Following weeks of heavy speculation, Cleveland traded reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Cliff Lee along with outfielder Ben Francisco to the Philadelphia Phillies for four minor leaguers. (AP file photo.)
A painful foregone conclusion for Indians fans became reality Wednesday.
Following weeks of heavy speculation, Cleveland traded reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Cliff Lee along with outfielder Ben Francisco to the Philadelphia Phillies for four minor leaguers.
It marks the second consecutive season the Indians have traded a defending Cy Young winner — CC Sabathia was dealt to the Brewers — and received no big league talent in return.
News broke Wednesday morning that the Indians and Phillies were close to a deal, and the trade was officially announced following Cleveland’s 9-3 loss to the Angels in Anaheim, Calif.
According to general manager Mark Shapiro, the trade was made after weighing the team’s ability to contend next year with Lee and Francisco on the roster against an edict from ownership that the club would not be able to add any talent in the offseason.
“It’s always painful trading established players,” Shapiro said. “That being said, we think we’ve put ourselves in a position to create an extended run of contention. At the root of this deal was balancing the conviction of our ability to compete in 2010 with the opportunity to impact the team’s construction for years to come.
“Without the sense of confidence in the team’s ultimate competitiveness, we acted aggressively. If we felt better about (contending in 2010), we definitively would not have traded Cliff.”
The fourth-place Indians (42-60) appear headed for another rebuilding phase, already trading offseason acquisition Mark DeRosa, longtime reliever Rafael Betancourt, first baseman/outfielder Ryan Garko and now Lee and Francisco for prospects.
Lee’s $9 million option for next year was manageable, but after the Indians rebuffed the left-hander’s contract extension innuendos this spring, he was expected to test the free-agent market at the end of the 2010 season. The Indians felt Lee would be worth more now than at the trading deadline next year.
The Phillies, Cardinals, Rays and Dodgers had all reportedly shown interest in Lee. On Sunday, it was reported that the Indians and Dodgers were in serious discussions on a trade that would have sent Lee and three-time All-Star catcher Victor Martinez to the Dodgers.
Martinez is still potential trade bait, with the Red Sox and Rays listed as his major suitors. Shapiro refused to comment on Martinez.
The Indians’ bounty from trading Lee and Francisco is four prospects. At the Triple-A level are right-hander Carlos Carrasco, catcher Lou Marson and shortstop Jason Donald.
The key acquisition in the deal is at low Class A, right-hander Jason Knapp, the Phillies’ second-round draft pick last year. Knapp, who turns 19 on Aug. 31, is listed at 6-foot-5, 215 pounds and has a fastball in the upper 90 mph range. He is 2-7 with a 4.01 ERA in 17 starts — 111 strikeouts in 85 1/3 innings — for Lakewood in the South Atlantic League. He was recently shut down with shoulder soreness and has not pitched since July 11.
“Knapp is a guy that has tremendous upside,” Shapiro said. “He’s got dominant stuff. He could have as much upside as anyone in the deal.”
Carrasco, a 22-year-old native of Venezuela, has spent the entire season at Lehigh Valley, where he went 6-9 with a 5.18 ERA in 20 starts.
“He’s a guy that we feel has a chance to become a core member of our starting rotation,” Shapiro said. “We feel at a young age, he’s close to major league-ready.”
Marson, 23, is considered one of baseball’s top catching prospects, batting .294 with a home run, 13 doubles and 24 RBIs in 63 games at Lehigh Valley. He has appeared in seven games for the Phillies this year, going 4-for-17.
Donald, 24, hit .236 with a homer, 15 doubles, a triple and 16 RBIs in 51 games at Lehigh Valley. He recently returned to action after surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his knee.
According to Shapiro, Carrasco, Marson and Donald will report to Triple-A Columbus, while Knapp will pitch for Class A Lake County when he recovers from his injury.
Lee’s mostly positive tenure in Cleveland ends after seven-plus seasons. He joined the Indians in 2002 from Montreal in a blockbuster trade that also brought Grady Sizemore and Brandon Phillips for Bartolo Colon.
Lee, 30, was a staple of Cleveland’s rotation from 2004-06 before a dismal 2007 season forced him to earn his job back during spring training in 2008.
Lee responded by offering up one of the finest seasons ever by an Indians pitcher. He won Cleveland’s second straight Cy Young Award after posting a 22-3 record and 2.54 ERA. He was the first Indians pitcher to win 20 games since Gaylord Perry in 1974.
Since struggling to start this season, Lee has pitched like a defending Cy Young, posting a 3.14 ERA in 22 starts. But a lack of run support left his record at 7-9.
“I’m going to miss all these guys here, but it’s an opportunity for me to help a team that’s in first place,” Lee said after the Indians lost to the Los Angeles Angels. “They’re the defending world champions. So as far as that goes, I’m excited. But right now I’ve got to figure out how to get there and meet up with them and get acclimated to their team.”
Francisco, a fifth-round draft choice of Cleveland’s in 2002, has been inconsistent in his first year as a full-time starter. He is batting .250 with 10 homers and 33 RBIs in 89 games.
Shapiro said Fausto Carmona would be promoted from Columbus to take Lee’s spot in the rotation. Trevor Crowe, not highly touted prospect Matt LaPorta, will be promoted from Columbus to fill Francisco’s roster spot.
Rebuilding is not what Indians fans want to hear after the club entered this season as a favorite to win the Central Division. But Shapiro sees a bright future and isn’t ruling out a competitive season next year, even without a bulk of the players who began 2009.
“I still feel this team can contend next year,” he said. “It will be a young core of exciting players. Everything would have to go right, but I don’t feel like we can’t contend.
“I would say to fans that without making these difficult trades in the past, we wouldn’t have had the ability to trade players such as Cliff to improve our club and attempt to build a championship-caliber club for years to come.”
Trading aces
In a little more than a calendar year, the Indians have traded away two reigning Cy Youngs. Here’s a look at the two deals that have reshaped the franchise and have Cleveland bracing for another rebuilding project.
CC to the Brewers
Sabathia
LaPorta
On July 7, 2008, the Indians sent CC Sabathia to the Milwaukee Brewers for outfielders Matt LaPorta and Michael Brantley, left-handed pitcher Zach Jackson and right-hander Rob Bryson.
Sabathia led the Brewers to the playoffs last season before signing with the New York Yankees as a free agent.
The four players acquired by the Tribe have played a combined 16 games in the major leagues this season.
LaPorta hit .190 (8-for-42) with a homer and four RBIs in 13 games with the Indians before being sent back to Triple-A Columbus. Jackson compiled a 9.35 ERA in three games with the big league club.
Brantley is in Columbus, hitting .259 with four homers and 35 stolen bases in 93 games. Bryson is in the Arizona League, posting an 18.00 ERA in two games.
Lee to Phillies
Lee
Knapp
Carrasco
On Wednesday, the Indians dealt Cliff Lee to the Philadelphia Phillies for right-handers Jason Knapp and Carlos Carrasco, catcher Lou Marson and shortstop Jason Donald — all minor leaguers.
Lee has a sterling 3.14 ERA and is headed to the NL East leaders and defending World Series champs.
Carrasco is 6-9 with a 5.18 ERA at Triple-A. Marson is hitting .294 with 24 RBIs, and Donald is hitting .236 with 16 RBIs, also at Triple-A.
Marson
Donald
Knapp, who could be the key to the deal, is out with a sore shoulder in A ball. He’s 2-7 with a 4.01 ERA. But he has 111 strikeouts against 39 walks in 851/3 innings.
Contact Chris Assenheimer at 329-7136 or cassenheimer@chroniclet.com.
