The word to describe this year's team is surprising. Nobody predicted the start they had at 30-15. And the pitching has been amazing, esp. the bullpen. There's no way they were going to land a frontline player at the deadline, but at least they are trying to shake things up. Who knows, a new team in a new league might help Fukudome. Though I would like to see a right-handed bat added, too. Kearns is not the answer this year.

Thanks for posting that Hillbilly.

Kearns is still there. Tribe DFA'd Buck.

BA analyzes the Trade with emphasis on minor leaguers:

The Deal
After spending the past three summers dealing away veterans like C.C. Sabathia, Cliff Lee, Victor Martinez and Jake Westbrook, the Indians reversed course this season and traded for Cubs outfielder Kosuke Fukudome. Cleveland received nearly $4 million in the deal, covering all but about $500,000 of Fukudome's 2011 salary. (We erroneously had the cash transaction reversed earlier.) The Cubs acquired 25-year-old Triple-A righty reliever Carlton Smith and raw 21-year-old outfielder Abner Abreu, whose raw tools are impressive, but whose consistent application of those tools is not.

Fighting for their playoff lives, the Indians will welcome the on-base percentage boost Fukudome gives them at the top of their lineup—especially with Grady Sizemore and Shin-Soo Choo on the shelf with injuries. The lefty-hitting Fukudome owns a career .374 OBP versus righthanded pitchers, while his .339 mark against lefties is solid when you consider the typical left-on-left OBP split, which is .299 this season in the major leagues. The 52-50 Indians sit two games behind the Tigers in the American League Central at the time of the trade.

Cubs Acquire
Carlton Smith, rhp
Age: 25.
Born: Jan. 23, 1986 in Plainfield, N.J.
Ht.: 6-2. Wt.: 205. Bats: L. Throws: R.
School: Okaloosa-Walton (Fla.) JC.
Career Transactions: Selected by Indians in 21st round of 2004 draft; signed May 28, 2005.

Club (League) Class W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO WHIP
Columbus (IL) AAA 2 3 4.50 34 0 2 46 45 25 23 4 20 46 1.41

The Indians have a bullpen in Cleveland full of young, cheap, effective arms. Cleveland has even more on the way sitting in the Triple-A Columbus bullpen, including Nick Hagadone, Zach Putnam and Josh Judy. Smith isn't quite as good a prospect as any of those three, though he'll run his fastball in around the low-90s and has a solid slider. At 25, there's not much projection left here, though he'll have to sharpen his command to be a usable middle-relief option at the next level.

Abner Abreu, rf
Age: 21. Position: RF (64 G), CF (24 G).
Born: Oct. 24, 1989 in San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic.
Ht.: 6-3. Wt.: 187. Bats: R. Throws: R.
Career Transactions: Signed as nondrafted free agent by Indians, Oct. 18, 2006.

Club (League) Class AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB OBP SLG
Kinston (CAR) HiA .244 91 336 42 82 16 5 12 35 22 102 19 .294 .429

The Indians did well to acquire Fukudome without giving up a player who was likely to help their big league club in the future. Abreu is a corner outfielder with good bat speed who can whip the barrel through the zone and hit the ball a long way with natural raw power when he does make contact. That usually requires his bat running into a mistake, though, as his pitch recognition and feel for hitting are limited. He's a strikeout-heavy hitter who struggles against anything offspeed and doesn't get on base much. He hit well in July for Kinston—batting .352/.405/.831 (25-for-71) with eight homers, four doubles and three triples—but that's more likely a three-week hot stretch than any radical improvement.

Indians Acquire
Kosuke Fukudome, rf
Age: 34. Bats: L. Remaining Commitment: $13.5 million salary for 2011 (approximately $4.5 million remains); eligible for free agency after the season.
Contract details courtesy of Cot's Baseball Contracts.

Club (League) YEAR AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB OBP SLG
Chicago (NL) 2011 .273 87 293 33 80 15 2 3 13 46 57 2 .374 .369
3-Year Totals .263 355 1127 155 296 72 8 27 110 200 230 15 .373 .413


<< Trade Central 2011

Fukudome trade might be too little, too late

Published: Friday, July 29, 2011

By Jim Ingraham
JIngraham@News-Herald.com

Kosuke Fukudome?

It's fun to say, but can he hit?

Can he help?

Or is this too little, too late for the Indians?

Here's what he's not: a big, middle-of-the-order, run-producing bat. That's what the Indians need most.

That's what Fukudome is not.

Here's what he is: not a bad leadoff hitter for now, but a bench player if and when Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore return. Fukudome is probably just a two-month rental for the Tribe. He can become a free agent after this season, and the Indians will almost surely let him leave.

The Indians aren't in the business of paying $13.5 million — Fukudome's salary this year — to 34-year-old non-home run-hitting corner outfielders who by the end of July only have 13 RBI.

So Fukudome will undoubtedly be renting, not buying, when he explores his housing options in Cleveland.

He is a Band-Aid for a lineup with a gaping wound. Maybe General Manager Chris Antonetti will pull the trigger on another, more significant trade between now and Sunday's trade deadline.

He did say he's still looking. Of course he said he was looking in the run-up to Fukudome Day, too, so I'm guessing Jose Bautista isn't walking through the door anytime soon.

Speaking of the passage of time, here's what's scary.

Even though they are still only, and incredibly, 1 1/2 games out of first place, and even though there are two days remaining until the trade deadline — the Indians may have already missed their chance.

The trade deadline isn't until Sunday at 4 p.m., but the time in which the Indians could have traded for a hitter or hitters who would have allowed them to win some winnable games they instead lost — that time may have come and gone.

Consider the following:

The Indians this season have lost 29 games in which they scored two runs or fewer — seven of those came in July.

Overall this season, the Indians have lost seven games in which their opponents only scored two runs or fewer. Seven! If the Indians had scored just three runs in each of those seven games, that's seven more wins, which takes them from 1 1/2 games out of first place in the division to a 5 1/2 game lead in the division.

The Indians have also lost 13 games this year in which their opponents have scored no more than three runs.

That's not to say the Indians could have won all of these games. But they could have won some of them, perhaps enough of them to be in control of the division now, if not in first place in the division now, if not in first place at the end of the season.

Suppose the Indians finish five games or fewer out of first place this year. That will make all these winnable losses even more painful to ponder.

Many of those missed opportunities at wins have come in the last month. Antonetti said his preference would have been to have made a trade a few weeks ago, but he couldn't find a trade partner.

That's nobody's fault, but that's also an unfortunate development for the Indians, who have lost seven games in July in which they scored two runs or fewer, and lost seven games this season overall when their opponents scored no more than two runs.

Those are games, and wins not acquired, that may cost the Indians a chance to win their division.

And there's no way to make a trade now for another hitter to join Fukudome in the lineup, which would allow the Indians to play those lost games over again.

They're gone. Forever.

I know. If ifs and buts were candy and nuts it would be Christmas every day. But a team's window to win a division doesn't always come at the end of the season. Sometimes it comes in July. Or the last two weeks in July.

For the Indians, it may have already come … and gone.

Or maybe not.

This is why you play the games. A lot of them. One hundred and sixty-two of these babies. What you worry about is the Indians have already played too many of them, and lost so many winnable games because of their impotent offense, that's it's unavoidably going to prevent them from winning their division.

And that the Fukudome trade, and anything that might happen in the next 48 hours, might be too little.

Or too late.

Or too both.

I know. If ifs and buts were candy and nuts it would be Christmas every day. But a team's window to win a division doesn't always come at the end of the season. Sometimes it comes in July. Or the last two weeks in July.

For the Indians, it may have already come … and gone.

Or maybe not.

This is why you play the games. A lot of them. One hundred and sixty-two of these babies. What you worry about is the Indians have already played too many of them, and lost so many winnable games because of their impotent offense, that's it's unavoidably going to prevent them from winning their division.

And that the Fukudome trade, and anything that might happen in the next 48 hours, might be too little.

Or too late.

Or too both.

Typical Ingraham. Talking out of both sides of his mouth.

Fact is that despite all the turmoil and dreadful offense of the last 2 months, the Tribe is tied for the AL Central Division lead in the loss column.

Anything can happen from here. If the pitching holds up, I like are chances as much as any other team in the Division.

Of course the Tigers could still strike with a big trade and tilt the balance.

I'm going to enjoy the ride.

Critical to win this series vs the Royals, then split those games against the Eastern behemoths.

Then you basically slug it out within the Division the rest of the way.

That's what's great about the schedule. The best team down the stretch will make the post season.

I hope it's the Tribe.

Bats have gone to sleep in recent weeks. One thing about baseball, as quickly as hitting cools off, it can pick back up again. No guarantees but typically the pendulum swings the other way sooner or later. Our pitching has been good enough and consistent all season.

No way I'm giving up on anything with the team still in the race for their division.

Team doesn't look talented enough to make the playoffs, but the competition isn't good enough either, so we have a chance. Would be very nice if we had the defense we had at the beginning of the season, but most of the lost defense is due to players not playing as well as they did early on; the only stellar defender no longer in the lineup in Hannahan.

CLEVELAND: Manager Manny Acta thinks his lineup is more potent with the acquisition of Kosuke Fukudome, but he wants more.

When asked whether he expected the Indians to make another deal before Sunday’s trading deadline, Acta said: “Yes, I expect a lot of things out of life. These guys [General Manager Chris Antonetti and his staff] are working hard, but it’s a very complicated process.”

Fukudome started in right field and batted sixth Friday night against the Kansas City Royals.

“He makes us better immediately,” Acta said. “He’s an everyday player who gives us a veteran presence. He also has a lifetime .370 on-base percentage. We needed someone in that part of the lineup who can give us professional at-bats.”

What does that mean? Too often after injuries erased Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore from the batting order, the final four spots in the lineup have been filled either with raw rookies or bench players.

The Tribe did not need another left-handed batter, but Fukudome has had some success (.249 lifetime) against lefties, and he will not be platooned.

“He’s going to be our right fielder,” Acta said. “We’re not going to platoon him. Of course, there will be times when we give him a day off.”

Fukudome batted at the top of the order for the Cubs, but he will not displace Michael Brantley, who has that job with the Tribe.

“I think Fukudome can help us most in that [sixth] spot,” Acta said. “I thought very hard about it. I’ve seen him enough. He’s a professional hitter, and that’s what we need, because there are a lot of kids at the bottom of the lineup.”

Fukudome, who travels with a translator, Hiro Aoyama, also met with the media.

Asked about batting sixth, he said, “It doesn’t matter to me if I hit leadoff or sixth, I just want to do my job.”

Fukudome waived his limited no-trade clause, which included the Indians, because he wanted a chance to play in the postseason.

“This is the first time I’ve been in a race,” he said. “This team is competing for first place. That definitely is great motivation for me to be good.”

He said he was not compensated for giving up the no-trade provision in his contract.

Acta met with Fukudome before the game.

“It was the interpreter, Kosuke and me,” Acta said. “We had a good talk. I thanked him for coming here, because he had to waive the no-trade. I told him I didn’t expect him to carry the team just to give us quality at-bats.

“He told me he didn’t care where he hit in the lineup. He also said if he had a question, he would come to me, and if I had a question, I should come to him.”

Maybe he'll hit a ball out of the IF today, that would be a nice addition to the "attack"

CLEVELAND: If nothing else, Carlos Carrasco took the focus off the Indians’ vanishing offense.

That was the only positive effect of his bad behavior — which obscured his horrid pitching performance — during the Tribe’s humiliating 12-0 defeat to the Kansas City Royals Friday night at Progressive Field.

It wasn’t enough that Carrasco gave up three home runs — accounting for seven runs — in 3· innings. He felt it necessary to compound his sins by throwing at the head of Billy Butler on the first pitch following a grand slam to Melky Cabrera.

“It was a rough one tonight,” Indians manager Manny Acta said. “You always say that pitching sets the tone and we didn’t set the tone tonight. Carlos didn’t bring his ‘A’ game. They were teeing off on him. I don’t think he even had his [usual] velocity.’’

It was clear that Acta didn’t excuse Carrasco for the incident with Butler.

“Carlos is a young guy, and he’s immature,” Acta said. “He was talked to by [pitching coach Tim] Belcher. I thought he showed his frustration the wrong way. We don’t condone those things. Whether it [the pitch] got away from him or not, you don’t throw at people’s heads.”

The fourth inning progressed from lousy to intolerable in the following manner: Brayan Pena led off with a single and stopped at second on Chris Getz’s single. After both runners advanced on a sacrifice bunt, Alex Gordon was walked intentionally to load the bases and set up a possible double play.

Instead, Cabrera whacked Carrasco’s first pitch into the right-field seats for the second grand slam of his career. Of course, he hit his first against the Indians.

Cabrera didn’t take a step toward first until he had finished admiring the lofty drive, which is considered bad form, according to baseball’s sacred book of rituals.

“Melky has a right to do whatever he wants,” Acta said. “He’s been around a long time. What I think is you have to make pitches.”

Added Travis Hafner, “Give him credit. He hit a slam. That’s all I’m going to say.”

Undoubtedly, Carrasco was not in the best mood since he already had given up a two-run bomb to Butler in the first inning and a solo homer to Gordon in the second.

“I was upset at myself and Melky, too,” Carrasco said.

When Butler followed Cabrera to the plate, Carrasco (8-9, 4.67 ERA) unleashed a fastball that barely missed the batter’s helmet. Before Butler had time to regain his composure, plate umpire Scott Barry had thrown Carrasco out of the game.

Following that came the mandatory parade of players out on the field. The Royals emerged from their dugout first. There probably wasn’t much for the Tribe to be outraged about, except maybe Carrasco’s behavior.

“I didn’t throw at anybody,” Carrasco insisted. “The ball just got away. I know it looked bad because of the home run.”

Butler was restrained from going after Carrasco, but both players yelled at one another. Order didn’t really have to be restored. What has to be restored is the Indians’ credibility as a baseball team.

The downward spiral became acute on Tuesday night, when they failed to score with bases loaded, nobody out and one run behind against the Los Angeles Angels in the ninth inning.

Then came Wednesday’s no-hitter by the Angels’ Ervin Santana and the disgrace of committing five errors and enduring a passed ball. Now a shellacking by the Royals that included a total lack of protocol by Carrasco.

“Certainly, you don’t want to be swinging the way we are right now,” Hafner said. “We need a game where we score 10 runs and have the approach where the guys are confident. We have a lot of talent here.”

Has the team’s confidence diminished?

“I wouldn’t say it’s great right now,” Hafner said. “This was a pretty brutal game. We’ll find out what we’re made of now.”

It would have been acceptable under baseball’s arcane rules of etiquette for Carrasco to throw at Butler’s torso, following the breach by Cabrera [showing up the pitcher by watching the homer]. Throwing at the head is a no-no.

Then there was the performance of the Tribe lineup, allegedly strengthened by the acquisition of Kosuke Fukudome on Thursday. Fukudome made his Indians debut Friday night and proved that he can fit right in, grounding out three times and striking out once.

It’s only one game, and he is not supposed to be the savior. You wouldn’t want to wish that on anybody, considering that Jeff Francis started the game with a 3-11 record and 4.65 ERA but held the Indians scoreless for eight innings, allowing four hits.

“Our guys have to snap out of it,” Acta said. “We can’t expect one guy from the outside to fix this. This is our team. We’re not going to switch 10 guys.”

Butler retaliated to Carrasco’s near miss the correct way. In addition to his home run in the first inning, he hit one to lead off the eighth.

After Carrasco left, the pitching got no better, as Chad Durbin and Frank Herrmann combined to give up five more runs. Then again, by the time they showed up, all semblance of competition was over.

Pluto on the deal:

Published: Saturday, July 30, 2011, 10:51 PM Updated: Saturday, July 30, 2011, 10:52 PM
By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer


CLEVELAND, Ohio -- When I first heard about the Indians putting together a deal for Udalbo Jimenez, it was hard to believe the initial reports of prime pitching prospects Alex White and Drew Pomeranz both being in the deal.

White and some other Tribe prospects for Colorado's star pitcher? Do it yesterday. I would have traded White, David Huff, Scott Barnes and Jason Kipnis for Jimenez, who was 19-8 with a 2.88 ERA in 2010.

But not White and Pomeranz, the Tribe's No. 1 pick in 2009 who seems destined to be a big-time left-handed starter -- something this team desperately needs.

Then again, Colorado General Manager Dan O'Dowd must have sensed some desperation on the part of the Indians, because he held out for two of the better pitching prospects in the game -- and snared both.

But let's also realize this trade is not a disaster. Even with his 6-9 record and 4.20 ERA, Jimenez immediately becomes the Tribe's best starter. The Indians bought quality, they just paid too much for it.

Here are some things to consider about Jimenez:

1. He's 27 and should be entering his most productive seasons. He also is reasonably priced. His contract called for $2.8 million in 2011, $4.2 in 2012 and a club option for $5.75 ($1 million guaranteed) in 2013. He also had an $8 million salary for 2014, but that was voided when he was traded. So he will be a free agent after the 2013 season, but the Indians control him for 2-plus seasons.

2. He started 0-5 with a 6.10 ERA this season. After June 1, he's 6-4 with a 3.10 ERA.

3. He has a 2.83 ERA on the road this season, 5.55 at home.

4. In his previous three seasons, pitching in hitter-friendly Coors Field didn't matter. His home ERA was 3.28 compared to 3.56 on the road from 2008-10.

5. From 2008-10, he was 46-32 with a 3.43 ERA. Lefties batted .230 against him, righties were at .224.

6. So the guy has been a good pitcher, home or away ... no matter if the batter swings from the left side or the right.

But White and Pomeranz? They are the team's top draft picks in 2009 and 2010, and both seem worthy of the hype.

White was 11-10 with a sparkling 2.37 ERA in his minor-league career. He had a 3.60 ERA in his first three starts with the Tribe before injuring a finger on his throwing hand. But he was supposed to pitch Saturday for Class AA Akron as he seems healed from the injury. Because of the trade, he was told not to pitch.

This is the first pro season for Pomeranz, who is 3-3 with a 1.98 ERA and 112 strikeouts in 91 innings between Class A and Class AA. The Indians also tossed Joe Gardner (7-8, 4.99 ERA at Akron) and Matt McBride (.297 at Akron, .152 at Columbus) into the trade, but they are not significant prospects.

Maybe this works out short-term, as Jimenez helps the Indians make the playoffs this season -- or in the next two years. He should be fun to watch pitch, but this is the kind of deal that the Indians could regret for a long time.

Neutral view:

Indians To Acquire Ubaldo Jimenez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 30 at 10:40pm CST]

The organization that sent C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee packing in high-profile summer trades is about to acquire an ace of its own. The Indians and Rockies have agreed on a deal that will send Ubaldo Jimenez to Cleveland for Joe Gardner, Alex White, Matt McBride and a player to be named, the teams announced. The deal, which will apparently include right-hander Drew Pomeranz once he's eligible to be traded in mid-August, is contingent on a physical examination of Jimenez by Indians medical personnel.



Jimenez, 27, has a 4.20 ERA with 8.6 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 46.8% ground ball rate midway through an up and down season that has included flashes of brilliance, stretches of poor performance and a stint on the disabled list with a cuticle cut on the right-hander’s thumb. The third place finisher in last year's Cy Young voting, Jimenez broke out in 2010, posting a 2.88 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 221 2/3 innings.

Some of Jimenez's value comes from a contract that now seems team-friendly. Jimenez earns $2.8MM this year and $4.2MM in 2012. His contract includes a $5.75MM club option ($1MM buyout) for 2013 and an $8MM club option for 2014 ($1MM buyout), however Jimenez will be able to void that 2014 option with the trade.

GM Dan O'Dowd, who signed Jimenez to his extension, spent a decade in the Indians' front office from 1988-1998, working his way up to assistant GM before moving on to Colorado. He maintained throughout the negotiations that he would have to be overwhelmed to make a deal and said he'd turn down offers unless someone approached him with a Herschel Walker-type deal.

Pomeranz appears to be the key to the trade for Colorado, however the fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft can not officially be traded until August 15th. He will have to be a player to be named later until then. The 22-year-old southpaw has a 1.98 ERA in 91 innings this year, most coming with Cleveland's High-A squad. Baseball America ranked him as the 14th best prospect in the game earlier this month.

White was the 15th overall pick in the 2009 draft, and he made his big league debut earlier this season. He made three starts before being placed on the disabled list with a strained finger ligament, pitching to a 3.60 ERA. White is still on the disabled list but can be traded. He was considered the 47th best prospect in the game by Baseball America before the season.

Unlike Pomeranz and White, McBride was not a first round pick. He was a second rounder in 2006, and Baseball America did not rank him among the Tribe's top 30 prospects in their Prospect Handbook before the season. The 26-year-old has hit .279/.339/.501 in 393 plate appearances this year, most coming with Cleveland's Double-A affiliate.

Gardner, 23, was a third round selection in 2009. The right-hander has a 4.99 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 97 1/3 innings as a starter in his first stint at Double-A.

From Baseball America on Orlando trade. This is sketchy they should have more later

Orlando Cabrera Joins Giants In Club's Third Deadline Deal

By Matt Eddy
July 30, 2011


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The Deal
The Giants acquired 36-year-old second baseman Orlando Cabrera from the Indians, parting with Triple-A outfielder Thomas Neal in trade. San Francisco made two other July trades for position players, bringing aboard second baseman Jeff Keppinger from the Astros and right fielder Carlos Beltran from the Mets.

Indians Acquire
Thomas Neal, lf
Age: 23. Position: LF (50 G), CF (5 G), RF (2 G).
Born: Aug. 17, 1987 in Inglewood, Calif.
Ht.: 6-2. Wt.: 225. Bats: R. Throws: R.
School: Riverside (Calif.) CC.
Career Transactions: Selected by Giants in 36th round of 2005 draft; signed May 29, 2006.

Club (League) Class AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB OBP SLG
Fresno (PCL) AAA . 295 60 220 35 65 13 3 2 25 13 50 7 .351 .409

For subscribers: A 2011 scouting report for Neal. We'll have more later.
[I apologize: there is no way I can find to make these line up]

Giants Acquire
Orlando Cabrera, 2b
Age: 36. Bats: R. Remaining Commitment: Approximately $333,000 ($1 million salary for 2011; eligible for free agency after the season).
Contract details courtesy of Cot's Baseball Contracts.

Club (League) YEAR AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB OBP SLG
Cleveland (AL) 2011 .244 90 324 34 79 13 0 4 38 13 40 6 .277 .321
3-Year Totals .269 365 1453 181 391 82 3 17 156 76 159 30 .304 .365