Indians Sign Mike Napoli and Rajai Davis

Wednesday afternoon saw the Indians react to the big Todd Frazier trade to Chicago by signing two veteran free agents in Mike Napoli and Rajai Davis, pending physicals.

Napoli is a 34 year-old right-handed bat who is expected to be the Tribe's primary first baseman, leaving Carlos Santana at DH. Napoli spent 2015 between Boston and Texas, being traded to the Rangers in August, and hit .224/.324/.410 (BA/OBP/SLG) with 18 home runs and 50 RBI over 133 games. The first part of his season in Boston was not so kind to him, batting .207/.307/.386 with a 85 OPS+, but he really turned things around back in Texas, hitting .295/.396/.513 down the stretch for an OPS+ of 143. The Indians will be hoping his late season surge is a sign of things to come. The deal is reportedly for $7 million for 1 year, making Napoli the Indians' most expensive signing of the winter thus far. I like this signing quite a bit and as long as he can stay healthy, Napoli's powerful bat is a welcome addition to the Indians' lineup. With this addition, the club now has three full-time 1B/DH types on the 25-man roster in Napoli, Santana and Chris Johnson. There's a strong possibility that three is a crowd in this situation and one of Santana or Johnson could be traded. Watch this space.

Davis is a 35 year-old right-handed outfielder and is somewhat of a journeyman over the course of his 10 year MLB career, featuring for 6 teams now including Cleveland. He spent 2015 with the Tigers where he hit .258/.306/.440 with 8 home runs, 30 RBI, and 18 stolen bases in 112 games. The Indians will be looking to get the most value out of Davis with his above-average defensive abilities. He can play anywhere in the outfield and has great range and speed, even at 35 years of age (he had a 8.2 UZR/150 in the outfield in 2015, his highest since 2009.) Davis is reportedly signing a one-year deal for just over $5 million, plus incentives, which is about in line with what Detroit paid him last year.

His acquisition is another example of the club's off-season strategy regarding the outfield; instead of trading prospects and young talent, the Indians seem content to pick up an assortment of veteran cast-offs hoping somebody elevates themselves and sticks on the team. Davis will compete with the other newcomers in Robbie Grossman, Joey Butler, and Collin Cowgill, as well as the incumbent outfielders already at the club in Abraham Almonte, Lonnie Chisenhall et al. All the new guys will likely be keeping Michael Brantley's seat warm until he comes back, but Davis and friends will be hoping to show enough to stay on the club as a valuable fourth outfielder.

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Cleveland has finally put down some money, although not in the way many fans would have liked. The signings of Napoli and Davis are not blockbuster additions but they are probably the most realistic options at this point. Not only is Cleveland a small-market club with limited means, these days it can be a struggle to attract the higher-profile free agents who might choose to join a more glamorous club in cities with brighter lights. Most importantly, the new signings don't put pressure on the payroll like the Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher signings in 2013 did, and so there's very little risk if Napoli and Davis don't pan out. As much as I'd love to see a superstar outfielder join the team, I can't blame the organisation for holding onto their talent.

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Indians Add Grossman, Paulino & Butler

Since my last post, the MLB Winter Meetings in Nashville have been and gone but the flurry of activity hasn't stopped. In fact, for the Indians it's only just begun.

Today the Indians agreed to terms with 2 free agents: Outfielder Robbie Grossman and pitcher Felipe Paulino, both men earning minor league contracts with invites to Spring Training and a chance to crack the Opening Day roster.

Grossman is 26 years-old and plays the outfield, mostly in left but he can play in right and center too. He's coming off the back of a very poor 2015 campaign, playing in just 24 games, batting .143/.222/.245 (BA/OBP/SLG) with 1 home run and 5 RBI, before being released by Houston this November. The acquisition of Grossman screams 'minor league depth addition' and I don't expect him to be the answer to the Tribe's outfield problems. But it can't hurt to give him a chance during the spring, and it's another low-risk addition to the team.

Paulino is a 32 year-old right-handed pitcher who last pitched in the majors for the White Sox in 2014. He spent all of 2015 with the Cubs' Triple-A farm team in Iowa, starting 20 games and pitching to a 4.93 ERA over 104 innings with 83 strikeouts. Traditionally a starter, the Tribe could figure to use him as a relief pitcher but obviously he'd be very useful for the occasional spot-start. Again, another low-risk, low-cost pickup that could bear fruit but won't hurt the club if things don't pan out.

A few days ago on December 7th the Indians claimed outfielder Joey Butler off of waivers from the Rays. Butler will be 30 years-old on Opening Day and is a right-handed bat who saw the majority of his time in 2015 as a DH in Tampa, but he can play the outfield too, mostly in left field. This would indicate that the Indians might view him as a stopgap until Michael Brantley recovers from his recent shoulder surgery. Butler has spent 3 years in the majors, with a career batting average of .274, and he hit 8 home runs in 88 games for Tampa in 2015. He is just one more low-risk outfield addition, to go along with Collin Cowgill (signed on December 3rd) and Robbie Grossman, but Butler is an interesting addition purely because his numbers don't totally stink and he could become a useful 4th outfielder for the Tribe in 2016 (if he can stick on the team.)

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From the additions the Indians have made thus far, it is clear the club do not intend to address the outfield concerns with a big splash via free agency, and are instead content to patch the holes with players who have been discarded from other teams that could potentially be reborn in Cleveland. These non-roster invitees are unlikely to have the kind of impact most Indians fans would like to see, but they won't cost the club anything and so they can't hurt at the very least.

A small market club like the Tribe were always highly unlikely to spend big, like the Cubs did today on Jason Heyward, but part of me wanted them to be a little more proactive during the Winter Meetings to acquire someone new who could really have an impact in the lineup. Be that via a trade or even a smaller free agency addition like Nori Aoki, it would have been refreshing to see Cleveland make an ambitious acquisition, instead of the 'dumpster-diving' they've participated in instead. I really hope players like Grossman, Butler and Cowgill can come good and be effective for the big league club, but the odds are against them.

The off-season isn't over yet though, and other major league clubs are still eyeing up our highly-prized arms. Maybe the Indians will surprise us and pull off a revolutionary trade that will turn them into instant contenders. Just don't get your hopes up.

Thanks for reading.