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Indians Designate Thomas Neal, Release Felix Pie

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The Indians have designated Thomas Neal for assignment and released Felix Pie, reports MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (on Twitter). In related moves, Grady Sizemore was placed on the 60-day DL while Dan Wheeler and Jose Lopez were added to the roster. Jeremy Accardo, Ryan Spilborghs, and Rick Vandehurk will all report to Triple-A.

Neal, 24, was part of the trade that send Orlando Cabrera from the Indians to the Giants at least year's deadline. He hit .289/.343/.391 in 277 plate appearances split between Double and Triple-A last year. Pie, 27, is a .249/.298/.374 career hitter in over 1,000 big league plate appearances, most coming with the Orioles.

Indians Extend Asdrubal Cabrera

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The Indians announced that they have officially signed shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera to a two-year extension for 2013-14. The deal is worth $16.5MM and will delay Cabrera's free agency by one year.

Cabrera, who is represented by Octagon, avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal worth $4.55MM this offseason. This new contract buys out his final year of arbitration eligibility as well as one free agent season. He'll earn $6.5MM in 2013 and $10MM in 2014, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian tweets.

The 26-year-old enjoyed a breakout season in 2011, batting .273/.332/.460 with a career-high 25 home runs and 17 stolen bases. Cabrera has made several notable highlight defensive plays over the past few seasons, but Ultimate Zone Rating hasn't been a fan of his defense at shortstop, pegging him at -12.6 runs below average per 150 games in 2011.

When examining Cabrera's extension candidacy this offseason (prior to his arbitration settlement), MLBTR's Tim Dierkes suggested a four-year, $27MM would make sense for both sides. If the extension goes through at $16.5MM, Tim's $6.75MM average annual value would be close, though for one fewer year; the Indians would control Cabrera for three years at $21.05MM — slightly more than $7MM per season.

Steve Adams and Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com first reported the agreement and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link) reported the deal's value and that the sides were nearing an agreement.

Quick Hits: Rodriguez, Spilborghs, Votto, Hamels

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Matt Cain signed a five-year extension today and Joey Votto is nearing a long-term deal of his own. Here are some more links from around MLB…

  • Alex Rodriguez spoke glowingly about Miami and the Marlins' new stadium this weekend, as Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports writes. The Miami native didn't hold back, uttering phrases like "such a beautiful stadium," "I get chills," "a very special day" and "the Marlins do a phenomenal job." Henson wonders if the Marlins could trade for Rodriguez at some point before 2017, when his contract with the Yankees expires.
  • Indians outfielder Ryan Spilborghs will report to Triple-A tomorrow, unless he finds a job in the Major Leagues today, MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian tweets.
  • Dave Cameron of FanGraphs discusses the Votto contract talks, writing that "you have to wonder if the Reds got inspired to kick things into high gear after they saw what the new owners were willing to invest in Los Angeles."
  • ESPN.com's Buster Olney points out that Cole Hamels gained tremendous negotiating leverage with Matt Cain's $112.5MM extension (Twitter link).

Indians Release Fred Lewis

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The Indians released outfielder Fred Lewis, according to MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (on Twitter). They had signed Lewis to a minor league contract in January.

Lewis posted a .230/.321/.317 line in 210 plate appearances for Cincinnati last year, but he spent time on the disabled list with a strained right oblique muscle. The 31-year-old played both corner outfield positions for the Reds, who signed him for $900K. Lewis, a left-handed hitter, has a track record of success against right-handed pitching (.780 career OPS).

Central Notes: Reds, Indians, Pirates, Royals

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A look at some items out of the Central divisions..

Quick Hits: Hamilton, Axelrod, Abreu, Pelfrey, Mets

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Saturday night linkage..

  • Josh Hamilton told Richard Durrett of ESPN Dallas that he's open to talking to the Rangers about a contract extension during the season. “If they want to talk to my agent, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” he said after previously indicating an unwillingness to negotiate during the season.
  • Agent Barry Axelrod has been discussing employment opportunities with the Diamondbacks, reports Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic (Twitter links). Axelrod and GM Kevin Towers are close friends.
  • Unlike agents Jeff Moorad and Arn Tellem, Scott Boras has no desire to own a major league team, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com.
  • The Angels' deal to trade Bobby Abreu to the Indians fell apart due to salary concerns, a source familiar with the talks told Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. Cleveland wanted the veteran slugger but the two sides couldn't agree upon how much of his $9MM salary they would assume.
  • Mets pitcher Mike Pelfrey was surprised to learn that his job was on the line during spring training, writes David Lennon of Newsday. The front office was kicking around the idea of releasing the 28-year-old before Opening Day to free up roughly $4MM, the non-guaranteed portion of his one-year, $5.7MM deal.
  • Scouts covering the Giants say the club is getting nervous about rotation depth, tweets Jayson Stark of ESPN.com.
  • The Orioles cut minor league pitcher Josh Banks, tweets Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com. The right-hander spent most of 2011 with the Giants' Triple-A affiliate and posted a 7.27 ERA with 5.8 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in twelve starts and seven relief appearances.

Mike Axisa contributed to this post.

Quick Hits: Red Sox, Damon, Axford

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On this date 20 years ago, the Cubs released 29-year-old left-hander Jamie Moyer. The southpaw didn't pitch in the Major Leagues again that year, but he returned in 1993 and has since pitched 3,300 innings and won 233 games. His career isn't over yet, as the Rockies may add him to their rotation. Here are today's links…

  • The Red Sox had complete access to Chris Carpenter's medical records before acquiring him from the Cubs, Nick Cafardo and Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe report. The reliever also passed two physicals earlier this year, so the Red Sox aren't likely to obtain a different player from the Cubs as compensation for Theo Epstein even though Carpenter underwent elbow surgery yesterday.
  • ESPN.com’s Buster Olney wonders if the Indians could pursue free agent Johnny Damon instead of trading for Bobby Abreu (Twitter link). Dave Cameron of FanGraphs explores the Damon-Indians possibility and says it's hard to argue he’s a worse option than Abreu.
  • The Brewers have exchanged figures with closer John Axford regarding a possible extension, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets. "I'm not going to jump at anything," Axford said.

Knobler On Inge, Donald, Jimenez

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The latest rumors from Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (all links go to Twitter)…

  • The Tigers have tried hard to interest the Phillies in Brandon Inge without much success. Inge offers steady defense at third and has been learning second base this spring, but he earns $5.5MM in 2012.
  • The Phillies tried to re-acquire utility player Jason Donald from the Indians, but Cleveland preferred to keep him. The Phillies drafted Donald in 2006 and sent him to Cleveland in the 2009 Cliff Lee trade.
  • Teams inquired on Ubaldo Jimenez this spring, but the Indians don’t have interest in moving him, either.
  • Scouts are watching Diamondbacks left-hander Mike Zagurski, since there’s a sense the Diamondbacks might trade him.

Indians Near Extension With Asdrubal Cabrera

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The Indians and Asdrubal Cabrera are on the verge of a two-year extension worth $16.5MM that would cover the 2013-2014 seasons, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link).

Cabrera, who is represented by Octagon, avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal worth $4.55MM this offseason. This new contract would buy out his final year of arbitration eligibility as well as one free agent season.

The 26-year-old enjoyed a breakout season in 2011, batting .273/.332/.460 with a career-high 25 home runs and 17 stolen bases. Cabrera has made several notable highlight defensive plays over the past few seasons, but Ultimate Zone Rating hasn't been a fan of his defense at shortstop, pegging him at -12.6 runs below average per 150 games in 2011.

When examining Cabrera's extension candidacy this offseason (prior to his arbitration settlement), MLBTR's Tim Dierkes suggested a four-year, $27MM would make sense for both sides. If the extension goes through at $16.5MM, Tim's $6.75MM average annual value would be close, though for one fewer year; the Indians would control Cabrera for three years at $21.05MM — slightly more than $7MM per season.

Quick Hits: Cain, Hosmer, Team Values, Izturis

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Ichiro Suzuki and Yoenis Cespedes are the early stars of this young 2012 season, with the rest of the league waiting until next week to catch up to the Mariners and Athletics.  Here's some news from around the majors…

  • Matt Cain reiterated to reporters (including Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle) that Opening Day is the "cutoff" for contract talks between him and the Giants.  Cain said Giants GM Brian Sabean feels the same way.  Larry Baer, the team's CEO, discussed the Cain negotiations and more in a live chat with fans earlier today.
  • Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer is in no hurry to sign a multiyear contract, he tells Tyler Kepner of the New York Times.  "There’s a long time for that coming,” Hosmer said of a possible contract extension. “For me, I haven’t even experienced an opening day yet….I feel like it wouldn’t even be fair to this team to start thinking about that.”  Last January, MLBTR's Mike Axisa featured Hosmer as an extension candidate.
  • Sports business consultant Marc Ganis tells ESPN New York's Adam Rubin that if the Dodgers are worth $2.15 billion, it greatly raises the ceiling for the prices of baseball's big-market teams.  Ganis estimates the Yankees would be worth $4 billion, the Red Sox $2.5 billion and the Mets roughly $1.5 billion.  Only the biggest markets would have higher price tags, however, since they offer the most lucrative local broadcasting deals.
  • Also from Henry Schulman (Twitter links), Gregor Blanco says he chose the Giants over the Marlins in the offseason since San Francisco hitting coach Hensley Meulens promised Blanco a legitimate chance at a roster spot.  It looks like Blanco made the right choice, as he's poised to start the season in the majors after a big Spring Training.
  • Alexi Amarista's impressive camp has made him a candidate for a utility job with the Angels, but Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times says Amarista is too inexperienced at the big league level to make Maicer Izturis expendable.  Izturis' name has been connected to a few trade rumors this spring as several teams are in the market for infielders.
  • Cesar Izturis (Maicer's older brother) has been told he will make the Brewers' roster, says team media director Mike Vassallo (Twitter link).  Izturis' minor league deal with Milwaukee allowed him to ask for his release if he wasn't on the 40-man roster by March 30, but now his $875K salary for 2012 is guaranteed.
  • MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (via Twitter) predicts the Indians to make a "big roster reduction" on Saturday as the team starts to pare down its roster from its current 41-player state.  Bastian says the Tribe has been "looking at trades" as well, and indeed Cleveland has at least one notable deal reportedly in the works.
  • If the Angels cut Jason Isringhausen, the veteran reliever tells MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez that he'll probably retire, though there's a slight chance he'll keep pitching if he gets the right offer.  "It depends on who's that team that might call, who they'd be," Isringhausen said.
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