The Cleveland Indians are letting three of their players walk after the 2020 season that saw the team make it to the playoffs.
The Cleveland Indians are slashing payroll, something the rest of the league will be doing as well after the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic caused the league to lose out on $3.1 billion in revenue. That number isn’t just hurting the league but the individual franchises. Teams in lesser markets, like the Indians, will see a more dramatic cut costing effort as opposed to say the Dodgers or Yankees.
Other teams like the AL pennant winner Tampa Bay Rays will also see some dramatic cost-cutting as well, despite getting to the World Series. That’s just the economics of this year, and that could prove to be a good thing for the Indians as they won’t be the only ones tightening their chinstraps, so to speak.
Zack Meisel reported that DH Carlos Santana, OF Domingo Santana, and CP Brad Hand all had their team options declined for the upcoming 2021 season. Due to their contracts Carlos, Domingo, and Hand will all be paid a buyout of $1 million, $250k, and $500k respectively. That’ll save the Indians $30.75 million for the upcoming season.
It’s unlikely the Indians will use that to go after free agents or acquire large contracts. With that money saved and the eventual trade of Francisco Lindor, the Indians may have opened up the purse strings to try and extend other players who aren’t yet due for a contract anytime soon.
Did the Indians make the right call with those three names? Let’s dive deeper.
Domingo Santana
Domingo Santana was a mistake. Sure, he hit .253 and 21 home runs in Seattle, but that was also just one of two times he ever had a season of 20 home runs or more. Signing him cost other players field time, even though he only played 40% of the season. Part of that was performance-based, as he was sent down to Lake County to start September.
Santana’s arrival helped push guys like Jake Bauers to the minors, a move that the team couldn’t really afford to have happened, as Bauers needed time at the plate to develop and improve. He wasn’t the only outfield prospect that Santana took away valuable at-bats from, but is one of the more noted.
Santana failed to generate anything offensively and the team declining his team option was a wise-move. That said, for the right price, Santana may find himself back in Cleveland if it’s on a minimum deal.
The Indians will need bodies more than likely, and having someone familiar with the franchise in 2021 may not hurt. The team will look drastically different next season but that might be a good thing. Maybe a trade involving Francisco Lindor or Carlos Carrasco would another outfielder, one that would make trying to retain Santana a non-factor.
Brad Hand
Maybe this is a point of view many don’t share, but personally, trading for relievers is the silliest thing in sports. It’s like trading for a kicker in football. Sure, you need relievers, but relievers are rarely ever good consistently. The ones who end up being closers and never end up being more productive than an everyday pitcher. Trading for Brad Hand at the cost of Francisco Mejia was a mistake, especially when you remember that the Indians had no one to replace Roberto Perez after he went down with an injury.
Dusting off Tim Laker would’ve been a better backup option than what the Indians had.
Hand was a fine closer but he never inspired total confidence the way you’d like a closer to providing. He did start rough but settled into a good grove and was hardly a problem for the rest of the year. Was he worth $10 million a year, however? No. Was he worth a top prospect in Mejia? No.
Can he be replaced with who the Tribe has in the pen for 2021? Absolutely. Guys like James Karinchak would be a great prospect to close out games, while Logan Allen may make for a decent set-up man. That doesn’t mean they’ll be able to slide in and take over the position, but there is plenty of potential at the back end of the pen.
Carlos Santana
For a personal reason, this one hurts. Carlos Santana is a Cleveland legend and holds many top spots for the club. He’s nearing a few records and if he’s brought back on a reduced contract could see him up his profile historically with the club. He’s currently fifth in home runs for the franchise, and second in walks (and in strikeouts – yikes).
Sure, he’s not Jim Thome or Omar Vizquel as far as Hall of Fame talent, but if Santana agrees to return on a reduced deal, he may be just below them in the echelon of legends. That all said, the club declining his $17.5 option was the right call. Santana did not earn that in 2020 and he’s damn sure, not worth that in 2021.
He hit .199 for the season, had eight home runs and only 30 RBI’s, but did have 47 base-on-balls. So he can still see the ball, but he found himself chasing and forcing at the plate more than before. In 2019 he struck out 18% of the times of his at-bats but in 2020, he struck out nearly 21% of them.
Santana has value on a cheap deal, and could even still start for the team, but if he does want to come back it’s probably going to be on a one-year deal, worth around $1 million or so.