SB Nation User Blog: Brick.

the vacant hitting coach position will be filled by either Triple-A Columbus coach Jon Nunnally or...

Brick. — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:21:49 -0000

the vacant hitting coach position will be filled by either Triple-A Columbus coach Jon Nunnally or Tribe Minor League field coordinator Dave Hudgens

Castro from here

What to do with Shoppach?

Brick. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:57:40 -0000

So, it seems like every article you read these days that talks about the Indians near future says that Kelly Shoppach is a likely candidate to be non-tendered this off season. Is a catcher one year removed from a break-out 21-bombs in 112 games, .865 OPS season really not worth offering an arbitration salary to?

The recently talked about Bill James projections have him playing 113 games for someone this year at .249 BA / .333 OBP / .465 SLG / .798 OPS and 19 HR.

The payroll is pretty low already. Would Shoppach's contract make that big a dent - so big it's not worth the value he brings as a free swinging, slugging catcher? The Indians don't plan to compete this season. Santana is the obvious future. But what about 2010? Is there not value in a player like this for the coming season?

Poll

What should the Indians do with Kelly Shoppach for 2010?

Trade him

93 votes

Non-tender him

14 votes

Make him the back-up catcher

21 votes

Make him the starting catcher

69 votes

"Platoon" him in at C and DH

39 votes

236 votes | Poll has closed

Jared Goedert Awards

Brick. — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 17:09:44 -0000

Jared Goedert Awards

Hard Hit Percentage: CA CARLOS SANTANA - 51 %
Walk Percentage: OF NICK WEGLARZ – 17.6%
On-Base Percentage: CA CARLOS SANTANA - .413

From Lastoria

If the Indians fire Eric Wedge, Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell will not be their...

Brick. — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:16:08 -0000

If the Indians fire Eric Wedge, Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell will not be their next manager.

From Rosenthal about Farrell's current contract.

40 - 3

Brick. — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:55:35 -0000

40 - 3

From Lastoria:

"Today the Indians outrighted LHP Zach Jackson, LHP Rich Rundles, and LHP RJ Swindle from the 40-man roster and placed them onto the Triple-A Columbus roster."

Another top ten prospect list from clecom

Brick. — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 15:20:35 -0000

Another top ten prospect list from clecom

Some random excerpts:

1. Carlos Santana
Must improve English to become legitimate field general.

2. Matt LaPorta
Coachable.

3. Nick Hagadone
Best stuff of any pitcher on the Cleveland farm.

4. Lonnie Chisenhall
Fanatic about hitting.

5. Carlos Carrasco
Lack of a wrinkle on the fastball has been a concern.

6. Hector Rondon
Mature beyond years and stays calm under pressure.

7. Michael Brantley
Understands nuances of game.

8. Nick Weglarz
Scouts think the power will increase.

9. Jason Knapp
Before injury concerns, the 6-5 Knapp was thought to have best chance of any pitcher on Cleveland farm to pitch at the front of a major-league rotation.

10. Lou Marson
Edged left-hander Kelvin De La Cruz for No. 10 spot on Indians.

Who should be locked up?

Brick. — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 21:30:57 -0000

Being that it's August 10th in a lost season, it's about time to start thinking about something the Indians do some of pretty much every year. Fausto, being the most recent example. That is to lock up young talent to long term deals, buying out the player's arbitration years and some of their first free agent seasons. It's part of the blueprint that has pretty well stood the test of time. Even if those players don't stay through the whole contract. The risk/reward usually works out for both the player and the team. Seems to me the strategy is to keep paying a guy at the minimum until he's done enough at the big league level to convince you he's a guy to hang on to. But not to wait too long, and get too close to arbitration. So a LaPorta probably wouldn't be a candidate just yet, where an Asdrubal seemingly would be. Perusing the 40-man roster, there really only seems like a few guys that come close to fitting that mold. Who do you think the Indians will and/or should sign to long-term contracts soon?

Poll

Who should have their arbitration and some of their FA years bought out this off season?

Aaron Laffey

2 votes

Asdrubal Cabrera

35 votes

Shin-Soo Choo

18 votes

Luis Valbuena

0 votes

Cabrera and Choo

144 votes

Laffey, Cabrera and Choo

52 votes

All of the above

21 votes

272 votes | Poll has closed

Westbrook Setback

Brick. — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:03:15 -0000

Westbrook Setback

"Jake Westbrook's rehab is on hold. In the first setback Westbrook has had since his Tommy John ligament replacement surgery one year ago, the Indians appear to have scrapped previous plans to have him make his third rehab start Wednesday. Westbrook is still dealing with some soreness in his right elbow from after his start Friday for Double-A Akron. He played catch today and is tentatively scheduled to throw a bullpen session Wednesday. No word on when the Indians are now targeting that third start to take place, but this would obviously push back Westbrook's big league return."

DiaTribe - Shoppach Catch, Garonk Platoon

Brick. — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:25:00 -0000

DiaTribe - Shoppach Catch, Garonk Platoon

Paul looks at a starting lineup strategy that looks pretty good to me and touches on Agent M vs. Barf.

To put it simply, the level of the players is different," he said. "It's the main reason I'm having...

Brick. — Thu, 14 May 2009 16:55:47 -0000

To put it simply, the level of the players is different," he said. "It's the main reason I'm having trouble compared to Japan."

The article was from a few days ago. Golly.