Cleveland Sports Chatter

[POJO_Risin]

Hmmm...

1. I keep forgetting the Yanks cut him...

2. The Indians haven't announced this yet...

3. He's a month away from playing...

4. where the fuck is he going to play? Belliard is hotter than hell...and Blake is solid...

Hmmm...maybe another deal is in the works...

[Snoo]

He has to pass his physical. He can play 2nd and short, and they'll probably play him at short next year since there's no way they're keeping Vizquel.

[POJO_Risin]

That depends on Brandon Phillips though...if he's finally ready...he'll get the job there...

I see the Indians potentially thinking of dealing Vizquel before the deadline...since Boone will be ready by then...

don't forget...Boone can play 3B as well...

[Snoo]

Yeah I know he plays third, I just said that since they have Blake. The Dodgers might want Vizquel, since he has a decent average.

[POJO_Risin]

Yeah...and I don't see Belliard lasting at second...although I could be wrong...

He gives them good insurance...

[alexpgrimes]

This makes no sense to me. The indians need a closing pitcher. I guess we'll just wait and see.

[POJO_Risin]

They need more than just a closer....they need a whole new relief corp...

Wickman's on his way back...

and Riske has been downright awesome the past month and a half...

Jiminez is a fucking bum...and Bettancourt is a waste...

They do need to go out and grab some relievers...perhaps Vizquel will be used as some bait...or even Boone before the break...

With a relieving corp...Cleveland would be in first place...

unfortunate...

[twonabomber]

Wahoo says, "more bats good."

press conference scheduled for 4 pm.

[POJO_Risin]

Yeah Twona...hey man..you heard anything about what their plans are for him? Is he going to be roaving between 2nd, 3rd and short?...or are the planning on dealing him and/or Vizquel at some point...

you'd have to think that Belliard is a sell high candidate...

[twonabomber]

Shapiro didn't say a whole lot last night on the news...this was in the PD today:

The Indians are expected to sign free-agent third baseman Aaron Boone today to a one-year deal for 2005 that could extend into 2006. A 4 p.m. press conference has been called to announce the signing.

The deal is contingent on Boone passing a physical Friday. He has not played this year because of a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. The ACL is the main stabilizing ligament within the center of the knee joint.

If Boone signs, it's unknown when he'll be able to play. After meeting Boone earlier this month in California, General Manager Mark Shapiro said Boone wouldn't be able to play until the last two weeks of the season.

Another timetable has Boone starting play between Aug. 15 and Sept. 15.

When Shapiro met with Boone on June 3, Boone told him he considered the Indi ans a "team on the come."

The Indians are 35-37 and six games out of first place in the AL Central.

Another selling point for Boone, 31, was that the Indians told him they didn't care if he played this year or not. Big-market teams such as Los Angeles, Anaheim and Boston were interested in Boone for this year.

"We have legitimate and serious interest in Aaron Boone," said Shapiro. "We are in the middle of negotiations, and they are progressing."

Shapiro would say little else. The organization is still spooked by December's near trade of Omar Vizquel to Seattle.

The Mariners backed out of the deal because Vizquel's surgically repaired right knee didn't pass their physical.

Boone, whose home run in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series put the Yankees in the World Series last year, was scheduled to make $5.75 million this year. However, he injured his knee playing basketball in the off-season and the Yankees voided his contract.

They paid Boone nearly $1 million in termination pay and made him a free agent. Then, the Yankees filled the hole at third base with Alex Rodriguez.

Boone will make a smaller base salary next year, but incentives would give him a chance to approach his Yankees salary from last year.

If Boone signs, the next biggest question will be where he plays. Boone played third, shortstop and second in parts of seven seasons with Cincinnati. When the Reds traded him to the Yankees on July 31, he played 54 games at third.

"We want to be as versatile as we can be," said manager Eric Wedge. "We've been pretty consistent with that all along."

Wedge believes third baseman Casey Blake and second baseman Ronnie Belliard have the ability to play all over the infield. The Indians feel Boone could easily fit into that rotation.

If he settled at third, Blake could move to first or second.

"Eric talked to me about it," said Blake. "They had a window of opportunity to sign a good baseball player. He's a good person and a good player and can make this team better."

Blake has been the Indians' third baseman for the last two years. Boone could change that.

"If I keep doing what I'm doing, I've got nothing to worry about," said Blake.

Boone, a .270 lifetime hitter, bats right-handed, which is another reason the Indians like him. They need help against left-handers.

He hit .267 (158-for-592) with 32 doubles, 24 homers, 23 steals and 96 RBI with the Reds and Yankees last year. The year before, he hit .241 with 26 homers and 87 RBI.

Boone is a third generation big-leaguer, and the fourth Boone to reach the big leagues. Boone's grandfather, Ray, was an infielder with the Indians from 1948 through 1953.




we'll see what ol' Lebowitz has to say tomorrow.

[twonabomber]

and the Tribe beat writer from the News Herald checks in with this...

If you're having a hard time figuring out where Aaron Boone fits, consider this:

In the Indians' starting lineup Friday night, their first baseman batted ninth.

Ninth!

First base is considered an offensive position. On most good teams, the first baseman bats in the middle of the lineup. Third, fourth, or fifth. Colorado's first baseman, Todd Helton, bats third. Jim Thome bats fourth. Jason Giambi bats fourth. Albert Pujols bats third. Jeff Bagwell bats fifth. Rafael Palmeiro bats fourth. Mike Sweeney bats fourth. Sean Casey bats third. Mike Piazza bats third. Richie Sexson, when healthy, bats fourth.

Friday night, the Indians' first baseman, Ben Broussard, batted ninth.

Ninth!

Enter Aaron Boone.

Assuming he passes his physical - and as we found out in the aborted Omar Vizquel trade last winter, that is not an assumption that should be cavalierly made - Boone fits, indirectly, at first base.

Which is bad news for the Indians' No. 9 hitter Friday night.

Prior to Friday's game, Indians General Manager Mark Shapiro refused to answer any questions on what appears to be the impending acquisition of Boone, who was in Cleveland Friday for a physical.

That physical takes on added significance, given the fact Boone blew out his knee playing basketball in February, forfeiting a $5.75 million contract he signed with the Yankees and making him a free agent.

The injury required surgery to repair the anterior cruciate ligament in Boone's knee. That is major surgery. So major that there is some question as to how much help Boone will be to the Indians this season, which is why, presumably, the two parties have agreed on a two-year deal. It's a signing as much for next year as this year.

Shapiro was playing it coy Friday.

"The only thing I'm going to say about Aaron Boone," said Shapiro, only, "is that we have a legitimate interest in him. We're in the midst of negotiations, but a deal is not done."

When the deal is done, so is Broussard.

Not immediately, but eventually.

It's not hard to connect the dots on this one. Boone's best position is third base. The Indians' current third baseman is overlooked and under-appreciated Casey Blake, who at his current pace will finish this season with numbers similar to the .287 average, 24 home runs and 96 RBI Boone had for the Reds and Yankees last season.

Last year, in addition to being the Indians' starting third baseman, Blake was the Indians' backup first baseman. Once Boone arrives, and is healthy enough to play, the plan, presumably, will be to play Boone at third base and move Blake to first.

And neither one will likely bat ninth.

Where does that leave Broussard, who has been lapped by Travis Hafner in their competition this year?

Let's just say he will become available. Very available.

Because the Indians' true first baseman of the future isn't Hafner or Blake. It's hitting machine Michael Aubrey, who is doing a good Victor Martinez impression in the Tribe's minor-league system, getting two hits a night, first at Kinston, now at Akron.

Boone may not be ready to play until late in the season. But his pursuance by, and apparent acceptance of the Indians as a free-agent landing pad is significant not just artistically, but cosmetically and symbolically.

A Boone/Broussard exchange in the lineup is a definite upgrade. In addition to those solid numbers last year, in 2002, Boone hit 26 home runs with 87 RBI while stealing 32 bases for the Reds.

Boone could be a fixture at third for the next few years, given that former phenom Corey Smith is stuck in the mud at Akron, and there are no other apparent third-base candidates on the horizon for the big-league club.

Beyond that, the signing of Boone, assuming it takes place, will be the first tangible evidence that Indians ownership is willing to start writing checks to finance roster upgrades, as the team proves it can be a contender.

The importance of that cannot be understated. There has been considerable skepticism among fans and the media over whether the Dolan family would live up to its promise to start spending when the team got good again.

Well, the team is getting good again - maybe a little bit faster, and a little bit better, than anyone expected. And this would be a case of ownership proving that it will indeed spend again.

Signing Boone is hardly a stop-the-presses thunderbolt. But it is a signing that should improve the club's chances of contending.

It's also a significant signing in that the Indians are now back on the radar screen for free agents looking for places to play. Few established upper-tier players want to sign on for a rebuilding project, just as few teams being rebuilt are willing to pursue upper-tier players.

The Indians have clearly passed the "almost there" signpost on their rebuilding journey. They know it, and apparently so do players around the league. The Boone signing validates that on both fronts.

Boone is also a high character guy, and a right-handed bat, who should help the Indians in another area of need: hitting left-handed pitchers.

Why last year, for example, Boone, against left-handed pitchers, batted a lusty ... uh, 216.

Maybe he will bat ninth against them.

[POJO_Risin]

Hmmm...that's the first call that Boone was thinking of not playing at all this year...

Well...it's good to see Shapiro looking ahead...

Boone is the kind of vet that a team like this needs...

what the fuck is going on with Brandon Phillips...he's disappeared off the fucking radar...

That Colon deal is really looking like a bust...

what did the Indians get for Bradley...

[twonabomber]

normally i hate that guy's columns but he made some good points in there today.

[POJO_Risin]

Man...Riske has been off the charts...

past month...1.06 ERA...25 K's in 17 innings...

He oughta be closing soon...what up with Wickman?

[twonabomber]

the "player to be named" in the Bradley trade was Andrew Brown. i think he's in the minors.