I previously posted an article detailing the Indians’ potential acquisition of relief pitcher John Axford. Since the publication of that post, Axford has been signed to a 1 year, $4.5 million deal with an additional $1.75 million in incentives. Axford, as mentioned before, posted 46 saves and a 1.95 ERA for the Milwaukee Brewers in 2011 before losing the handles on the closer job in 2012 and being traded to the St. Louis Cardinals this past season. While he said he doesn’t like to make excuses, he attributed some of his struggles last season to pitching in the World Baseball Classic, as he went through what seemed to be a “dead arm” period with a drop in velocity following the WBC. He was able to right the ship to an extent, though, as he put up a 2.92 ERA in his final 71 appearances with the Brewers and Cardinals combined.
I like this move for a couple reasons. First of all, Axford has shown that he has what it takes to be a good closer in this league. Sure, he’s had his share of struggles in the past couple years, but he seems to have made great strides down the stretch this past year, and he appears to be very excited to join the Tribe. I think he’s in a good place in terms of both his ability and his mentality. The second reason is Indians pitching coach Mickey Callaway. Last season, Callaway worked wonders with guys like Ubaldo Jimenez and Scott Kazmir, who seemed to be long shots to ever regain form as quality starting pitchers. At the beginning of the season, Ubaldo was in danger of being cut from the team on account of how far he had fallen and Kazmir was going into his first season in the MLB since 2009. In the end, both made incredible turnarounds, as Ubaldo went 13-9 with a 3.30 ERA and Kazmir went 10-9 with a 4.04 ERA. Based on his success with those two guys, I’m very hopeful that Callaway can help Axford complete his return to form. This signing could be a steal for the Tribe.
The Tribe brass has made a couple other moves over the past week. This past Monday night, it was announced that the Indians had signed starting pitcher Shawn Marcum to a minor league deal. Marcum, who owns a career record of 58-46 and a 3.88 ERA, is coming back from thoracic outlet surgery which limited him to 14 games and 12 starts with the Mets. He posted an abysmal 1-10 record with 5.29 ERA over the course of last season, a very uncharacteristic stat line for him. Marcum also underwent Tommy John surgery in 2009, which is always a factor to be aware of. Personally, I have no problem with this acquisition. There is no risk involved for the Tribe as it is just a minor league contract (Marcum can opt out if he doesn’t make the Opening Day roster as well), and there’s a fairly high reward here as well. If Mickey Callaway can help Marcum make a return to form similar to that of Ubaldo Jimenez and Scott Kazmir, the Indians could find themselves with a legitimate No. 4 or No. 5 starter in the rotation. With Justin Masterson, Corey Kluber, and Zach McAllister rounding out the first three, this rotation needs a couple back end guys to perform. Marcum could very well be that guy.
Lastly, the Indians traded outfielder Drew Stubbs to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for left-handed reliever Josh Outman. This certainly wasn’t a flashy move by the front office, but at the same time it was a very important one. The bullpen needed another solid left-handed reliever with the likely departure of Rich Hill, and Outman can step in to fill that role. He actually posted a far better ERA than Hill did last year (4.33 as compared to 6.28), and Outman also limited left-handed hitters to a measly .198 average. He will fit nicely in the bullpen. As for the loss of Stubbs, it doesn’t mean all that much. The Indians still boast one of the fastest, best defensive outfields in the league with Michael Bourn manning center and Michael Brantley handling right, and the signing of David Murphy made Stubbs essentially the odd man out in the outfield. Stubbs showed flashes of a power-speed type guy, but he couldn’t consistently provide power and struck out far too often. While he does provide great defense and elite speed, the loss of Stubbs doesn’t mean all that much for the Tribe.
