We may be in for weeks of speculation centering on Indians superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor, who’s a potential trade candidate because he’s running out of team control and unlikely to sign an extension. For instance, Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com runs down reasons to trade Lindor now that he’s down to his second-last year of arbitration eligibility, while Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com names potential in-house replacements for the long haul should the Indians deal the 26-year-old. The team is indeed “receiving a lot of trade calls” for Lindor, Jon Heyman of MLB.com tweets. As you’d expect, though, the Indians’ public stance is that Lindor is likely to stay put. “My expectation is Frankie will be the shortstop Opening Day next year,” president Chris Antonetti said.
Here’s more from the game’s Central divisions…
- Tigers general manager Al Avila said this week that a “bat” – likely either an outfielder or a first baseman – as well as a backup catcher are on his shopping list, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com relays. It doesn’t seem that the Tigers will be adding a shortstop from outside, though. Rather, it looks as if utilityman Niko Goodrum is the favorite to land the job. Avila’s of the belief that young shortstop Willi Castro and catcher Jake Rogers, who made their major league debuts in 2019, need more seasoning at the Triple-A level.
- Various injuries have prevented 25-year-old Cardinals right-hander Alex Reyes from realizing his vast potential, but it appears he’ll enjoy “a normal offseason progression” this winter, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. Reyes, once among the game’s elite prospects, had an outstanding debut over 46 innings in 2016. He then missed all of 2017 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, threw 27 innings in 2018 (four in the majors) as a result of surgery to repair a tendon in his lat muscle and totaled just 40 1/3 frames this year (three at the MLB level) because of multiple health issues – including a strained pectoral.
- Pirates infielder Erik Gonzalez underwent left foot surgery Wednesday and won’t resume baseball activities for 10 to 12 weeks, Adam Berry of MLB.com tweets. It’s the second time Gonzalez has undergone surgery as a Pirate. The offseason acquisition from last winter underwent a procedure in April to repair a fractured left clavicle, which was one of multiple injuries that helped sideline him for the majority of the 2019 campaign. The 28-year-old posted woeful production over the 156 plate appearances he amassed, as he hit .254/.301/.317 with only one home run. He’s projected to earn $800K via arbitration in 2020.
The Alex Reyes… the story turning out to what could’ve been
I’d love to see him healthy this year putting up solid numbers
Sounds like he’s the next Mark Prior. Though if I remember correctly, Prior had at least one full season (did not look up to verify that).
Does anyone remember the other pitcher named Reyes, who was declared untouchable by the Cardinals about 15 years ago??? He couldn’t stay healthy either. The Cardinals should have traded him and Aybar when they had value. That’s a similar scenario the Cardinals have now with Alex Reyes and Carlos Martinez. Big build ups for big disappointments.
Anthony Reyes…
Gonna guess that Lindor rumors won’t be the biggest hit in Cleveland media circles this week.
Well done sir
Klentak is on the phone with Segura, Howard, Medina and Moniak, Bohm, Romero in the moving van for Lindor and Bauer.
Ummm Bauer no longer plays in Cleveland. He plays for Cincinnati now! Unless you are meaning Bauers with an s?
However you want to spin that though, the trade works great for the Indians!
They would get Lindor and Jack Bauer….Bauer’s a good clubhouse guy, I’ve heard…
they aren’t trading any of Howard, Bohm, or Medina
Someone actually thought Bauer was still on the Indians.
That’s word on the street.
Eh I forgot he was dealt for Puig, honestly it was a long boring season as a Phillies fan knowing they were out of it as soon as McPhail said if we get in [wild card] great if not oh well. Kluber still have an arm?
Wonder if the Tigers will trade away Boyd for prospects since their window still seems far away?
Do you trust Detroit’s scouting to get quality in return or their system to effectively develop any of those prospects?
Sorry to say that Tiger fans have four more years of “Miggy” style baseball. The team is centered around making Miguel Cabrera their feature player
You are spot on!!! Jake Rogers was a key component of the Verlander trade and still isn’t ready at age 24? Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez were there, but we get Diaz and Perez! Get ready Tiger fans, dumb Al will sign someone like Justin Smoak or Adam Jones and
Winters aren’t much fun with Mike Illitch gone. Come to think of it, summers aren’t much fun either.
At least you have the Red Wings to look forwa… oh
JD and the Pistons and the Lions…
Franklin Perez was the centerpiece of that trade. Rogers and Cameron were above average prospects added in. Sadly, it looks like Perez may never make it.
The Tigers also whiffed on not selling high on Fulmer. Were offered Bregman even up. That one will haunt them forever.
Sounds like the Tigers will go after an Eric Thames like bat. I wouldn’t be bothered with him. Though any bat in Comerica is going to be less productive from whence they came.
Agree, that the Tigers will suffer until Miggy is gone. 2024-25 at earliest before we see a playoff team. Sigh…..
Franklin Perez is still 2 years younger than most prospects at his level so let’s not right off a 21 year old kid just yet.
This whole “Miggy’s salary is holding us back” excuse is bull. This team stinks because the owner won’t spend any money. Get the payroll up to $150-$160 million and they can be competitive.
Are we to believe that once Miggy is gone, Illitch will spend?
when the pay roll was up there the team lost money. few owners are willing to lose there money to support a franchise.
What about for a major leaguer?
Say a Boyd for Buxton swap?
The Twins have OF depth and a rotation of Berrios, Odorizzi, and uh….yeah. Boyd slots in nicely as a solid #3 with upside for more. Buxton. Detroit gets a 25-year old major league outfielder with mega-star potential that they should immediately throw money at and try to extend as a “buy low”.
For perhaps a deal with the Yankees. Boyd for Frazier + Urshela seems to make sense for both sides.
Maybe the Dodgers. I don’t think Boyd for Verdugo is a terrible framework for a trade(another piece probably has to head to the Dodgers)
The Jays have been rumored to be looking for an arm. A Boyd for Gurriel + a prospect swap certainly makes some sense.
Maybe the Mets want a “super-rotation”, a Boyd for Nimmo + Dom Smith is a good framework
Want to get CRAZY?
A Tigers-Rockies swap of Boyd + another piece for Tapia,McMahon, and Freeland isn’t crazy.
A Red Sox-Tigers Boyd for Benintendi make some sense depending on how the Sox OF situation shakes itself out
Respectfully, you will never get a package like any of these you just suggested for Boyd.
Trust? Not sure we will get what Avila wants so I don’t expect him to be traded. There are 3 top FA so once the top pitchers are gone Boyd could come into play. Yankees need a starting pitcher so if they miss out on Cole, they have plenty of tier b prospects.
I would rather they trade Boyd for another major leaguer. Al’s record of trading for prospects is a dismal.
avila just isn’t a top notch gm. but I assume they will hire a super young guy to replace him.
The tigers followed the “hire a catcher for manager” trend with Ausmus. That was a dumpster fire.
Now I bet they’ll follow the “hire a young Ivy League analytics guy for GM” trend that is emerging.
Indians can’t afford to trade Lindor. Unless of course they have decided to rebuild. But they already said they’re not doing that.
What if they had Corey Seager as part of the return? He has a bit more control I think.
3 years to be exact, including this upcoming season
Nope. They have the same amount of control remaining. Two years each.
Paul DeJong could be controlled through 2025.
The idea of Lindor for DeJong straight up would seem like a non-starter for the Indians, but given how much more control DeJong comes with, it shouldn’t take more than a mid-level prospect to get a deal done, right? I’d throw in Tyler O’Neill, too. GIve me a call, Antonetti.
Cute story you keep repeating. But the Indians want to win NOW. So Lindor’s immediate impact would be more valuable to them than DeJong’s 6 years of control.
This is beyond hilarious, DeJong is a player that doesn’t come close to Linder in any area on the field, in the clubhouse or in the community yet the Tribe would swap them once the mid-level throw in was figured out? And here I thought the Padres fans came up with the most ludicrous trade scenarios…
Really, “community” players will win you a WS every time. The more car ads and charity events, the more wins.
Indians win total would not be affected by a straight up Lindor/DeJong deal. It’s all about pitching; vast majority of teams in MLB have enough hitting to win a division. Beyond that, it’s a matter of who has the hottest staff in October.
“Indians win total would not be affected by a straight up Lindor/DeJong deal.”
The lunacy never stops.
Cards make it to the playoffs with DeJong, and Indians didn’t with Lindor, but your logic (such as it is) concludes that the Tribe couldn’t get there with DeJong. You’re using Casual Fan Logic that can’t do without a player because you get attached to the star on your team. It’s more than a bit simple-minded to personally attack someone because they suggest that you could actually survive without the guy on your favorite baseball card.
the Dogers arent trading Seager. that speculation is smoke but no fire.
If that’s what it took to get Lindor, they’d do it in a heartbeat.
So, just where is this small market team in a football city going to get the $$ to sign Lindor? He’s gone, LONG gone before Opening Day, 2021 and he’ll be hawking cars for a dealership in a city that actually has an interest in baseball.
Kind of amazing that González could secure a $250,000 or 50% raise for having a total of 156 plate appearances
The Indians should trade Lindor now. He has already said that he won’t give the Indians a hometown discount and the team likely isn’t going to re-sign. They will get a better return for him when he has two years of control than they would if they traded him next offseason. The Indians should maximized their return. It won’t be a popular move, but it is the best move for the franchise going forward.
Would also mean the team has no chance of competing in the next 2 years
The tribe still have that pitching staff and capable players to compete in the central. Lindor is one of the top 5 players in baseball imo, so the return should be hefty
Any trade to the Dodgers has to start with either Lux or May
Nope. You can’t have your cake and eat it. If the Indians trade Lindor it means their window has slammed shut. Loudly.
They haven’t won it with him. Why not try without.
So we;re clear. You are saying that Lindor doesn’t help their chances?
To play devil’s advocate, Bryce Harper wasn’t so critical for the Nats.
The difference is the Nats had quality Major League outfielders on hand to replace Harper (basically would have had to trade Victor Robles if they had kept Harper) and letting him walk rather than topping the $330m he got from Philly allowed them to splurge on pitching, which they needed more than Harper.
The Indians, OTOH, have no one that can replace Lindor and whatever he is making in arbitration that the Indians save by trading him won’t get them anything that would help them more than Lindor would.
Show me — No team has a SS who could replace Lindor except perhaps the Dodgers with Seager. The only way this can work out well for Cleveland is for them to pick up multiple talented young players with a load of control time. The Indians appear to be losing Lindor after another year anyway since he says he’s not interested in signing an extension so it seems like their best path on this would be to trade him for a lot of young talent they can use or develop into some quality trade bait. Enter St Louis with guys like DeJong, O’Neill, Bader, Arozarena etc.
@dfinmozarks if the Indians are trying to win a championship in the next 2 years, what does it matter if they are going to lose Lindor after 2021?
Eric, thats what I said after Sox won the ws and Betts had a GREAT yr last off season. To no avail.
For Lindor to grant a “hometown discount”, he would need to be playing for the Caguas, PR Indians, but I agree that it’s wiser to trade him at peak value if you don’t have the $$ to sign him long term. Win total would not change much if any with a trade for a good glove, decent hit replacement with good upside.
Lindor to Atlanta for Dansby Swanson, Kyle Wright and Austin Riley.
That will not do it, Lonewolf. Wright and Riley have yet to show anything in the majors and Swanson is average. Pache or Waters would have to be in the deal.
I wish the Cardinals would cut ties with Alex Reyes!!
Why? As long as they can control him for cheap, might as well see if he can ever give them something.
I think maybe Alex Reyes is fast approaching that line where this front office will start weighing the bad with the good, in their decisions to offer their young players up, in any trade scenarios. As it stands, Reyes hasn’t shown much promise in offering any team, anything, as a result of his trips to the DL/IL! His trade value at this point has to be close to nothing.
Betts to the Cards, Dodgers, Cubs, Atlanta, Astros, Twins or Yankees. Maybe there are some other possible partners.
I would like to see included in a deal: Goldschmidt, Bryant, Max Kepler, Austin Riley or Gary Sanchez. and a prospect.
What are you talking about with the Cards giving up Goldy? Put down the bath salts.
The Cards primary needs don’t include a SS with DeJong showing steady improvement although a trade for Lindor would open an option to move DeJong over to 3rd and a trade of Carpenter. The primary needs are an addition to the rotation of a LH player with a record showing the ability to give the team over 190 IP. They also need a solid LH hitting OF with good defense skills and some pop to replace Ozuna who appears to be leaving for greener pastures or Bader who is great on defense and a real threat on the bases on those rare occasions when he does not strike out on sliders he can’t reach. The team doesn’t seem inclined to spend big even though they are one of the richer franchises and have loads of trade bait, especially in the OF. perhaps an offer of O’Neill, Bader and Arozarena for Lindor or a good offer for Moustakas? He’s not great on defense but he doesn’t need to be to improve on Carpenter and he would satisfy the need for some pop to replace the loss of Ozuna. I do predict some buyers remorse for whichever team picks up Ozuna. His stats just don’t merit what he wants. He’s had one great year when he was surrounded by Stanton and Yelich and got to see a lot of pitches he could get to. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him regret turning down that 17.8 MM QO the same way Lynn lost out.
How can anyone suggest that O’Neil, Bader. and Arozarena is a good enough offer for Lindor?
Seeing quotes that the Cardinals might be interested in Lindor of Cleveland. While that would be very exciting if that happened, I wouldn’t bet my house on it!!!! This is just another Cardinal Smoke Screen to appease the 2019 season ticket holders to prematurely commit to buy their season tickets for 2020. I have had 8 Cardinals season tickets. Had them for the past 9 years in section 252. Sure the Cardinals did surprisingly well the second half of the season!!! And….. who knows….If Ownership and John Mozeliak had done what they said they intended to do at the trading deadline, (Adding a pure hitter and a #2 or #3 starter), the Cardinals might not have run out of gas in the play offs!!! John Mozeliak and the Owners did the absolute worst thing they could have done at the trading deadline. NOTHING!!! Not even a hint of a RUMOR at the trading deadline!!!! Even if they had just signed an All-Star rental hitter….h it would have sparked better offense out of the players the had. The Washington series was extremely embarrassing! Not just for the fans, but for the players and Mike Schildt. Trust me….if my hunch is right, the Owners and Mozeliak will still not get that additional all-star quality hitter or pitcher this winter!!! The say they have a money crunch!!! How in Hades do you have a money crunch when they sell over 3 million tickets annually. Ballpark village brings in multi multi millions 12 months out of the year!!! Their parking garages alone could finance another All-Star quality hitter!!!! Yet….That would knock out Chris Carpenter from starting. Oh Lordy…. can’t do that!!! He’s signed for $36 million over the next 2 seasons!!! So Schildt will be demanded to start him and Fowler. Plus they will let Ozuna walk and have no one comparable in power hitting except prospects!!!! He can’t Field well??? Bader should have won a gold glove in center field. But he can’t hit and everyone is down on him. I’d rather have a free swinging contact hitter who is an average fielder any day over a plus fielder and a trajectory coach hitter who strikes out over 150 times. I’ve written this novel to say this. I will give up my 8 cherished season tickets after January if the Cards don’t acquire a pure hitter and a pitcher of at least Kuechel or Bumgarner’s quality. I know….they could care less!!! Me too!! If I do go to a game, I’ll set where I can and not pay that $16,000 for those 8 seats a season. Why should I pay it? Why should the other current season ticket holders buy for 2020??? The Cardinals Owners could actually care less. I hope the scalpers but mine and go broke on them if the Cards stand pat!!!!
They Cardinals Alex Reyes is toast because of 2 1/2 years of injuries. He could become a reliever, but he will never be the the explosive prospect he was hyped up to be. Now——Carlos Martinez has one thing he can never over come as a starter or a reliever——He has Toys in his Head—- many people, including Yadi, have tried to get his head right!!! Just isn’t going to happen until Carlos wants it to happen. What a waist with Martinez. Blessed with all the tools. ——- The best case scenario for Carlos and the Cardinals is a trade and change in scenery. The Cardinals have always babied him. He needs to go to a team that will give him some tough love. Pull the reins in tight on him and he could be a good pitcher once more. But it will never work in St. Louis. Carlos has their number and knows he doesn’t have to put out a 100% effort. Because the Cardinals will still tell him how much potential and how good he could be.