Cleveland Indians Rumors: Potential Landing Places for David Murpy

What Can the Indians Get for Murphy?

Ultimately though, I think we do see Murphy traded this summer.  It may not come until sometime in August as Murphy is a guy that could pass through waivers and be traded after the July 31^st non-waiver trade deadline.  The question then becomes what could the Indians get for Murphy?  He’s not an everyday player despite his good numbers versus left-handed pitching this year.  He’s proven in the past that he’s best when used in a more of a platoon role.  He also doesn’t provide much value beyond his bat as his defense at this stage of his career is pretty non-existent.  That said, guys that can hit and come off the bench do have some value.

While it’s hard to speculate on exact names that Murphy could bring in, consider that we’ve seen the Indians spin guys like Murphy into useful pieces many times.  I’ve already mentioned a couple trades with the Mariners but another one is when the Indians dealt Austin Kearns to the Yankees for Zach McAllister.  Sure McAllister hasn’t panned out as a starter but he’s turned into a solid bullpen piece, and getting him for two months of Kearns was (and is) a steal.  And while the ending to his Tribe career was anything but pleasant, getting Chris Perez for Mark DeRosa was a nice add for a player somewhat similar to DeRosa.

The Indians could possibly increase their return as well by paying a portion of Murphy’s salary.  The Indians did this with Casey Blake back in 2008 and netted themselves Carlos Santana as a result.  While I wouldn’t hold my breath for something like that happening again (Blake was better than Murphy), you just never know what a team may be willing to part with.

At the end of the day though, Murphy will most likely be used as more of a mini-salary dump.  Attendance is down yet again and the Indians opened the season with one of the largest payrolls in team history.  They could look to trade Murphy and his remaining 2015 salary (plus $100K 2016 buyout) for just a mid-level prospect, but as we’ve seen in the past, those mid-level prospects can turn into gold (see Corey Kluber).  So while one shouldn’t expect a big return for Murphy, that doesn’t mean the Indians couldn’t land a useful piece for the future either.

Next: Cleveland Indians 2015 Midseason Top Prospects