How Yesterday’s News Changes Tomorrow’s Tribe

After two months of relative quiet, the Indians made two big signings yesterday, bringing in veteran free agents Mike Napoli and Rajai Davis. The deals came out very shortly after the three team trade of Todd Frazier to Chicago took place making it seem as if the Indians were awaiting the results of that deal to make sure it was safe to spend money. Had they made the deal for Frazier (apparently the Reds were asking for the ludicrous amount of Clint Frazier, Bradley Zimmer and more), they would have owed him $8.25M for 2015 and at least a little more than that for 2016. With one year deals of $5.25M and $7M for Davis and Napoli respectively, they have went slightly above that mark, but have nothing owed for the 2016 season.

While neither of these players are superstars and both are older than the average Tribesman (Napoli will be 34 next year, Davis 35), their simple addition will make a huge difference to the roster. Below is a projection of what could have been and what most likely will be now (assuming a seven man bullpen and no other moves):

This is just an exercise to see how well off the Indians are currently and not based on anything official, but whether the third and fourth bench player were Walters and Sands or Tyler Naquin and Jesus Aguilar is irrelevant, having Almonte and Johnson in those positions is a huge upgrade.

Most likely, both players will be used in platoon type roles as both are right handed hitters and can help offset the Indians otherwise lefty heavy lineup. Actually, they may be enough to make the Indians into more of a right handed team as only Kipnis and Chisenhall are left as regular left handed only hitters (until Michael Brantley gets back). With Lindor, Ramirez, Almonte and Santana all switch hitters, the Indians have a versatile lineup both in the field and at the plate.

If there is some trepidation with these two signings, it is that the idea behind the signings is almost identical to that behind the signings of Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn. A first baseman who is an injury risk and a center fielder who is dependent on speed for all aspects of his game, yet is coming up in years. This similarity is only superficial, however, as their contracts signed and role with the team are nothing like the two biggest mistakes in recent Indians history.

While the pure dollar amount is the biggest difference, the years are important as well. As noted in the Frazier deal that didn’t happen, the Indians don’t want their Frazier or Zimmer going anywhere. At the moment, Zimmer is a little behind where Lindor was this time last year and most certainly will not be able to make anywhere near the type of difference that the second place Rookie of the Year finisher did. Because of this, the Indians were able to get a stop gap, Davis, to fill in until he is ready. This may not make the 2016 Indians as good as they possibly could have been, but it makes them better and does make the 2017 and on team as good as it possibly could be.

While Davis brings speed, defense and a bridge to get to Zimmer, Napoli brings something the Indians haven’t had in a long time, power. More specifically, he is in fact the mythical right handed power bat that has been pined over for the longest time by Tribe fans. His 18 home runs last year would have been second on the team and outside of 2014, he would have lead the Indians with his home run total each year from 2009 through 2013.

While he may not be seen as a power hitter nationally, because most teams have no problem finding someone who can hit out twenty, he is a good fit for the Indians. In addition to being one of the best defensive first basemen in baseball, he is not an all or nothing swinger and has a relatively low strike out rate considering his power. If used in a situation that compliments his abilities, as he was during the final two months of 2015 with Texas, Napoli can be a great asset in all facets of the game.

The biggest problem now is that the Indians have too many similar players. Napoli, Johnson and Santana all hit better against left handed pitchers and can only play first base or DH (competently). The fact that Ramirez can play pretty much anywhere and Lindor and Kipnis could play more than 150 games each frees up a bench spot that would usually be needed for a more versatile player, so there is room for all three, but there really is no need.

Looking forward, there’s two things the Indians can focus on to improve their offense. First, they could use another outfielder rather than depending on Cowgill, Almonte or Joey Butler to play left field for the first month and play the bench for the rest of the year. Secondly, they can now try to find a buyer for Johnson. Removing his salary from the books could make the team more flexible in locking up their current players for a longer span and would free up that last bench place for a different type of hitter. Whether that be an experiment like Walters, an extra outfielder or even an 8th man in the bullpen, Johnson is definitely now the least valuable player on the projected 25 man roster.