Indians Pickup Lindsay Off Waivers

The Cleveland Indians today claimed right-handed relief pitcher Shane Lindsay off outright waivers from the New York Yankees and optioned him to Kinston. To make room for Lindsay on the Indians 40-man roster, the Indians transferred outfielder Grady Sizemore from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.

Lindsay, 25, began the 2010 season with the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox going 0-1 with a 6.59 ERA (13.2 IP, 15 H, 10 R/ER, 17 BB, 19 K) in 14 appearances after being optioned to the Sky Sox on March 16 out of the Rockies big league camp. He was claimed off waivers by the Yankees on May 14 and has not pitched in a game after reporting to extended spring training in Tampa, FL. Last year, the Melbourne, Australia native was converted to a relief role after spending his first five professional seasons as a starter and went a combined 4-2 with a 2.43 ERA (33.1 IP, 16 H, 9 R/ER, 23 BB, 43 K) in 27 appearances between AA Tulsa and A Asheville.

This past offseason Lindsay was rated by Baseball America as the Colorado Rockies 23rd best prospect, and he was their 17th ranked prospect in 2009. Lindsay was originally signed by the Rockies as a non-drafted free agent in August of 2003 and in 2005 he was named the Northwest League Player of the Year and the league’s #1 prospect by Baseball America (6-1, 1.89 ERA, 13 GS).

Lindsay may be older and had some command issues, but he has an electric fastball which sits in the mid-90s and reaches 98 MPH and he complements it with a knuckle curveball which is a solid pitch for him. He also throws a changeup, though it is still a work on progress.

Posted in: Shane Lindsay