The Indians infield should see a marked improvement offensively, at the cost of a slightly worse defense. Defensive specialists Jack Hannahan and Casey Kotchman are both gone, replaced by power hitting Nick Swisher and Mike Aviles. There are a few starters who will be keeping their places in 2013 as well and all three are solid offensive producers as well as dependable on defense. Asdrubal Cabrera survived the offseason and looks to be a veteran presence from short stop while Jason Kipnis and Carlos Santana will also retain their positions of second and catcher respectively. 

Lonnie Chisenhall will be taking over the hot corner to start the season for the first time (even though it should be for the third time). Despite originally being further along than Kipnis, unfounded favoritism pushed Kipnis to be a starter early (where he has excelled) while Chisenhall remained in AAA for no reason. With Hannahan to the Reds, there is now absolutely no one who could compete with the Chiz Kid for the starting third baseman job. He has not had as much experience in the Majors as he should have at this point (after missing most of last season when hit by a pitch in the arm), but should provide a spark from the bottom of the lineup. He has also improved defensively over the years and is no longer a liability on defense.

After the signing of Michael Bourne pushed him out of the outfield, newcomer Nick Swisher became the top candidate for  the new first baseman. He has played 307 games at first and holds an impressive .994 fielding percent. He shouldn't be a huge drop off from Kotchman last year defensively and will be a huge upgrade offensively. During his four years in New York, Swisher averaged more than 25 home runs a season, immediately making him the Indians top power threat.

Mark Reynolds will be the Indians main designated hitter, but his versatility will allow him to play first (or third in an emergency) when necessary. This is the first time in a long time that the Indians will have a DH that can play in the field. This will be especially beneficial this year with the increase in Interleague play. Instead of relegating a top hitter to the bench (only useable as a pinch hitter), the Indians would be able to use Reynolds at first, Swisher in right field and bench either Drew Stubbs or Michael Brantley. Reynolds came as a free agent and is expected to big a strong middle of the lineup force after hitting 23 or more home runs every year since 2008.

As part of the Indians big spending spree this offseason, former Yankee Nick Swisher will be joining the team as well. There will be a lot of pressure on Swisher to earn his contract (an average of $14M per year through 2017) in his first year. He will be in Cleveland for a long time, so making a good first impression will be important with the fans. He will also be expected to make up for the loss of Choo in the lineup and will likely bat somewhere right in the middle of the order. He was originally slated to play in right field, but with the addition of Bourne, he will be relegated to firstbase. He will likely play some in the outfield as the season progresses, but his glove is a significant drop off after considering the other three outfielders.

The combination of Swisher and Reynolds offers a great opportunity for the Tribe to have a first baseman hit more than 21 home runs for the first time since Thome hit 52 in 2002. Since Thome left, the Indians have never found a solid first baseman, using the low average/low power hitters Ben Broussard, Ryan Garko, Matt LaPorta and Casey Kotchman. Both new hitters should be better than all these players combined. 

The infield bench is yet to be cemented, but will likely include two players acquired from Toronto early in the offseason, Yan Gomes and Mike Aviles. Aviles will directly replace Jason Donald (who went to Cincinnati in the Shin-Soo Choo deal) as the back-up short stop and second baseman. He should also be able to play third when needed, but since the infield is still very young and has proven durable to this point, he shouldn't be needed often. It is yet to be seen how Terry Francona will manage this team, but if it is anything like when he was with Boston, he will play his starters every day (a style contrary to both Manny Acta and Eric Wedge).

Gomes should be the back-up catcher, replacing Lou Marson, although Marson is still with the team. Gomes is younger with much more upside and at this point everyone in the Indians organization must be completely frustrated with Marson's performance and ready for something new. 

The last utility infield spot is completely undecided, but has many contenders. It will likely be a player who can play first, DH and possibly corner outfield like 2012 rule five pick Chris McGuiness or Mike McDade. Jason Giambi and Ryan Rayburn are both in camp after disappointing 2012 campaigns and are long shots to make the team. 

Jason Kipnis should be the center of the team, on defense and offense.

The 2013 Indians bullpen will be the most similar section of the team to the past few seasons with just a couple changes going into the next season. The backbone will be exactly the same as past seasons with Chris Perez staying in the closers role despite repeated trade rumors. Looking back on 2012, it seems that Perez's frustrations with Manny Acta's managing style during their losing streak were the main reasons for his media blow-ups. New manager Terry Francona has had experience with his own crazy closer, Jonathan Papelbon, so he is at least more qualified to deal with Perez. The Michael Bourne signing meant a lot to Perez, who said it made him feel like the Indians were a big market club. One of his biggest issues in 2012 was that the Indians didn't add anybody at the trade deadline and he should be extremely happy with the Indians offseason.

The men responsible for maintaining leads for Perez to save will be the same as well with Vinnie Pestano and Joe Smith responsible for the 7th and 8th innings. Pestano set the Indians record for single season holds (36) last year and has recorded at least 20 with an ERA under 2.60 in each of his first two seasons. Smith has pitched at almost the same level as Pestano, pitching three years for the Tribe and recording 16 or more holds each year with an ERA under 3.00 the past two seasons. Both pitchers have been incredibly solid and haven't shown any signs that this year will be any different.

One of the big changes this season will be the new left hander as for the first time since 2006, the main match-up LHP will not be Tony Sipp or Rafael Perez. This year the top choice for the Tribe will be Nick Hagadone who made his debut in 2012 before breaking his hand and ending his season. There really aren't any other good options for the Indians, but Scott Kazmir and David Huff are both be in camp trying to win starting jobs and could technically be moved into short inning roles if necessary. Scott Barnes is another option that was used some in 2012, but he is obviously not on the same level as Hagadone.

Upstart right hander Cody Allen looks to be the last remainder from 2012. The 2011 draft pick was amazing in his first professional season, not allowing a single run until his thirteenth appearance. Allen benefited from the strong back end of the bullpen and the lack of close games as he never really had to pitch in any high intensity situations. After a half season in the Majors, however, that will likely change this year as he will certainly see more time in close games as he matures as a pitcher.

The last two places in the bullpen are unknown as of yet and will likely be pitchers that were not in the bullpen last season. Matt Albers and Bryan Shaw look to be the front runners, both coming from the Diamondbacks in the trade that sent away Tony Sipp (along with Shin-Soo Choo and Jason Donald). Albers had a great 2012, split between Boston and Arizona. He pitched a combined 60 innings and maintained an ERA of 2.39, his best season since converting to reliever in 2008. Shaw is a little younger than Albers, but also had a great season last year for Arizona, and has combined for a 3.18 ERA over 87.2 innings over his first two seasons. With these two relievers in the fold along with Allen and Hagadone improving after their first pro seasons the 2013 bullpen could be even better than last season. 

In addition to those mentioned above, there are a few other players that could see time in the Indians pen this year. Joe Martinez, Fernando Nieve, Jerry Gil, Edward Paredes and Blake Wood are all minor league pitchers that were signed (or invited to Spring Training)  this offseason and will get a chance to compete for a place in the pen during this Spring. Matt Capps and Rich Hill signed late in the offseason and have a slightly better chance at making the team that those others. Frank Herrmann and Corey Kluber pitchers that remain on the 40 man roster from previous seasons, but are unlikely to make the team with the added talent this year.

The last type of player is the kind to get excited about, the young pitchers that are almost ready for the big leagues. Chen Lee, Danny Salazar, Trey Haley, Eric Berger, Cole Cook and T.J. House all pitched well in the upper levels of the minors last season and could appear in games in 2013. While none of them are likely to break camp with the team, don't be surprised to see one or two as the season drags on with it's typical struggles and injuries. At a minimum, Lee, Berger and House will almost certainly join the team as September call-ups if they are not needed earlier. Berger and House are both considered starting pitchers, but will likely spend some time in the bullpen first like Jeanmar Gomez has over the past two seasons.

The Indians bullpen is definitely something to get excited about as it looks to be better than even the great bullpens of 2011 or 2007. The combination of a dominant closer with at least three solid set-up men is something the Indians haven't had in years. This is the first season in a long time that the Indians won't waste a spot in the bullpen with a has been like Jeremy Accardo or Chad Durbin. There should be no waste pitchers in 2013 who can only be used in games that were lost in the early innings. Of course there is always the randomness inherent in relief pitching and someone is likely to fall off after last year, but things couldn't be set up much better than they are right now. It will be up to the offense and the rotation to give the Indians the lead, but the certainly shouldn't have to worry about someone blowing it once they do.

The fearless leader of the Bullpen Mafia.

The whole team is now here in Goodyear, but this isn't your old time Tribe. Travis Hafner's decade of destruction is over (started by destroying pitchers, ended by destroying his ligaments), replaced financially by the new giant contract of Nick Swisher. Fausto Carmona, Shin-Soo Choo, Tony Sipp and Rafael Perez are also gone after being mainstays for the last five years. Some minor players are gone as well, including Jason Donald and Jack Hannahan, both replaced by Mike Aviles (who came from Toronto in exchange for Esmil Rogers). The Indians also finally gave up Grady Sizemore, releasing him to the world after two extremely disappointing seasons. This was the largest purge of long term players since the initial destruction of the 1990's power Indians in 2002 (noteables included Jim Thome, Charles Nagy, Bartolo Colon, Einar Diaz and Paul Shuey). The era after that now seems to have come full circle as Hafner and Sizemore each came to the team during the 2002 trades (for Diaz and Colon).

Going into Spring Training 2013 the focus will be on the young stars. Jason Kipnis and Lonnie Chisenhall will be the foundation of the infield while Carlos Santana provides some power behind the plate. This Spring will mark a transition for those players as they will be cemented as starters before the year even begins. The young players in the bullpen are also exciting including Vinnie Pestano, Joe Smith and Chris Perez, ensuring there will still be a home grown aspect to the team.

This is also one of the biggest groups of new players coming in recent years with more new free agent signings than any offseason in recent memories. The Indians have given multi-million dollar contracts to Nick Swisher, Michael Bourne, Mark Reynolds and Brett Myers. Two big trades brought in the rest of the new players with Mike Aviles and Yan Gomes coming in from Toronto while Drew Stubbs, Trevor Bauer, Matt Albers and Bryan Shaw all came in the Choo deal.

Indians pitchers warm up before fielding practice.

Vinnie Pestano, the man on the mound, in front of the mountain.

In an already incredibly abnormal off-season, the Indians are now going for broke after signing free agent outfielder Michael Bourne to a four year $48M contract. This fills their hole at designated hitter (by moving Nick Swisher out of right field) and gives them three starting outfielders who were center fielders last year. Bourne immediately becomes the fastest of the bunch and may take over the center field spot from incumbent Michael Brantley and newcomer Drew Stubbs. Bourne has lead the National League in steals in three of the last four seasons and has never stole less than 40 bases in a season where he played more than 105 games. 

While the Indians starting rotation is still very questionable, this move should complete the offense as the Indians had already signed Mark Reynolds and Swisher to fill the other major holes. The outfield in particular should be very exciting as the Indians will probably carry four career centerfielders on the roster (Ezequiel Carrera in addition to the three starters) all of whom are slick with the glove. Bourne is the only Gold Glover of the bunch, however, winning in both 2009 and 2010. His arm is also impressive and he has 37 outfield assists in his seven seasons as a centerfielder.

If there is one drawback to the Indians signings it is that all the new players strike out at extremely high rates. Bourne is no exception to this as he strikes out in more than 20% of his at bats, but the fact is that the old Indians struck out a lot as well, but did so without scoring very many runs. At least the new group (Reynolds, Swisher, Stubbs and Bourne) are all high level veteran players who have been productive for years.

The Indians have never spent this much money in a single offseason in recent memory and all the spending (in addition to the hiring of World Series winning manager Terry Francona instead of the home town favorite Sandy Alomar) shows that the Indians are not content to sit by and wait for the next rebuilding phase. The Indians are going all in for 2013 (and at least the three years after that). Now it is just up to the players to show they deserve their millions and for the fans to show up in enough force to pay them. 

It's that special time of year again that brings hope back to the weary in the cold urban wasteland that is Cleveland, Ohio. In Goodyear, Arizona it's always sunny (although a little chilly) and the optimism flows freely for 2013 version of your Cleveland Indians. Pitchers and catchers have reported to the desert for the unofficial start to the 2013 season. This year the pitching staff can be split into two parts, the rock steady bullpen, a unit that has been developed and honed for the past four seasons and a starting rotation full of question marks.

New pitching coach Mickey Calloway will have his hands full as every single pitcher has at least issue that needs to be worked out. Ubaldo Jimenez is the biggest problem as he holds the greatest difference between risk and reward. His biggest issues seem to be involved in his control, but like ace Justin Masterson, he could benefit by reigning in his delivery a little bit in an effort to remain consistant on the mound. Zach McAllister and Trever Bauer are simply young pitchers that need to work on maintaining and increasing their limited success to this point and avoiding a back slide. Bauer especially needs to continually work to make sure his quirks don't affect his performance on the mound. Carlos Carrasco is coming back from Tommy John surgery, making him one of the biggest question marks of all. Whenever a pitcher is coming back from such a significant operation it takes a long time to get back into stride and Carrasco had yet to really peak before his injury set back. He hasn't faced Major League hitting since 2011, so it will take some major work this Spring to bring him up to speed. The Indians are also bringing a lot of veterans into the fold including Brett Myers, Scott Kazmir and Daisuke Matsuzaka to compete for the fifth spot in the rotation.

Overall, Indians fans should just be happy that baseball is returning and winter is coming to a close. They should also remain positive and remember, the Indians can't lose a game for another two months.

While not a pitcher or catcher, Ryan Rayburn is in Goodyear and ready to work hard trying to win that coveted utility infielder role.

Fans (autograph hounds) wait patiently in the hopes of catching a glimpse of such stars as Jerry Gil and Brian Jeroloman.

*2/10 Added Jason Giambi & Daisuke Matsuzaka

In order to fill up the Spring Training roster and possibly find some gems in what was a very shallow free agent class, the Indians have invited a few players to Goodyear that are not on the 40 man roster. Because these players are generally lower level or career minor leaguers or has-been Major Leaguers, Burning River Baseball will provide you with a primer, helping you learn about the new kids in camp.

Infielders

Luis Hernandez

Hernandez is essentially a AAAA middle infielder, bouncing from AA to AAA and the Major Leagues from 2006 to the present. Most of his time over the years has been spent at short stop, but he has a decent amount of experience at second and has played a little at third as well. Since the Indians have a very durable short stop and second baseman, he would have to make the team as the reserve corner infielder, extra outfielder and pinch runner. His stolen base efficiency is nothing to get excited about however, and Mike Aviles looks to be a super utility man, making a player like Hernandez seem unnecessary.

Brian Jeroloman

Jeroloman has been a catcher in the Blue Jays minor league system throughout his entire professional career, but is yet to make the pros. Toronto initially had high hopes for the young catcher, but as the years went by, he was passed over multiple times and ended up spending most of 2012 back in AA after making it to AAA for the first time in 2008. Now the Jays have officially given up on him, so the Indians will allow the 27 year old back stop to play catch with Indians pitchers this Spring. There is a good chance he will be out of the organization again by April, but in the meantime he will be able to bring his years of minor league experience to help along the Indians minor league pitchers and the other former Blue Jay, Yan Gomes.

Ryan Raburn

In an effort to "add depth to the utility position" the Indians are bringing former Tiger, Ryan Raburn to Spring Training. Rayburn is one of the worst all around players in baseball. Last season Raburn hit .171 in 66 games in what was either a fluke season or the beginning of the end of his career. The best case scenario with Raburn looks to be that if he returns to form (like when he hit .256 in 2011 with 14 home runs), he will provide a good versatile utility man for the Columbus Clippers.

Matt LaPorta

I refuse to write a section on LaPorta just because he is a non-roster invitee this you. You all know who he is. I just hope he doesn't take at bats away from young players like Chris McGuiness, Jesus Aguilar and Mike McDade who the Indians should be seriously taking a look at.

Omir Santos

Santos is an older back-up catcher heading into his age 32 season. He has only played in the Majors for four professional seasons for a total of 121 games. His best season was a pretty solid year for the Mets in 2009 when he hit 14 doubles and 7 home runs. He will most likely just be an extra backstop during the first week after pitchers and catchers report when there are many more pitchers ready to throw than there are catchers to catch them. The idea of a 32 year old rarely successful catcher passing both Marson and Gomes on the depth chart seems outrageous at this point.

Jason Giambi

In an effort to increase the average age of the Indians roster, the Tribe has invited the 42 year old former AL MVP into camp for a chance to win the designated hitter role. After failing to secure Travis Hafner or Jim Thome to low cost contracts, Cleveland brought in Giambi with a minor league deal with a maximum salary of $750,000. Giambi hit just a single home run while batting .225 last season in Colorado and doesn't have a huge chance of making the team, but unlike the majority of the people listed here, he doesn't have much competition either. He could be used at the beginning of the season as the starting DH until another player shows they are ready for the position.

MiLB Invites

Jesus Aguilar - 1B
Roberto Perez - C

Outfielders

Cedric Hunter

Hunter is a centerfielder that was originally drafted by the Padres and most recently played in the Cardinals organization. He has spent the last three seasons at the AAA level, but is yet to make his Major League debut. His numbers have been ok, but not great by any standard and he will probably never be a Major Leaguer. His best attribute is that he doesn't strike out too much. In fact, he has walked more than he struck out in each season starting in 2010. This is a big turnaround from his first couple years, where he was striking out almost twice as often as he walked. There is essentially no chance of Hunter making the Indians or any other team this Spring.

Matt Carson

Carson has played in AAA since 2008 while playing in the Yankees, Athletics, Rays and Twins farm systems. The 31 year old has hit more than 150 home runs in his minor league career and almost 600 RBI. Carson has spent the majority of his time playing right field, but since he is past his prime, there is little chance of him improving with a jump to the pros. Unless signing aging minor leaguers is a new branch of the Cleveland Indians Charities, this signing makes no sense.

Nate Spears

Like the other two outfielders, Spears is a long-term minor leaguer that has yet to make his Major League debut. The Indians must have at least five players already in the system, but not on the 40 man roster that are more talented and closer to the Majors than any of these players. Hopefully, these three MiLB lifers will not be taking at bats away from those players (like Tim Fedroff, Jeremie Tice, Tyler Holt and others).

Ben Francisco

In the most exciting Spring Training signing, Ben Francisco will be coming back to compete for an outfield bench position on the 2013 Indians. With no favorite designated hitter or second utility man as of yet, Francisco actually has a decent chance of rejoining the Indians. He was a fan favorite while with the team prior to being traded to Philadelphia with Cliff Lee. While he hasn't been the same player since leaving Cleveland in 2009, he is still able to produce a little power and great defense from a bench role.

Jeremy Hermida

The former Marlins prospect will be in camp with the Indians after a disappointing career to this point. He spent most of the last two seasons with San Diego, but only played 43 total games at the Major League level during that time. Early in his career he showed a lot of power, hitting 43 home runs over three seasons with Florida, but he has only hit eight since leaving the Marlins prior to 2010. He is essentially a cheap chance for the Indians as they hope he can play somewhere near the level he was originally projected to. With the Indians still without a designated hitter, they could possibly hold on to Hermida as a platoon DH/PH against right handed pitchers.

Pitchers

Fernando Nieve

Nieve is a relief pitcher that is not only younger than most of the other invitees (at 30 years old), but has much more Major League experience (99 games over four years). While he is by no means a good pitcher, he could be used on the roster if the Indians lost about six pitchers to injury or trade before the season starts. His greatest use would be in AAA, waiting for a chance if someone else fails at the highest level. Nieve hasn't been in the pros since 2010 and spent the last two seasons in the AAA as a starting pitcher (between the Astros and Dodgers).

Jerry Gil

Gil is a reformed infielder who converted to pitcher in 2008. Since converting, he has played in the Reds and Blue Jays minor league systems, playing all of last season in Las Vegas. He went 7-1 as a reliever, but was not as impressive as that would seem, keeping an ERA around 5.00 and a WHIP over 1.30. He is nowhere near the talent level it takes to be in the Indians bullpen, but he should continue his progress as a reliever in Columbus.

Edward Paredes

Paredes will be playing away from Seattle for the first time since being signed prior to the 2006 season. He spent 2012 away from American Baseball, but is attempting a comeback after pitching in the Dominican Winter League. He is essentially a left handed match-up reliever, but isn't particularly good at what he does. Through six minor league seasons, Paredes has thrown 444 innings and allowed 230 runs. Like the vast majority of Spring Training invites, Paredes only future with the Indians will be in the minor league system.

Joe Martinez

Martinez is back (played with Columbus in 2011) in what was one of the more confusing signings of the offseason. He will be 30 years old by the time training starts and has pitched in just 19 total games in the Major Leagues. Since 2011, he has thrown in just a single inning and allowed two hits and a run. A much more common place for Martinez to be is AAA, where he has spent time every year since 2009. During those four seasons he held an ERA of 4.59, incredibly non-impressive for a very old minor leaguer.

Scott Kazmir

Kazmir has the most professional experience of any of the invitees and is the most likely to make the team. After years where the majority of the Indians rotation consisted of left handed pitchers, the Indians have none slated to start during 2013. If Terry Francona decides the Indians need a left handed starter, the options are between Kazmir, Scott Barnes and David Huff and they would likely take the fifth place in the rotation instead of the recently recovered Carlos Carrasco. All three left handed options seem to be inferior to Carrasco, but there is still the option of using a left handed starter.

Matt Capps

Capps is an exciting late edition to the Indians Spring Training group. He has more major league experience than just about any relief pitcher in camp, breaking in with the Pirates in 2005. He has also been a very successful closer, saving 138 games in total with at least 14 saves in each season since 2007. Also impressive is the fact that he has more seasons with an ERA below 2.75 (4) than seasons above 3.75 (3). Most recently Indians fans should know him for his time in Minnesota where he recorded 45 saves and held a 3.61 ERA through parts of three seasons. He is a great (and thrifty) pick up for the Indians in an offseason that saw some relievers signing contracts in excess of $20M. Capps immediately has a legitimate chance of making the bullpen depending on his play during March.

Rich Hill

In an effort to take a flyer on every single washed up pitcher available, the Indians are bringing for Cub prospect Rich Hill into the mix. In 2007 Hill had a pretty good season when he pitched almost 200 innings, striking out 183 batters and holding and ERA of 3.92. In the five seasons since then, he has pitched just over 100 total innings. Last year he saw a slight resurgence with the Red Sox as he pitched 19 innings in 25 games. It seems unlikely that Hill will ever start again since he allowed a 7.80 ERA in 2009 the last time he started a single game (he started 13 that year). He could be used as a left handed reliever, but is not much of a match-up pitcher (allowed .340 OBP to LHB in 2012 and .333 to RHB).

Daisuke Matsuzaka

The pitcher who cost the Red Sox over $100M ($51M posting fee plus more than $50M in salary) to secure is coming to Cleveland for a fraction (just $1.5M if he makes the team with up to $4M in incentives) of the cost. The former Nippon League (and World Baseball Classic) superstar. Boston didn't get anywhere near their monies worth as he had a cumulative WAR of just 8.3 through his six years with the team. Last season was a lost year for Matsuzaka who was recovering from Tommy John surgery, but looks to be yet another very low risk/high reward player trying to make the Indians rotation this Spring.

MiLB Invites

Preston Guilmet
Matt Langwell
Giovanni Soto (Also Participating in WBC)

The Indians still are without a definite designated hitter for the 2013 and have apparently been linked to two former Indians players, Travis Hafner and Jim Thome. In what is a sad state of events for Hafner, both players are essentially at the same point in their career, despite Pronk starting his career over a decade after Thome. Both players have seen decreases in playing time in recent years with neither player playing in more than 100 games since 2010. If the Indians did sign one of the two former Tribesmen, he should be expected to have at least two stints on the disabled list and not be able to play in more than three consecutive games and never in the field.

As much as bringing either former great back into the fold would warm the hearts of Indians fans, the move just doesn't make sense logically at any price. Picture this prospective situation: Pronk/Thome plays DH for game one of a series with Mark Reynolds at first and Carlos Santana catching. The next game would feature Reynolds at DH, Santana at first and Lou Marson/Yan Gomes at catcher. The third game would see Reynolds and Santana back at their prospective positions with either Nick Swisher or the Pronk/Thome combination at DH. Either way the Indians would handle the situation, the new DH would be likely to play in 60 or less games.

The Indians have no obvious great in house options, but given a chance there are a few players who could surprise if given even those 60 games that the Indians would otherwise be overpaying for. Below is a chart that takes a weighted average of the last five years for both Hafner and Thome and the last three seasons (mostly minor league) for two other players. The numbers have been standardized to see what they would produce in 60 games.

These numbers are incredibly close and are all probably over estimates of how these players will perform. The question is, how much are the Indians willing to pay for a player that will at most hit ten home runs and strike out 50 times. The two options listed below are Yan Gomes and Chris McGuiness in that order. McGuiness has never played above the AA level, but is a rule 5 pick, meaning he has to be on the 25 man roster or be relinquished to his old team. If the Indians sign either Hafner or Thome there will likely not be room on the roster for McGuiness. 

Gomes on the other hand should make the roster either way and unlike McGuiness, has had some Major League experience. He is also more versatile, being able to play catcher, first or DH, making him fit in well in the Santana/Reynolds rotation.

No other teams have been linked with either Hafner or Thome to this point. In fact, the Orioles, Astros and Yankees have all announced that they have no interest in the 42 year old DH, despite having holes on their rosters. Because of that, both players have no market driving their price up, although either could decide to retire rather than play for the league minimum. The Indians can't afford to take on a pity player, monetarily or in roster space.

If the Indians do decide to pick one of the two aging players, Thome seems to be the better fit. It would allow him to retire as an Indian (again) cementing his place in the Hall of Fame as a Clevelander, making him even more worthy of the statue being built for him in centerfield. He also is miraculously less injury prone than Hafner despite the longer career and has produced more in the past few seasons. The final benefit of bringing Thome back would be an increase in jersey and ticket sales for nostalgia's sake. This would help pay for his salary, but will not likely last longer than the first month or so, unless he produces enough to deserve his place on the team.

2013 is going to be the first season in the history of professional baseball when there are an odd number of teams in each league, making it the first season with interleague play all year. This has lead to a few peculiarities in the Indians schedule this year that make it a little different than the norm.

• Instead of the regular three game series, the first of the interleague series will take place at the end of April (4/30) in Cleveland against the Philadelphia Phillies. It will consist of two, two game series concluding in Philadelphia later in the month (5/14).
• Instead of playing the normal six games against Cincinatti, the Indians will play consecutive road and home series against the Reds (and new centerfielder Shin-Soo Choo) from 5/27-30. This is the first time in my memory that the Indians have played a team on the road, then immediately played them at home. The Battle for Ohio will be played in just four games in 2013.
• Other NL opponents include three game series against the Nationals (6/14-16), Marlins (8/2-4), Braves (8/27-29) and Mets (9/6-8).
• Because of the new scheduling, the Indians will be playing many more four (and two) game series than normal. They have 12 four game series scheduled along with four 6 game series. There were 8 four game series in 2012 and no scheduled two game series. This will make it a lot harder to judge teams by their series win/loss record as there should be a lot more series ties.
• The Indians will be playing against the Houston Astros as an American League team for the first time ever  on 4/19.
• The All-Star break will be four games for the Tribe this year, spanning from 7/15-18. It should be a good vacation for almost every player as the Indians attempt to trade away every player who ever had a chance at playing in the contest.
• The Tribe won't play the Angels and their new outfielder Josh Hamilton until 8/9, making them the last American League team for the Indians to play their first game against.
• There will only be 14 total games against the Red Sox and Yankees, including just seven home games that will all be over before the end of April. These are two of the best selling series for the Indians, so it will be interesting to see if people will show up during the normally cold month of April to see the AL East teams. Last season the Indians averaged just over 11,000 fans per game in April excluding Opening Day, partially because there were no high profile games.
• The season closes out in the cold open air of Minnesota, in what could be a very depressing four game bout if neither team makes any more improvements before the season starts.

If you are a regular reader of Burning River Baseball, you may come to feel that I hate all utility players and think to yourself, "why does he hate them, it's their job and somebody has to do it." Well, I don't hate utility players, just their improper use.

In general, of the 25 spots in a baseball roster, twelve are pitchers, nine are the starting lineup and another is the back-up catcher (another subject which I have discussed ad nauseam). This leaves three open places for what is typically, a reserve outfielder, middle infielder and corner infielder. Some teams choose to distribute these spots differently based on the unique talents of their reserves, but this is the general idea. Among those three reserve players the team needs to cover a few points.

First, every starter on the team must have a back-up in case they get hurt or tired. This back-up can be another starter as long as that starter has a back-up on the bench. Also, between the three players available there should always be a pinch runner and a pinch hitter (on past Indians teams, a right handed pinch hitter) for late inning duties. The back-up catcher shouldn't be considered in any of this as if the catcher gets injured there is usually no other option.

As most teams cannot afford to field a roster of 25 starting caliber players, utility players are usually a significant drop off from the regular on the field talent. This means the role is taken by one of three types of players, old players who used to be good, players in their prime that will never be good and young players who are still unknown. As with any player, the cost increases with age as they will no longer play for the league minimum and are less flexible as far as minor league options are concerned.

It is my opinion that any team that is not a billion dollar organization should use young players for the majority of their utility positions. This may seem not that extreme of a statement, but the Indians have been overpaying for aging veterans and never-will-be's longer than I can remember. Most recently Jack Hannahan was paid over $1M to make 18 errors at third base in 2012 as a defense-first minded third baseman while Lonnie Chisenhall sat in AAA. While Hannahan was not technically a utility player in 2012, he was originally signed as one and his back-up, Jose Lopez, was even worse. If Chisenhall had at least been used as utility corner infielder at the beginning of 2012, he could have worked on his defense behind the master (.949 fielding percent Jack Hannahan) and the Indians could have saved the entire $800,000 paid to Lopez (because they still had to pay Chisenahall anyway). Using Chisenhall as a utility player all season would have given the Indians their back-up at third, short and first (through Hannahan) as well as an extra pinch hitter.

The main purpose behind this line of thinking is the money saved. Reserve players only play a few games a year each and are not that important to the ultimate fate of a team. They are also usually replacement level players. Since this is the case, there is no reason not to use replacement players from within your own system. Another benefit of using younger players is speed. Using the example already mentioned, while Chisenhall is no speed demon, he is faster than Lopez, but here a different example suits better. 

Shelley Duncan was the primary starter in left field in 2012, leaving Johnny Damon as the utility outfielder. The Indians have done this type of thing over and over again in recent years, signing aging outfielders like Austin Kearns (the second time), David Delucci and Jason Michaels. In every case, a future Indian has lost playing time when he almost certainly would have produced more at a smaller cost. With Michaels it was Ben Francisco; Delucci, Franklin Gutierrez while Kearns (and Damon) kept back Ezequiel Carrera. All three of the outfielders held back were better fielders and base runners than their replacements and all were pushed to the sidelines for some unknown reason. Two of the three were even traded away as throw-ins during mega deals because there was "no room" for them on the roster. The Phillies and Mariners obviously saw their value even if the Indians couldn't. 

There are hundreds of examples over the years where the Indians would have been better served by using a younger player as a utility player instead of a veteran, but there is no point in listing them all. The whole argument boils down to the decrease in cost to the team in payroll and the increase in major league playing time of the developing player. If the Indians did follow this system, they should give each young player a two year maximum at the utility position. After this time a decision would have to be made. There are exactly three possible solutions, two of which could have great benefit to the team.

First, they could trade the young utility player. This has been the Athletics operating mode for the past decade, taking undervalued players, giving them enough playing time to look good and selling them high to other teams. One of the few times the Indians did this right was when they traded Kelly Shoppach to the Rays for top pitching prospect Mitch Talbot. Shoppach had been a young reserve for a few years, got enough starting time to impress and was sent away for another teams top pitching prospect when the Indians found a better option.

Second, promote the utility player. When something really special comes along (like Chisenhall) he should be moved into the starting role as soon as possible. When this is done, the team still has control of the original player and can use him as a trade piece to other teams before losing him. The Indians did a terrible job of this during 2012 as they held on to Hannahan during the regular season, even after Chisenhall was made starter. Once the season was over he was released and the Reds signed him for $4M. If they were willing to pay that much for him, they certainly would have been willing to trade something for him earlier in the year.

Finally, the utility player can be released. If a player has been around, playing in 60 or more games a year for multiple seasons and hasn't proven himself, he probably never will. If this is the case, give up on the player and release him, giving a different young player a chance. This is what the Indians should have done with Matt LaPorta years ago. LaPorta has been used as a reserve DH/1B the past few seasons when it was made obvious his ceiling is much lower than previously thought. If there is no trade market for the player, then just release them. This is not only best for the team as it frees up a roster spot and gives another young player a chance, but it is best for the player being released as well as he is free to find a job somewhere else whether it be with another team or Taco Bell.

So, there you have it. I don't hate utility players for being utility players. I just dislike it when the Indians waste money, then complain they don't have any and when they sit on tremendous talent in the minor leagues and just let it waste away (Brad Mills who? Remember Brad Snyder? Nick Weglarz is still in Akron at age 25).

A week after dropping Jeanmar Gomez from the 40 man roster the Indians have traded him to the Pittsburgh Pirates for outfielder Quincy Latimore. Not only does this exponentially increase the amount of Quincy's in the Indians farm system, but it allowed them to gain some advantage from losing Gomez. This is the ideal way to lose a player. Gomez has had a few years to earn his place on the team and despite showing some signs of greatness (especially his AA perfect game and his first few starts in 2012), in the end it was decided that he will not be part of the future of the franchise.

The Indians have already lost the rights to quite a few players this offseason (including Russ Canzler twice) and this is the first time they got anything in return. Latimore looks to be a talented young player, poised to make his AAA debut in 2013. He has 50 steals already in his six seasons and has averaged more than 70 RBI per season since making it to single A. He has spent most of his time in left field, but has played a considerable amount in center as well and will do a lot to replenish the extremely depleted Indians minor league outfield depth.