Cleveland Indians: Are any Detroit starting pitchers on Tribe’s radar?

Are Boyd, Fulmer, Turnbull or Urena on Cleveland Indians radar?

The Cleveland Indians are set to close out the month of June with a series against the Detroit Tigers. With the two teams facing a month away from the trade deadline, is there a chance the two sides might agree to a trade over the next 30 or so days? Based on the needs of Cleveland and the means of Detroit, it’s definitely a possibility.

If there’s one position the Cleveland Indians need to address at the trade deadline it’s starting pitching. The Tribe have been beaten and battered by injuries, but even when the unit is full strength they are still two starters shy of a full, strong rotation. The Detroit Tigers are one team that might have multiple options to present Cleveland.

Obviously the three mainstays in Cleveland’s rotation will be the 2016 MLB Draft class trio of Shane Bieber, Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac. When healthy, the trio has been stellar, however, all three are currently hurt. The injuries paired with disappointing play from all other candidates to start has left the Tribe’s rotation in pieces.

Plesac is getting ready to start a rehab assignment while Bieber and Civale’s timetables are unknown, but even when they return there’s still two spots to fill in the rotation. For that reason, Cleveland should consider opening up talks with the Detroit Tigers to discuss some of their starting pitchers as options for a trade.

While Detroit is on the upswing, they still are at a point where they will be sellers at the deadline. If they can find a way to add more pieces to their future plans, that’s the route they’ll likely take.

On the Tigers’ roster, they could offer up Matthew Boyd, Michael Fulmer, Spencer Turnbull or even Jose Urena. The hard part will be finding common ground with a division rival, especially when most of the players involved have battled injuries of their own this season.