Tony%252520Lastoria Archive

According to a report from Danny Knobler of CBS Sports, the Indians and Reds are deep in trade talks for Shin-Soo Choo. The reported players the Indians could receive in the deal are young shortstop Didi Gregorius and outfielder Drew Stubbs. There is also talk that the Indians may send another player to the Reds to complete the deal.

We continue with our 2013 prospect coverage here at the IPI with a look at the catchers in the Indians system. With Carlos Santana seemingly locked into the position for the next few years, the Indians do not appear to have an immediate need at the position, but they have several prospects at the system and have created a lot of depth and upside at the position. Tony talks about the potential and future for the likes of Alex Monsalve, Yan Gomes, Eric Haase, Alex Lavisky, Jake Lowery, and Roberto Perez, up-and-comers Yiober Marquina and Francisco Mejia, and many others (16 catchers in all).

All the winter leagues were off last night either because no games were scheduled or they were postponed. With no games, Tony provides an "ATF Six-Pack" and takes a quick look at six players of interest. Shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera is still playing even in the midst of trade rumors, first baseman Mike McDade could be on the chopping block with the recent pickup of Mark Reynolds, and more.

The IPI's Tony Lastoria recently had a chance to sit down and have a conversation with former Double-A Akron pitching coach and new Triple-A Columbus pitching coach Tony Arnold about some of the pitchers he had at Akron this past season. They talked about the strides made by the likes of T.J. House, Trey Haley, Preston Guilmet, Rob Bryson, Shawn Armstrong, Danny Salazar, Brett Brach, Toru Murata and others.

According to several reports, the Indians have agreed to a deal with free agent third baseman/first baseman Mark Reynolds pending a physical. It is being reported that the terms of the deal are a one year deal for $6 million with an additional $1.5 million in incentives.

It was quite a busy week for the Indians in the winter meetings out in Nashville. They did not come away from the meetings making any signings or trades, but the foundation was more than laid on a lot of deals. They missed out on a few players they wanted to sign and they have a few deals on the table to some others, and Tony says it is time to seal the deal and get some of these signings and trades to go through to help change the perception of the team not only for the fans, but the players, agents and teams around the league. All that and more in today's Happenings...

The winter meetings are over and everyone has gone home. The Indians were very active on the free agent and trade fronts, but were unable to come away from the meetings with any new acquisitions in tow. But the offseason continues on, and the Indians are clearly looking to sign both Nick Swisher and Kevin Youkilis and trade Asdrubal Cabrera.

Day four of the winter meetings is almost in the books. The news and rumors are winding down as people have already began departing Nashville, but the activity should continue through most of the rest of today. The Indians appear out of the blockbuster deal that centered around Justin Upton going to Texas, but they are still wheeling and dealing with trade talks on Cabrera. A decision on Kevin Youkilis could also be near, and lots more.

The Indians lost left-handed pitcher T.J. McFarland and right-handed pitcher Hector Rondon in the Rule 5 Draft today. Here are the 2012 scouting reports that were posted to the site and published in the 2012 Indians Prospect Insider book back in February.

The 2012 Rule 5 Draft kicks off today at 10:00am ET. The Indians have an open spot on the 40-man roster, so while they are not expected to select anyone they have the ability to do so. Also, there are a few interesting players that the Indians left unprotected who could be selected. Follow this running blog as the draft commences over the next hour to see who the Indians possibility select or lose in the draft.

Here are some quick notes and news bits connected to the Indians coming out of Nashville as day four of the winter meetings gets underway today. The convoluted and crazy three or four team deal between the Indians, Rangers, Diamondbacks and other teams continues to dominate the news, and it appears momentum is being gained to get a deal done. Either way, it looks like Asdrubal Cabrera is not going to be an Indian for very much longer.

Day three of the winter meetings is almost in the books. The news and rumors will surely continue into the night, and if anything of substance regarding the Indians has legs we will provide the update on Twitter and on the “news” page here on the site. But in the mean time here is a rundown of all the happenings today with players like Nick Swisher, Asdrubal Cabrera, Kevin Youkilis, Trevor Bauer, Shin-Soo Choo and many others.

Here are some quick notes and news bits connected to the Indians coming out of Nashville in day three of the winter meetings today. Is Jason Bay close to signing with the Indians? Is an Asdrubal Cabrera trade close? What else is up? Tony and the rest of the IPI staff will have a much more thorough update on all of this and more in the Winter Meetings daily recap piece later this afternoon.

The Rule 5 Draft gets underway tomorrow at 10:00am ET. The Major League portion of the draft only lasts maybe 15-30 minutes and is over before it starts, but there are a few names from the Indians that could be called by other teams. Tony provides a listing of the top 7-8 players from the Indians which will generate the most interest and their likelihood of being selected, and he also goes through EVERY single Indians player eligible for the draft and discusses their chances of going in the draft.

Day two of the winter meetings is almost in the books. The news and rumors will surely continue into the night, and if anything of substance regarding the Indians has legs we will provide the update on Twitter and on the “news” page here on the site. But in the mean time here is a rundown of all the happenings today with players like Shane Victorino, Asdrubal Cabrera, Kevin Youkilis, Edwin Jackson and many others.

Here are some quick notes and news bits connected to the Indians coming out of Nashville in day two of the winter meetings today. Tony and the rest of the IPI staff will have a much more thorough update on all of this and more in the Winter Meetings daily recap piece later this afternoon.