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Cleveland Indians 2018-2019 Offseason Outlook

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Signing Melky back is probably a better option than Adam Jones, to me.

Can play RF, good arm, switch hitter.
 
Let's take stock of the free agent relievers market.

Brad Boxberger - Saved 32 games in Arizona last year, although his overall numbers weren't great.

Jim Johnson - Has closing experience. Would be OK on a minor league deal.

Ryan Madson - Plenty of late inning experience, but his overall numbers were ugly last year and he looked rough in the postseason.

Bud Norris - Saved 28 games for St. Louis last year with decent overall numbers. Not sure he'd fit in the clubhouse though.

AJ Ramos - Was superb for the Marlins from 2013-2017 before imploding with the Mets. He ended 2018 in May with surgery on a torn labrum. He'd be an interesting guy to take a shot on.

Sergio Romo - Served as both the Rays' "opener" and closer last year and was decent in both roles. Tito would love him.

Nick Vincent - Has a career 3.17 ERA in 7 seasons and was decent last year. Would be a solid pickup if the cost was low.

Adam Warren - Pretty underrated pitcher IMO - had a 3.14 ERA and 52/20 K/BB in 51.2 IP last season.

Jerry Blevins - Was really good for the Mets in 2016 and 2017 before having a pretty rough 2018 overall.

Xavier Cedeno - Cedeno was superb for the White Sox and Brewers last year. I'm surprised we haven't heard more about the market for him.

Jake Diekman - Was really good for Texas in 2016/2017. Started well in 2018 before being dealt to Arizona, where he was pretty bad (12 ER in 14.1 IP).

Tony Sipp - Our old friend was pretty damn good in Houston last year, although he only pitched 38.2 innings. He was awful in 2016/2017.

There's no reason why the Indians shouldn't be able to add one or more of these guys on a low cost or minor league deal. There's certainly an opportunity to win a role here, which should be attractive to these guys.
 
AZ_ said:
Signing Melky back is probably a better option than Adam Jones, to me.

Can play RF, good arm, switch hitter.
Click to expand...

Melky is actually projected to have a higher OPS. I'd be fine with him returning.
 
I don't think Jones will get much money, but it will probably be a bit more than he's worth. Melky you can probably get in the $1-2m range and brings as much to the table as Jones.

Adam Warren would be one of my top realistic reliever options.
 
Boxberger is wild as hell, but he misses a ton of bats, and would be my top option out of that group.
 
AZ_ said:
Signing Melky back is probably a better option than Adam Jones, to me.

Can play RF, good arm, switch hitter.
Click to expand...

I agree with two out of the three descriptions. He's a hideous defender even in right field, although he does have a howitzer. At this point, they probably will bring him back on what seems like a pro bono contract to fill the RF/DH void until the team (hopefully) trades for Castellanos in July.
 
jack hammill said:
I honestly believe we are spending money we do not need to spend if we sign two outfielders especially if Tito is sending Kipnis to outfield ...

The bullpen and 3b are bigger concerns

You as I are Luplow supporters .. the remaining outfielders played a ton on a winning team

Lets fill the holes we need to fill at 3 and RP
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I am thinking we will undoubtably sign a couple veteran OFs to minor league deals, Melky could be one of them. I’d be okay with getting Span and some others in here as well to compete. I actually just wish we could dump Kipnis somewhere to sign Marwin, but I am not sure if that will happen or not.

Right now I actually believe Kipnis is back at 2nd and Ramirez is at 3rd. I cannot actually merit Kipnis being in LF with the way this roster is. We also could bring in veterans to compete with Chang for 3rd base as well and keep kipnis inn the OF somewhere but I think that would be a mistake this season.

Also it really sounds like outside of adding minor league free agents, I don’t think we are adding anyone else to this bullpen. We gotta have guys really step up this season!
 
Josh Harrison and Adeiny Hechavarria are still out there (along with Marwin). Wouldn't mind giving either guy a look as a utility guy.
 
sportscoach said:
I am thinking we will undoubtably sign a couple veteran OFs to minor league deals, Melky could be one of them. I’d be okay with getting Span and some others in here as well to compete. I actually just wish we could dump Kipnis somewhere to sign Marwin, but I am not sure if that will happen or not.

Right now I actually believe Kipnis is back at 2nd and Ramirez is at 3rd. I cannot actually merit Kipnis being in LF with the way this roster is. We also could bring in veterans to compete with Chang for 3rd base as well and keep kipnis inn the OF somewhere but I think that would be a mistake this season.

Also it really sounds like outside of adding minor league free agents, I don’t think we are adding anyone else to this bullpen. We gotta have guys really step up this season!
Click to expand...

Jason Kipnis is almost definitely your 2B for one more season. He was a 1.6 WAR player last season, which is better than any 2B/3B the Indians could conceivably bring in at this point except Moustakas.

He isn't a bad player, he's just one worth the salary he's making...but there's not much you can do about that now unless someone was willing to take him on.
 
"Wittgren may not have traditional closer stuff, but everything he throws plays up due to his deceptive delivery and excellent control. The right-hander commands his low-90s fastball to both sides of the plate and has a similar advanced feel for an average curveball. His changeup has come along as he’s moved up the ladder, though it still lags behind his other two offerings." – MLB Pipeline

Under team-control until 2023. Arbitration eligible prior to the 2020 season.

https://marlinmaniac.com/2019/01/04/miami-marlins-nick-wittgren/
 
As weird as this sounds, I think our bullpen will actually be better than last year even though we have a ton of unknowns. With no one guaranteed a bullpen spot outside of Hand and Perez, I think we will end up with the competition that we need to draw out the best in everyone that will be in camp including the veterans to be signed. I wish we had a setup guy, but I think these guys will be able to prove themselves.

I am going to go out on a limb and say the Indians will be in the World Series in 2020 and that would be the year they could win it. They will show up this year right away unlike they did last year
 
Wittgren is a good one to take a flyer on. His K/BB ratio is terrible, but maybe they can work with him.

Also, Blevins went to Oakland for $1.5 M.
 
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