Cleveland Indians: 5 realistic free agents worth targeting for 2020
Corey Dickerson, LF
The Indians are hoping Oscar Mercado holds onto the job in center field, while the organization has also made it known that Franmil Reyes will get more opportunities in right field.
What the Indians really need is a left fielder. Jordan Luplow crushes left handed hitting. The Indians would like to give him an opportunity to be an every day player, but I’m not sold,. Cleveland should be looking for insurance, which makes Corey Dickerson an intriguing option.
Dickerson missed considerable time to start this season, but then reminded everyone that he’s an above average hitter after the Pirates traded him to the Phillies. He was going strong until the broke the navicular bone in his foot, ending his season two weeks early. He finished the year batting .304 with 12 home runs and an impressive .906OPS.
As a former All-Star and Gold Glove winner, Dickerson is exactly the type of player who should pique the Indians’ interest.
He has a track record, but needs a “prove it year,” as his offseason is likely to be filled with complications because of the injury. That suggests he’s in play to sign a one- or two-year contract with Cleveland, a franchise notorious for buying lottery tickets.
If you need more of a case to sign Dickerson, consider the left hander hits both lefties (.271) and righties (.313). This lets Luplow continue to platoon with Reyes, who will DH when he’s not playing.
The Tribe can also take their time easing in Bradley Zimmer and Greg Allen. Tyler Naquin has proven himself to be a nice hitter and was going to be a part of the plans, but an ACL injury means he’ll miss most of the regular season.
I’m worried the Tribe is going to give Jake Bauers the job. He’s a young player, but wow, he looked overmatched last season. There still may be a fu sure for him, but with Francisco Lindor’s contract coming up soon, the Indians should be focused on winning a World Series in the next two years.
Adding Dickerson comes with risk because of the injury but he shouldn’t be all that expensive.