Indians Notes: Sizemore, Carmona, Thome, Cabrera
The Indians may have had their playoff hopes dashed by the Tigers, but with a strong performance over the next week and a half, they'll still finish the season with a winning record. Cleveland sends Justin Masterson to the hill against the Twins today, looking to finish off a sweep and get back to .500. Before they get underway at Target Field, let's check out a few Tribe-related links….
- The Indians figure to pursue starting rotation depth and a right-handed bat this winter, according to Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Pluto also expects the club to exercise Grady Sizemore's 2012 option, though he's not as sure about Fausto Carmona's. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes said earlier this month that Carmona's option "requires pause, but is worth exercising," and also predicted Sizemore's option will be exercised.
- Within Pluto's piece, he notes that the Tribe should end up drawing more than 1.8 million fans this season, well above their projected figure of 1.3 million. The bump in attendance will help accommodate a payroll increase for 2012.
- The Indians have sent $20K to the Twins to complete the Jim Thome trade, tweets MLB.com's Jordan Bastian.
- Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer fields reader questions in his latest mailbag, discussing Casey Kotchman, Orlando Cabrera, and September callups, among other topics.
- The Star-Ledger's Mike Vorkunov looks at the Indians and a few other teams whose playoff hopes fell by the wayside in the second half. He briefly explains what went wrong and why there's hope next year for each club.
Central Notes: Indians, La Russa, Verlander
A few links to pass along regarding clubs in the Central divisions …
- The Indians are facing an offseason of difficult decisions, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. With basically the same roster, the Tribe's payroll would jump from $49MM in 2011 to roughly $70MM next season, explains Hoynes. Several key players like Shin-Soo Choo, Justin Masterson, Chris Perez and Asdrubal Cabrera will be eligible for arbitration, and the Indians own options on Grady Sizemore ($9MM) and Fausto Carmona ($7MM).
- Cardinals manager Tony La Russa dismissed a rumor that he will manage the Cubs next season, writes Kevin Roberts of MLB.com. A report surfaced earlier this week that the Cubs would hire La Russa and Reds GM Walt Jocketty (formerly the Cards' GM) in an effort to lure impending free agent Albert Pujols this offseason. This one seems to be falling apart, as Reds owner Bob Castellini has said Jocketty will be back with the Reds in 2012.
- The AL MVP Award is now Tigers righty Justin Verlander's to lose, opines Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
Indians Notes: Shapiro, Carrasco, Santana
On this date in 1997, Jim Thome hit his 40th homer of the season for the Indians, who went on to win the American League pennant. Here's the latest on the current version of the Indians, who have a 0.0% chance of returning to the postseason this year, according to Baseball Prospectus' playoff odds report…
- Indians president Mark Shapiro hasn't had contact with the Cubs about their open GM job, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Shapiro is involved in making the Indians more successful on and off the field and appears to be happy in his role, Hoynes writes. ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reported yesterday that the former GM might be intrigued by the Cubs job.
- The Indians announced that Carlos Carrasco had Tommy John surgery in New York City today, as Dr. David Altchek repaired the ulnar collateral ligament in Carrasco’s right elbow. Recovery time is generally a year or more, so the Indians won’t be counting on Carrasco in 2012.
- Indians manager Manny Acta told Todd Wills of MLB.com that Jeanmar Gomez will be a name to consider for next year's rotation. Gomez has allowed just three earned runs in 17 1/3 innings since being recalled from Triple-A at the end of August.
- Carlos Santana could be a long-term solution behind the plate or at first base, Acta told Wills. The Indians' decision will depend, in part, on others, such as Matt LaPorta.
- The 26-year-old LaPorta has had his chances. In what amounts to two full seasons, he has 30 homers and a .234/.300/.394 line. He has always destroyed minor league pitching, but he hasn't helped the big league club nearly as much as expected.
Stark On Tigers, Shapiro, Buehrle, Oswalt, Rays
Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski told ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark that the current version of the Tigers is significantly different than the team that started the season with a 12-17 mark. Rival executives agree that the Tigers, winners of ten straight, wouldn’t be fun to face in a playoff series at this point. Here’s Stark’s latest:
- People close to Indians president Mark Shapiro tell Stark that the longtime GM would be “intrigued” by the Cubs’ GM job. Shapiro’s associates say he’s happy in Cleveland, but suggest he’d listen if Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts came calling. Shapiro declined comment and there’s no indication that the Cubs have spoken to him.
- A friend of Mark Buehrle's doesn’t believe the left-hander would retire after the season, when he is set to hit free agency. Buehrle would have been open to pitching for the Cardinals, but they have a full rotation set up for 2012, assuming they exercise Adam Wainwright’s options.
- White Sox officials have been saying they need to cut payroll, according to Stark. Like the Cardinals, they have five starters under team control for 2012 even without Buehrle.
- The Phillies aren’t likely to exercise Roy Oswalt’s $16MM option, but other than that the right-hander’s future remains unclear. He is another pitcher who has expressed interest in St. Louis, but it’s not a likely fit given the Cardinals’ depth. Oswalt doesn’t want to pitch in the American League or for a non-contender, according to Stark.
- The Marlins won’t be able to obtain manager Ozzie Guillen from the White Sox unless they’re willing to part with a “big-time player.”
- It appears that the Rays are open to the idea of bringing Johnny Damon back for another season.
- Aaron Rowand wants to play in 2012, though he isn’t likely to return this season. He’ll be looking for the opportunity to pick up regular at bats next year, according to Stark.
Indians Designate Jason Rice For Assignment
The Indians announced today on Twitter that they've designated minor league reliever Jason Rice for assignment to open a 40-man roster spot for reliever Zach Putnam.
Rice began the year in Boston's system and was traded to the Athletics for Conor Jackson on August 31st. Then one week ago the Indians claimed him off waivers from the A's, and now he's been bumped off the Tribe's 40-man roster.
Rice, 25, posted a 3.69 ERA, 9.4 K/9, 4.4 BB/9, and 0.6 HR/9 in 85 1/3 Triple-A innings this year. He sits in the mid-90s with a hammer curveball, according to Red Sox vice president of player development and amateur scouting Mike Hazen.
Quick Hits: Indians, Iannetta, Mariners
The Tigers extended their winning streak to ten games tonight with a 14-4 victory over the White Sox. Here's the latest from around MLB…
- Deadline deals played a significant role in this year's AL Central race, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes. The Tigers and Indians were both aggressive on the trade market in July and August, as our Transaction Tracker shows.
- Chris Iannetta told Thomas Harding of MLB.com that he hopes to remain with the Rockies, though he has lost playing time to rookie backstop Wilin Rosario in recent weeks.
- The Mariners announced that they promoted Roger Hansen, who is now a special assistant to GM Jack Zduriencik. The 50-year-old Hansen spent 18 years working for the Mariners in player development, most recently as the organization's minor league catching coordinator.
- As Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal shows, Jose Reyes of the Mets has raised his on-base percentage to .375 with a counter-intuitive method.
AL Central Links: Tigers, Pena, Buehrle, Acta
The Tigers' magic number for clinching the AL Central is nine after Brandon Inge's walkoff blast against the Twins this afternoon. Red-hot Detroit has won eight games in a row and the team looks like a sure bet to reach the postseason for the first time since 2006.
Let's round up the latest from the division…
- Intra-divisional trades made been a big part of the Tigers' success, writes Lynn Henning for the Detroit News. Jhonny Peralta, Delmon Young and Wilson Betemit have all come to Detroit from AL Central rivals over the last two seasons.
- Brayan Pena wants to keep playing for the Royals and is happy to remain a backup catcher, reports Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star.
- Following last night's game, Mark Buehrle told reporters that he plans to work out this offseason as if he'll be pitching next season, but he doesn't know if a contract will get worked out with the White Sox. You can watch the video on CSNChicago.com. Buehrle will be a free agent for the first time in his career after the season, and he's hinted at retirement in the past.
- Ozzie Guillen, for his part, thinks Buehrle will pitch in 2012. "Oh, he's staying," Guillen tells ESPN Chicago. "I talk to him every day and he never mentions [to] me anything about retirement. I think this kid's got a lot left to give [to] baseball. I think this kid can help a lot of big league ballclubs. Believe me, I don't think he's retiring."
- In that same piece, Guillen also reiterated his commitment to the White Sox, saying he wishes to manage the club in 2012 and for "the next 20 years."
- Joe Mauer talks to FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal (video link) about his season, his future behind the plate and the Twins' struggles. Two days ago, more than 3,000 MLBTR voters said the Twins have been baseball's most disappointing team this season.
- "That's a good question for the off-season," said Indians GM Chris Antonetti when asked about manager Manny Acta's club option for 2013 by Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer. Acta will be in the final year of his three-year contract next season, and Antonetti made it clear that he's pleased with the job his manager has done.
- Tigers manager Jim Leyland told Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press that they're "thrilled" about the Delmon Young acquisition. "It's worked out pretty good so far, and when he steps in that batter's box he's a man," said Leyland. "He's going to get his rips and has a pretty good idea how to hit and what pitchers do."
MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post
Rosenthal On Wright, Showalter, Sizemore
Let's take a look at the latest edition of Full Count from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..
- There are conflicting signals over the Mets' willingness to deal David Wright. They've turned away suitors and the subject has hardly come up in internal discussions. However, others in baseball think the club will look to deal Wright if they re-sign Jose Reyes. Wright's club option for 2013 becomes void if he's dealt, making him a free agent after next season.
- Orioles owner Peter Angelos is willing to give Buck Showalter virtually anything that he wants. Sources tell Rosenthal that Angelos has told the skipper that he can stay on as manager while assuming the role of General Manager. The club will have to work out Andy MacPhail's siutation before making any moves.
- The chances of a new labor agreement being struck by the World Series seem to be diminishing. Things are tough to handicap as things can pick up at anytime, but the two sides are very far apart on the draft. The owners want hard slotting and a worldwide draft which would be a difficult undertaking. Of course, free agent compensation, the luxury tax, and revenue sharing are also among the chief topics of discussion.
- Grady Sizemore's future with the Indians might hinge on how he performs in the final weeks of the season. The Tribe holds a 8.5MM option on Sizemore for 2012 but they'll be reluctant to exercise it on a player who hasn't played much recently. One potential solution would be a contract extension with a lower base salary but the outfielder might prefer to test the open market.
AL Central Notes: Zumaya, Twins, Tigers, Cabrera
Links from the AL Central before the Tigers host the Twins and the White Sox host the Indians…
- Joel Zumaya has started throwing in Florida, the first time he's done that since Spring Training according to MLB.com's Chris Vannini and Jason Beck. Zumaya won't make it back in time to pitch for the Tigers this year, but it's a "sign of hope" that he'll be ready for the start of 2012. The hard-throwing righty is a free agent after the season.
- The Twins fired Triple-A manager Tom Nieto and hitting coach Floyd Rayford, according to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. GM Bill Smith told MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger that the firing was due to the Triple-A team's performance over the last two years, not about mistakes made by rookies at the MLB level (Twitter link).
- Ryan Ford of the Detroit Free Press runs through some of the Tigers’ best (Ivan Rodriguez and Jose Valverde) and worst (Dean Palmer) free agent signings in recent memory.
- Justin Verlander has been generating MVP buzz recently and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds Miguel Cabrera’s name into the mix, along with Jose Bautista, Curtis Granderson, Robinson Cano, Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia and Adrian Gonzalez.
- Indians manager Manny Acta told MLB.com's Jordan Bastian that Asdrubal Cabrera has been his team's MVP "without a doubt." The shortstop, who played through some minor injuries this season, has a .275/.336/.462 line with 22 homers.
Outrighted To Triple-A: Jerad Head
The latest players to get outrighted to the minor leagues…
- The Indians announced that they outrighted Jerad Head to the Triple-A Columbus roster after he cleared waivers. The Indians designated Head for assignment on Wednesday after he made his MLB debut on August 28th. The 28-year-old corner outfielder hit .284/.338/.526 with 24 home runs in 463 Triple-A plate appearances this year.