The Indians will likely be without Josh Naylor for the rest of the season.
The Indians are down yet another player with the injury to Josh Naylor. The 24-year-old outfielder suffered a fractured lower leg after a collision with second basemen Ernie Clement. The collision caused Naylor to spin the air and land on his ankle, which was tucked away underneath him, causing it to snap under the pressure of Naylor’s body.
Naylor was in the midst of a solid if albeit unremarkable season, hitting .253, with seven home runs and 21 RBIs through 69 games. Without Naylor alone, the Indians could manage and rebound with little issue. The problem isn’t the loss of Naylor per se, but the cumulative impact all of these injuries are having on the Tribe.
Naylor will likely be gone for the rest of the year, and guys like Harold Ramirez will be expected to play more often. Yet, with Naylor out, and Ryan Ludwick still not back from injury, the Indians find themselves shallow in the outfield. Bradley Zimmer is playing better than guys like Jake Bauers and Ben Gamel, but he’s not exactly tearing the cover off the ball.
So there’s a need for some veteran help. Now, there are some names not listed, but that’s because they’ve been listed in other articles. Those two listed in the other article, Jedd Gyorko and Yasiel Puig would be the first two options for sure. Yet, for the sake of freshness, here are four other names the Tribe should consider.
Ryan Braun
Despite his tarnished legacy, Ryan Braun could add some stability to an otherwise depleted outfield unit. Spending his whole career in Milwaukee, Braun was not re-signed by the Brewers following the end of the 2020 season. While many considered him “all but retired“, there are others who believe he’s about to attempt a comeback. The Indians don’t need surgery, they just need a tourniquet. Something to help stop the bleeding.
Braun at 37-years-old isn’t the player he once was (mostly because he’s not using steroids at the moment) but he doesn’t need to be either. This isn’t about signing someone like Braun because you think he can still hit .300, hit 40 home runs, and put up 100 RBIs. No, we’re talking 8th or 9th in the lineup, with a hope for a .250 average but we’ll settle for .230, and maybe 10 to 15 home runs and hopefully 40 RBIs.
That’s it, that’s what you’re hoping for out of anyone who signs and Braun could probably do that. He hit .233 in 2020 but before, in 2019, he hit .285 with 22 home runs and 77RBIs. So he still does have something left.
The question is going to be if he’s willing to suit up for the Indians and try to help them get to the playoffs.
Melky Cabrera
Melky Cabrera is far from done and playing very well in the Dominican Republic as we speak. The former All-Star has played everywhere it seems, taking his talents on the road. New York, Kansas City, San Francisco, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and even a stop in Cleveland where he played 78 games. So why not bring back Cabrera for another run? He knows the lay of the land, so to speak, and Terry Francona is familiar with what he can do.
Not only are you getting a player that Francona is familiar with but you’re getting a player who could still leadoff for you even if he’s 36 years old.
Cabrera isn’t a guy that is past his prime just yet, he’s just a guy with some baggage; like Ryan Braun. With a need for guys who can get on-base, lead off and play the outfield, Cabrera kind of feels like the perfect choice to help out the Indians for the rest of the year.
During his stint across two Dominican teams, he hit .303 and .330 respectively earlier this year. If he’s keeping himself in shape he’s a viable option, and considering how he’s been bouncing around from team to team in the last few years of his career, it’s not like he’s going to be demanding a lot of money.
Matt Kemp
The former LA Dodger great is a free agent but still active as a player, having suited up for Team USA to help them qualify for the Olympics. He’s far from retiring, telling people last year that he wants to play until he’s 40. Since he’s only 36-years-old now, it makes sense that he’s looking to play a few more years.
Kemp had a solid 2020, hitting .239, with six home runs and 21 RBIs in just 43 games for the Rockies. He may be waiting until after the Olympics to sign, with teams not being announced until July 1, 2021, there’s a possibility that Kemp can make the team considering how he helped Team USA even qualify in the first place.
For the Indians, he’s not what he once was, but that’s the team of this entire exercise. We’re looking for bandaids, not transplants. The team can’t keep trading away young talent, that’s part of the reason why the Tribe is in this situation in the first place. Triple-A has been picked bone-dry, and while the lower-minors are stocked with potential players, the higher-minors are not. They’ve either been called up already or traded away.
Kemp could help this team, even if he’s not what he once was.
Shin-Soo Choo
He’s going to be 39-years-old and is currently playing in his native South Korea. He’s not exactly the ideal player, granted, but Shin-Soo Choo still has something left to offer. He was one of the cornerstones of the 2007 Indians playoff push and was traded away as part of the Trevor Bauer deal which happened just before the team’s return to glory.
He’s still a .240 hitter and can still pop 20 home runs in a year if given the chance. While the age may scare some away, he hasn’t really lost too much over the last three seasons. He was an All-Star still in that time frame.
Sure, he’s not the same player he was in 2007, but it would be great to have Choo back to help push for another playoff race. If he’s even somewhat competent at the plate still, then Choo could help the minor leagues stay untouched while the team continues to develop the next crop of players who will continue the playoff chases for years to come.
For Choo, it’d be a chance to be part of the revival era of Indians baseball, even if for just a few months.