As a reminder, while I am away things will be business as usual at the IPI with the only small exception being I may be a little slower in getting updates up right away. Also, feel free to contact me with any questions you may have regarding the Indians.
Onto the Inbox...
Brian wrote: Would the Indians receive a first round pick if they don't trade Austin Kearns and let him leave through free agency this off-season?
This is tough to say right now as compensation is based on Type A or Type B status, but according to MLBTradeRumors.com Kearns pretty much has no shot at Type A or B so the Indians should not be in line for any draft pick compensation for him this offseason. He has a very long shot at being a Type B, but if you look at the listing he has a lot of players to jump over to fall into that bracket. As a Type B, the Indians would get a sandwich pick between the 1st and 2nd round.
At this point, really none of the Indians’ potential free agents will bring any potential draft compensation. Jake Westbrook has almost no shot, and although Kerry Wood’s chances are a little better he really has no shot either. I could see the Indians offering Westbrook arbitration if he indeed became a Type B as I think bringing him back on a one year deal is what they would like to do because at $7-9 million for the one year he would fill a need and be the normal cost of doing business for a middle of the rotation starting pitcher. If by chance Wood became a Type B he would be too expensive to offer arbitration to in the first place as he would get at least somewhere in the $8 million range, so the Indians would not gamble at all on that.
The one player who looks to have the best shot at being a Type A or B free agent is Jhonny Peralta who currently is just outside of Type B status. In his case the Indians would have to decline his $7 million option for next year (they would) and then offer him arbitration (they likely would not). Considering he would get at least around $4 million in arbitration (on the low side) and he will probably be hard-pressed to get a significant offer in free agency, that is a proposition the Indians likely do not want to gamble on getting stuck with him. It may all be moot anyway as it seems likely he will be traded sometime before the end of August.
As a note, even Russell Branyan - who they traded a few weeks ago - likely won’t provide the Mariners any draft pick compensation either.
Devin R wrote: Really encouraging to hear that [Adam Miller] could be (knock on wood) back on the mound by the fall. Fingers are certainly crossed. I know I'm getting ahead of myself in asking this, but barring any setbacks, what would be the plan for him next year?
I think given the finger issues that you can safely predict that Miller’s starting days are over. His finger will never be able to handle throwing that many pitches and that many innings for long durations an outing. If he ever makes it back to where he is pitching competitively in games again, it most certainly will be strictly as a one to two inning reliever. There are only so many bullets left to fire for him, if any at all. He obviously has the stuff, but we need to see where he is at as there is still a long way to go.
One thing to remember is he has mostly been playing catch and long toss. It will be a lot different once he gets on a mound and is letting it air out with mid-90s heat and breaking off a few sliders. That will be the true test, and one which I think we will find out maybe for good by the end of the summer pitching for rookie level Arizona or in the fall in the Fall Instructional League. If things go well, I think he would have to be a big league option right out of the gates next year in spring training as the Indians would look to capitalize on anything he could give them if he is healthy enough to pitch since his expiration date with the finger could come at any moment (if it hasn’t already).
Triple wrote: It’s nice to see Jeanmar [Gomez] pitching a little better. Any idea what has changed for him?
Gomez is certainly tough to figure out this year, and he has been very inconsistent. He has pitched better of late, though his last two outings before the All Star break were a disaster. But as simple as it sounds, it is really just the return of his confidence and command and pitching more relaxed with a more aggressive approach on attacking hitters and going right at them.
I think it is safe to say, though, that this is certainly not the year the Indians envisioned with him after they rostered him this past winter, though it should be mentioned he is still only 22-years old. He kind of reminds me of a former prospect in the system from earlier in the decade, right-hander Francisco Cruceta, a guy with similar stuff and pedigree who had a great 2003 campaign at Double-A Akron (like Gomez last year), got rostered, but plateaued at the Triple-A level. Obviously, I hope that isn’t the case with Gomez, but I have never been one to be as high on him as others.
John S. wrote: JoeDirt can play 2nd right? So why is Anderson in the bigs? Indians can play Donald at SS, JoeDirt at 2nd, JP can back up SS, Marte at 3rd or JoeDirt at 3rd, and Donald at 2nd. The Indians should be playing JP at SS to show his "skills" for trade bait.
As for Goedert (it is pronounced “Geh-dert” not “Joe-dert”), yes, he has "played" second base before, but he is no longer considered an option there. He has not played there this year and only four games last year. At this point he is strictly a third baseman who has the athleticism to occasionally fill in at second base or maybe in the outfield in an emergency situation.
Hernandez is a true shortstop, something the Indians wanted to back up Donald at shortstop while Asdrubal Cabrera is out. Peralta is no longer an option at shortstop. Teams already know what kind of shortstop he is, so playing him there would only hurt any trade value he has as other teams would see how much his defensive skills have deteriorated since he last played there.
Cabrera looks like he will be back in Cleveland sometime next week, as he was placed on the 60-day disabled list on May 18th which would make him eligible to come off on July 17 or 18th. This will likely result in Hernandez being designated for assignment since to activate Cabrera from the 60-day disabled list a spot on the 40-man and 25-man rosters would be required. I think Goedert’s time may come when (if) Peralta is dealt, though with Jayson Nix and Andy Marte around as third base options to replace Peralta, it is not a certainty.
Rich S. wrote: At the end of 2008 it looked like the Indians had no true second base prospects in their system. In that offseason they traded for Luis Valbuena…in the Cliff Lee deal last year they obtained Jason Donald...now at AAA Columbus Cord Phelps looks very good, and Jason Kipnis is tearing it up in Akron. Josh Rodriguez also seems to have regained the form that once made him a top ten prospect. My question is how would you rank these five guys in terms of being the Indians regular second baseman for the future? Who has the best chance of being a regular, and who has the most versatility to be a utility player?
Man, this is a tough question. If I had to rank the five as far as what I think their odds are to become the eventual every day second baseman in Cleveland, I would do it two ways. One for 2011 and one for 2013.
2011: Donald, Phelps, Valbuena, Rodriguez, Kipnis
2013: Kipnis, Donald, Phelps, Valbuena, Rodriguez
Deciphering the above, Donald to me is the guy who they will go to at second base now for at least this year and next and see if he can settle into the position. If he hits, then he will stick there, and if not then he probably becomes the utility man. Kipnis will not be ready to play there to start next season and likely won't be in Cleveland at all next year, plus they have many other options to sort through in the meantime.
The guy I am interested to see how he plays out in all of this is Phelps as he seems like the odd man out at the moment with Donald getting all the opportunities now and then Kipnis slated as the guy who will take over there by sometime in 2012. Who knows what will happen with injuries and performance with all these players the next two years, but if Phelps, Kipnis and Donald all continue to improve and play well, I think Phelps could become expendable and be someone the Indians look to flip in a trade for a need. Let me be clear, I am just thinking out loud here as no one has said this to be the case (this is noted for the rumor mongers out there!).
As far as utility options go, from what I understand Kipnis and Phelps are not options to be used in that way since they really can’t play shortstop. So, I think utility consideration the next few years comes from the trio of Valbuena, Donald, and Rodriguez, with Valbuena and Rodriguez to me being the two main internal options considered this year and next.
Jay S. wrote: I know that the Indians have repeatedly referred to Austin Adams as a relief prospect, but in light of his success in a starting role, have you heard anything from the Indians about trying to develop him as a starter despite his height?
The Indians are very high on Adams, and rightfully so as his fastball-breaking ball combo is very good. All signs point to Adams moving to the bullpen after this season and going to the Double-A Akron bullpen to start next year, similar to what Bryan Price did this year.
One thing to note is the Indians will typically put a lot of their more high profile relief pitching prospects in starting roles for their first year or two in order to better help them develop their pitches, routine, and be exposed to as many game situations as possible. As a result, a lot of the times the rotations in Single-A will be comprised of a few pitchers who in the next year or so will be moved to the bullpen once they are ready to be tracked to the big leagues as a reliever. This is not to say the relievers already in relief roles at Single-A are not valuable, but just that they have a tougher, longer hill to climb.
Jim F. wrote: Tony, what happened to Dioris Robles? Thought he would make the AZL roster.
Robles was released earlier this spring. There were some concerns in regard to his visa brought up by the US Consulate with some things like his age. It was sort of a surprise release in the spring, as he was intriguing with the power/speed combo he had at his alleged young age. Apparently, the Indians decided it best to move on and released him.
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