Cleveland Indians: Trading Mike Clevinger for Clint Frazier would work

The Cleveland Indians need to make a move for offensive help and trading Mike Clevinger for the New York Yankees Clint Frazier just makes sense.

The Cleveland Indians need offensive help in the outfield. The New York Yankees need starting pitching help. The Indians have an overabundance of pitching, the Yankees an overabundance of quality outfielders. The idea of trading Mike Clevinger in a package for Clint Frazier in a return package just makes sense for both teams.

Sure, Clevinger is a bit older at 29-years-old but good pitching rarely goes bad that young. Sure, Frazier has butted heads with Yankee management in recent years for right or wrong and may bring the same attitude to Cleveland but the Indians are historically good at dealing with headaches. The trade works for both teams on paper and gives both teams valuable upgrades at positions of need.

It’s rare that anyone in Cleveland would want to do business with the Yankees, yet here we are. The last major deal between the two clubs came in 2016 when the Indians sent prized prospects Justus Sheffield and the aforementioned Frazier to New York for relief pitcher Andrew Miller. While Miller was a crucial part of the team’s run in 2016, it’s always disconcerting when a top tier starter prospect like Sheffield and a top of the line everyday prospect in Frazier get traded for a 30-something relief pitcher.

This is the Indians’ rare opportunity to rectify that deal. Sure, Sheffield is in Seattle now, so the Indians can’t be made completely whole, but this one move could do a lot for the long-term health of the Indians offense for seasons to come.

Not just that, with the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins looking at teams to potentially trade with, the Indians have to make sure they’re involved in the end-of-the-mid-season-arms-race in order to be able to fend off the surging AL Central.

The Twins want former Indian Trevor Bauer and if they land him, which seems unlikely but still, the Indians will have to deal with a legitimate Ace leading a team with a killer offense. The Indians can ill afford to be playing catchup with the Twins if they’re able to convince the Twins to sell.

Frazier isn’t the best player to be had, but he’s the one with the best present and future value. If the Indians can acquire him, some other prospects for Clevinger and another player or two, then the Indians will be sitting pretty as the season comes to its crescendo.