Offseason Spotlight: Thomas Neal

Thomas Neal (Photo: IPI)

The offseason continues to roll along. By now most of the players in the Cleveland Indians’ system from the minors to the majors are well into their preseason workouts in preparation for the new season.

Some of those preseason workouts have been interrupted this week as the Indians invited a select few players to come to Cleveland for their annual Winter Development Program. Eleven Indians players are currently in Cleveland this week getting to know the city and the facilities at Progressive Field, and then this weekend will ship off to Goodyear, Arizona for the second leg of the development program which finishes up at the end of next week.

One player participating in the program is newly acquired outfielder Thomas Neal.

Neal, 24, is the player the Indians acquired in their July 30th trade with the San Francisco Giants for infielder Orlando Cabrera. He played only 70 games last year between Triple-A Fresno and Columbus because he battled a few injuries, and hit .289 with 2 HR, 26 RBI, 8 stolen bases, and .734 OPS.

Like with any player the trade flipped Neal’s world upside down as he was leaving the confines of the Giants’ organization for an Indians organization he really knew nothing about. At first he was startled by the trade, but then quickly realized it is a new and maybe even better opportunity for him.

“I really look at it as a blessing,” Neal said in a recent interview with the IPI. “It is one of those situations you have no control over. Obviously the Indians believe in my talents enough to make that trade. At the time I didn’t even know who I was traded for as it was not officially out yet. It was exciting. I called my mom first and told her I can’t really talk and don’t have all the details – you know how moms want to ask all the questions. It was a hectic and crazy time.”

Neal had no idea he was even being considered in a deal. Even up to the time he was told over the phone by Giants Vice President of Baseball Operations Bobby Evans that he had been traded.

“It was about the second inning of our game and I was sitting on the bench,” Neal recalled. “Our athletic trainer came up to me and told me Bobby Evans wanted to speak to me. I wasn’t even putting two and two together, and I went upstairs and made the call and he told me I had been traded to the Indians. It took me by surprise and then we said our good-byes and he wished me well. It was a unique experience.”

At the time of the trade Neal was on the Triple-A disabled list with a left hand injury. He had last played on July 16th but the Indians were comfortable with the looks they had of him prior to the injury and with his medical information so made the trade. After the trade he continued his stay on the disabled list at Columbus for a week until he made his debut in the Indians organization, but was limited to just ten games before he was back on the disabled list and did not play the rest of the season.

The recurring hand injury Neal had to work through all last season made for a very frustrating season.

“For me, it was a frustrating season, but I wouldn’t call it a down year,” Neal said. “I don’t like to make any excuses but before the hand injury I was hitting .320 and tried to play through it and my numbers suffered. I feel like everything happens for a reason, and the injury gave me time to clear my head and fix some things. Mentally and physically I am fresh and hopefully in the long run it will help me finish strong.”

The hand injury mostly affected Neal’s ability to drive the ball. He is a well-rounded player that can hit for average and power, and also plays sound defense and can steal some bases. But the power component is what was missing the most last year as he came into the season with a career .475 slugging percentage but only had a .391 slugging percentage last season.

“It was just one of those years where I went on the DL the second game into the season, I came back and was back for 15-20 games and got hurt again and missed a month, and then came back and went on the DL again,” Neal said. “So it was hard to get into a rhythm. It was a palm injury that I hurt sliding into third. I kind of bruised it and tried to play on it for a week, but I slid again and it got little bit worse. It was one of those things where I was trying to swing and every time the knob hit my hand I couldn’t stay through the ball or anything. At first [the Giants] thought I had broken my hamate bone, but after more tests we found out it was just a deep bruise and was something I just had to take my time to make sure it got well.”

Now that Neal has had time to rest and recover from the hand injury last season, his right-handed bat and versatility in the outfield could really help the Indians at some point this season. As a right-handed hitter he brings something the Indians lack not only in Cleveland but through their minor league system. To break into the big leagues he is going to need to show he versatile in the outfield and fill a fourth outfield role.

“Me personally, I feel like I can play the corners and I played center [last] year,” Neal said. “I am faster than people give me credit for in the outfield. I really work on getting good jumps and it is something that I really work on with my defense and I think helps reading the ball off the bat. I played shortstop my whole life, so I have some instincts on what to expect and how to read the swings which helps make up for not having blazing speed.”

Even with his big 6’2” 225 pound frame, Neal moves well in the outfield. He was a shortstop in high school, but thanks to his former high school coach Tom Brunansky - the former Minnesota Twins outfielder in the 1980s and now currently the hitting coach for the Twins Triple-A Rochester affiliate – he moved Neal to the outfield near the end of his senior season and is something that has paid off for him ever since.

“In high school I played shortstop,” Neal said. “We were playing a game and I went into the outfield in center field. People kept hitting balls out there and I kept running them down and Brunansky said I had a better shot of being an outfielder. So about three quarters of the way through the season I made the switch to the outfield and it is how I got drafted.”

Neal also has some experience at first base as he spent his 2008 season at Low-A Augusta splitting time between first base and designated hitter. That season he was coming off of labrum surgery on his right shoulder and the Giants did not feel he was quite ready to go back out to the outfield, so had him play some first base that season.

That experience at first base along with Neal’s experience as a shortstop in high school could be something the Indians or another team experiments with down the road to add some versatility if he does not work out as a full time outfielder. But right now the focus is making him an option to use in the outfield this season.

Neal is one of several outfielders that will go to big league spring training in a dogfight for the fourth outfielder role on the team. Unless a few of the other candidates get hurt he is expected to open the 2012 season in Columbus, but will be one of the first options the Indians call upon this season when a need presents itself.

Health is always the biggest key, but if Neal is healthy and performing he has a great chance to make his Major League debut some time this season.

“Hopefully the opportunity presents itself,” Neal said. “Obviously everyone’s goal is to become a big leaguer. But I know the one thing I have always felt strongly about is that when I go up there I don’t want to come back. I want to go up there and be a productive Major Leaguer. I don’t want to be someone that is not helping the team. I want to be someone that can be a force. That’s my goal and what I am always going to strive to be.”



Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI. Also, his latest book the 2011 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is available for purchase for $20.95 to customers in the US (shipping and handling extra).

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Tribe Happenings: New year, but Indians face same issues

Shin-Soo Choo's poor season actually

helps the Indians chances to keep him.

(Photo: AP)

Some news, notes, and thoughts from my Indians notebook…

The “developmental” label

About this time last year amid contract extension talks between the Indians and his client Shin-Soo Choo, super-agent Scott Boras made what was perceived as a slight when he called the Indians a “developmental team”. His belief was that a team in a rebuilding stage was less of a lure to attract new players to play or to keep players from leaving. This was his roundabout way of saying a long term extension for Choo with the Indians was extremely iffy.

Even though the comment may have been of the backhanded variety, what Boras said about the Indians was exactly right. Whether he implied it or not, the Indians and other small to mid-market teams like them are in a way farm systems for the bigger market teams where the smaller markets feed the good players to the big markets once those players reach or near free agency.

The Indians’ front office often gets slammed for some poor decisions they make, and rightfully so, though I think considering the climate they work in they have had done a solid job. The unfortunate reality is in the last few years they have had to make the tough decision to trade their best players because of a ridiculous financial climate where there is no way a team like the Indians can go toe-to-toe with the big boys in free agency to try and retain their players. They learned this lesson the hard way in the past with the likes of Albert Belle, Manny Ramirez and Jim Thome.

Because of the way the game works today teams like the Indians will continue to be a developmental team for the bigger market teams. Boras was spot on about that. The Indians will have the true stars for five to seven years before they either leave via free agency or are traded before they become free agents. I hate to say it, but that is likely what will happen down the road with any of the current players such as Carlos Santana, Jason Kipnis, Asdrubal Cabrera, Justin Masterson, and so on.

This flies in the face of what I wrote in a column recently of how I think the Indians need to dig deep and find a way to retain their players. I still stand by that belief in that it is the only way to improve attendance because it would help restore faith in a fan base that distrusts the organization immensely. But having said that, I also understand that the Indians are limited in what they can do until this broken system gets fixed somewhere down the line.

Choo is a prime example of how things can change at a moment’s notice and how suddenly a player fits in well with a “developmental team”. Last offseason Boras and Choo had all the bargaining power coming off two straight very good seasons where he hit .300 or higher, had 20 or more homers, 86 or more RBI, and over 20 stolen bases. But fast forward a year later and now the Indians have the bargaining power after Choo struggled through a forgettable 2011 campaign where he was limited to just 85 games because of a hand injury, hit just .259 with 8 homers, 36 RBI and .733 OPS, and got in trouble off the field with a DUI.

As funny as it may sound, but Choo’s subpar season actually helps the Indians’ chances of retaining him long term. It is still a long shot, but now that some warts have been exposed Choo may no longer merit a big long term deal. He still has time the next two seasons to repair and improve his market value to get that mega contract two offseasons from now, but at the moment his drop in value helps the Indians. As a perennial All Star or one of the top players at his position he would be unsignable, but as just a good player with some question marks he suddenly becomes more retainable for the Indians.

Welcome to the new world of Major League Baseball. A world where for the small to mid-market teams they have to hope a player is good but not THAT good in order to keep them.

Not a PR move

There are a lot of skeptics out there that believe the Indians contract offer to outfielder Carlos Beltran was just a token offer in order to look like they are doing something this offseason. That they never intended to sign him and that they got into the contract discussions as nothing more than a public relations move.

First off, the Indians are not about doing things from a spending standpoint as a public relations move. They are an organization that operates in secrecy where they do not make the moves they are working on behind the scenes known to the public. They do not share much of what they are doing with anyone.

Anytime you see the Indians tied to a rumor on a free agent it is almost always coming from the agent, and if it is a rumor about a trade it is very likely coming from the agent again or the other team they are talking to in the trade. Now, they will respond accordingly when asked about a leaked rumor, though usually in a very vague manner or just deny it.

The Beltran interest was not leaked by the Indians as that was the agent doing it in order to create a market for his client. It is Free Agency 101 where the agents use the rumor mill to create interest in their client and thus get them more money. Had the agent not leaked it we probably would have never known the Indians ever made any attempt to sign Beltran. This is the case for several other free agents the Indians have already talked to this offseason that have already signed with other teams or are still free agents.

There are lots of past and present long term offers the Indians have made to players – some very good players from what I have heard - which have yet to see the light of day and probably never will. If the team wanted to use contract offers as a form of public relations, then why not leak any of those?

So with that, the idea that the Beltran negotiations were merely a public relations stunt by the Indians is a bit farfetched. The offers to Josh Willingham and Beltran were legitimate offers to try and bring them to Cleveland on a deal they thought was fair and fit right into the current blueprint of the team. Nothing else. There was no false interest where they had no intention to sign either of them and simply just wanted to get their name in the papers.

Setting the record straight

A lot of people call Indians owner Larry Dolan cheap and wish he would sell the team. His tenure as owner has certainly been a rocky one with lots of fan favorites being lost in free agency or getting traded, and the team has underperformed on the field.

But the cheap comment is something that I think is taken a bit too far. Dolan owns the top five payrolls in franchise history, and going a bit further owns 10 of the top 13 payrolls in franchise history. During former owner Dick Jacobs’ tenure as owner the team eclipsed the $60 million payroll threshold just once, while under Dolan they have been at $60 million or higher seven times.

Dolan is spending more than Jacobs ever did and doing so with less revenue as he does not have the annual playoff revenue stream to pull from, major corporate backing, no Browns, and most importantly a sold out ballpark every day. It is just a different game today than it was 10-15 years ago. The Indians made $40-50 million in payroll go a lot farther in the 90s because the economic landscape of the game had yet to make a seismic shift.

I’ll dig a little deeper into the free agency aspect and contracts the Indians have had under the regimes of Dolan and Jacobs with a feature piece shortly after the New Year, but in a nutshell, from a spending aspect the Indians have really not been any different now than they were 10-15 years ago. What has changed is everything around the Indians with the local economy and then the rapidly growing financial disparity in the game between the big market teams and everyone else.

Right-handed options

The offseason has now pushed into January and there is less than eight weeks until pitchers and catchers report for spring training. With time running out on the offseason the Indians still have a glaring need for right-handed bats.

They are expected to address that need before the start of the season with a trade or free agent pickup, but at the moment their internal options at first base or as a right-handed bat off the bench are thin with just Shelley Duncan, Matt LaPorta, Jose Lopez, Aaron Cunningham, Thomas Neal and Jared Goedert.

The way things stand right now the Indians would probably have to go with a Duncan and Carlos Santana platoon at first base if the season started today. That may not be a bad thing, but it is not the preferred way to go about it for next season as Santana is still more valuable to the team behind the plate and Duncan is more valuable as a right-handed bat off the bench and not used regularly.

Cunningham is a new player the Indians acquired in a trade a few weeks ago, but his role appears limited as a fourth outfielder. Lopez probably will not make the team unless an injury crops up in spring training, and even so he is not an option to play every day.

LaPorta could still factor into things if injuries occur, but right now the best thing for him is to probably have him spend the first two or three months of the season at Triple-A Columbus to get him on track. Goedert and Neal will also likely start the year in Columbus, though of all the right-handed hitting options listed Neal is probably the only one who could someday be an everyday option.

The Indians are very limited with their internal alternatives to fill not only their right-handed bat need but their first base void as well. All of the alternatives are role players at the moment and they need to find someone they can plug in as a stop gap for at least the 2012 season.

I still say someone like Derrek Lee would be an ideal fit at first base because of the contract he could be signed to and the value he brings in leadership, his defense, and a bat that is in decline but still productive.

Winter ball update

Things are winding down in winter ball as the regular season in Venezuela wrapped up on Friday night. The only regular season action remaining is out in Puerto Rico, Colombia, and Australia, while the Dominican Republic and Venezuela are now into their postseasons.

Fausto Carmona struggled in his second offseason outing out in the Dominican Republic on Wednesday. He pitched four innings and allowed two runs on five hits, two walks and had two wild pitches. He worked around the seven baserunners and wild pitches by limiting the damage to two runs, but it was a typical Carmona outing. So far this offseason his performance in just two games has been strikingly similar to his inconsistent 2011 season.

Asdrubal Cabrera’s offseason is done after his team was eliminated from the playoffs. He finished up his time in Venezuela hitting .246 with two homers, 10 RBI and .771 OPS in 17 games. He left the game on Thursday in the 4th inning and did not play in his team’s season finale on Friday, so he apparently suffered some kind of injury, though from what I have heard he is okay.

First base prospect Jesus Aguilar’s offseason is also finished. He had a very nice offseason showing where in 38 combined games between the Arizona Fall League and Venezuela he hit .305 with six homers, 23 RBI, .944 OPS. The power is no doubt there, but what really shined for him this offseason was his improved plate discipline where he drew walks at a much higher rate yet his power numbers at the plate were not affected.

Some other performances of note in winter ball this offseason: Ezequiel Carrera (.270, 2 HR, 13 RBI), Jose Lopez (.310, 5 HR, 24 RBI), Felix Pie (.273, 4 HR, 21 RBI).

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI. Also, his latest book the 2011 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is available for purchase for $20.95 to customers in the US (shipping and handling extra).

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2011 Indians 40-man review: Who do they remove?

Trevor Crowe and Luis Valbuena may not

survive on the 40-man roster. (Photo: AP)

With the World Series underway the official start of the 2011-2012 offseason is quickly drawing near. For those teams whose season already ended weeks ago they are making final preparations for the November 18^th roster date which is four weeks away.

This is a key date in the offseason as teams set their 40-man rosters for the upcoming season by making decisions on which players to keep, which players to remove, and which young players to add in order to protect them from the Rule 5 Draft in December. The Indians already made two decisions on Tuesday when they outrighted outfielder Jerad Head and right-handed pitcher Mitch Talbot off the 40-man roster.

Most of the additions to the 40-man roster are who organizations view as their best young talent in the minors that is up for roster protection from the Rule 5 Draft.  The rest of the additions come from signings through free agency with a few waiver claims or trades potentially sprinkled in.  Teams conduct several meetings from the final month of the season until the roster deadline date as they work to whittle down the roster and finalize it before the deadline.  Many decisions on who to remove and who to add from the roster are obvious, but other decisions are not so cut and dry.

Whether obvious or not, teams will wait until right around the deadline date to officially make roster additions from the minors in order to let things play out.  Teams rarely make roster decisions on who to add well in advance of the deadline since there is no rush to do so and it could be a decision that results in disaster. What if the player being rostered is playing winter ball then goes out the next day and gets seriously hurt? This is a situation the team wants to avoid, and is why most of these decisions typically always go down to the last minute.

Occasionally, a team will open up a roster spot by trading a player already on the 40-man roster in exchange for a non-roster player that is not required to be protected.  Even more rare are trades at this time of the year involving Rule 5 eligible players that teams may not have room on their roster to protect.  This is mostly because other teams are in the same boat, and also because teams have little interest to acquire a player that if they are even interested in they can just go out and try to pick them up in the Rule 5 Draft for little cost.

When it comes to filling out the 40-man roster at this time of the year, it all comes down to a combination of need and talent.  For a young team like the Indians that expects to contend next season and already has so many young players on the roster there is not as much focus on adding more youth to the roster this offseason as in previous years.

For the Indians most of the needed additions to the roster from their farm system this offseason happened over the course of this past season when they rostered such players as third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall, second baseman Jason Kipnis, right-handed reliever Zach Putnam and others. While there are still maybe two or three players from the farm system they will add to the roster, the additions the Indians make this offseason will likely mostly be Major League players via free agency or trade.

With all this in mind, let's take a look at what decisions the Indians may make in creating room on the 40-man roster prior to the November 18th roster deadline.  In the next few weeks I will post a follow up to this piece and take an in depth look at what players from their farm system the Indians will consider adding to the 40-man roster.

Roster Breakdown

Currently the Indians have 42 players on the 40-man roster, four of which are on the 60-day disabled list. There is no disabled list in the offseason, so by the November 18^th roster deadline the Indians will need to put all players on the 60-day disabled list back onto the active 40-man roster. These four players are right-handed pitcher Carlos Carrasco, right-handed pitcher Josh Tomlin, outfielder Michael Brantley, and outfielder Shin-Soo Choo.

Shortly after the World Series players eligible for free agency will officially be removed from the roster. The Indians have three players eligible for free agency: outfielder Kosuke Fukudome, designated hitter Jim Thome, and right-handed pitcher Chad Durbin. None of these players are expected to be resigned in advance of the start of free agency, so even with the activation of the 60-day disabled list players back on to the 40-man roster the removal of the three pending free agents technically puts the Indians roster at 39 players right now.

Obviously one open spot on the 40-man roster is not enough for the Indians to make needed and expected acquisitions via free agency and trade or to add some of their young players from the minors, so they still need to remove a few players from the roster.

Who Stays, Who Goes

Looking at the 39 players on the Indians’ roster that are not free agents, the following players appear to have a questionable status on the roster: Fausto Carmona (RHP), Kelvin De La Cruz (LHP), Corey Kluber (RHP), Luis Valbuena (INF), Trevor Crowe (OF), Shelley Duncan (1B/OF), Thomas Neal (OF), and Nick Weglarz (OF).

That's a lot of guys ranging from low to high chances at being removed from the roster.  Here is a breakdown of the chances each player is removed:

Fausto Carmona (Right-handed pitcher)

2011: 7-15, 5.25 ERA, 32 GS, 188.2 IP, 205 H, 22 HR, 60 BB, 109 K

The Indians have a pretty big decision to make on whether or not to pick up Carmona’s $7 million option for next season. This decision is expected to be made rather quickly this offseason as what they do with Carmona will directly affect what they do in the free agent and trade market and will determine how much money they have to spend. He has been an enigma as his inconsistency is maddening, but considering that he is healthy, has averaged 200 innings pitched the last two seasons, and has tons of talent that could still be reached it appears that the Indians will pick up the option. Besides, $7 million would not go very far in free agency for a starting pitcher as few if any pitchers better than Carmona can be signed for anything close to that.

Decision: The Indians pick up the club option and keep Carmona for another year to see if he puts it all together next year. They need starting pitching and in the starting pitching market $7 million for one season with two club option years is very cheap and one of the most team friendly contracts you will find.

Trevor Crowe (Outfielder)

2011: .214 AVG (6-for-28), 6 R, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 3 SB, 4 BB, 9 K, .563 OPS

Crowe went into the 2011 season as the favorite to make the opening day roster as the fourth outfielder, but a right shoulder injury in spring training forced him to be shutdown. He ended up having surgery and did not return until mid-September and played in just 15 games before an injury to his left shoulder ended his season prematurely. He is a former 1^st round pick so there is a lot invested in him and he also has an option remaining so there is some roster flexibility there next season, but the injuries and performance in the big leagues to date are a concern.

Decision: Due to his injury issues and performance the Indians can probably slip Crowe through waivers without risk of losing him, and that is what I think they will do either now or later this offseason when they need the roster spot. Provided he clears waivers, as a first time outright from the 40-man roster the Indians would still control him for next season.

Kelvin De La Cruz (Left-handed pitcher)

2011 at Double-A Akron: 5-6, 4.19 ERA, 23 G (16 GS), 86.0 IP, 70 H, 3 HR, 57 BB, 95 K

Among players in the Indians’ farm system De La Cruz had one of the more disappointing seasons this year, especially for a player on the 40-man roster. He has now used up two of his three option years the past two seasons at Double-A Akron and his performance has been inconsistent and he has not shown any improvement. The strikeout rate is nice (9.9 K/9 in 2011), but he is still walking way too many batters (6.0 BB/9 in 2011). He had a 6.1 BB/9 rate in 2010 at Akron so a return trip this past season did not help, and now it appears the Indians have resorted to putting him in the bullpen to hopefully fix the command issues. He was once a highly regarded prospect, but injuries and command problems the past few seasons have dimmed his star considerably.

Decision: De La Cruz looks like one of the more sure things to be removed from the roster this offseason considering where he is as a prospect and his plummeting value to the organization. It is possible another team may take a shot and claim him off waivers because he is left-handed and can strike batters out, but the chances appear to be slim and the Indians could risk that. As a first time outright, if he clears waivers he would be under the Indians’ control for 2012.

Shelley Duncan (Outfield/First base)

2011: .260 AVG, 29 R, 17 2B, 0 3B, 11 HR, 47 RBI, 0 SB, 19 BB, 56 K, .808 OPS

Duncan played in just 76 games and had 247 plate appearances, yet was a productive player in that limited playing time. For a team hurting for right-handed bats at the corner positions, letting him go without any other alternatives on hand would not make sense. Next year both Duncan and Matt LaPorta will probably go into spring training in a battle to make the team as the right-handed bat off the bench for left field and first base. At the moment the Indians probably plan to have LaPorta open the season at Triple-A Columbus to get him on track, which means before any other moves are made this offseason that Duncan has a firm hold on that bench role to start the season.

Decision: Duncan’s performance this past season along with his versatility to play left field and first base, his excellent clubhouse presence, and his acceptance as a role player off the bench make it highly unlikely he will be removed from the roster this offseason.   Even still, it is possible he could be removed later on this offseason if the Indians remove others and find themselves in a roster crunch, especially if the Indians make a sizable right-handed hitting acquisition at first base or left field.

Corey Kluber (Right-handed pitcher)

2011 at Triple-A Columbus: 7-11, 5.56 ERA, 27 GS, 150.2 IP, 153 H, 19 HR, 70 BB, 143 K

Kluber did not have a very good season at Triple-A Columbus this year, which was the result of a lack of consistency and some injuries. He made his Major League debut in September and pitched in three games out of the bullpen in Cleveland allowing four runs in 4.1 innings.  The Indians are still high on him as they think he has good stuff and an ability to get strikeouts, and they did trade right-handed pitcher Jake Westbrook for him a year ago so there is some investment in him that they may still want to see through.

Decision:  With Mitch Talbot being outrighted earlier in the week they already removed one starting pitching open for 2012, so it decreases the likelihood Kluber is also outrighted, especially one year after being rostered. I’d say he remains on the roster, but there is still a chance he could be removed. If you are scoring at home I’d put it at 75-25.

Thomas Neal (Outfielder)

2011 at Triple-A: .289 AVG (74-for-256), 40 R, 14 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 26 RBI, 8 SB, 14 BB, 57 K, .734 OPS

The Indians acquired Neal back at the end of July and it was a disappointing finish to the season for him as several injuries limited him to just ten games with Triple-A Columbus the rest of the season. Injuries were an issue all season as he only played 70 total games between Triple-A Fresno and Columbus. The Indians acquired him from the Giants for infielder Orlando Cabrera and it looks like he has some value to the organization, but it would have been nice to see what he could do the final six weeks of the season to get a better read on him going forward. The one thing going for him is he is a right-handed hitting outfielder, something the Indians lack from Double-A all the way to the big leagues.

Decision: Neal is definitely a player who is on the short list as a possible roster removal this offseason, though there should be a few players ahead of him on that list. It really depends on how many players the Indians plan to add via free agency, what trades (if any) they make, and how many players from their farm system they need to add. I think he stays on the roster, mostly because of that right-handed bat and because the Indians have not yet seen what he can do.

Luis Valbuena (Infielder)

2011 at Triple-A: .302 AVG, 64 R, 22 2B, 0 3B, 17 HR, 75 RBI, 6 SB, 46 BB, 96 K, .848 OPS

Valbuena had a very good season at Triple-A Columbus, but he only managed to play in 17 games at the big league level and hit .209 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and a .506 OPS. Over the last two seasons he has shown he is too good for Triple-A but not good enough for the big leagues, the very definition of the classic 4A player. With Jason Kipnis and Cord Phelps at second base, Lonnie Chisenhall and Jack Hannahan at third base, Asdrubal Cabrera at shortstop, and the versatile Jason Donald available at any of the three positions, there just appears to be no room for Valbuena on the big league roster unless a severe rash of injuries occur.

Decision: Valbuena is only 25-years old, but it is time to pull the plug on him after two poor years at the big league level. While he has proven to be productive at Triple-A and may still have a future in the big leagues, the Indians just have several other options at any position he plays that warrants keeping him and taking up a valuable roster spot. I would be very surprised if Valbuena is on the 40-man roster post November 18^th as to me he is one of the most for sure removals this offseason.

Nick Weglarz (Outfielder)

2011 at Double-A: .179 AVG (24-for-134), 25 R, 8 2B, 0 3B, 3 HR, 12 RBI, 0 SB, 36 BB, 43 K, .666 OPS

It was a very disappointing year for Weglarz as once again injuries ruined his season. He tore the meniscus in his knee in spring training and it resulted in him missing the first two months of the season, and then after returning in June his season came to an end in late July when he suffered an injury to his left elbow. Injuries have been an issue for him his entire seven year career as he played in a total of just 128 games the last two seasons and four of his last six seasons have ended prematurely because of injury.  There is no denying his power and patient approach as it is something that the Indians and scouts for other teams have loved all along with him. The problem is he is he will turn 24-years old in December and there are huge questions about his health, not to mention he may at best be a designated hitter only if he makes it to the big leagues.

Decision: The Indians know Weglarz is a better player than the player he was statistically this past season, but they may use those poor numbers to their advantage by removing him from the roster and trying to sneak him through waivers. If he is removed he will remain property of the Indians in 2012. My guess right now is he is will be removed from the roster, though that is not as firm as some of the others.

Final Tally

When determining who stays and goes it should be noted that not all of the players will be removed at the same time. Some will be removed right away in the next week or so while others may be removed as needed later in the offseason. As we have seen in the past the Indians have made roster additions in February the past two years picking up Russell Branyan and Orlando Cabrera and needed to remove a player from the roster at that time.

There are certain to be a couple of guys kept on the roster that will leave people scratching their heads.  As we have seen in the past a few “sacrificial lambs” will be kept on the 40-man roster in the event roster room needs to be made to add a free agent or trade acquisition.  Teams keep a few of these players on the roster instead of loading up with straight prospects so as to not have to designate for assignment a prospect they might otherwise not want to.

So who do the Indians remove? I’ll go ahead and predict that Valbuena and De La Cruz are removed, and maybe not right away but later this offseason Crowe and Weglarz are removed. Those moves should allow five open slots on the 40-man roster to add players from the farm system, free agency, and trade.

So what internal options will the Indians look to fill those open spots?  We'll take a look at all the options in the upcoming followup piece in about two weeks.

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI. Also, his latest book the 2011 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is available for purchase for $20.95 to customers in the US (shipping and handling extra).

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Final Indians trade deadline thoughts

Ubaldo Jimenez (Photo: AP)

Some random thoughts post-trade deadline…

- The final scorecard at the July 31st trade deadline had the Indians picking up outfielder Kosuke Fukudome and right-handed pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez for six minor league prospects, and then sending off infielder Orlando Cabrera for a minor league prospect. With all three trades it is hard to argue how they did not improve themselves for this season with all of these deals as the addition of Fukudome and Jimenez upgrade the roster, and the subtraction of Cabrera is an upgrade in itself to allow Jason Kipnis to play full time at second base.

- The Fukudome move is more for this season, and the Cabrera deal may end up providing the Indians good outfield depth with the acquisition of Thomas Neal. But the move that will have a big affect on their future is the Jimenez one since they paid a steep price in giving up their two top pitching prospects left-hander Drew Pomeranz and right-hander Alex White. Time will tell how the Jimenez trade works out, and I shared a lot of my thoughts about it yesterday morning here.

- In addition to some of the things I wrote yesterday about Jimenez, there have been a lot of concerns from fans about reports of his velocity loss this season. I can tell you right now, there is absolutely no way that the Indians make this deal unless they belief he is 100% healthy. They are obviously at the mercy of their doctors, own eyes, available medical information, and what was found in the physical, but with all of the available information they believe without a doubt he is healthy. As for the velocity loss? There is a belief that the velocity concerns stem from his lack of work this spring and early in the year with a thumb injury, groin strain, and a hip flexor. Those things can certainly have an affect on performance and the quality of stuff considering pitchers use their fingers and lower half so much when pitching.

- What was so inviting about Jimenez is his contract. The Indians control him through 2013 as he makes $4.2 million next season and has a $5.75 million club option on him for 2013 that the Indians almost surely will pick up. It is possible he may be controlled beyond the 2013 season as his 2014 club option for $8 million turned into a player option when he was traded, which makes for a good bargaining tool in getting a new contract done in the offseason. Considering what the Indians gave up to get him, if Jimenez has a strong finish to this season and is healthy, I believe they will strongly consider reworking his deal to add more years onto the backend of it. They are going to want to keep him around a lot longer than the two additional years after this season, and he wants to re-do his deal, so there is a potential mutual interest to get a deal done. Stay tuned.

- Yes, the Indians needed an impact bat at the deadline. Yes, they are disappointed they were unable to add one. But, looking at it realistically, the options available were not very good. Everyone is upset they did not add a bat, but who was available that was a legitimate upgrade? Ryan Ludwick, he of the .674 OPS and 92 OPS+? Fans are disappointed with Matt LaPorta this year (.709 OPS, 98 OPS+), but do they realize he is playing better than Ludwick? After Carlos Beltran and Hunter Pence, there were no impact bats available, just marginal (if that) upgrades. The only player who may have helped was Michael Bourn, which the Indians had interest in, but he hits left-handed and is more of a speed-bat guy than a run producer. For nothing I would have had no problem adding Ludwick and seeing what happened, but apparently his price went up some when the Pirates got involved so the Indians backed out.

- The Indians are going to have to bank on health and improved performance of some of the guys in the lineup to get this offense going. With Orlando Cabrera gone, it should allow Jason Kipnis to play almost everyday. As he settles in he should have an impact on the lineup. As Lonnie Chisenhall settles in he could also have a positive affect. The addition of Jason Donald as the utility player over Cabrera is also an upgrade. Shin-Soo Choo is taking batting practice later this week, and could soon go on a short rehab assignment and be back by the following weekend. Also, Sizemore may be back by the end of the month. So right now the Indians only option – at the moment – is to get better production and health from the guys already here. That was the biggest need whether they picked up a Ryan Ludwick or not.

- One thing to remember is that though the July 31 deadline has passed, the Indians can still make a trade before the August 31 deadline. The only problem is trades in August involving players on the 40-man roster require players be passed through trade assignment waivers. Teams can put a player on trade assignment waivers to gauge trade interest, and if someone claims him they can pull him back if they choose to without losing him. If a player is not claimed within 47 hours then that club is free to trade him to any team. There will surely be a lot of players put on trade assignment waivers, and several players will not get through because teams will “block” them by making a waiver claim. But there will surely be some high contract guys who get through and a few of them will be bats, so the Indians can still acquire a bat in August. Who that may be is unknown at this time, but names will surely begin to surface later this week.

- One thing being glossed over in the bounty the Indians paid to get Jimenez is that Alex White is a very serious question mark going forward. The Rockies intend on keeping him as a starter, but I have a feeling they do not know or understand the full scope of his finger injury, sort of like the Indians with Jason Knapp’s shoulder when they got him from the Phillies two years ago. I have been saying this since the injury happened back in late-May, but there is and has been strong concern by the Indians about White’s finger sprain. The Indians had said if he returned later this month that he would finish the season in the bullpen to monitor his workload and health and that he would still be a starter next season. What was not said is there was concern for the injury next year and that the bullpen may have been in his near future. White has done well in his rehab, and was slated to make a rehab outing on Saturday, but the Indians may have traded a pitcher who was damaged goods at his peak value. He very well may end up in the Rockies rotation for many years, but it is something to think as I am sure everyone will be monitoring the success/failures of all the players in the Jimenez deal going forward.

- That’s the thing though. While Jimenez obviously has some red flags with the velocity and it is odd as to why the Rockies would even trade him to begin with, the Indians including Alex White in the deal should be another red flag as well on just how healthy they believe he is. In the end, the Rockies made the deal not because they were trying to dump an injured Jimenez on another team, but because they were given an overwhelming offer, and on the flip side the Indians strongly believe Jimenez is healthy and provides that much needed 1-2 punch at the front of the rotation with Justin Masterson to win in the postseason.

- As for Orlando Cabrera, it was a sad ending to what was really a great beginning for him and the Indians. He was instrumental in the success of the team early in the season as a great leader and helping this team believe they can win now. He also has been a positive influence and is a big reason for the emergence of Asdrubal Cabrera. But once he lost playing time to Cord Phelps in June he changed and showed that the only way he would truly be happy is if he was playing every day. Considering the options at the Indians’ disposal with Phelps and Jason Kipnis as better short term and long term fits, there was just no way to keep him happy the rest of the season and the inevitable trade to the Giants happened. Back when the Indians played the Giants in late June there was talk of Cabrera eventually ending up with the Giants, and well, he finally did.

- What I am surprised about is the return the Indians got for Cabrera. Maybe the Giants really wanted Cabrera and the Indians played poker with them to get a useable major league player in return, who knows. Bottom line the Indians picked up Triple-A outfielder Thomas Neal who is a legitimate prospect as he is only 23-years old still, in Triple-A, has been a performer in his career, and is considered to be a big league option. He was the Giants #7 ranked prospect according to Baseball America at the start of the season.

- Neal has a nice powerful build at 6’2 and 225 pounds, can play either corner outfield position, and was a much needed right-handed power bat depth option the Indians needed. Besides the undervalued Jerad Head the Indians have no right-handed hitting outfield options at Double-A and above, or anywhere in the system really. So he fills a glaring immediate need, and with two options years remaining after this season should be a Major League option the next few seasons. Once he returns from the disabled list from a bruised hand, he could also very soon be a callup option to Cleveland.

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI. Also, his latest book the 2011 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is available for purchase for $20.95 to customers in the US (shipping and handling extra).

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Newest Indian: Thomas Neal

The big news of the trade deadline for the Tribe of course is the Ubaldo Jimenez deal, where the Indians traded three of their top ten prospects for the next 2.5 years of Jimenez. I am not here to debate this deal, many will I am sure. In the explosion of this deal the Indians made a lesser deal, that should include little debate. They traded Orlando Cabrera to the Giants for Thomas Neal. 

Indians fans had talked about OCAB to the Giants back when we played them, but the Giants reportedly had no interest. The lackluster play of Brandon Crawford and Miguel Tejada changed their minds rather quickly. The Indians received a bit of a fallen prospect in this deal in Thomas Neal.

Thomas Neal is a 23-year old, right-handed (that's correct--right-handed) outfielder. He has been well thought of in many circles, and was ranked the 96th best prospect in all of baseball by Baseball America in 2010. He was ranked the 6th best minor league player for the Giants by Keith Law and Fangraphs and 7th by both BA and MLB.

He had one big year where he showed off some power and hit 22 bombs, but has mostly just been a consistent hitter. He might not have big power, but has a good doubles stroke, twice hitting 40 or more, and plays a solid outfield with an above-average arm. Even in a down year he is still posting a 761 OPS in AAA (only 4 Indians regulars have OPS over 700). He only has two home runs this year, and his doubles are down a bit, and that's why he was attainable. Still he has produced at every level, and you have to wonder if this could be little like McAllister, where the Indians are buying low and betting on a rebound.

He seems to be improving in terms of pitch recognition, as his strike out totals have dropped as he has risen up the ranks, which is not often seen. Neal strikes me as kind of a good-at-everything, master-of-nothing type. He could be a player who surprises everyone, and I would not be shocked. After all of our trades and promotions, I believe he would be one of our top ten prospects right now. I tweeted Keith Law for a quick review on Neal:

"I think he's a really good 4th OF. Great return for Cabrera"

On a team that has played Austin Kearns and Travis Buck all season, doesn't a right-handed, really-good 4th outfielder sound like a great addition? Plus' we have had a lot of luck trading washed up vets to San Francisco over the years and getting players. I am excited for Neal. The Indians traded OCAB and got a guy who is a potential legit major league option. Plus, for twitter fans, rumor has it that he is a highly entertaining edition to the Tribe's ranks in the social circles.

Welcome Thomas Neal, another potential steal for a half-season of a bench-worthy veteran.

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI. Also, his latest book the 2011 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is available for purchase for $20.95 to customers in the US (shipping and handling extra).

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