The Cleveland Indians are closing in on a trade that would send third baseman/outfielder Casey Blake and cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers for two minor leaguers, according to a source with knowledge of the deal . . .
. . . With the trade of Xavier Nady to the Yankees on Friday, Blake was possibly the most highly sought-after bat on the market. Other teams pursuing him included the Rays, Mets and Phillies.
Those three teams would have played Blake in the outfield. But if the trade goes through he'll become the Dodgers' everyday third baseman, replacing slumping rookies Blake DeWitt and Andy LaRoche.
The Dodgers acquiring Blake is just the latest phase of their master plan to populate the team with nothing but third basemen and outfielders.
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From the article:
"Blake, who can be a free agent after this season, was batting .289 for the Indians, with 11 homers, 58 RBIs and a .398 average with runners in scoring position."
We did it!
Seriously -- who knew Ned C. read ShysterBall, let alone the comments?!
I don't know quite what to think of the return yet. Meloan was somewhat highly regarded prior the season, but has an astronomical walk rate in AAA this year. Santana was not highly regarded, but has a .994 OPS in high A.
Although it seems they got two interesting guys for Casey Blake, so I guess I should be happy about that.
I think a lot of casual Indians fans will moan that he's gone -- I get the sense that he's rather popular -- but we're seeing his best right now (he's 35) so any kind of return is good. A pitcher like Meloan could go either way, but the upside is awesome. How old is the catcher? If he's repeating A he may not be worth all that much, but if he's still youngish than this could end up being a good deal for them.
One thing it does mean is that Andy Marte may now have his last best shot to sink or swim in the bigs.
He's 22. He has a .688 OPS in low A last year, they promoted him to high A and and his BA, power, and patience all went through the roof. I'm withholding judgment until I see some kind of scouting report.
Marte has been playing a lot this month, but yeah, now it'll probably be every day down the stretch.
Does it seem to anybody else that the trades we've seen thusfar have been relatively underwhelming? Either no one is willing to deal blue-chippers or GMs are taking the first plausible offer for their players that comes along. I couldn't be more underwhelmed with the Pirates' return, for instance. It seems like every analysis from Keith Law is "yeah, they probably could of done better, but this is a good deal because at least they got something." Oh well, guess they can't all be Jeff Bagwell for Larry Anderson.
Speaking as an Indians fan, I thought we got a great deal for Casey Blake. I can't believe the Dodgers gave up that much for 2 months of league-average hitting and bad defense at third base. Even if he is "gritty."
The catcher looks like a possible stud (I've heard comparisons to a young Victor Marinez at that age) and the pitcher looks like he could help in the bullpen as soon as next year. His stats aren't that good this year as a starter, but he's always pitched well as a reliever.
Casual Indians fans will probably complain about this trade as another example of the Indians trading away a "proven veteran" and whine that Dolan is too cheap or Shapiro is incompetant, but real fans know that this was a great trade. Blake has been hitting well this year -- which probably won't continue -- but the Indians weren't going anywhere so to flip him for two good prospects is fantastic. Plus, they can always sign him in the offseason if they really want him back. I don't want him as my starting 3B but he's valuable as a super-utility guy.
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