Apparently, the Indians’ management picked the perfect time to slip Andy Marte through waivers and he cleared and he has been outrighted to Columbus.
According to reports, it is likely that Wes Hodges will get the majority of time at third base, while Marte will spend time at third base, first base and DH. This will likely create a logjam at first base/designated hitter with Marte, Jordan Brown and Michael Aubrey all likely to be fighting for time there. Hodges tore up the Arizona Fall League with his bat (.349/.368./ 587), but is questionable with his glove, so the early indications are that he needs reps at third base. Marte’s defense is unquestionably major league already – the question is whether he can regain the power that made him a top prospect.
The fact that he is now on a minor league contract may actually end up making Marte more tradeable – clearly no other team was willling to take him on without options, but they might be willing to stash him at their AAA affiliate as an emergency back up in case of injuries. Or, the Indians might hold on to Marte in case Hodges is unable to put his defense together. The only career path for Hodges is at third base – his bat is good, but there are too many better prospects at first base (Mills/LaPorta) and in the outfield (LaPorta, Weglarz, Brantley) for him to be viable with a position switch. At least they know Marte can come in and provide solid defense.
I still suspect that Shapiro will be working the phones trying to unload Marte before Spring Training ends. So, Andy Marte is still not free – he’s just not chained to the big league bench and his days of catching the ceremonial first pitch are behind him for the moment.
Mojo Watch:
Andy Marte:
No Elvis for Andy right now – he’s going to have to earn it all back.
Mark DeRosa:
Major Elvis for “The Pulse”, who cranked the Tribe’s first official Goodyear home run yesterday in a 10-7 loss to the Giants in the Cactus League opener.
2 responses so far ↓
1 Dave Draeger // Feb 26, 2009 at 11:41 pm
I entertained thoughts of my club taking a flyer on Andy, but they ended up picking up this Crede guy 0ver the weekend for a song.
Crede debuts tomorrow against the FEDBU, but the combined line for everyone who’s played third for the Twins in the first two Grapefruit League outings is 10-for-14 with 5 runs and 2 RBI. I’ll take that.
One of the Mpls guys wrote about Andy here:
http://blogs2.startribune.com/blogs/christensen/2009/02/19/prized-prospect-turned-into-a-booby-prize/
Heard a bit of the Plain Dealer’s Paul Hoynes on a local sports talk show Wednesday talking about the possibility of moving Peralta to 3rd and The Beaded One to short, with DeRosa at 2nd. Is that likely?
2 woodsmeister // Feb 27, 2009 at 9:13 am
Hey, Dave -
Peralta did play third in the Winter League this offseason, and it seems to be management’s opinion that he will end up there eventually, perhaps as early as next year depending on whether Luis Valbuena forces his way into the majors. However, right now, the general consensus seems to be that third base is DeRosa’s best position, and that he is adequate at second. Asdrubal Cabrera, on the other hand is a stud fielder at second base. Let’s put it this way – moving Peralta to third, Cabrera to SS and DeRosa to second most likely weakens our defense at second and third and improves it at shortstop. As long as Peralta can provide a plus bat and make the routine plays at shortstop, I think the Tribe will keep him there. DeRosa will be a free agent after this season, and I think Valbuena will likely force his way into the lineup at second base to start next season
Crede could be just the guy the Twins need at 3B – if he can stay healthy – and that’s a huge IF. I wonder about a guy with chronic back problems signing to play half his games on concrete, but I’m sure it was the best offer he had, and the Twins certainly had a need.
Paul Hoynes is certainly one of the worst baseball beat writers for a major newspaper covering a major league team – period.
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