Terry's Talkin about Cleveland Indians, Brandon Moss and Justin Masterson -- Terry Pluto
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Would you rather have Brandon Moss in right field or David Murphy? That's a question worth asking when thinking about the Indians trading second base prospect Joey Wendle for Moss.
Murphy had a decent season, batting .262 (.703 OPS) with eight homers and 56 RBI. Remember, these are the days of diminishing power. Murphy also bounced back nicely from a dreadful .220 (.656 OPS) season with Texas in 2013.
In the last five years, Murphy has averaged 12 homers and 56 RBI. He's 33 and not about to change much.
Moss is 31. He spent the last three seasons with Oakland, averaging 25 homers, 76 RBI, batting .254 (.844 OPS).
Last season, Moss batted .234 (.772 OPS) with 25 homers and 81 RBI. Moss will do some serious striking out -- 293 times in the last two seasons. While he plays first and the outfield, his glove will never be considered gold.
The Tribe traded for Moss to hit home runs. They know there is risk. He made the All-Star team, then batted only .173 with four homers after the All-Star break. The problem was a hip injury.
He did take a cortisone shot before the wild card game and hit two homers. But the shot was temporary.
The Indians are confident that the surgery to repair a tear in the labrum of his hip will indeed work. Supposedly, he has a 90 percent chance of a full recovery.
Confession time: Hip injuries make me nervous, because they can be complicated. The Tribe talked to Dr. Thomas Byrd, who did the surgery on Moss. The Indians consider him one of the best in the nation for that type of operation -- and he was very confident about Moss' recovery.
If I'm the Indians, I quickly make this deal. I'd take a chance on Moss, knowing he will be on a one-year contract -- probably in the $7 million range.
Also, Moss won't be a free agent until the end of the 2016 season.
Meanwhile, I expect the Tribe to work hard at trying to deal Murphy, who has one year and $6.5 million left on his contract.
Murphy and Moss are lefty hitters. It doesn't make a lot of sense to keep both of them, especially since two other outfield spots are owned by lefty batters -- Michael Bourn and Michael Brantley.
ABOUT JOEY WENDLE
I was surprised that the price for Moss was only Joey Wendle.
The 24-year-old second baseman batted .253 (.725 OPS) with eight homers and 50 RBI at Class AA Akron in 370 plate appearances. He was hit by a pitch and suffered a broken hamate bone in his right hand, cutting short his season.
A sixth-round pick in 2012, he caught the eye of A's scouts in 2013. That season, he batted .295 (.885 OPS) with 16 homers at Class A Carolina. He was the Tribe's Minor League Player of the Year for 2013.
The so-so performance at Akron and his injury in 2014 led to Wendle's stock dropping a bit.
The Sacramento Bee's Matt Kawahara wrote: "General Manager Billy Beane said the A's have liked Wendle since he was in college, and had inquired about him at midseason with no luck ... Beane said Wendle has good power for a middle infielder, is an 'off-the-chart makeup guy,' and plays a position of need for the A's. Beane added, though, that the A's are targeting Wendle to start the 2015 season at Class AAA, with the possibility of joining the A's 'at some point' during the season."
The Indians agree with Beane about Wendle's character and work ethic. But he was buried in the Tribe farm system behind second base possibilities Jason Kipnis, Jose Ramirez, Erik Gonzalez and Mike Aviles. After signing a seven-year, $50 million deal on opening day of 2014, Kipnis obviously will be given every chance to revive his career at second base in 2015.
The Indians had a lot of inquires about Ramirez, who did a good job at short for the Tribe in 2014. His best position is second base. The Tribe wants to keep him. Ramirez will probably be the opening day starting shortstop with phenom Francisco Lindor playing that position at Class AAA Columbus.
Finally, Baseball America's Vince Lara Cinisomo wrote: "His hit tool might be the only one that's plus, but that could be enough to get him to the majors. He has a short, compact swing, an advanced feel for hitting and solid control of the strike zone. While his numbers don't stand out, scouts say he uses the whole field and makes good contact.
"One scout likened Wendle to former Cardinals star Tommie Herr. The lefthanded hitter hangs in well against lefthanders. His work at second base still needs polishing, scouts say, but he has good hands and agility. He would have ranked near the back of the Indians' top 30 prospects, had he not been traded."
A's 13, Indians 3 (slideshow)The Indians are relieved Justin Masterson turned down their spring training offer of $45 million. Chuck Crow / The Plain Dealer
ABOUT JUSTIN MASTERSON
Suppose Justin Masterson had signed that three-year, $45 million offer the Tribe made him at the end of spring training.
Oh, boy.
It would be just starting right now -- as the Tribe planned to keep him on his $9.75 million deal in 2014.
They probably never would have traded for Moss, had they kept Masterson. They would have had a payroll mess.
Consider the following:
1. At $15 million this season would be Nick Swisher and Masterson.
2. Michael Bourn is at $13.5 million.
3. I'm guessing the 2015 Tribe payroll will be in the $85 million-$90 million range. About half of that ($43.5 million) would have been tied up in Swisher, Bourn and Masterson.
4. They would have Masterson committed for three years, yet having no idea if he can still pitch. Masterson was 4-6 with a 5.51 ERA with the Tribe when traded to St. Louis at the end of July. For the Cardinals, he was 3-3 with a 7.04 ERA and was left off the postseason roster.
The Red Sox think otherwise. Of course, the Red Sox spend big.
Boston signed Masterson to a $9.5 million deal plus incentives for innings pitched above 185. Masterson's agent said his client was pitching with a bad knee and other minor injuries.
Maybe that explains the huge decline from his 14-10, 3.45 ERA season in which he made the 2013 All-Star team. Masterson was always up and down with the Tribe, his record being 48-61 with a 4.23 ERA.
Boston Manager John Farrell was Masterson's pitching coach with the Red Sox in 2008-09. Supposedly, he thinks Masterson can regain his form.
Tribe Manager Terry Francona considered Masterson one of his all-time favorite players (in terms of character), and it was painful for Francona to trade the right-hander. The Indians just didn't know how to fix Masterson.
Masterson is only 29. Time is on his side. Maybe he will come back. Boston wants to find out.
ABOUT THE TRIBE
1. While the Braves talked to the Tribe about Justin Upton, that had close to a zero chance of happening. Upton batted .279 with 29 homers and 102 RBI for Atlanta in 2014. He will be paid $14.5 million in 2015, then become a free agent. And get this, Cleveland is one of four teams mentioned in the "no trade clause" in his contract. So he would have to approve any deal to the Tribe.
2. Former Indian Mark Reynolds signed a one-year, $2 million deal with St. Louis. Last season with Milwaukee, Reynolds batted .196 (.681 OPS) with 22 homers and 45 RBI. After the All-Star break, he batted only .176 with eight homers. The Cardinals will be his fourth team in the last three years.
3. Reynolds signed a one-year, $6 million deal with the Tribe in 2013. On June 1, he was batting .244 with 13 homers and 41 RBI. He was a force in the middle of the lineup -- and then he stopped hitting. After June 1, Reynolds had only eight more homers, 26 RBI. He was 5-of-51 in July when the Tribe cut him. He was picked up by the Yankees.
4. Ryan Raburn had some minor surgery on his knee that supposedly went well. Raburn is under contract for 2015 ($2.5 million), but he needs to make the team. He batted only .200 (.547 OPS) with four homers in 2014. The Indians are hoping he can repeat his 2013 performance (.272, .901 OPS, 15 homers). But if he falters, they are willing to cut him -- just as they did Reynolds in the middle of the 2013 season.
5. I will be signing copies of Glory Days In Tribe Town at the Learned Owl Book Store in Hudson on Wednesday from 6:30-8 p.m. Because of a scheduling conflict, my co-author Tom Hamilton will not be there. It will be the last book signing before Christmas. If you want to order books signed by both of us, you can go to
www.terrypluto.com.