Cleveland Indians: 4 outfielders to target before MLB trade deadline

CINCINNATI, OH - JULY 03: Avisail Garcia #26 of the Chicago White Sox celebrates after hitting a home run in the ninth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on July 3, 2018 in Cincinnati, Ohio. The White Sox won 12-8 in 12 innings. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

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CINCINNATI, OH – JULY 03: Billy Hamilton #6 of the Cincinnati Reds leaps to catch the ball in the ninth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Great American Ball Park on July 3, 2018 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

Billy Hamilton, CF, Reds

Billy Hamiton would be a defensive minded addition for the Indians before the trade deadline.

The knock on Hamiton has always been his stick. He hit .250 as a rookie but its been downhill since then. He’s batting .230 now.

Hamilton is getting on base at a .310 clip, which is the second best mark of his five-year career.

If Hamilton joins the club, he instantly becomes the No. 9 hitter, but with that said, there’s no bigger threat on the bases if he’s able to reach first. He stole at least 56 bases every season between 2014-2017. He swiped 19 bags this year.

FanGraphs rated Hamilton as the fourth best defensive outfielder in the game. He also posts +6 defensive runs saved.

The same school of thought applied to Duvall applies to Hamilton in that he’d be a nice secondary part of a package that nets the Tribe a reliever from Cincinnati’s stable of arms.

Adding Hamilton isn’t really a huge upgrade over Zimmer, except that the Reds center fielder is a little more experienced. Causing havoc on the basepaths would be a nice addition too, but as always is the case with Hamilton, the question becomes: Can he get on base?

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