Cleveland Indians: 3 possible Francisco Lindor trades to Toronto Blue Jays

With rumors continuing to swirl around a Francisco Lindor trade, the Cleveland Indians have been recently linked to the Toronto Blue Jays as a possibility.

The Winter Meetings will take place from Dec. 7-10 and leading up to the meetings the Cleveland Indians and Toronto Blue Jays have been rumored to be trade partners for Francisco Lindor. Could we see a deal for Lindor in the coming days?

The Indians and Blue Jays are far from strangers. The President of the Toronto Blue Jays, Mark Shapiro, worked his way up through the Indians’ organization from 1991 until 2015 before heading Toronto. In fact, he was in many ways to the mentor to current Cleveland Indians President, Chris Antonetti.

Antonetti followed Shapiro’s path through the organization and essentially took over for Shapiro anytime he moved up. Now with Lindor on the market, it seems that the two former colleagues could once again cross paths, this time via trade.

For this deal to happen there are a few pieces that would need to fall into place. For starters, the Blue Jays need to have enough to offer the Indians. In recent rumors, the main piece that Cleveland would be wanting in return is Lourdes Gurriel, a rising star in the league that still has four years of club control left, set to be a free agent in 2025.

Gurriel has been able to hit north of .275 in each of his three major league seasons while also crushing at least 11 home runs in each season. The knock against him is his experience, playing a career-high 84 games in 2019 for a grand total of 206 over his three years.

The other side of the coin is that the Blue Jays have to have a visible need for Lindor. With Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio and Vladimir Guerrero, there’s little room in the infield. Unless one of them is traded or can change positions, there isn’t exactly a spot for Lindor in Toronto.

Of those three, Biggio has the most flexibility, being able to play in the outfield or third base, which could allow Guerrero to move to the designated hitter role. The Blue Jays could then put Bichette at second and Lindor at short.

Regardless, those are issues to address much later and will be left up to Toronto after the deal is made. However, should a deal be made, what would it look like? Here’s three more possibilities, in addition to the one in the AL East article, that the two sides might agree on.

A bigger splash for the Cleveland Indians

This one is a bit further down the rabbit hole with the Cleveland Indians receiving Cavan Biggio in return. However, they also have to give up more by sending the Toronto Blue Jays Bradley Zimmer and Scott Moss in addition to Lindor, who would most likely need to agree to a long-term deal for it to work. While the Indians technically give up more in terms of players, they receive two young players with high potential in Gurriel and Biggio that could help them not miss a beat.

Zimmer has had plenty of chances in Cleveland and has dealt with plenty of adversity as well that has kept him from succeeding. In going to Toronto, he reunited with Shapiro, who drafted him for the Indians, and has a fresh start. With Gurriel gone, the Blue Jays could use an extra hand in the outfield and that’s Zimmer.

As for Moss, he’s a 26-year old left-handed pitcher that has been held back from the Indians’ pitching log jam. With so many young prospects, Moss has been lost in the mix despite being the club’s No. 24 prospect, but could have more value to Toronto.

For the Indians, they receive Cavan Biggio. Currently 25-years old, Biggio’s average as been a bit lower than anticipated in the majors with a career average of .240. However, he drew 71 walks during the 2019 season over 100 games while hitting 16 home runs and stealing 14 bases. While the average is low, the rest of the stat line makes up for it.

Biggio would fill the gap at second for the Indians, leaving only one hole in the middle infield rather than two. He also has third base and right field flexibility that could come in handy for the Tribe.

Cleveland Indians and Toronto Blue Jays blockbuster deal

This is the pie-in-the-sky deal for the Cleveland Indians, but it isn’t impossible. There’s a lot to like for both sides in this deal and might be more realistic than many people initially think, but also requires a long-term deal for Lindor in Toronto.

Bo Bichette has been impressive in his short tenure in the majors, playing just 75 games. While the sample size is small, the numbers still draw attention. In the majors, Bichette has slashed .307/.347/.549 while hitting 16 home runs and 27 doubles. His fielding could use a little work with a .964 fielding percentage, but that could improve with time.

Bichette is a step up from Biggio, so the Indians offer has to step up in return. That change is in the pitcher which now becomes Carlos Carrasco. Carrasco is another player that was brought to Cleveland by Shapiro, which could increase interest.

For the Indians, Carrasco is the veteran of the rotation at 33-years old and with plenty of rising prospects could become expendable. A fan favorite, it’s tough to see a player like Carrasco in a different uniform, but given what the Indians would receive in this deal, it might be worth it.

Zimmer also stays in the deal to make it more appealing to Toronto. For Shapiro, he would deal two younger players for three Indians that he’s more than familiar with and could help the Blue Jays get over the hump in the American League.