The MLB General Managers Meetings were held this past week in Orlando, and Tribe GM Mark Shapiro did inquire about Marlins’ 3B Miguel Cabrera as we suggested. Word out of the meetings is the Marlins were getting preliminary offers for the 24-year-old slugger, and will look to make the move at the Winter Meetings next month. So, even though reports have indicated talks between the two teams have ended, don’t be surprised if they are rekindled in December.
Why? Because Florida is looking for young talent in return, and few teams have the deep farm systems the Indians have. There is no question in my mind that the Tribe can match or exceed any offer of young talent made by any other major league team. And the Indians have several players who are major league ready that seemingly have no place to play in Cleveland.
Who are they? First, let’s look at the outfield. If we assume next year’s starters are Grady Sizemore in CF, Franklin Gutierrez in RF, and a platoon of Jason Michaels and David Dellucci in LF, then where do Shin-Soo Choo and Ben Francisco fit in? Not to mention fading prospect Brad Snyder. Next, let’s look at 3B. Casey Blake is the starter, but Andy Marte doesn’t have any options remaining, so he has to be on the 25-man roster coming out of spring training. And if you get Cabrera and plan to play him at third, that would move Blake into the already crowded outfield picture.
If the Indians are thinking about moving Cabrera to first base, then suddenly Ryan Garko is expendable. That’s not to mention Jordan Brown and Michael Aubrey, the Tribe’s best prospects at 1B, although the latter has been injury prone. As for pitching, although you can never have enough, Cleveland does have some guys who have yet to pitch in the big leagues that Florida might be interested in, Adam Miller and Chuck Lofgren, as well as Aaron Laffey and Jeremy Sowers.
Remember this, Cabrera will only be 25 years old next season. He is younger than guys like Garko and Francisco, and only a year or two older than the rest. The sticking point is he is arbitration eligible, and can be a free agent following the 2009 season. If the Tribe deals for him, I’m sure Shapiro will want him to agree to a three or four year deal to guarantee he will wear an Indian uniform for more than two years. It will cost the Tribe some money, but the fans have been told that is not an issue.
Shapiro has gone on record as saying he would like to add another middle of the order hitter. You would be hard pressed to find one better than Miguel Cabrera. Also, you would not have to gut the farm system to get him. Besides the players I mentioned, the Indians still have Wes Hodges, Matt Whitney, Nick Weglarz, and others who are highly regarded. This is why the front office spends a lot of cash on developing players. It might be time to cash in some of your assets.
KM
Cleveland Sports Perspective 