DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Indians Continued

Someone needs to explain Tito's high regard for Brandon Guyer to me. I don't see it, I don't get it, I'm not impressed. The other thing is I've read several comments by Francona saying their phenom, Mejia, is less than enthusiastic about playing RF. He wants to play his position, Catcher. Given that Perez can't hit water from the pier, I say you bring the kid up, and let him catch 1-2 games a week, and play RF whenever else he plays. If Mejia can't live with that, trade him for OF help because Guyer-Allen-Davis are not a major league outfield, at least not at the plate. One other thing; close the book on Chisenhall. The guy can't stay on the field.

today was a mail in day ... sunday get away blahs

Agree on Mejia. Perez doesn't offer much if anything anyways.

This team in this current form presents no threat outside it's division to other top teams.

It was only get away day for Oakland. Indians are home until the All Star break. They played today like they had a blowout team party last night that stretched into the early morning hours. Its annoying because over 93,000 fans showed up for the games this weekend only to see the Indians mail it for in 2 out of the 3 games

I hate seeing the Indians lose to such a hoser.

I need something.

JRam's an All-Star starter and he's bringing some friends! Your 2018 Cleveland Indians All-Stars:

Jose Ramirez
Francisco Lindor
Michael Brantley
Corey Kluber
Trevor Bauer

Congrats, guys!

wow, five guys again!

Glad Bauer made it.

He definitely earned it but I was concerned that he doesn't have the respect around the league.

All well deserving guys.

Congratulations to them all!

Yes! Congratulations to them all!

In March, if you had told me that Jose Ramirez, Francisco Lindor, Michael Brantley, Corey Kluber & Trevor Bauer would make the all-star team, I would have said "WOW!!!

Well now it's July.

WOW!!!

Especially Michael Brantleey. He looked like he was going to be just another injury prone footnote.

They are worthy. A bit surprised by Bauer who has been a bulldog at times. Especially happy we got five from the Tribe in.

Wahoo!! Props for all.

Congrats, Gentlemen!

Team is DESPERATE for at least one if not two bats !! They will surly make the playoffs ; but ain't going very far without some help at the plate .. We have the pitching to compete with anyone .. We are getting nothing out of Center and right field now , throw in second base and Perez on some days ..

Perez does a great job handling the pitching staff, and Bauer really likes him as his catcher.

He does a great job behind the plate as Gomes' backup. Hitting is a bonus.

Agreed. The only way I see the Indians consider trading Mejia is for a bullpen along the lines of and Andrew Miller and not someone that would be a one-year rental.

Rumor has it that the Orioles want Mejia in a deal for Machado. I don't think the Indians would pull the trigger on that deal given it's only as a postseason rental.

Here’s Indians manager Terry Francona on Saturday, discussing top prospect Francisco Mejia’s ongoing transition to the outfield...



https://twitter.com/MLBastian/status/1015656290394296320

that's the caveat .. Machado would have to agree to stay

If we added Machado, it would have to be on a long term deal, and he would have to agree to play 3rd, because he certainly isn't playing short here. That would allow JRam to move to 2nd. (which he said he prefers)

I just don't see Machado agreeing to play 3rd long term.

As trade rumors start swirling around Orioles' Machado, he wants to play shortstop in 2018 - Baltimore Sun
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bs-sp-orioles-machado-20171213-story.html

For the first time, the possibility of the Orioles trading cornerstone third baseman Manny Machado became real Tuesday at the winter meetings.

An interesting wrinkle has been inserted into the suddenly swirling trade rumors regarding Machado. Whether he remains in an Orioles uniform in 2018, he wants to play next season at his original shortstop position.

The Orioles arrived at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort ready to listen to offers for Machado, who becomes a free agent at the end of next season. But on the second day of the meetings Tuesday, the club became more active in considering moving the three-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner, according to an industry source. The Athletic first reported that trade discussion regarding Machado was accelerating.

A sudden wrinkle is Machado’s desire to move to shortstop next year. Though it seems out of the blue, according to an industry source, Machado had a meeting with Orioles manager Buck Showalter near the end of last season when he made his wish to play shortstop in 2018 clear.

Showalter met with the media Tuesday at the winter meetings and said Machado’s desire to play shortstop isn’t new.

“Always has, since the day he signed,” Showalter said. “I think out of his respect for J.J. Hardy — and one of the reasons why we brought Jonathan [Schoop] and him up early is because the chance to play alongside J.J. and really jump start their development in a lot of areas.

“Manny has not only respect for J.J. but also for Tim Beckham and other people.To say that Manny and I haven't had conversations about it over the years, I wouldn't be truthful. … Obviously, we're not there yet, but it's something that Manny — I found that players need to know about that, not February 15 or March 15. They need to know about it back then — Manny's capable of playing both real well. And I think so is Tim.”

Machado, 25, came up through the Orioles system as a shortstop, but made an immediate transition to third base when he was first called up in August 2012. Since then, he’s won two Gold Gloves and an American League Platinum Glove at the position. His major league experience at shortstop is limited, having made just 49 starts there — 43 of them coming in 2016 when he filled in for an injured J.J. Hardy.

Hardy was a Gold Glove-caliber defender at shortstop and a mentor to Machado, and the combination made one of the game’s best left sides of an infield in baseball for several years. But Hardy is now a free agent. The Orioles acquired Tim Beckham at the nonwaiver trade deadline last season, and Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette sees Beckham as the team’s starting shortstop while he’s still under team control for the next three seasons.

Some in the organization aren’t sold on Beckham’s defense at shortstop — though his desire to become a better defender was clear from the time he was acquired — believing he’d best be utilized as a super-utility player to play regularly throughout the infield and outfield.

On Tuesday, Showalter was not yet ready to commit to Machado playing shortstop if still with the club in 2018. Asked what will determine whether Machado or Beckham will play shortstop, Showalter joked, “Next 48 hours.”

“No. Listen, you know, I've got a real gut feeling about how it's going to work out, but I want to make sure we cover all the bases before whatever direction we go in,” the Orioles manager said. “It's good to have the strength there for those two guys, guys that are going to play shortstop, and it's a good problem to have.”

Speaking to The Baltimore Sun at the Orioles’ holiday party in Maryland, Beckham said Machado potentially moving to shortstop was out of his hands.

“For sure [we're better with Manny],” Beckham said. “Any ballclub in Major League Baseball would be better with Manny Machado on their team. He's a great player, hell of a guy. As far as him moving over to shortstop, that's out of my [view]. That's something I don't even need to touch on. That's a front-office decision.

“If that's what he wants to do, he's going to talk to the front office about it. That's out of my reach. I'm just here enjoying the holidays right now, giving back to the kids, training back home and being ready to play 162 next year. I'm looking forward to next season.”

If the Orioles do move Machado to shortstop, there’s no clear heir at third base. Second baseman Jonathan Schoop played 17 games there in 2014 when Machado was injured, and a move there would likely involve Beckham shifting to second base, where he played before being dealt by the Tampa Bay Rays. The Orioles moved one of their top hitting prospects, Ryan Mountcastle, from shortstop to third base last season, but his transition is still a work in progress.

However, this development has less to do with Beckham or Schoop, or even Machado’s desire to play shortstop, than with the Orioles’ asleep-at-the-wheel approach over several years that hasn’t ensured that Machado, the franchise’s top homegrown talent in years, will remain with the club long term.

How the Orioles will handle the latest development with Machado will be interesting. They haven’t truly engaged Machado in extension talks over the past three years — and they haven’t initiated any so far at this week’s meetings. And now Machado has one year until he can test the free-agent market at the age of 26. He will command a commitment that could potentially exceed Giancarlo Stanton’s record $325 million deal, and a move to shortstop would create an even bigger free-agent market for Machado one year from now.

Meanwhile, it could also back the Orioles into a corner where they are forced to move Machado if they don’t shift him to shortstop. The club is in desperate need for controllable big league starting pitching, and Machado is likely the only trade chip that can get them that, even as a one-year rental. Any hope that the Orioles might have of retaining Machado long term — as minuscule as it seems — would be thwarted if he isn’t allowed to play where he wants. He’ll have to opportunity to pick his place to play shortstop next offseason.

Machado’s trade stock dwindles as he gets closer to free agency, and if he reaches that market, the Orioles would receive only a compensation draft pick for losing one of the best all-around players in the game.

Duquette said coming into the meetings that gaining clarity on Machado’s future with the team was a goal this offseason, and his future is the biggest question in a future full of questions with Machado, closer Zach Britton, center fielder Adam Jones and setup man Brad Brach all able to become free agents at the end of next season.

Showalter is scheduled to have his winter meetings interview session this afternoon, and Duquette will meet with local media later Tuesday.

This story will be updated.

eencina@baltsun.com

twitter.com/EddieInTheYard

I would want to play short over third too. Third sucks! At Short, you get to sit in the deep infield, field all the nice easy grounders through the middle, and have plenty of chances to turn sweet-looking double plays. At third, you get the heat-seeking missiles from 95 feet that try to take off your head.

I heard on Sirius/XM radio (not sure which channel) a report that the Orioles are talking about including Zach Britton with Machado to increase the quality of prospects.

JRam has settled in nicely at 3rd.
What about putting Machado at 2nd?

Old friend Asdrubal Cabrera is having a good season for the Mets - he's hitting .280, 15 HR, 49 RBIs with an OPS of .806. The Mets are in seller mode. You might be able to put together a package of second tier prospects to get him. You might even be able to sweeten the deal and get reliever Jeurys Familia too. Then, recall Mejia from Columbus and tell him "you are playing RF (or LF, moving Brantley to RF), except for when Yan Gomes needs a day off, at which time you will catch.". Two holes in the lineup would be fixed, or at least improved, along with shoring up the bullpen with a power arm.

Josh Tomlin's 21st home run allowed puts him 3rd-highest in the majors over 48 innings at the time.

No one else who has allowed 17+ HRs has less than 91 IP.

https://twitter.com/lexhooper/status/1016497973424017408


Scott Schebler busts it wide open with a 2-run shot! @Reds on top 7-1 in Cleveland.

That is horrible. This needs fixed. Anybody hoping to see this continue in the second half?

We must be able to do better than this.

I'm tapped out on Josh. I have literally no confidence in him at this point. Unacceptable.

+1

The Indians have placed Josh Tomlin (strained right hamstring) on the 10-day DL. RHP Adam Plutko up from Triple-A to take Tomlin's spot on the pitching staff.

https://twitter.com/MLBastian/status/1016758548766887936

Breaking it to him gently?

I like this possibility.

Could be.

Maybe it's Francona's way of showing the young pitchers some loyalty. Like team unity.

Maybe makes for a more relaxed clubhouse.

From Indians: Lonnie Chisenhall's second opinion confirmed a grade 3 strain of the left soleus muscle (calf), and he is expected to miss 8-to-10 weeks.

Seems like that guy is always hurt its like my Giants 2B Joe Panik never seems to stay healthy. Both good players but fradgile ...

That's exactly how I take it. Francona has always been a fan of him. I think we ALL love Josh as a person, but as a pitcher - yikes. I officially have no confidence in him.

Or maybe he just has a strained right hamstring.