The Indians have had trade talks with at least three teams, according to a report by Fox Sports’ Jon Morosi.
Per the report, the Indians have engaged in at least preliminary talks with the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers.
In all three cases, the Indians are looking to bring in an everyday outfielder in exchange for a starting pitcher.
The Indians’ collection of young, talented pitchers in the starting rotation has been a known target for opposing teams, dating back to July’s trade deadline.
Led by 2014 Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar and Trevor Bauer, the Indians have four power arms that are under team control for the foreseeable future.
Bauer’s late-season struggles aside, they combined to strike out 826 batters in 2015. After those four, the Indians also have Josh Tomlin and Cody Anderson under team control.
It’s a valuable commodity to have such an abundance of talented starting pitchers, and it might be the Indians’ ticket to filling perhaps the team’s biggest need and add an outfielder, particularly one who can take over as the everyday center fielder in favor of Abraham Almonte. Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said in October the team would “exhaust” opportunities on the trade market this offseason, as the Indians likely aren’t in a position to bring in multiple high-priced free agents.
The most likely candidates to be involved in these talks are Carrasco and Salazar. Kluber is the team’s ace with a team-friendly contract and Bauer likely hurt his value with his poor second half during which he was pushed to the bullpen by Anderson and Tomlin. Carrasco has a team-friendly deal as well, but his name has been tied to trade discussions before and Salazar hasn’t reached the arbitration process yet. Their value will be high.
The most likely targets of the three teams mentioned would be the Dodgers’ Yasiel Puig, the Yankees’ Brett Gardner and the Blue Jays’ Kevin Pillar.
Puig, 24, took the baseball world by storm in 2013, making headlines with a flurry of sensational plays and turning the bat-flip into a hotly-debated topic. He had a WAR (wins above replacement) of 4.1 as a rookie in 2013 and followed that with a 5.3 WAR season. But he took a step back last year while he struggled with a hamstring injury. In only 79 games, he hit .255 with 11 home runs. Puig has spent the majority of his time in right field, though he has logged 497⅔ innings in center. His arm, one of the strongest in the game, has naturally suited him to play right field.
In terms of name recognition, a deal for Puig would certainly make the most noise.
Gardner, 32, is one who would take over every day in center field. In roughly the equivalent of two full seasons in center field, he has 38 defensive runs saved and an Ultimate Zone Rating per 150 games of 16.5. He’s been a productive player for the Yankees, totaling 9.4 WAR in his past three seasons combined. He’s also been stable the past two years, with a batting average in the .250s, 16-17 home runs, 25-26 doubles and 20-21 stolen bases in 2014 and 2015.
Pillar, 26, had a breakout season in 2015. He had a WAR of 4.3, hitting .278 with 12 home runs and 25 stolen bases. But it was his work defensively in center field where he garnered the most attention. Pillar ended 2015 with 14 defensive runs saved, tied for third among major league center fielders and enough to give him the nod as one of three AL Gold Glove finalists.
Gardner and Puig are in similar contractual situations. Both are signed through the 2018 season, Gardner with $37.5 million left on his deal and Puig with roughly $24.6 million left on his deal. Both the Yankees and Dodgers could throw in cash to make the deal work, as the Indians are talking with teams in larger markets. Pillar has a more suitable situation. He isn’t eligible for arbitration until 2018 and would be under team control through the 2020 season.
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