Transactions: Kearns Returns

by Ryan on Dec 21, 2010 5:39 AM EST in Transactions

CLEVELAND - JUNE 11: Austin Kearns #26 of the Cleveland Indians rounds second base after hitting a three run home run against the Washington Nationals during the game on June 11, 2010 at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

Signed OF Austin Kearns to a 1 Year, $1.3M Contract

The first major-league signing of the offseason is a familiar player. The Indians signed Kearns last winter to a minor-league deal, and the signing paid off handsomely; Kearns made the club and hit .272/.354/.419 (117 OPS+) in 342 at bats, and was dealt at the deadline for a marginal prospect. Kearns at this point will be the fourth outfielder, though his role could expand rather easily. If, for instance, Grady Sizemore should need more time to recover from his knee surgery, Brantley would move to center and Kearns would be the left fielder. Or he could replace Brantley in left field. The Indians are going to want to work Sizemore back into the lineup slowly, so Kearns should get at least 2-3 starts a week out of the gate.

As the Indians had a full 40-man roster before this signing, they'll need to boot someone to make room for this signing. Trevor Crowe would be my choice to kick off. Crowe, during his time in center field this past center was rated by UZR an incredible -12.0, most of it due to deficiencies in range (-9.0). And if he can't play center field, there's no reason for him to be on a major-league roster, as he proved rather convincingly that he can't hit (.251/.302/.333, 479 PA). Crowe has one option year left, but keeping Crowe as insurance would be the equivalent of keeping a gasoline-filled fire extinguisher in your kitchen.

Shelley Duncan would be another option to kick off the roster, but he's valuable enough to keep through Spring Training in case of injury. I think the Indians could fit Duncan on the 25-man roster as a bench player if they can get the right infielder configuration.

Signed OF Travis Buck to a Minor-League Contract; Invited him to Spring Training

A nice signing. Buck had a very nice debut season in 2007, hitting .288/.377/.474 for Oakland, but he hasn't been able to stay healthy since. He hasn't topped 200 PA in a season since his rookie campaign, and the A's non-tendered him at the tender deadline this month. He's a left-handed hitter, so he wouldn't be a fit as a reserve outfielder, but he's a much better option than, say, Jordan Brown or Trevor Crowe should the Indians have to place one of their starting outfielders on the Disabled List.

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A gasoline filled fire extinguisher. Love the imagery.

-Erik

by drerikbrady on Dec 21, 2010 9:17 AM EST via mobile reply actions

One of the better days for Cleveland so far this off-season. Seems like he might be occupying Manny’s spot on the roster, though…. /LGT-Clecom convergence

by APV on Dec 21, 2010 9:47 AM EST reply actions

And what about some pitching flyer like Billy Buckner? I know we got a lot of competition this spring on the mound, but isn’t that a bigger concern?

Baseball fans are junkies, and their heroin is the statistic. - Robert S. Wieder

by jerseywahoo on Dec 21, 2010 6:26 PM EST reply actions

Kearns would be the right fielder

Gasp! NOOOOOOOOOOOO

Moved from swan pool terrace (swan) to fresh restaurant (dolphin).

by westbrook on Dec 21, 2010 8:04 PM EST reply actions

Move to vacate spot on Indians’ 40 man roster for Kearns will likely come tomorrow morning. Still some steps left in process.

Jordan Bastian’s twitter as of about 8pm Wednesday night

by APV on Dec 22, 2010 8:54 PM EST reply actions

Steps left in process? Could be nothing, but that sounds more than just a standard a DFAing of someone.

"Ok everyone listen up! I've just invited Dave to suck it!"

by GoTribe028 on Dec 22, 2010 9:45 PM EST up reply actions

May be waiting for the commissioner’s office to finalize the Kearns deal.

Even if not, sure, they could be calling around on any fringe roster player to gauge interest. It’s not going to be much more than a body, considering the whole point of this next move is to clear a 40-man roster space.

by xrickx on Dec 22, 2010 10:01 PM EST up reply actions

Could be cash.

by Jay on Dec 22, 2010 11:03 PM EST up reply actions

And the winner is….Justin Germano. Giving us a serious excess of useless outfielders.

by APV on Dec 23, 2010 11:19 AM EST up reply actions

What!? Dislike.

Moved from swan pool terrace (swan) to fresh restaurant (dolphin).

by westbrook on Dec 23, 2010 12:55 PM EST up reply actions

I think it is thought he might just re-sign a minor league deal. If he doesn’t, though, I don’t mind losing Germano. He seems pretty fungible. I think the decision to remove a pitcher suggests we have more moves imminent, with a pitcher signing perhaps not too far off.

by APV on Dec 23, 2010 1:02 PM EST up reply actions

Sure, losing Germano wouldn’t be the end of the world, and was probably a long-shot to make the team anyway. But I still don’t understand why Trevor Crowe was kept. It’s not like he didn’t get any playing time, unlike other players that were dumped.

by Ryan on Dec 23, 2010 1:16 PM EST up reply actions

Here is the official rundown of events via Jordan Bastian’s twitter feed:

# Likely holdup in Kearns contract approval by the league & union is the holidays. Expect contract to be officially processed early next week. 27 minutes ago via TweetDeck

# Possibility exists that Germano could elect free agency & re-sign on a Minor League contract with Indians. 33 minutes ago via TweetDeck

# Tribe’s 40-man roster at 39. Kearns contract has not been officially approved by MLB or MLBPA. Team could make another move while waiting. 33 minutes ago via TweetDeck

# Indians send RHP Justin Germano outright to AAA Columbus. He can accept assignment or decline and opt for free agency. 35 minutes ago via TweetDeck

by APV on Dec 23, 2010 1:10 PM EST up reply actions

Bah. Germano at times was pretty good. Crowe was never even decent.

I guess Crowe’s option won out.

by Ryan on Dec 23, 2010 1:14 PM EST up reply actions

I’m just assuming Crowe gets dropped when we add a pitcher.

by APV on Dec 23, 2010 1:54 PM EST up reply actions

I agree.

Bah.

by Jay on Dec 23, 2010 1:56 PM EST up reply actions

I like bah. Very underutilized these days.

by kennesawmountainwahoo on Dec 23, 2010 5:56 PM EST up reply actions

So “bah” has a high Value Over Replacement Epithets (VORE)?

"If Brown is the answer, then you’re asking the wrong question." - Ryan

by woodsmeister on Dec 28, 2010 9:20 AM EST up reply actions

Meh.

by Jay on Dec 28, 2010 9:58 AM EST up reply actions

for some reason, I was curious what the clecoms had to say. Check out this buffoon:

surprising with guys like nix valbuena marson donald todd and crowe on the roster

Yeah, let’s release Donald or Marson so we can keep Germano.

Moved from swan pool terrace (swan) to fresh restaurant (dolphin).

by westbrook on Dec 23, 2010 10:26 PM EST up reply actions

Quit coddling `em, not one has a ring.

Steel Nick

by nickjs21 on Dec 24, 2010 9:55 AM EST up reply actions

U S A! U S A!

by JRontherim on Dec 24, 2010 9:14 PM EST up reply actions

Maybe not Donald or Marson, but I can see choosing Germano over Crowe or Valbuena – assuming the Mariners don’t wanna give up anything for Valbuena.

Our best players wear suits.

by mauichuck on Dec 24, 2010 11:22 PM EST up reply actions

I imagine the Mariners are waiting to see how spring training shapes up. The Tribe is going to have a middle infielder be the odd person out and they might be more willing to listen to offers then to clear up the logjam in case there are roster/option/playing time in Columbus issues.

"If Brown is the answer, then you’re asking the wrong question." - Ryan

by woodsmeister on Dec 28, 2010 9:24 AM EST up reply actions