Cleveland Indians need help versus right-handed pitching

The Outfielders

Perhaps the most obvious statement in baseball is that the Cleveland Indians need help offensively in the outfield. Jordan Luplow destroys left-handed pitching and Josh Naylor had a great last week to the season, but outside of that it’s very ugly. The Indians could clearly use a star player out there, no question; however, simply adding a platoon bat, one that can hit right-handed pitching in similar fashion to how Luplow does lefties would go a long way. Here’s a look at a few of the realistic options the Tribe could get and their numbers against right-handed pitching the last three seasons.

Joc Pederson – .246 AVG, .335 OBP, .543 SLG, .878 OPS, .365 wOBA, 131 wRC+

Pederson has been my number one free agent target all winter. He’s a perfect fit in Cleveland given his age, position (can play all three outfield spots and first base), and ability to hit right-handed pitching so well. Yes, that batting average is lower than most fans would like but that 131 wRC+ is a mere four points behind Jose Ramirez. Pederson may be too expensive for Cleveland, but he has a 42 wRC+ against left-handed pitching over the last three seasons. He’s a platoon player and that may give the Indians a chance to sign him.

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Eddie Rosario – .279 AVG, .315 OBP, .520 SLG, .834 OPS, .345 wOBA, 117 wRC+

Rosario was non-tendered by the Twins earlier this offseason as they didn’t feel he was worth a salary approaching $10 million. It seemed like a weird move given his ability to hit, but it could be the Tribe’s gain. Rosario isn’t horrible against lefties (90 wRC+) so maybe he still plays every day but he’d be the Tribe’s second best bat against righties behind Ramirez by a decent margin.

Matt Joyce – .256 AVG, .367 OBP, .392 SLG, .759 OPS, .334 wOBA, 110 wRC+

Joyce is far from the best player on this list and he’s one of the oldest. But he also may be the cheapest. He was with the Tribe in spring training a couple years ago and the team inexplicitly cut him. He’s been nothing but solid the last two years against right-handed pitching. His 15.1% walk rate would be huge and he’s a guy that wouldn’t block a young guy and can move to the bench if needed.

Andrew Benintendi – .280 AVG, .361 OBP, .449 SLG, .810 OPS, .348 wOBA, 114 wRC+

Benintendi isn’t a free agent, but I’m including him since there’s been wide speculation that he could be moved by the Red Sox soon. He has two years of control left and is still quite young. 2020 was horrible but at worst he looks like he could make an ideal platoon with Luplow in either left or right field. The potential is there as he has shown flashes of greatness and has a 95 wRC+ against southpaws (so not worthless there). A few teams appear interested, but none could use him more than the Tribe.

Shin-Soo Choo – .279 AVG, .392 OBP, .488 SLG, .880 OPS, .376 wOBA, 129 wRC+

Choo of course had several great years with the Indians early in his career. Things didn’t go so well in Texas after signing that huge deal, but one thing he’s still done is hit right-handed pitching. Age is an issue, and he may have finally hit the wall in 2020, but that .376 wOBA is the same as Ramirez’s and the .392 OBP would be by far the best on the club. Calling him an outfielder is a bit of a stretch so Reyes would have to move out there more, but the bat could be a huge boost.

Others like Kole Calhoun (103 wRC+ vs RHP), Jackie Bradley Jr (103), and Yasiel Puig (119 wRC+) could be options. However you got Calhoun who isn’t the most enticing and Puig seems like a longshot given how the team didn’t bring him back after 2019 (and he sat out 2020). Bradley feels like a good fit but the bat hasn’t always been there. I’d of course love a guy like Michael Brantley but again, trying to be realistic here.

The Infielders

Everyone has (rightfully) been focused on outfield bats for the Cleveland Indians but one spot the Tribe could look to upgrade is on the infield, specifically at second base with a platoon bat for Amed Rosario. Guys like Yu Chang, Ernie Clement, and Owen Miller just don’t really fit in that role and all the other young infielders are too far away to help. But any one of these guys could provide a huge boost.

Kolten Wong – .268 AVG, .356 OBP, .403 SLG, .759 OPS, .329 wOBA, 107 wRC+

The Cardinals declined to pick up Wong’s option this fall making him a free agent. It seemed like a weird move at the time but his market hasn’t been too robust to this point. He’s a plus defender at second base, but he’s struggled against left-handed hitting (84 wRC+) and may be best utilized as a platoon. Pair him with Rosario and you could get some of the best overall production from the position in baseball. Other teams have bigger needs at second base so he probably will get priced out but if not, he’s definitely someone the Tribe should add even if it takes two years to do it.

Derek Dietrich – .239 AVG, .340 OBP, .440 SLG, .780 OPS, .336 wOBA, 110 wRC+

Dietrich is a guy I’ve wanted the Indians to add for a couple years now. He can play second base as well as multiple other positions, though unfortunately all rather poorly. He also has a big-time strikeout problem. However, against right-handed pitching the last three seasons his strikeout-rate is under 25%. He’s been cheap each of the last two years and 2021 should be no different. He is a good bench guy to have and could make a nice platoon with Rosario if you are okay punting defense some.

Adam Frazier – .277 AVG, .344 OBP, .442 SLG, .786 OPS, .334 wOBA, 110 wRC+

Like Benintendi, Frazier is not a free agent but a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Last winter there were rumors he could be dealt and given the state of the Pirates I can’t imagine he’s not still available. His numbers against righties have been quite similar overall to that of Dietrich. His average is much higher and less power but overall, the numbers are pretty close. He’s been downright awful against southpaws though posting a 66 wRC+ since 2018. He’s got some versatility so maybe his price tag is high but feels like a deal could work here.

Scooter Gennett – .301 AVG, .347 OBP, .477 SLG, .824, .351 wOBA, 118 wRC+

The biggest issue with Gennett is he’s hardly played in the last two years. He missed a ton of 2019 with injury (and was horrible when on field) and then sat out 2020 after not getting an offer he felt was fair over the winter. He wanted to start at second base and given how he played in 2017 and 2018 one can see that, but that’s ancient news now and he’ll be hard-pressed to get a major league deal right now. If he can come even close to what he did in 2018 then he’s a huge get for the Tribe. The Indians took a small chance on Cesar Hernandez last winter and it paid off.

Colin Moran (108 wRC+ vs RHP) and Asdrubal Cabrera (106) are others that could be fits. Moran isn’t a free agent (Pirates) and hasn’t played much second base but the bat fits; while Cabrera is that vet that just feels like he could work and we know he can play all over the infield. A reunion with Cesar Hernandez would still be nice, but just a 103 wRC+ against right-handed pitching and hard to say what his price will be after a solid 2020 campaign.

Are any of the guys mentioned above superstars? Are any of them going to replace a guy like Francisco Lindor? No and no. But all of them, the outfielders and infielders would absolutely help the Cleveland Indians in 2021 and potentially beyond. Again, the Cleveland Indians (and their fans) need to embrace the platoon. Bring in one or two of these guys and this team can find ways to score runs even with the losses of Lindor, Santana, and Hernandez. They just need to be open-minded and creative.