Cleveland Indians trade tiers: Who’s movable and who’s untouchable this winter?
By Zack Meisel Oct 13, 2020 71
CLEVELAND — Chris Antonetti’s phone should be buzzing with regularity this winter. There’s plenty of uncertainty clouding the free-agent and trade markets, but the Indians are headed for an offseason of nips and tucks (and slashes).
So, let’s examine which players the Indians might deal and which names are taboo for opposing general managers to even utter. For this exercise, we’ll exclude those who are eligible for free agency and those who have club options for the 2021 season. (Of that bunch, only Brad Hand would have any trade value and, if he’s tethered to a $10 million salary, it might not be much.)
Don’t bother calling
Shane Bieber: Antonetti would rather receive a call about the upcoming expiration of his car’s factory warranty than a call inquiring about Bieber’s availability. If anything, the Indians ought to explore giving Bieber an extension. He’s under team control for four more years, and he’s slated to earn the league minimum again in 2021 even though he might be a unanimous Cy Young Award winner.
José Ramírez: He should be an MVP finalist for the third time in four seasons, and he could even win the hardware this year. The Indians will lean on him even more next season as they try to patch together a lineup around him. Ramírez is under contract for $9.4 million in 2021, with club options for $11 million and $13 million for 2022 and 2023.
Hanging up in 3 … 2 … 1 …
Zach Plesac: He flashed his potential this season (a 2.28 ERA and a 57-to-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio) and he’s under team control through the 2025 season. That’s precisely what this organization covets, and it’s why the next few guys on the list fall into the same category. Unless the team can flip a starter for a similarly young, controllable position player, these guys should stick around for a while.
Triston McKenzie: By the time McKenzie is eligible for free agency, Carlos Carrasco will be approaching his 40th birthday. In his first taste of the big leagues, after not appearing in an actual game for two years and having never pitched above Double-A, McKenzie submitted a 3.24 ERA across 33 1/3 innings with a healthy walk and strikeout rate and an opponent batting average of .179.
Aaron Civale: Civale was the first starting pitcher the club drafted in 2016 (third round), one round ahead of Bieber and nine ahead of Plesac. The soft-spoken righty struggled in late September but has demonstrated he can be a reliable rotation piece.
Cal Quantrill: If the Indians are confident Quantrill can make a fruitful transition to the rotation, that could increase the chances a starter is dealt for a desperately needed position player. Think about this: A Bieber/Plesac/Civale/McKenzie/Quantrill rotation has loads of potential … and all five will make the league minimum in 2021 (and only Bieber will be arbitration-eligible before 2023).
Franmil Reyes: The massive individual with the larger-than-life personality has loads of power potential, but he only showcased it for a few weeks this season. From Aug. 6 to Sept. 2, he batted .418 with a 1.201 OPS. Overall, though, his numbers were rather pedestrian (.795 OPS, nine home runs). For a team that needs any semblance of offense it can find, Reyes is a pivotal part of the future, especially if he can prove he belongs in the outfield.
Josh Naylor: His two postseason games reminded everyone why he was a well-regarded hitting prospect. His defensive assignment is up in the air (a replacement for Carlos Santana at first base, perhaps?), but the Indians will likely give him a chance somewhere in 2021, and he won’t turn 24 until late June.
James Karinchak: He’s the leading candidate for the 2021 closer role (though watching him excel in an Andrew Miller/Cody Allen-type fireman role would be fascinating and perhaps more effective), and he’s young and inexpensive.
Emmanuel Clase should be back in business in 2021. (Ross D. Franklin / AP)
Selling low wouldn’t make much sense
Emmanuel Clase: His potential remains high, but his value is at a low point after a season-long suspension. On a graph, that point would be plotted onto the “trade highly unlikely” quadrant. Plus,
something positive has to come out of the Corey Kluber trade for one of the teams, right?
Jordan Luplow: Luplow didn’t feast on lefties quite like he did in 2019, but he still posted a .781 OPS against them, and for a team seeking any outfielders with a pulse, that’s a valuable quality, especially coming from a guy who isn’t eligible for free agency until after the 2024 season.
Oscar Mercado: The Indians still believe in Mercado, who registered a .348 OPS in 93 plate appearances this season. Antonetti even noted how Mercado impressed the front office with his self-assessment during his exit interview.
Maybe, if it lines up just right
Carlos Carrasco: In a vacuum, he’s a perfectly sensible trade candidate. The Indians have plenty of inexpensive starting pitching depth. Carrasco, who will turn 34 in March, is in line to earn $12 million each of the next two years with a $14 million club option (or $3 million buyout) for 2023. He’ll also soon gain 10/5 rights (10 years of service time, five with one team), at which point he’ll have to approve any trade.
But there’s a significant sentimental component to this. Carrasco means a lot to the organization, to the community, to the clubhouse and to the pediatric cancer patients he regularly visits at the Cleveland Clinic. He has signed a pair of team-friendly contract extensions in part because he wants to be with this franchise. His health and his age complicate his trade value, too.
He made his major-league debut with the Indians on Sept. 1, 2009. It’s difficult to envision him in another uniform.
Roberto Pérez: It’s a bit strange that the Indians acquired Austin Hedges, who earned $3 million last season, boasts a similar skill set to Pérez, but amassed only 12 at-bats after landing in Cleveland in the Mike Clevinger trade. Hedges is again eligible for arbitration this winter and will likely command a similar salary. Will the Indians actually pay two light-hitting, Gold Glove-caliber catchers $9 million or so in 2021? Pérez has a $5 million club option for 2021 and a $7 million club option for 2022.
Bradley Zimmer: Where does he fit moving forward? Is he a backup outfielder? A late-inning speed and defense guy? Zimmer will turn 28 next month. He hasn’t played anything resembling a full season since 2017.
Phil Maton: For a minute, it seemed as though Maton might never allow a run. Then, the high-leverage situations started to have their way with him. He’s included in the team’s plans for next year, but he’s certainly not standing atop the bullpen pecking order.
Nick Wittgren: He’s the club’s only reliever (not including Hand) slated to earn more than the league minimum. Wittgren has been a steady force for two years since the Indians snagged him from the Marlins in exchange for Jordan Milbrath.
Let’s talk
Francisco Lindor: Oh, there will be talks. Dealing him will be more complicated than it would have been a year ago, thanks to a murky, COVID-19-clouded trade market. He’s due for a 2021 salary north of $20 million, via arbitration. And after that, he’s bound for free agency, unless a team that acquires him this winter can dangle enough dollars in front of him to convince him to stay. Without knowing the likelihood of a long-term marriage, how much will another team be willing to part with, in terms of young talent, for only one guaranteed year of Lindor’s services? The Indians don’t have a ton of leverage here.
Delino DeShields: A non-tender candidate, it wouldn’t make much sense for the Indians to pay DeShields while also having Mercado and Zimmer in the mix. Then again, we could have said that before the 2020 season, too.
Tyler Naquin: Another non-tender candidate, Naquin was dismal at the plate this season (.218/.248/.383 slash line), and with Daniel Johnson knocking on the door and Nolan Jones learning the outfield, there might not be room for Naquin.
Adam Plutko: He’s out of minor-league options, and given the starting pitching depth the team boasts, it’s difficult to see where Plutko fits. That said, he is still a year away from arbitration eligibility, and he has emerged as one of the clubhouse leaders. (Lindor is the team’s player rep and Plutko is the assistant player rep. Will either return in 2021?)
Mike Freeman: The Indians have younger options capable of filling the utility role (Yu Chang, for one). Freeman is 33 but still a year away from arbitration eligibility.
Adam Cimber: He only logged 11 innings for the Indians in 2020. If he hangs around, he seems destined to compete for a bullpen spot with a host of other candidates.
Austin Hedges: The man who made the final out of the Indians’ 2020 season could supplant Pérez as the primary catcher, could serve as Pérez’s backup, could be non-tendered or could be traded.