NASHVILLE, Tenn: If the Indians want to significantly improve their offense, they know they’ll likely have to dip into their starting rotation, the clear strength of the roster. They’re just not wild about that idea.
President of Baseball Operations Chris Antonetti and General Manager Mike Chernoff are reluctant to part with a starting pitcher but know they have a valuable commodity. In the interest of adding a bat and bolstering a lackluster offense, they’re still listening to all offers.
“Our rotation’s been a strength of the team, so we would be very judicious in considering trading away any one of those guys,” Antonetti said. “It’s certainly not our intent. It’s not our motivation. We’re not looking to do it. But, we have to be open-minded. If there’s a way for us to really impact our team and make a deal that we think makes us a better, more complete, more competitive team in 2016, we’ll be open to it. But, that’s a pretty high bar.”
Evidenced by the $200-million plus contracts given to starting pitchers David Price and Zack Greinke this winter, the value of top-of-the-line pitchers continues to rise. And with Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar and Trevor Bauer under team control for several seasons, the Indians hold a treasure chest of potential in that position and have been fielding consistent calls from teams looking to pry one of them away.
While trying to maximize value for the likes of, in all likelihood, Carrasco or Salazar, Antonetti and Chernoff are continuing to try to find ways to add offense but not lose a key starter.
Antonetti said Tuesday that the Indians have discussed trades with 22 to 23 teams involving roughly 25 players, with much of that talk surely being centered around one of the team’s starting pitchers.
“Starting pitching is a little bit different than any other position,” Antonetti said. “Teams only have one third baseman or one shortstop or two catchers, but starting pitchers, there are five spots. I would imagine if you surveyed the landscape around baseball, there isn’t any team where Carrasco or Danny or some of our other guys wouldn’t be better than at least one of their five guys.”
The answers the Indians are looking for might involve backup catcher Roberto Perez, who could be a starter on most teams.
Perez’s name was connected to trade rumors involving the Atlanta Braves and Texas Rangers on Tuesday. He holds a good deal of value behind starter Yan Gomes. Last season Perez had a wRC+ of 110, indicating he was 10 percent better than the average hitter. He’s also always been thought of as a strong defensive catcher, drawing rave reviews from coaches and the pitching staff during the six weeks Gomes missed early last season.
Then again, dealing Perez would take away the Indians’ insurance at a position that, like the starting rotation, often requires value beyond the everyday starter.
“I think that’s one of the strengths of our team,” Antonetti said. “We talk a lot about our rotation and other aspects of our team but to have two quality catchers, Yan and Roberto, is really helpful for us because when we want to give Yan a day off, we feel great about Roberto stepping in and filling the spot and that’s not always the case with a backup catcher.”
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Indians blog at www.ohio.com/indians. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/RyanLewisABJ and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RyanLewisABJ