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Chris Antonetti, Brian Cashman On Andrew Miller Trade

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With the American League champion Indians set for their first World Series appearance since 1997, team president Chris Antonetti revisited the crucial July trade that brought ace reliever Andrew Miller to Cleveland.

On acquiring the left-hander from the Yankees, Antonetti told Andrew Marchand of ESPN.com, “There is excitement about coming to terms for a guy that we targeted. At the same time, there was a pit in your stomach because we knew we were trading really good players. That is a hard thing for us to do. There is that dichotomy.”

The Indians faced serious leaguewide competition for Miller’s services, but they ultimately landed him after agreeing to part with a package that included outfielder Clint Frazier and southpaw Justus Sheffield – two highly regarded prospects. The negotiation for Miller was “excruciating,” said Antonetti, who engaged in 100-plus conversations and texts with Yankees general manager Brian Cashman from late June until the deal went through July 31.

“We felt a unique circumstance with Andrew; with all the elements he brought to the table, it was worth paying a very steep price,” commented Antonetti.

Miller has been worth the price so far, having carried his regular-season brilliance into the playoffs. The 31-year-old won ALCS MVP honors after throwing seven shutout innings and striking out 14 without issuing a walk in the Indians’ five-game elimination of the Blue Jays. Previously, in Cleveland’s three-game ALDS sweep over Boston, Miller tossed four scoreless frames with seven strikeouts and two walks. Miller has recorded between four and eight outs in each of his six playoff appearances this year, which is what the Indians had in mind when they were attempting to acquire him.

“We envisioned using him like we are,” revealed manager Terry Francona, who discussed how the team would deploy Miller with Antonetti and pitching coach Mickey Callaway prior to the trade.

Before Cashman dealt Miller, he had to convince Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner that it was the right path to take. With the Yankees hanging around the wild-card race, Steinbrenner wasn’t on board with moving Miller after the club had already dealt closer Aroldis Chapman to the Cubs. That changed when the Rays swept the Yankees in a late-July series leading up to the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline, paving the way for the end of Miller’s year-plus run in the Bronx.

“Once the medicals cleared for both sides, then it was a pit in my stomach that I have the most difficult job of all in calling Andrew Miller,” said Cashman. “Andrew, he didn’t want to go anywhere. He loved playing here. Andrew was everything you want. Unfortunately, we had a lot of areas that need to be addressed, so unfortunately he was part of that type of solution.”

Given that Miller is under team control through 2018 at a reasonable $9MM per year, the Yankees “needed two twin firstborns” to deal him, Cashman quipped. For his part, Antonetti told Marchand he’s “confident that the guys we traded away will make a big impact with the Yankees.”

That may indeed prove true for Frazier and Sheffield. In the meantime, Miller has made an enormous mark on the Indians, who are four wins away from their first championship since 1948. Miller and the Tribe will face the Cubs and his former New York bullpen mate, Chapman, in a battle of franchises that own the majors’ longest championship droughts. If the Cubs are going to break through for the first time since 1908, their best bet is to jump on the Indians early in games and avoid Miller, the 2016 postseason’s most dominant force.

AL Central Notes: Soria, Indians, Cueto, Glass

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The Tigers have contacted Joakim Soria’s agent about a possible return to Detroit, MLB.com’s Jason Beck reports, though they’ll be one of several teams in the mix for his services.  The reliever-needy Tigers have a distinct need for a solid bullpen arm, but Aroldis Chapman probably isn’t a fit since Detroit aren’t keen on dealing from their just-rebuild farm system to match the Reds’ high asking price for the ace closer.  Here’s some more from around the AL Central…

  • Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti told Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (via Twitter) that he will look into trading a starting pitcher in order to improve elsewhere, though it’s not necessarily something that he’d like to do.  The Tribe received a lot of interest in their young starters last summer; Carlos Carrasco drew particular attention and Cleveland in fact almost dealt him to the Blue Jays.
  • While the Indians may not be able to spend big on free agents, what they can offer is playing time at third, first or in the outfield, ESPN’s Buster Olney writes (Insider-only link).  This might be significant in helping the Tribe land a lower-tier free agent veteran; Olney suggests the likes of Juan Uribe, Justin Morneau, Mike Napoli and Will Venable as possible fits.
  • Johnny Cueto’s agent, Bryce Dixon, also Duquette and Bowden (Twitter links) to discuss his client’s free agency.  Dixon expressed confidence that teams will see that Cueto his healthy after viewing his medicals, and if Cueto had been hurt, he wouldn’t have been able to deliver such strong results for the Royals in two of his postseason outings.
  • Royals owner David Glass deserves credit for standing behind GM Dayton Moore during tough times, Tracy Ringolsby of MLB.com writes.  Moore’s tenure is the fourth longest among current general managers behind Brian Sabean of the Giants (now executive VP of baseball operations), Brian Cashman of the Yankees, and Jon Daniels of the Rangers.  Those executives, however, enjoyed either quick success or quicker returns on rebuilds than Moore, as the Royals didn’t even post a winning record until Moore’s seventh full season running the team.
  • Joe Mauer will be 36 when his current contract expires in three years, but the Twins first baseman tells Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that he hasn’t given any thought about retirement at that time, only that he “probably” wants to play “as long as I can.”

MLBTR’s Zach Links also contributed to this post

Indians Promote Chris Antonetti, Mike Chernoff

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3:53pm: Bastian tweets that from an operational standpoint, little will change with the Indians. The new titles reflect the way in which the team has operated for several years, per Antonetti.

11:06am: The Indians have announced a widely-anticipated series of front office promotions. Chris Antonetti will move into the newly-minted position of president of baseball operations, with Mike Chernoff stepping into the general manager role.

To an extent, the move was precipitated by the departure of former president Mark Shapiro. But Antonetti will remain atop the baseball operations department rather than stepping into Shapiro’s broader, business-oriented role, as MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian notes on Twitter.

Antonetti, 41, served as the Indians’ GM for five years after a lengthy stint as Shapiro’s right-hand man. Among his most notable achievements are a series of appealing extensions, many of them with high-performing players that the organization acquired at a discount. Under Antonetti’s leadership, Cleveland has locked up Jason Kipnis, Michael Brantley, Yan Gomes, and Carlos Santana on the position player side as well as Corey Kluber and Carlos Carrasco among its pitchers.

The club that Antonetti compiled this year fell somewhat shy of expectations. After a 2013 playoff berth and 85-win campaign last year, the team’s array of excellent starters made it a popular pick to reach the post-season. Instead, the club landed at 81-80, though it did manage a late run at Wild Card relevance.

There’s still plenty to like about the team’s young talent, even if it didn’t reach its ceiling this season. In addition to those noted above, players such as Francisco Lindor, Danny Salazar, Trevor Bauer, and Cody Allen are all controlled for the foreseeable future.

Tasked with turning that impressive core into a consistent winner will be the 34-year-old Chernoff. The Princeton grad has been with the organization since 2003, but drew plenty of interest from other organizations that were seeking general managers. But he and the team rebuffed those overtures, preferring instead to structure this internal promotion.

Cleveland also announced that it would account for the upward movement of Chernoff with another internal move. Former director of baseball operations Derek Falvey will become the assistant GM in the new front office structure.

The front office combination has some flexibility to work with despite a generally meager spending capacity. The organization has yet to crack $90MM in Opening Day payroll, but has a decent bit of uncommitted potential cash over the next several seasons — even after committing future salary to the significant players listed above.

Angels GM Candidates Include LaCava, Hazen, Atkins, Eppler

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When former general manager Jerry Dipoto left the club in the middle of the summer over an apparent lack of compatibility with manager Mike Scioscia, it became apparent that the Angels could have a unique GM search on their hands. The team has been increasingly active recently and is said to be hopeful of making a decision within a few weeks’ time.

Here’s the latest on the Angels’ search for a new leader of their baseball operations department, with updates on the preliminary interview process added as information is reported:

  • Blue Jays assistant general manager Tony LaCava interviewed for the Angels’ GM vacancy today, reports Buster Olney of ESPN (via Twitter). LaCava has been an AGM with Toronto since 2007 and also currently holds the title vice president of baseball operations. He’s been strongly considered for GM openings in the past, and he even (reportedly) turned down an offer to become the Orioles’ GM back in 2011.

Earlier Updates

  • Red Sox AGM Mike Hazen will interview with the Angels as soon as today, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reports on Twitter. Hazen has long been considered likely to head up a baseball ops department at some point. His name has also come up with regard to Boston’s own internal GM opening.
  • Angels pro scouting director Hal Morris has also been given an interview for the post, MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez reports on Twitter. He joins Klentak and Servais as internal candidates who have reportedly been given a chance to sit down with the top-level brass.
  • The Angels interviewed Indians VP of player personnel Ross Atkins today, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports on Twitter. Atkins has been in the Cleveland organization for quite some time, and has occupied his current post since a promotion last year. Indians AGM Mike Chernoff has received more press as a possible GM hire, though he also seems to be an internal promotion candidate if current Cleveland GM Chris Antonetti takes the vacated president’s role. Antonetti has previously noted that Atkins holds the promise of a future general manager.
  • We learned yesterday that Yankees assistant GM Billy Eppler had his interview with the Halos, as had been widely expected. Eppler has been tabbed by some as the leading candidate, and is reportedly interested in the position — despite any possible limitations of authority owing to the presence of Scioscia — due in part to his ties to Southern California.
  • Los Angeles is said also to have conducted interviews with its own assistant general managers, Matt Klentak and Scott Servais.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Utley, Angels, Zobrist, Zimmermann, Giants, Execs

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In his latest notes column for FOX Sports, Ken Rosenthal looks at the failed attempt to acquire Chase Utley made by both the Angels and Cubs. Anaheim “blew it” by not adding Utley, opines Rosenthal, as the Halos had more playing time to offer than the Dodgers but didn’t pull the trigger on a deal despite only having acquired “complementary hitters” in July. (That seems harsh, as there’s no guarantee that the current iteration of Utley is anything more than a complementary piece himself.) As for the Cubs, they initially showed interest while Utley was still hurt, but Utley wasn’t comfortable being traded while on a rehab assignment, says Rosenthal, so the Phils waited to put him through waivers. By the time he returned, Howie Kendrick had been hurt in L.A., creating a match with the Dodgers.

Some more highlights from the column…

  • As others have noted, the Angels’ GM opening is a tough sell to prospective candidates because Arte Moreno is more involved than the average owner, and Mike Scioscia has more power than the average manager. One rival general manager described the Angels’ GM role to Rosenthal as such: “You take all of the beatings (from Moreno) and you’ve got no power (due to Scioscia).” Jerry Dipoto resigned from his post this summer due to reported clashes with Scioscia.
  • The Blue Jays tried to trade for Ben Zobrist, but the Athletics’ asking price was Matt Boyd plus other pieces, Rosenthal hears, which was too steep for GM Alex Anthopoulos. Boyd was ultimately one of three pieces used to acquire David Price from the Tigers.
  • Rosenthal reports that the Giants are likely to pursue right-hander Jordan Zimmermann as they look to bulk up their rotation this offseason. However, he notes that the Wisconsin native may prefer to return to the Midwest. Zimmermann ranked eighth on the most recent edition of MLBTR’s Free Agent Power Rankings, though he’s had a couple of rough starts since then.
  • The Giants may also consider attempting to unload the final year of Angel Pagan’s contract this winter. Pagan is slated to earn $10MM next season in the final season of a four-year, $40MM contract after playing in just 167 games from 2013-14 and struggling at the plate in 102 games to this point in 2015. San Francisco could use Gregor Blanco in center field in the event that they’re able to move Pagan.
  • The recent trend of teams promoting an assistant GM to GM and a current GM to president (as the White Sox and Giants have done) could continue this offseason as teams try to prevent their top AGMs from departing for GM vacancies elsewhere, Rosenthal writes. The Rangers could promote Thad Levine to GM (and presumably elevate Jon Daniels), for instance, and the Cardinals could promote Mike Girsch (presumably promoting GM John Mozeliak as well). And, should Mark Shapiro end up with the Blue Jays, the Indians could bump Mike Chernoff to GM and make Chris Antonetti president (Cleveland previously did his by moving Shapiro from GM to president and Antonetti from AGM to GM). Levine, Girsch and Chernoff could all attract interest from other teams this winter.

Antonetti Talks Trade Market, Dickerson, Maronde

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Entering the All-Star break, the Indians find themselves at .500 and in third place in the AL Central, trailing the Tigers by 7.5 games. Before Cleveland’s 3-2 win over the White Sox, GM Chris Antonetti chatted with reporters for 25 minutes. Here are the highlights (MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian has the complete transcript) :

  • Antonetti hasn’t decided whether the Indians will be buyers or sellers at the Trade Deadline. “We’re exploring a lot of different things, opportunities to improve our team for the balance of this season and then position us better moving forward, too. We’ve spent a lot of energy on fits for acquiring guys that we’d have control over beyond this year, not just guys that would just be here for the balance of the year.“
  • The Indians’ trade strategy is muddied by the fact there isn’t one glaring weakness on the roster. “It’s actually one of the interesting challenges that we have,” Antonetti said. “So, for us to improve, we need to improve upon a higher standard. And, in some cases, we’re counting on guys that we’ve already made commitments to rebounding. So, it’s a little bit of a different dynamic for us as we look to try to improve our roster.“
  • The Indians will “potentially” explore the trade market for starting pitchers. “The one thing we continue to believe is we have quality Major League starting pitchers,” said Antonetti. “Anytime you acquire a guy, you have to think about who it displaces from the team and the rotation, in that case. You have to have a high degree of confidence that it’s an improvement.“
  • Antonetti traded for Chris Dickerson because his ability to play all three outfield positions and his success against right-handed pitching is a nice complement to the club in the wake of Michael Bourn’s hamstring injury. Antonetti added he had interest in Dickerson as a free agent this past offseason, but couldn’t commit at-bats to him at the time.
  • Yesterday, the Indians acquired Nick Maronde from the Angels. Antonetti has liked the left-hander “for quite a while” and acknowledged the 24-year-old has had “some trouble throwing strikes, but we think that there’s significant upside there and a guy worth taking a chance on. “

Indians Notes: Albers, Carson, Antonetti

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December 6th has been a notable day in Indians transaction history.  The Tribe acquired Carlos Baerga, Sandy Alomar Jr. and Chris James from the Padres in exchange for Joe Carter on this day in 1989, and on 12/06/2002, the Indians picked up Travis Hafner (and righty Aaron Myette) from the Rangers in exchange for Einar Diaz and Ryan Drese.  Going all the way back to 1959, the Indians swung a seven-player deal with the White Sox that involved such notables as Minnie Minoso (to Chicago) and Norm Cash (to Cleveland).

Here are some notes about the modern-day Indians…

  • Right-hander Matt Albers has already received at least one two-year contract offer from an interested team, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.  Albers has received interest from several clubs, and Hoynes reports that one of those teams is from the AL Central, possibly the Tigers or White Sox.  The Indians have discussed a one-year deal with Albers and Hoynes speculates that the righty could take the shorter contract in order to help his value for next winter, provided he gets the right price.
  • The Indians are close to re-signing Matt Carson after non-tendering the outfielder earlier this week, Hoynes reports (Twitter link).  The contract would be a minor league deal and Carson would be invited to the Major League Spring Training camp.  The Tribe non-tendered Carson earlier this week.  Carson, 31, hit .252/.322/.394 with 14 homers in 490 PA with Triple-A Columbus last season, and he also received 13 PA in 20 games at the Major League level in 2013.
  • The Indians' offseason "focus right now is pitching," GM Chris Antonetti told reporters (including Hoynes) today.  "We’re still focused on trying to improve our pitching alternatives. We have come into the offseason in a much better position than we have in prior offseasons with the quality and quantity of our pitching alternatives on our roster and within the organization. That being said, we’re going to continue to try and find a way to improve it.”  Antonetti noted that the team would keep its options open for position players, though adding David Murphy already addressed one of the Tribe's big needs.
  • The team has "outstanding offers…on trades and free agents.  We could go either direction or both," Antonetti said.
  • With the 2013-14 offseason shaping up as an extremely costly one for free agent contracts, Antonetti is looking prescient for predicting this winter's spending explosion and instead adding key pieces last winter, MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince writes.  It looks like a much more low-key offseason for the Tribe this year, and Castrovince thinks Murphy's two-year, $12MM deal could end up being Cleveland's biggest expenditure.

Indians Notes: Payroll, Jimenez, Giambi, Perez

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Indians GM Chris Antonetti and manager Terry Francona had an end-of-the-year roundup session with the media, including Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer and MLB.com's Jordan Bastian.  Here are some of the hot stove-related items…

  • It isn't yet clear if next season's Tribe payroll will be greater or lower than 2013's $80.6MM number, though Antonetti isn't worried.  "That's information that we'll get a little later in the offseason when we find out exactly what our payroll will be," Antonetti said. "But that's not the defining thing for us. It's how we build a the best team and I'm confident we'll have the resources we need to build a contending team again next year."
  • Pitching seems to be the top priority for the club this winter.  When asked if the Indians would go after a middle-of-the-order hitter, Francona said, “It depends on how much pitching we have.”
  • Ubaldo Jimenez hasn't made a decision about voiding the $8MM option the club has on his services for next season, Antonetti said.  Unsurprisingly, Antonetti said the Tribe would be happy to have Jimenez back in 2014.  MLBTR's Steve Adams wrote a Free Agent Profile on Jimenez last month.
  • Both men want Jason Giambi to return to the Indians next season, either as a player, coach or possibly both.  Giambi has said he wishes to keep playing, so it seems likely the two sides will work something out.
  • The Indians will look at Chris Perez's whole career with the team as "the lens" for his arbitration case, Antonetti said, rather than Perez's poor end to the 2013 season.  Perez earned $7.3MM last season and will get a raise through the arbitration process, so there have been rumors that the Tribe will look to deal or even non-tender the right-hander.
  • Sandy Alomar Jr. will take over as first base coach from Mike Sarbaugh next season, a move that Francona stressed was not a demotion from Alomar's previous job as bench coach.  Brad Mills (Francona's long-time bench coach with the Red Sox) will take over as Cleveland's bench coach, while Sarbaugh completes the shuffle by becoming the new third base coach.
  • Antonetti didn't comment on whether or not the Cubs have asked for permission to interview first base coach Sandy Alomar for their vacant managerial position.  Alomar was a candidate for the Cubs job in 2011 before they hired Dale Sveum, and he's been linked to their current vacancy.
  • Lonnie Chisenhall is still the incumbent third baseman, though Bastian suspects the club will look to improve themselves at the hot corner this winter.
  • The Indians made the playoffs despite subpar seasons from Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher, their two big free agent signings from last offseason.  Francona and Antonetti felt that the two players may have been pressing in a new environment, plus Swisher was affected by a shoulder injury and Bourn was adjusting to the American League.

Antonetti on Bourn, Bauer, Pitching

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Earlier today, Jim Bowden of ESPN.com spoke with Indians General Manager Chris Antonetti.  Here's a look at some highlights…

  • Antonetti explained that the Indians' future revenue from upcoming television deals allowed the club to go after free agent Michael Bourn last winter.  While the club was in on the outfielder as early as January, it only became a reality after market forces brought down his asking price. 
  • "You can never have enough pitching but we feel good about a lot of the guys we have," said Antonetti when asked about the prospect of bolstering the starting five.  While some on the outside have suggested the Indians may look to improve the rotation, they seem comfortable with what they have.  
  • Antonetti feels he'll have the support of ownership if the Tribe is in the thick of things in July and the club needs to make a trade.  The GM is confident in the depth of his farm system and is ready to make a deal if the right opportunity presents itself.
  • The club's pursuit of Terry Francona was more-or-less standard procedure as Antonetti described it.  Francona had "not only an interest, but an enthusiastic interest" in the position, and both sides were quickly able to hammer out a deal.  
  • The organization thinks Trevor Bauer is very close to being a regular contributor in the Indians' rotation.  By the second half of the season, the GM hopes that he will be ready to be called up and stay on the big league roster for good.  The 22-year-old, of course, came to Cleveland in the three-team Shin-Soo Choo deal in December.

AL Notes: Yankees, Happ, Indians

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The Yankees made some last minute moves this week when they traded for Vernon Wells and picked up the recently-released Lyle Overbay.  Both Wells and Overbay have made the club along with Ben Francisco and Brennan Boesch, leaving Juan Rivera as the odd man out.  Tbe first baseman/outfielder was cut loose, though he did cash in on a $100K retention bonus for staying on the roster beyond Tuesday's Article XX(B) deadline.  Here's more from the Junior Circuit..

  • It's time for the Yankees to start looking for a replacement for Derek Jeter, Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork.com writes. Eduardo Nunez, who is manning shortstop in Jeter's absence, is not a good solution for the long haul, Matthews argues, and Jeter's age and injury status are both worrisome. Matthews also suggests that the Yankees should have acquired Jose Reyes or Yunel Escobar in the offseason.
  • Having gone in just days from being ticketed for Triple-A to being in the big-league rotation with a new contract extension, Blue Jays pitcher J.A. Happ is thrilled with his recent streak of good fortune, reports MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm. "It certainly has been a great few days," says Happ. "There was a long time before that where it wasn't quite as easy, but this kind of makes it all worth it."
  • After his team's signings of Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn, GM Chris Antonetti hopes the Indians will snag a playoff spot, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. The organization felt it needed a splashy offseason to maintain the attention of its fanbase, Pluto writes. "There is risk whenever you make substantial investment," says Antonetti. "But for us, there was even more risk if we didn't."

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