Cleveland Sports Forum

Terry Pluto's Talkin' ... about the Ubaldo Jimenez trade talks, the Indians' defensive needs and the likes and dislikes of Browns preseason
Published: Sunday, August 14, 2011, 3:15 AM Updated: Sunday, August 14, 2011, 3:22 AM
By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer
Follow

31


Share
Email
Print

View full sizeChuck Crow, The Plain Dealer
Jason Kipnis has done quite a bit to win over Indians fans in his short time with the team. If the Colorado Rockies had their way, Kipnis would be playing second base in Denver.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- There's a pennant race and it's finally football season. So there's plenty to be talkin' ...
About the Tribe's deal ...
1. When the Indians talked trade with Colorado, there were about 30 different packages discussed. At the center were Rockies pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez and Tribe phenom Drew Pomeranz. If the Indians wanted Jimenez, it was going to cost them Pomeranz and a lot more. For a long time, the Rockies wanted Alex White, Jason Kipnis and Pomeranz in the deal.
2. The Rockies would have made the trade for Kipnis and Pomeranz. They really wanted Kipnis to play second. The Indians believe Kipnis can become an All-Star -- remember, all of this was happening before Kipnis had a few weeks doing a Babe Ruth imitation.
3. The Indians' stance was no deal with Kipnis. The Rockies then said if no Kipnis, then White must be in the package. The Rockies stressed the risk with White, coming back from an injury on his right middle finger. No one believes White will have the same troubles as Adam Miller, but the shadow of Miller being derailed by the injury hung over the talks.
4. Until the drafting of first-rounders White (2009) and Pomeranz (2010), Miller was the prime pitching prospect drafted by the Tribe. The 31st pick in 2003, he was once clocked at 100 mph. He was 15-6 with a 2.75 ERA at Class AA Akron at the age of 21, and a star in the Tribe's 2007 spring training. He was sent to Class AAA with the idea of him pitching 6-8 weeks, but that's when the finger was first injured. He's never been close to the same since. He's 1-3 with a 6.03 ERA at Akron.
5. The Rockies had a reason to be careful. Jorge De La Rosa suffered a finger injury in 2010, missing more than two months. He came back this season and was 5-2 with a 3.51 ERA, then blew out his elbow and had reconstructive surgery. So they wanted pitching depth in the deal.
6. White had a 45-pitch limit in a rehab performance at Class AA Tulsa, throwing 3 impressive scoreless innings Thursday. The Rockies plan to bring him to the majors in a few weeks. So his comeback continues to be very positive.
7. The Indians had other considerations -- trying to win now and in the next two years. After 2013, the following players are free agents: Asdrubal Cabrera, Shin-Soo Choo and Jimenez. Grady Sizemore has a $9 million option for 2012. The Indians sound as if they will pick it up. The Indians should rework it so that the guaranteed salary is much lower, with incentives for games played, production, etc. Travis Hafner will be in the final guaranteed season ($13 million) of his contract in 2012.
8. Fausto Carmona's contract keeps rising ($7 million in 2012, $9 million in 2013 and $12 million in 2014). Remember that those are all "club options," meaning not guaranteed. Carmona at $7 million in 2012 is a price worth paying as the Indians believe he is coming back to his 2010 form (13-14, 3.77). He has a 3.03 ERA in his last six starts since coming off the disabled list.
9. The point is the Indians want to make a serious playoff run in the next few years, before some key players probably leave via free agency. They will approach Cabrera and Choo after the season with contract extensions. Represented by Scott Boras, it would be a shock if Choo signed one.
10. As for some other Indians, here is when they are free agents: Chris Perez (2015), Justin Masterson (2015), David Huff (2015), Matt LaPorta (2015), Michael Brantley (2017), Josh Tomlin (2017).

View full sizeAP photo
Neither Matt LaPorta (pictured) nor Carlos Santana is a finished defensive product at first base --- which isn't exactly a surprise given both players' lack of experience at the position.
About the Indians ...
1. If you think the Indians are receiving poor defense at first base, you can use some very complicated stats from fangraphs.com to make the point. No need to go into great detail, other than the Web site ranked 19 AL first basemen who have played at least 300 innings. LaPorta ranked 17th, ahead of Miguel Cabrera (Detroit) and Eric Hosmer (Kansas City). At No. 16 is Adam Lind (Toronto). Carlos Santana ranked 15th.
2. Manager Manny Acta loved Cabrera getting into it with Santana in the dugout Thursday against Detroit because he wants his shortstop to know that while he may only be 25, he is the captain of the infield. At third is 22-year-old Lonnie Chisenhall and at second is 24-year-old Kipnis, both rookies. Then there's LaPorta and Santana at first. For most of his big-league career, Cabrera was the youngest infielder with the Tribe -- and he's quiet by nature. With Orlando Cabrera gone, Asdrubal needs to be willing to apply some peer pressure.
3. Orlando Cabrera is indeed the Giants' regular shortstop. Entering the weekend, he was batting .244 (10-of-41) with one error in 11 games.
4. The Indians opened the season with veterans Adam Everett, Travis Buck, Jack Hannahan, Orlando Cabrera, Austin Kearns, Chad Durbin and Justin Germano on one-year contracts. The only ones left are Hannahan and Durbin.
5. Kearns began 2010 with the Tribe, batting .272 (.770 OPS) in 84 games. He was traded to New York in August and became a part-time, no-production player. Since that deal for Zach McAllister, Kearns batted .211 (.640 OPS) with four homers and 14 RBI in 252 at-bats. It was amazing the Indians stayed so patient, when the signs of him struggling in this role were there in 2010. He did have 150 at-bats this season, hitting .210 with two homers and seven RBI.
6. Shelley Duncan has a big, undisciplined swing. But he does "run into a fastball" now and then, a phrase used by scouts. Entering the weekend, Duncan was hitting .243 (.708 OPS) with four homers and 23 RBI in 115 at-bats. He can be a useful hitter coming off the bench.
7. If the Indians want bullpen help, they may grab Chen Lee from Class AAA Columbus, where he entered the weekend at 3-0 with a 1.25 ERA. In 22 innings, he has fanned 33 and walked five. The Rockies wanted him in the Jimenez deal, and other teams asked about him. He's a native of Taiwan and he's 24. Nick Hagadone got off to a slow start at Columbus, but the lefty has a 1.59 ERA in his last 10 games, fanning 19 in 17 innings. His Clippers ERA is down to 3.26. He also is a candidate to be promoted.
8. Cord Phelps has settled down, taking a 13-game hitting streak (.375) into the weekend. Playing second base regularly -- he was mostly at short earlier in the year -- his defense is solid. He has only three errors in 35 games at that position, after making five errors in a dozen games at second with the Tribe. I would not give up on Phelps, as he's hitting .304 (.876 OPS) for the Clippers. He a switch hitter, and only 24. He's not the first guy to look lost in his initial big-league performance.
9. It wasn't exactly reassuring to hear that the only other Tribe player besides Kipnis to homer six times in his first 16 big-league games was Luis Medina. He did it back in 1988 in 51 late-season at-bats. He opened 1989 with the Tribe, and batted only .205 with four homers in 83 at-bats. That was the end of his big league career -- 10 homers in 163 at-bats. His 16 RBI is a record for the fewest runs knocked in for any player with at least 10 career homers. He later played in Japan and the minors. It's a good bet Kipnis is on a much different career path.
10. I will be speaking at the North Ridgeville Library on Aug. 20 at 2 p.m. Call 440-327-8326 for information. It's free, and I talk sports, take questions and sign books.

Cleveland Indians rained out, Jason Kipnis sits out with right side soreness

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Second baseman Jason Kipnis, another player the Indians can ill-afford to lose, is in the gray area known as "day-to-day" because of soreness and stiffness on his right side.
Kipnis, hitting .279 with six homers and 11 RBI in 18 games since being summoned from Class AAA Columbus, did not start for the second straight game Sunday when the Tribe faced the Twins at Progressive Field. Kipnis, though, will not have DNP next to his name because the game does not exist.

With none out in the top of the third inning, play was halted because of rain. The Indians, behind two dominant innings from lefty David Huff and an RBI single from Shin-Soo Choo, led, 1-0. After a nearly three-hour delay, the game was postponed, all stats wiped out.

No makeup date has been announced. The game almost certainly will be rescheduled as part of a doubleheader when the Twins come to Cleveland for the final time, Sept. 23-25. On that homestand, the Indians already have a makeup as part of a doubleheader against the White Sox, Sept. 20. The Tribe was supposed to have an off-day Sept. 19, but it has been filled by a makeup against Seattle.

The Indians (60-57) won the first two games of the series against the Twins, meaning they swept Minnesota for the first time since Sept. 15-17, 2008, at Progressive Field.

The Tribe also picked up a half-game on the Tigers in the AL Central. During the rain delay, the Orioles beat Detroit, 8-5, in Baltimore. The Tigers (64-56) lead by 2 1/2.

Huff has been the embodiment of tough luck as an Indian this year. On July 23, he was scheduled to start against the White Sox and Edwin Jackson at Progressive Field. It was going to be his second appearance since being recalled from Class AAA Columbus on July 18. The start never happened because of rain, and the next day he was skipped in the rotation. Justin Masterson started against Jackson.


On July 27, Huff was scheduled to start against the Angels and right-hander Ervin Santana at Progressive Field. That start happened, and Huff pitched well -- but Santana threw a no-hitter.
Huff is 1-1 with a 0.51 ERA in 17 2/3 innings of three starts with the Tribe.
Kipnis joins outfielder Michael Brantley as regulars who are day-to-day because of soreness somewhere. Brantley (right wrist) has not had a plate appearance since last Tuesday, when the Indians defeated the Tigers, 3-2, in 14 innings. He pinch-ran last Friday.

The Indians have an off-day Monday before beginning a three-game series in Chicago against the White Sox.

"Hopefully, by Tuesday, with all the rest we've given them, they should be ready to go," manager Manny Acta said of Kipnis and Brantley. "If not, we'll have to make a decision."

While all games are important, it would be especially painful for Kipnis to miss any part of the White Sox series. He was born in Northbrook, Ill., and graduated from Glenbrook North High School in 2005. He followed the Cubs and White Sox growing up.

At his locker early Sunday morning, Kipnis politely declined to say what is hurting. He likely was following orders, because the bosses typically frown on youngsters detailing injuries or ailments.

"I don't know the extent yet," he said. "I don't think it's serious. If it is anything serious, it will be out in public in due time."

Then he reiterated: He did not think it is serious.

"We're going to take the necessary steps," he said. "I anticipate being back soon. It's going to take a lot to keep me out of the lineup."

Later in the morning, presumably after getting clearance from above, Kipnis got more specific, saying the right side is stiff and sore. He has been receiving treatment.

Kipnis said he thinks the side issues began during the 14-inning victory over the Tigers. The next night, he managed to go 5-for-5 with one homer, three RBI and four runs in a victory.

Kipnis was slumping at the time of his promotion and continued to struggle in his first handful of games in Cleveland, but he largely has been on fire since. He has hit in 10 of his last 12 games, going 17-for-51 (.333) with six homers and 10 RBI.

Tribe manager Manny Acta nicknamed Kipnis "Dirtbag," for his hard-charging style and willingness to mess up the uniform. Fans have said, "We are all Kipnises."

Jason Donald replaced Kipnis in the lineup for the second day in a row Sunday. Donald went 2-for-4 with a triple and run Saturday in the Tribe's 3-1 victory over Minnesota.


Scheduled make-up days for Indians
Aug. 23: Day-night home doubleheader vs. Seattle.
Sept. 19: Home game vs. Seattle.
Sept. 20: Day-night home DH vs. White Sox.
Game TBD vs. Twins: Minnesota's next visit is Sept. 23-25.

Players Who Cleared Waivers
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [August 15 at 11:53am CST]
This is a running list of players who have cleared waivers, based on published reports. Once a player clears waivers, he can be traded to any team (barring a no-trade clause). This list can always be found in the sidebar under MLBTR Features. Player names are linked to the source articles, the majority of which came from ESPN's Buster Olney.

Updated 8-15-11 at 11:53am

Jason Bay, Mets - With Bay being owed at least $38.8MM through 2013, this was expected. It's only been 12 games, but Bay is at least having his first good month of 2011.
D.J. Carrasco, Mets - The Mets signed Carrasco to a two-year deal in December - their biggest acquisition of the offseason - but optioned him to Triple-A in April. He stayed there until mid-June.
Willie Harris, Mets - The versatile Harris has less than $200K left on his contract.
Angel Pagan, Mets - It's been a dismal year for Pagan, who may be in line for a non-tender after the season.
Chris Capuano, Mets - Capuano owns a 3.74 SIERA as of August 14th and earns only $1.5MM plus incentives, so it's hard to see why a few teams didn't place claims.
Bronson Arroyo, Reds - His peripheral stats haven't changed much, but Arroyo has a 5.31 ERA as of August 15th. $15MM of his $35MM contract is deferred through 2021 without interest. The deferrals are voided if he's traded, however. At any rate, expect Arroyo to stay put.
Carlos Lee, Astros - No surprise here, as the 35-year-old is hitting .263/.321/.417 and is owed almost $23MM through next year. El Caballo's ten-and-five rights kick in after the season.
Alfonso Soriano, Cubs - This one was also obvious. SI's Jon Heyman notes on Twitter that the Cubs are willing to pay a "major, major chunk" of the $58.35MM owed to the left fielder through 2014.
Carlos Zambrano, Cubs - Zambrano cleared waivers prior to being placed on the disqualified list. He has a short fuse, lousy stats, and over $22MM remaining on his contract through next year.
Bruce Chen, Royals - Chen has his moments, but it's not surprising to see him clear waivers.
Rodrigo Lopez, Cubs - Same goes for Lopez.
Jason Vargas, Mariners - Like many of the starters here, Vargas' fastball wouldn't break a window. But he has less than a million bucks left on his contract this year and is under team control through 2013. He'd fit nicely at the back end of several rotations.
Chien-Ming Wang, Nationals - His three starts this season were his first in over two years, so it's understandable that contenders wouldn't jump to claim him.
Tom Gorzelanny, Nationals - Booted to the bullpen last month, the 29-year-old flyballing southpaw has posted strong strikeout rates in recent years but can't hold a rotation job.
Ted Lilly, Dodgers - He always has strong strikeout-to-walk numbers, but is prone to the longball. With over 82% of his $33MM contract remaining ($27MM+), it's no surprise he cleared waivers.
Hideki Matsui, Athletics - The Athletics have several waiver trade candidates, and Matsui's hot second half and low salary (owed less than $2MM the rest of the season) could make him a popular target.
Johnny Damon, Rays - Damon blocked an August trade last summer and 12 months later he's a candidate to be traded once again.

Godzilla might be interesting.

DETROIT (AP)—The Detroit Tigers got some help for their outfield Monday, acquiring Delmon Young(notes) from the division rival Minnesota Twins for a minor league pitcher and a player to be named.

Young doesn’t have far to go to join his new team. The Twins are in Detroit to open a series against the Tigers at Comerica Park.



The Twins received left-hander Cole Nelson from the Tigers.

Young, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2003 draft by Tampa Bay, didn’t become the feared power hitter that the Twins were hoping for when they acquired him in 2008. He was hitting .266 with just four homers and 32 RBIs in 84 games this season.

He’s still only 25, though, and had what was probably his best season in 2010, hitting .298 with 21 home runs.

The first-place Tigers add another potentially big bat to their roster as they try to hold on in the AL Central. They lead Cleveland by 2 1/2 games heading into Monday night’s action.

The Twins are 11 1/2 games back.

Young and the Twins avoided salary arbitration before this season, agreeing in February to a one-year contract worth $5,375,000. He should have a chance to play for the Tigers. Detroit outfielder Brennan Boesch(notes) has been recovering from a sprained right thumb, and Magglio Ordonez(notes) is hitting only .223 with four home runs.

Nelson was a 10th round pick in 2010. He was 5-11 with a 4.87 ERA in 26 appearances for Class-A Lakeland this season.

The Tigers plan to announce a corresponding roster move to add Young to the 25-man roster before Monday night’s game.

Young has made a couple of trips to the disabled list this season with a strained left oblique and sprained right ankle.

The Twins traded underachieving left fielder Delmon Young to the Tigers, thus saving more than $1 million for the remainder of the season and avoiding the difficult offseason decision of whether to tender him a contract for 2012. Detroit sent high Class A lefty Cole Nelson and a player to be named to Minnesota. A Twins press release said the PTBN will be announced on or before Oct. 15.

Still just 25, Young has batted a fairly pedestrian .287/.324/.429 in four years with the Twins, never refining his batting approach enough to unlock his power or get on base more frequently. That's a shame because Minnesota surrendered Matt Garza (and two others) to acquire Young following the 2007 season. As for Detroit, they continued their recent trend of trading for position players from American League Central rivals, perhaps because the big league coaching staff gets longer looks at those players (or because they're still sore at the Orioles for Aubrey Huff's performance down the stretch in 2009). The Tigers' offensive upgrades during the past two seasons consist of Young (Twins) and Wilson Betemit (Royals) this season and Jhonny Peralta (Indians) in 2010.


Cole Nelson, lhp
Age: 22.
Born: July 14, 1989 in Edina, Minn.
Ht.: 6-7. Wt.: 233. Bats: L. Throws: L.
School: Auburn.
Career Transactions: Selected by Tigers in 10th round of 2010 draft; signed July 8, 2010.

Club (League) Class W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO WHIP
Lakeland (FSL) HiA 5 11 4.87 26 17 0 105.1 123 65 57 6 50 87 1.64

A Minnesota high school product whom the Tigers drafted out of Auburn, Nelson benefited from a mechanical tweak implemented after he signed for $90,000 as a 10th-rounder. Detroit lengthened his stride and raised his arm slot, helping Nelson to realize higher peak velocity—up to 95 mph. He sits more in the 92 range with sinking and tailing action, but the ball gets on batters quickly because of his extra-large, 6-foot-7 frame. Nelson isn't especially graceful, so he struggles to repeat his delivery and release point. His changeup is rudimentary at this stage, though he does vary the speed and shape of his breaking ball depending on whether he's facing a lefthanded (slurve with lateral break) or righthanded (more vertical break) batter. The Tigers shifted Nelson to the Lakeland bullpen in mid-July after he went 4-10, 5.36 through 17 starts with a 68-to-46 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 87 1/3 innings.

Tigers Acquire
Delmon Young, lf
Age: 25. Bats: R. Remaining Commitment: Approximately $1.3 million ($5.375 million salary for 2011; under club control for 2012 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
Minnesota (AL) 2011 .266 84 305 26 81 16 0 4 32 18 55 1 .305 .357
3-Year Totals .286 345 1270 153 363 78 3 37 204 58 228 8 .318 .439

Does this mean the Delmon Young, too, cleared waivers? Or at least that the Indians did not put in a claim?

VT'er wrote:Does this mean the Delmon Young, too, cleared waivers? Or at least that the Indians did not put in a claim?

You are correct on both counts VT'er.

Indians could have put in a claim if they were interested.

Just saw a flash here that Oakland has apparently put Coco Crisp, Rich Harden and Craig Breslow on waivers.

Francisco Lindor moments before deadline

By Stephanie Storm
Beacon Journal sports writer

Published: August 16, 2011 - 08:01 AM Cleveland Indians sign No. 1 pick Francisco Lindor moments before deadline August 16,2011 12:01 PM GMT Stephanie Storm

Down to the wire.

Just like they did last year in signing No. 1 pick and LHP Drew Pomeranz (fifth overall) just in time before the clock struck midnight, the Indians agreed to terms right before the deadline again this season with No. 1 pick SS Francisco Lindor (eighth overall) for a reported $2.9 million.

Lindor, a Clermont, Fla., native batted .528 (28-for-53) during his senior season at Florida’s Montverde Academy High School, with 31 runs scored, six home runs, 13 RBI and 20 steals in 21 attempts. Fifteen of his 28 hits went for extra bases.

The switch-hitting, 17-year old shortstop was a Rawlings First Team All-American in 2011 and won the home run hitting contest at the Aflac All-American Game in August of 2010 in San Diego’s PETCO Park.

Lindor was born in Caguas, Puerto Rico, before moving to the Orlando area when he was 12 years old. He is 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds. In 2009 Lindor helped Under-16 Team USA to a gold medal in Taiwan by hitting .500 with three triples and six steals. Lindor was ranked as the seventh-best prospect in the draft by Baseball America (third-highest position player).

by Paul Hoynes

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- It took almost $5 million and every tick on the clock to the midnight deadline late Monday, but the Indians signed their first two picks in the June draft.

High school shortstop Francisco Lindor received a $2.9 million signing bonus, while Dillon Howard, a high school right-hander from Searcy, Ark., received $1.85 million. Both bonuses were well above the recommended slotting prices. The slotting price for Lindor was $2.043 million. It was $545,400 for Howard.

Lindor and Howard had bargaining power. Lindor had a free ride to Florida State, while Howard had signed a letter of intent to attend Arkansas.

The only unsigned pick among the Indians' first 10 choices was left-hander Stephen Tarpley. The Indians drafted Tarpley, another high school senior, out of Gilbert (Ariz.) High School with their eighth-round pick. He has a scholarship offer to Southern California.

The Indians had until midnight to reach agreement with all their unsigned picks.

Lindor came to the United States from Puerto Rico when he was 13. He played shortstop at Montverde Academy in Florida. Many high school players are drafted as shortstops, but eventually change positions.

The Indians feel Lindor is talented enough to be an everyday shortstop in the big leagues.

"He has the ability to stay at shortstop," said Brad Grant, Indians director of amateur scouting, the day they drafted Lindor in June.

Baseball America's scouting report says he has a line-drive swing from both sides of the plate with smooth and fluid actions defensively. There are questions of just how much power he'll generate.

He had committed to play college at Florida State, but his father, a former semi-pro baseball player, is suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome. His sister has multiple sclerosis.

In his senior year at Montverde, Lindor hit .528 (28-for-53) with 31 runs, six homers, 13 RBI and 30 stolen bases.

Howard is a right-hander from Searcy (Ark.) High School. He usually throws between 92-94 mph with sink. The Baseball America scouting report said command can be sometimes be a problem. He's played catcher, shortstop and third base as well. His curve and change-up need work, but he does have a feel for both pitches.

Howard had committed to play college at Arkansas. Standing 6-4 and 210 pounds, he was 9-1 with a 0.31 ERA, allowing two earned run in 58 innings. He struck out 115 and walked 25 in 12 starts this year at Searcy.

The Indians completed the night by signing 18th round pick Shawn Armstrong, a right-hander from East Carolina University, for $325,000. The Indians signed 17 of their top 19 picks. Overall, they signed 29 of the over 50 players they drafted.

The Indians entered deadline Monday having already reached deals with third-round pick RHP Jake Sisco, Merced (Calif.) College, $325,000; fourth-round pick C Jake Lowery, James Madison, $220,000; fifth-round pick RHP Will Roberts, University of Virginia, $150,000; sixth-round pick OF Bryson Myles, Stephen F. Austin (Texas) College, $112,500; seventh-round pick C Eric Haase, Divine Child (Westland, Mich.) High School, $580,000; ninth-round pick 3B Jordan Smith, St. Cloud (Minn.) State, $125,000 and 10th-round pick RHP Jeff Johnson, Cal Poly State, $100,000.

The Indians also signed 18th-round pick Shawn Armstrong, a right-hander from East Carolina before Monday's deadline.

Signed 8 of the second ten, 6 of them pitchers, the other 2 second basemen. Why do we need so many second basemen? We entered the draft sorely in need of OF's and selected and signed a grand total of one among the first 20 draft choices. That's Bryson Myles, a basestealer with some other skills who's doing pretty well at Mahoning Valley, in the 6th round.

Myles has put up some of the gaudiest numbers in college baseball this spring, leading NCAA Division I with 50 stolen bases and drawing Kirby Puckett comparisons while batting .413 and setting Stephen F. Austin State records for hits (92) and steals in a season and career. Built like a barrel at 6 feet and 225 pounds, Myles originally intended to play linebacker at Texas Christian but wound up spending the first two years of his college career in Weatherford (Texas) JC's baseball program. A righthanded hitter, he has quick hands and plenty of strength, but he employs an all-or-nothing swing that more advanced pitchers may be able to exploit. Despite his steal totals, Myles isn't a blazer. He has plus speed and good instincts on the bases, though he has been caught 13 times this spring. He's a fringy defender whose below-average arm relegates him to left field, so his bat and baserunning will have to carry him. Teams have passed him over in the draft for three straight years, but that won't happen again in 2011.

Lindor signing helps fill void in talent in Indians minor leagues

By Stephanie Storm
Beacon Journal sports writer

It’s not something that Indians amateur scouting director Brad Grant, nor any of the Indians’ front-office members, like to admit.

But there was a huge emphasis on signing the Tribe’s recent 2011 draft picks by Monday’s midnight deadline.

With the top two pitching prospects in the farm system, right-hander Alex White (the Indians’ top pick in the 2009 draft, 15th overall) and lefty Drew Pomeranz (fifth overall in 2010), traded to the Colorado Rockies in the Ubaldo Jimenez deal, young elite players are in more demand than ever for the Indians.

Although the blockbuster trade last month (which also included shipping Double-A players Joe Gardner and Matt McBride to the Rockies) immediately bolstered the Indians’ starting rotation, it left a good-sized hole in the minor-league system.

So there was probably a collective sigh of relief in the front office just after midnight, when it was learned that No. 1 pick Francisco Lindor signed “about two minutes before the deadline” for a reported $2.9 million signing bonus.

“There’s always questions and doubt,” Grant said. “But in the end, we were confident that Francisco wanted to play professional baseball. This was a priority in his life and we’re glad to be able to offer him the opportunity to come to an agreement.”

Although Lindor, a 17-year old high school shortstop, got more money than White ($2.25 million) and Pomeranz ($2.65 million), his bonus was less than the $3 million paid to right-hander Jeremy Guthrie in 2002.

Lindor’s first move as a professional will be to report to short-season Mahoning Valley, where he will work out for a while before playing in the Scrappers’ final four or five games of the season. Then he is expected to report to the Instructional League in Goodyear, Ariz.

A handful of games isn’t much for a young player who didn’t play all summer, but Grant said that until baseball’s next labor contract changes the signing deadline to earlier in the summer, all major-league teams will be forced to deal with the Aug. 15 deadline.

“It’s certainly to the player’s advantage and our advantage to be able to get them out [on the field] and be able to get a half season of play. You lose a half season of development time. For them to sit and not play all summer is definitely a disadvantage to both sides.”

In addition to Lindor, the Indians also signed second-round selection Dillon Howard and 18th-rounder Shawn Armstrong, both right-handed pitchers, late Monday night.

Howard, 19, signed for $1.85 million according to MLB.com. He was 9-1 with a 0.31 ERA in 12 starts for Arkansas’ Searcy High School. A 6-foot-4, 210-pounder, Howard limited high school batters to two earned runs and struck out 115 batters in 58 innings.

“He’s been pitching on a regular basis and pitched all summer,” Grant said of Howard, the Arkansas High School Player of the Year and Most Valuable Player of the Connie Mack World Series. “Now, we’re just working out a plan of where to go and how to build him up. I anticipate him pitching through August then heading to Instructional League.”

Armstrong, 20, was drafted out of East Carolina University. He was 3-1 with a 4.63 ERA in 19 games (six starts), including 50 strikeouts and 22 walks in 44 innings.

“He’s got good arm strength,” said Grant, who plans to start Armstrong early in his career, despite his future likely being in the bullpen. “He’s a guy who can throw up to 96 mph and has a developing breaking ball. While he pitched this summer, his fastball velocity increased, so we think we have a power arm.”

In all, the Indians signed 15 of their top 16 draft picks and 29-of-50 overall.

The one that got away was eighth-rounder Stephen Tarpley. A left-handed high school pitcher out of Arizona, Tarpley had previously committed to play collegiately at USC.

“We made a significant offer to Stephen and his family,” Grant said. “It just came down at the end where we weren’t able to align in value. But it was a positive situation for both sides. … Hopefully, we’ll have the opportunity to draft him again in three years.”

Tue Aug 16 07:54pm EDT

Teammates enable Indians’ Hannahan to see preemie son’s birth

By David Brown

That infielder Jack Hannahan(notes) is something like the 25th man on the Cleveland Indians roster matters little to his teammates. They treat him like a first-string person. Like a brother.

When Hannahan needed an assist earlier this month in order to be with his wife for the premature birth of their son, Justin Masterson(notes) and company made it happen.

The details come from a moving post at CBS Sports by C. Trent Rosecrans, who expanded on the work done by Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

One night when the Indians were playing at Boston, Hannahan's agent, Joe Speed, got a call. Hannahan's wife, Jenny, who had been relegated to bed rest back in Ohio, was having birthing contractions. Despite being early in her third trimester, she appeared to be heading into labor months ahead of schedule.

Another problem for Hannahan: There were no available flights home that night.

Rosecrans writes:

So even while Hannahan was at bat in the game, Speed booked the first flight in the morning out of Logan airport in Boston back to Cleveland, even knowing that would likely be too late. His next step was calling about private planes. They were available, but they cost $35,000. Even though Hannahan has a contract for $500,000 this year, $35,000 is still seven percent of his annual salary — that's a lot of money on a gamble that it would be the night Jenny gave birth.

Hannahan no doubt lives a wonderful life as a major leaguer, but he's a working man's ballplayer. As a third-round pick 10 years before, it's not like Hannahan and family can live off a big signing bonus. So, with only two-plus years of service time vested in the major leagues and no guarantee that he would be making big league money for much longer, Hannahan couldn't bring himself to charter a jet. He'd just take that first morning flight out of Logan.

But then Masterson came over and asked what was happening. He had a thought, and wasn't taking no for an answer.

Walters recounted the conversation:

"Book it," Masterson told Hannahan.

"I can't. It costs too much," Hannahan replied.

"Book it!" Masterson said.

Then Masterson passed a hat around the clubhouse. Teammates immediately contributed $35,000.

Hannahan took the private plane, arrived in Cleveland about 3 a.m. and reconnected with his wife just 15 minutes before John Joseph Hannahan V was born. Though he weighed just 2 pounds, 11 ounces at birth and hasn't come home from the NICU yet, baby reportedly is doing fine. As are mom and dad.

Teammates enable Indians’ Hannahan to see preemie son’s birthEven if his team doesn't make the playoffs, Manny Acta probably will win AL Manager of the Year because the Indians are performing way beyond what most expected. But I have to think that the environment in Cleveland's clubhouse that encouraged players to use their own money to help Hannahan is some of his doing.

Though they obviously could afford to band together and rent a jet, the Tribe's roster isn't exactly full of millionaires like it might have been in the Albert Belle era. Heck, Masterson makes less money than Hannahan. But it's this kind of camaraderie that helps get a team through a 162-game season. And it makes you want to root for the Indians if you don't already.

If this story is indicative, they seem like a good bunch of guys. And that counts for a lot in these times when cynicism can dominate.