baseball America doesn’t like his plate discipline. [because he struck out 128 times and walked only 25; that's awful] But he’s a such a gifted athlete and is so young, you can understand why the Indians want him. [to join a whole variety of our current top 10 prospects who are middle infielders; let's get more outfielders!]


16. The Tribe will probably trade Francisco Lindor after the season, but don’t look at Arias as an immediate replacement for the All-Star shortstop. Arias needs time to develop and no minor leagues this season certainly makes it harder for him to mature quickly as a player.


17. The Tribe also picked up Joey Cantillo. I hear they love the 20-year-old lefty. He is viewed a a future lefty starter, something the Indians need. He has not played higher than Class A, where he has a career 13-7 record and 2.51 ERA with 221 strikeouts in 169 innings. He’s the Padres’ No. 9 prospect. back of the rotation prospect says BA


18. I like Owen Miller, a 23-year-old who has played some shortstop but whose best position is second base. Baseball America called Miller one of the “best pure hitters” in the Padres’ farm system. He batted .290 (.807 OPS) with 13 HR at Class AA last season. He’s a career .307 hitter (.808 OPS) in the minors. He is a right-handed hitter who could move up quickly as he was set to play at Class AAA this season. [but he's not rated nearly as good a prospect at Tyler Freeman who plays the same positions, is 2 years younger and has better stats except for the homeruns[


19. In a trade like this, it’s hard to make snap judgments. Clevinger is the best player right now. But the Indians are very successful not only in acquiring minor league talent from other teams, but also developing that talent. That’s especially true for pitchers.


20. They added two middle infielders who are legitimate prospects (Miller/Arias). They added a big league-ready reliever (Quantrill), a viable backup catcher (Hedges) and a bat who should help at the Majors (Naylor). Finally, I’m excited about Cantillo, the lefty pitching prospect.


In a few years, Indians fans are really going to love this deal – and you can even like it right now. [Maybe.]