FRIDAY, 8:10pm: Durbin's agent is in Arizona, talking to the Indians and other interested teams, according to Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain-Dealer (via Twitter).
FRIDAY, 10:33am: Durbin is close to signing with the Indians, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain-Dealer says the team has no comment at this time (Twitter links).
THURSDAY, 5:56pm: The Phillies, Rangers, Red Sox, Rays, and Royals are also pursuing the hurler, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com.
3:59pm: The Indians and free agent right-hander Chad Durbin are in talks according to SI.com's Jon Heyman (on Twitter), and a deal could happen within a day or two.
Earlier this week we heard that the Red Sox, Rays, Phillies, Rangers, and Mariners were all in pursuit of the 33-year-old, who indicated that he would accept a minor league deal from Philadelphia if his "hand is forced because there are no Major League offers on the table." A few weeks ago Durbin said that he hoped to join a contender, which doesn't really define the Indians.
Cleveland is seeking a starting pitcher, having been connected to both Kevin Millwood and Jeremy Bonderman in recent weeks. Although Durbin hasn't started a game since 2007, he has 75 career MLB starts to his credit and may wish to give it another shot. The bullpen is always a fallback.
What happened to going to a contender?
cleveland is a perennial challenger for top draft pick , maybe thats what completely average durbin meant
Its gonna be a nasty fight to see who gets the first pick.
Really? You think Cleveland is one of the worst teams in the league? You don’t know much about the MLB, do you.
What? The Indians haven’t been iun the hunt for the top draft pick in the league for 20 years. They haven’t even been the worst team in their own division since 1991.
Maybe Chad knows something not everyone else does. Hmmm?
Nah, Cleveland just probably offered him a big league deal. I don’t think they will work him in as a starter.
i always wonder what these “talks” consist of in cases like this. he sucks; they suck. he can’t make much; they can’t offer much. how much is there to say
“yeah, we think you’d be a real great fit here in cleveland; you’d love it. we don’t have any defense or offense or anything, but the logo is pretty funny right? you an albert belle fan?”
Albert Belle is a perfect metaphor for Cleveland as a whole.
Neither one of you know what the hell you’re talking about.
WOOOOOOOSSSSSHHHHH! That one went right over your head.
Unresolved anger management issues and falling apart at the seams?
Durbin’s been above league-average several years in a row…kinda disingenuous to say he sucks.
as a starter? not at all
I think it’s kind of insulting on the Phillies part by not offering Chad a big league deal.
its a shame baez wasn’t dropped instead i guess his salary dictates that move but phils have some guys that can replace durbins semi mediocrity , come on matheison
I hope either Matheison or De Fratus will come up big next year for us.
De Fratus might be a year away but will be good maybe even closer of the future!!!
Chad Durbin? For the Indians? Sorry, but this particular pitcher makes no sense to me at all.
I mean, I guess they can sign him so they can tell the Indians’ fans that hey! they signed a pitcher!
the phillies haven’t had a strong bp for a few yrs now. who are they getting if not durbin? they can’t just keep wasting time negotiating if they don’t have anyone who can take his place.
See “Phillies Rotation”
“the phillies haven’t had a strong bp for a few yrs now”
In 08 they had the best pen in baseball. 09 was terrible with injuries and Lidge having a horrific season. 2010 they had an average pen till around July, after the all-star break they had the best back end of the bullpen in the league. I don’t know how this translates into “they haven’t had a strong bp for a few yrs now”?
i know the bp did well towards the end of the season but i doubt they were the best “back end of the bullpen” after the all-star break.
Can ‘Hurler’ be used to describe Durbin? Well actually yes, because every time he pitches I have to … can we reserve the term for 92 mph and above?
Cleve-internet posters are in *love* with the idea of an all-minor league roster. It’s bad enough Tribe isn’t competitive. at least sign some major leaguers to look at.
As a giant fan I will miss durbin in the nl. Giants hit him well in the playoffs
As a Giants hater I’ll love seeing the Giants not winning a World Series for another 50 plus years.
chad durbin sucks, cleveland doesnt want him. and won’t sign him. our bull pen is gravy, if we grabbed him its for depth alone. and i hope they scoop up bonderman, although i think cleveland can be a .500 club this year with out him. David Huff for Come back player of year!
Cleveland Indians are in a position to contend for a while, so haters sit down and get use to it!
Whatever you say, but I’m still not siting down.
Yeah I like to comment here standing up haha.
Comcast Sports Philly just reported that Philly isn’t in the discussion for Durbin. They said he has his choices narrowed down to two teams, but did not say which ones.
Thanks for the update. Please find me more info. “Reporting to you live from, where ever he is, Drew Castellano!”
The average fan here concludes: they were awful last year, therefore, they will be awful next year and into the foreseeable future. Which means that the average fan here doesn’t have a clue.
I’m not buying this load of BS for one thing he has not been a starter since 2007 and he would not fit into the already over flowing Bullpen in Cleveland, not to mention that we already know that as of right now Manny Acta has stated in a interview in the last 72 hours that his rotaion is
#1 Carmona
#2 Masterson
#3 Talbot
#4 Carrasco
#5 is open But
IMO a anyone out of this group of Huff / Gomez / Tomlin / Laffey will get you as many wins.
And if you look at the pitching at AAA Columbus Starters and Bullpen they are going to be overflowing with talented young guys no Vets at all.
Just off the top of my head
Starters at AAA
Alex White
McAllister
Kruber
Rondon
and there are a host of others
The bullpen will be loaded within the first 2 months with guys like Adam Miller / Rob Bryson / Hagadone / Judy / and there are a couple of others.
So there is noway this comes to pass IMO.
I also never believe with Alex White most likely at the major league level around the all star break that the whole Bonderman / Millwood rumors were also BS.
Any bullpen can be overflowing. Doesn’t mean its good. The Indians bullpen isn’t great. Its good, but the Yankees Probably have the best 7-8-9
The point is Chad “the stiff ” Durbin does not make the bullpen better , plus if you are rebuilding and not close to contending this is not the type of guy you add to the roster.
I never said the indians bullpen was great Durbin is just not an upgrade to anyone in the bullpen right now.
Derpa Derpa Chad Durbin?
Lol as I tweeted, so much for wanting to join a contender. Have fun losing!
I have a feeling the Indians will be better than everyone thinks, even if Sizemore doesn’t bounce right back and LaPorta doesn’t live up to the hype. Having Choo and Santana in the middle of the order is huge. The two Cabreras are solid table-setters. Brantley should tear up the basepaths…and they have Chisenhall and Kipnis pounding on the door. Yeah their pitching sucks, and Durbin won’t help, but what will is an improved infield D with Cabrera because they have a lot of groundball pitchers. Their bullpen is more solid than people are giving it credit for with Perez shutting it down at the end. If the Indians were to somehow compete this year, I would think it no stranger than last year’s Padres team that stayed in the thick of things despite being unable to hit the fat side of a barn with a club.
No.
Maybe.
Braves fans are hoping this deal goes through and PHI doesn’t get him back. Durbin had the most IPs of any PHI RP in 2010.
Durbin is just holding out for Philly
Please God let it be true .
maybe not