Kerry Wood to the Yankees a done deal
Jayson Stark is reporting via Twitter that a deal between the Indians and Yankees for Kerry Wood is complete and the reliever will be in pinstripes soon.
This is the second deal between the two teams today, the first being outfielder Austin Kearns headed to the big apple for a player to be named later.
Stark has reported the deal will send the Indians either a player to be named later or cash. He went on to detail the financial details, saying: “Cash in Wood deal depends on Wood’s health. If he breaks down, Yankees pay $1.5M of salary. If stays healthy, another $200,000.”
The deal will be finished by October 15, according to the Indians.
Kluber’s coming over
The Jake Westbrook deal is now a done deal according to several sources, including MLB.com beat reporter Anthony Castrovince.
Jake is headed to St. Louis to shore up their rotation and Ryan Ludwick is headed to San Diego to accomodate the Indians request for minor league pitching. The Padres will send over AA right-hander Corey Kluber to complete the deal.
Kluber, 24, was the Padres fourth round pick in the 2007 draft from Stetson University in Florida. After two solid seasons in college, Kluber really made a statement during his junior year; that season he went 12-2 with a 2.05 ERA and 117 strikeouts in 114 innings against only 36 walks.
Kluber has spent four seasons in the Friars farm system, going 22-28 with an ERA of 4.29, a WHIP of 1.369 and a K/BB ratio of 2.76. This season his number have been better than his minor league career totals (6-6, 3.45 ERA, 1.312 WHIP, 3.40 K/BB), but he has yet to ascend past the Double-A level. Currently, Kluber is the Texas league leader in strikeouts (136), strikeouts per nine (9.98) and second in innings pitched (122.2).
In his past four starts Kluber is 3-0 with a 1.73 ERA, allowing five runs, eight walks and striking out 30. His strong numbers earned him player of the week honors in the Texas League last week.
His scouting report lists his biggest strength as his ability to dominate opponents, but his weakness is his tendency to be less than overpowering at times. Scout.com described him as a classic Jekyll and Hyde type pitcher, with his strengths and weaknesses being equally prevalent.
Certainly the Indians must see more of Dr. Jekyll in Kluber, but there is still no word on where he will report to once joining the Indians.
UPDATE: Cleveland.com is listing Kluber as the Padres’ best pitching prospect.
Oswalt deal keeps Tribe pitching safe
Prior to Thursday’s blockbuster Roy Oswalt move many of the big baseball pundits (Olney, Crasnick, Neyer, etc.) wrote about the Phillies inquiries into the availability of Jake Westbrook and Fausto Carmona.
With the hole in the Phillies rotation filled by Oswalt, their needs have been met and it took no Indian to do so.
Now FOX Sports Ken Rosenthal likens the chances of Carmona being moved as “a million to one.” Though the team is still actively listening to offers, it will take something special to shift their stance on Carmona, who is under contractual control until 2014.
Westbrook, however, I would still consider likely to be moved. Teams beside the Phillies have been mentioned as interested in acquiring his services, including the Yankees, Mets, Dodgers and Padres. While the package would still have to be compelling, because his contract is expiring, it would certainly have to be less compelling than one for Carmona.
So while both pitchers wear the Tribe uni for one more day, there may be a day soon that is no longer the case.
Peralta shipped to Detroit
As fans are certainly aware of by now, Jhonny Peralta’s tenure as a Cleveland Indian officially came to an end this evening as the team dealt him to the Detroit Tigers.
In return for Peralta (and cash) the Tribe received minor league pitcher Giovanni Soto, but more on that later. Internally, the Indians have recalled Luis Valbuena to fill Peralta’s spot on the 25-man roster and Andy Marte has been named as the starter for this first post-Peralta game.
Long term, though, Jared Goedert seems to be the answer for the team at the hot corner. At Columbus this season he has hit .304, with 15 doubles, 17 home runs, 36 RBI and an OPS of 1.049. The only knock on Goedert’s stats this season is his high strikeout to walk ratio, which tips the scales at 2.14.
That stat notwithstanding, unless Marte puts the kind of up numbers that he was expected to put up three years ago, Goedert will finish this season as the Indians starting third baseman.
Now, for the pitcher that the Indians were given in return for Jhonny’s service. Giovanni Soto (not the catcher for the Cubs) is a 19-year-old Class A pitcher who was drafted out of Puerto Rico by the Tigers in the 21st round of the 2009 draft.
This season Soto has gone 6-6 with a 2.61 ERA and a WHIP of 1.21. MLB Trade Rumors described him as a “promising left-hander who appears to be years away,” though the stats seem to indicate the same thing. This year Soto has thrown 3.02 strikeouts for each walk, he has struck out more than eight batters per nine innings and is averaging less than three walks per nine innings.
Soto has enormous upside, and it seems that Baseball Instinct agrees with me; they boldly declared that his name will soon start popping up everywhere, probably in place of that Cubs catcher. He seems like something that Indians fans should get excited about, just a few years from now.
Terrific Tomlin
Who could ask for a better debut?
Seven-plus innings, three hits, one earned, two strikeouts and zero walks. All that against the Yankees and former Indian act CC Sabathia.
That makes two impressive debuts this month, the other from Jeanmar Gomez, but also raises two questions about when these two starters will get a shot at regular time in the big leagues.
To make room for Josh Tomlin on the 25-man roster Michael Brantley had to be optioned to AAA Columbus; because Aaron Laffey’s arm is still a question mark for the Indians, it remains to be seen just how long Tomlin’s stay in Cleveland will last.
Manager Manny Acta has already stated that Brantley will be back in the fold soon, giving the impression that Tomlin’s start may be a 0ne-and-done situation like Gomez. However, should Laffey’s arm fatigue be more serious than a 15-day DL stay require, his time may be increased.
This season management has already announced their intention to see Carlos Carrasco at the big league level, and his being passed over for this start means that his chance cannot be far behind.
Whether Tomlin makes it through the end of the week remains to be seen, but no one can ever take this stellar start away from him.
