Indians Trade Kearns To Yankees

The Cleveland Indians tonight announced they have traded outfielder Austin Kearns to the New York Yankees in exchange for a player to be named later or cash. This trade is to be completed on or before August 20.

Kearns hit .272 (82-301) in Cleveland this year with 18 doubles, 1 triple, 8 home runs and 42 RBI in 84 games with the Indians. He was signed to a free agent minor league contract this past January 5th and has spent the entire season to date with the Indians prior to tonight’s transaction. Kearns made 63 starts in left field, 12 in right field and 4 in center field for the Indians.

The Indians will fill Kearns’ spot on the roster in the coming days. Though no official announcement has been made, there is a good chance that outfielder/first baseman Jordan Brown may be the one to get the call to replace Kearns on the roster. This is partly because he has earned the promotion, but also because outfielder Michael Brantley was just optioned out on July 27th and cannot be recalled for 10 days unless due to a player being put on the disabled list.