Victor Martinez Wants To Retire As An Indian

bad news for the AL Central. Good news for the Indian fans

The Indians would be silly to trade V-Mart.

Anyone who doesn't believe Martinez when he says this needs to sit down and watch him play a few games and do a couple interviews. You can just tell that he loves the Cleveland organization and the fans love him. If there's one guy that I'd like to see win a championship in Cleveland, it would be Victor Martinez.

I've said it before and I will say it again, trading Martinez, Sizemore and Choo is the absolute last thing Shapiro would do.

I dont know why players employ these cliches. Johnny Damon was the face of the Red Sox ("Ill never play for the Yankees") and he went straight to New York's higher offer. Which is fine - i think any player should do what he thinks is best. But seriously why do they say these stupid things.

If the right offer comes along, the GM will trade you. With the exception of those HUGE contracts (Arod, Jeter, Helton) ANYBODY can moved for the right price/package.

Why is there this mentality that just because a team is doing poorly, they need to trade off their talent?

This site only perpetuates that, and I understand that is only a "hub" for information, but this is getting ridiculous.

I can't express my frustration enough about the Greinke trade rumors last season because he had a good year, even though Dayton Moore clearly stated that he wasn't going anywhere.

Shame on these reporters.

"Why is there this mentality that just because a team is doing poorly, they need to trade off their talent?"

It's the horses pulling the cart, not the other way around. The reporters certainly fuel some speculation around the trade deadline, but it's the owners and GMs themselves who spawn the rumors that have legs with their soundbytes. For example, Shapiro has said:

“We’re looking to add young upper-level pitching. Starting pitching, relief pitching. Guys we can control for multiple seasons, not three months. I don’t know if we can get that, but that’s where a lot of our focus will be.”

So where exactly is he going to get that if not by dangling premium talent, like Victor Martinez, that is nearing free agency? As an aside, it's worth noting that, since the trade rumors started swirling, Martinez's OPS has dropped 200 points.

"So where exactly is he going to get that if not by dangling premium talent, like Victor Martinez, that is nearing free agency?"

The Indians are stacked in the high minors. Don't put it past Shapiro to bundle some promising bats for a proven starter. Not that its easy, but the Indians need to go for it all next year and have the young assets to round out the rotation. Without much payroll flexibility for the offseason, this has to be the road Shapiro takes.

Manny I'm a Indian for Life.

Then Manny became a FA and nobody heard another word from him except my agent is handling everything.

Thome my family loves the Cleveland area I couldn't imagine living anywhere else , this is all we know.

Then we hear MY Wife Is My ROCK !

Remember both of these guys lead us to believe that they would be Cleveland Indians past the date that their contracts ran out and look what happened.

It's not the players it's the UNION's and Agents who are the bad guys.

As long as there is more money on the table then the UNION expects the player to take top dollar reguardless .

Victors words are meaningless IMO unless he is willing to extend his current deal through 2013, If that can't be done then his Arse should be dealt.

Those are the Facts.

Clevcland Indians Fans if you are sucked in again it will only lead to HEARTBREAK !.

Think of what is best for the future of this club we will not contend next year Dolan and Shapiro are already talking cutting payroll we won't contend for the next 4 years if Victor and Lee isn't trade for at least 2 ready front of the rotation prospects that the Indians would control for the next 6 years IMO.

We not only lack starting pitching depth, we have no FOR type pitching depth past Rondon in the near future all good pitching is at least 3 year to 4 years away.

The Indians have a much better way to get a FOR starter than to make a trade: get Fausto Carmona back on track. Lee/Carmona/Westbrook with two of Huff/Laffey/Rondon/Lewis in 2010 is a World Series caliber rotation.

A lot depends on the second half. If LaPorta and Brantley look ready to contribute, and Perez/Perez/Sipp/Lewis/Smith start to look like a reliable bullpen, then they are just as good as any team in the AL.

If not, then you look to make an offseason trade. Just don't expect a premature trade now. Nothing would be worse than pulling the trigger now, and finding yourself one bat or one starter away from contending.

Plenty of small moves to come, however. Carrol, Betancourt, Pavano, and even Peralta and Garko may find themselves playing elsewhere before the deadline.

"The Indians have a much better way to get a FOR starter than to make a trade: get Fausto Carmona back on track."

You should write to them and suggest it. Kind of puzzling that Indians management didn't think of that themselves.

bucs lose again,

If you're going to correct somebody's "GRAMMAR", at least spell it correctly.

Both the NL and AL starter of the All Star game tonight have the middle name Leroy. I am without a doubt naming my kid Leroy and then forcing him to throw left handed, surefire 1st ballot HOF'er.

Posted by: fitz | July 14, 2009 at 01:47 AM

But they are both right-handed. I see what everyone means by someone saying they want to stay with one team their whole career and leaving to get paid, but in this case I think VMart means it.

"The Indians have a much better way to get a FOR starter than to make a trade: get Fausto Carmona back on track."

You should write to them and suggest it. Kind of puzzling that Indians management didn't think of that themselves.'

Well, they sent him down to Rookie Level a month or so ago, and he's currently working his way back up...so I guess I won't have to! ;)

Posted by: dan | July 14, 2009 at 10:01 AM

You do realize that Westbrook and Lee are Free Agents after next season, So please tell me you aren't suggesting that the Indians go into 2011 with a rotation of Fausto / Laffey / Huff / Rondon / Sowers.

Wow that rotation would win alot of games I'm sure we would be able to contend with that rotation.

The Indians are going to cut payroll by at least 15 to 20 mil going down to a 60 to 65 Mil payroll for 2010 because of 1. economy 2. downturn in ticket sales 3 lack of advertising sales.

We have NO absolutely NO front of the rotation pitching prospects above LOW A Lake County except RONDON which means all except Rondon is at least 3 to 4 years away and half of those prospects will FAIL.

If you don't understand this DAN then you just don't understand minor league baseball and how it works.

Now you have Westbrook and Hafner next season and their isn't anything you can do about it, we are stuck with them we owe Westbrook 11 mil next season and Hafner 11.5 and Wood 10.5 mil

And with a payroll around 65 mil how are you going to field a team and keep Lee / Martinez . It is not possible with a 65 mil payroll to keep them the math doesn't lie no-matter how you try to bend the numbers.

Even if you

"I'm not sure why you'd read that his OPS has dropped and assume that the only possible interpretation is that I was implying that the trade talk has caused Martinez's performance to suffer."

Because thats the way you made it sound without elaborating your opinion. I read your statement and not your mind.

"Also, I'm really not sure why you would point out that someone is an All-Star to make a statement about his abilities. Tim Wakefield is an All-Star this year. Roger Pavlik, Rolando Arrojo, Kent Bottenfield, Scott Cooper... "All-Stars.""

Sorry, Dunkin, I guess I should have said '3 TIME ALL STAR'.

"Because thats the way you made it sound without elaborating your opinion. I read your statement and not your mind."

Only a fool takes a statement with multiple implications, and blames the author when he is able to come away with only one inference. Well done.

"Sorry, Dunkin, I guess I should have said '3 TIME ALL STAR'."

So taking a stupid "credential" that doesn't really measure anything but popularity (or how bad a particular team is) and then multiplying it by three somehow makes it a more worthwhile evaluation tool?

Please don't compound your epic logic fail by trying in vain to defend your shattered pride.

P.S. Coaches sent Tim Wakefield to the All-Star game, as well. Go figure.

P.P.S. Martinez's bat doesn't play as well when he stops pretending that he's a full-time catcher.

Now let's stop fighting and talk about other supermeaningful measures of a player's relative ability, like Gold Gloves and MVP votes and stickers for hustle.

Dan,

The 2007 Indians could afford to lose starter like Lee (who was their #2 at the start of that season, Westbrook was #3and also injured) because they had depth. The 2010 Indians could not lose one starter in their top three let alone two. Byrd won 15 games and Pavano is on pace to due same but neither Pavano nor the 07 Byrd are going to be on next years roster. Their 2010 rotation is only "World Series caliber" if everything goes your way and nothing goes wrong. So if none of their starters gets injured and if Carmona can be successful again, and if Westbrook fully recover from injury, and if you can get production out of your fourth and fifth starters, and if then the bullpen goes form the bottom to the top and then if nothing bad happens to their hitting then maybe you have a chance to do something in the post season, that is of course if you can then over come NY/Bos/Tampa or the Angels in the AL and then you face the NL pennant winner.

When you rely on luck to win your only gambling.

"Please don't compound your epic logic fail by trying in vain to defend your shattered pride."

Shattered pride? You realize we're debating on an internet rumor comment section, right?

"P.S. Coaches sent Tim Wakefield to the All-Star game, as well. Go figure.

P.P.S. Martinez's bat doesn't play as well when he stops pretending that he's a full-time catcher.

Now let's stop fighting and talk about other supermeaningful measures of a player's relative ability, like Gold Gloves and MVP votes and stickers for hustle."

You cant be serious. Your main point is that All Star appearances are a popularity contest [even thogh Vic was elected by coaching staff at least twice (Wakefield once-bad argument)], and you say GOLD GLOVES ARE "SUPERMEANINGFUL"??? LOL!!! Those are handed out by reputation!!

And how does Victor's bat not play well because he's not a catcher? Have you ever even seen him play? Stats can be twisted to show anything you want, but the bottom line is this: a .300 career switch hitter who hits 20 homers and is the heartbeat of the team. His intangibles cannot be measured. Yes, his bat plays quite well no matter what position you play him, and anyone who actually follows him will say the same.