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Re: General Discussion

1697 by rusty2
Indians finalizing trade for Twins' Jim Thome

According to Nick Camino of WTAM 1100, the Indians are finalizing a trade for Twins DH Jim Thome.
Thome "will be in an Indians uniform" by Friday night, according to Camino's sources. The Indians placed a claim on the veteran slugger Thursday afternoon and are apparently close to working out a trade agreement with the Twins. Thome should serve as Cleveland's semi-regular designated hitter down the stretch. He's tallied 12 home runs in 206 at-bats this season.

Source: Nick Camino on Twitter Aug 25 - 5:43 PM

Re: General Discussion

1701 by rusty2
Hafner is basically out for the season. Speaking of injuries.

Josh Tomlin might be scratched from his next scheduled start due to an undisclosed injury.
The scratching would probably have more to do with Tomlin's recent struggles than anything else. He has registered a rough 5.28 ERA through five August outings and posted a 4.50 ERA across five starts in July.
Source: Zack Meisel on Twitter Aug 25 - 6:27 PM

Re: General Discussion

1702 by joez
The 40-year-old Thome's no-trade protection is part of the one-year, $3 million contract he signed with the Twins for this season. The left-handed slugger is owed roughly $500,000 for the remainder of the season, making him an affordable addition for a Cleveland club currently without its designated hitter.

Tribe, Twins engaged in Thome trade talks

Slugger could return to first club; deadline is Friday, 1 p.m. ET

By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | 08/25/11 7:20 PM ET

CLEVELAND --

Jim Thome once said that his Indians jersey would have to be ripped from his broad shoulders in order for him to suit up for another ballclub.

After nine years spent with four different teams, Thome's torn threads have been put in the past and Cleveland appears ready to offer him a fresh uniform. On Thursday, the Indians and Twins were engaged in trade talks that would result in kind of a homecoming for the veteran slugger.

Minnesota placed Thome on waivers on Monday and Cleveland reportedly put in a claim on Wednesday, making a bid to bring him back to the city where his historic career began. The two sides have until 1 p.m. ET on Friday to finalize a trade, making it possible that Thome would be in the Tribe's lineup for Friday's game against the Royals.

If Thome does make his return to Progressive Field, that means he will have waived his full no-trade clause to come back to Cleveland.

The 40-year-old Thome's no-trade protection is part of the one-year, $3 million contract he signed with the Twins for this season. The left-handed slugger is owed roughly $500,000 for the remainder of the season, making him an affordable addition for a Cleveland club currently without its designated hitter.

Indians DH and cleanup hitter Travis Hafner -- who considered Thome a role model as he was coming up through the Minors -- is on the disabled list with a strained tendon in the bottom of his right foot and might be done for the season. That makes this as good a time as any to bring Thome back into the fold.

Thome was selected by the Indians in the 13th round of the 1989 First-Year Player Draft, and he debuted with the Tribe at the age of 20 in 1991. Thome went on to spend a dozen seasons with the Indians, launching a franchise-record 334 home runs and earning his way onto three All-Star teams.

This is a chance for Thome, who recently became only the eighth player in Major League history to hit 600 home runs, to potentially finish his career where it started. In doing so, he could also find some forgiveness from a fan base that has not forgotten his comments prior to entering free agency after the 2002 season.

Apparently, the Phillies found a way to rip Thome's jersey off his body.

After launching a single-season club record of 52 home runs in the 2002 tour, Thome penned his name on a six-year contract worth $85 million with Philadelphia. Thome spent three seasons slugging for the Phillies before having stints with the White Sox, Dodgers and Twins.

In 71 games for the Twins this season, Thome has hit .243 with 12 homers and 40 RBIs.

Thome might have preferred to land with a more clear contender like the Phillies, considering the Indians have lost six of their past seven games and are 6 1/2 games behind the first-place Tigers in the American League Central. Jumping from the Twins to a playoff-bound club would not be a simple process, though.

If Thome were to block a trade, he would likely have to remain with the Twins for the remainder of the season.

The only other option would be for Minnesota to pull Thome off revocable waivers -- voiding the Indians' claim -- before placing him on release waivers. Under that scenario, Thome could reject claims by every team until reaching a club he preferred to join, but he would also be required to forfeit the rest of his salary for this season.

Such an approach would likely also create some backlash from other clubs.

It was also extremely unlikely in this particular situation.

This was a chance for Thome to once again put on the jersey and hat of the team he will likely represent if he is one day enshrined in baseball's Hall of Fame.
“Every day is a new opportunity. You can build on yesterday's success or put its failures behind and start over again. That's the way life is, with a new game every day, and that's the way baseball is.”
-- Bob Feller
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