Cleveland Indians Acquire Collin Cowgill from Anaheim Angels

The Cleveland Indians are making additions that aren’t going to wow the fans, and you can’t really blame them for it.

In a less than spectacular trade, the Cleveland Indians acquired Collin Cowgill from the Anaheim Angels for cash. To make room on the 40-man roster Nick Hagadone was designated for assignment. Hagadone was the only arbitration-eligible player that was not tendered an offer. So this begs the question, is this as good as it’s going to get for the Indians?

This isn’t likely to be the highlight, but many fans aren’t expecting much this offseason. This might not be far behind whatever that highlight acquisition might be. The 29-year old Cowgill is just a .236 career hitter with 12 home runs and 57 RBI in 308 games. He is a .271 hitter against left-handed pitching, but that’s nothing to get excited about. He can play all three outfield positions, which makes him another versatile defender with a light stick. That’s not going to help.

The Indians clearly feel they need to build some depth with Michael Brantley out to start the year. And even upon his return, there’s no assurance he will hit the ground running. So should we just expect more moves like this?

I’ve been an advocate of the Tribe possibly moving one of their starting pitchers. If they truly believe they can win the division, I think it’s a MUST. The staff is strong, but the core of the offense isn’t necessarily built for the long haul. Jason Kipnis has been plagued with injury the last two seasons. Brantley is dealing with that now. Yes, there’s young talent in the system, but will it be ready before the pitching staff missed their window? That’s a risky gamble.

Next: The Indians need to make a decision

For now, while other teams are signing the frontline free agents (and of course, we knew the Tribe weren’t going to be part of that), this is what we can expect in Cleveland. Maybe something will change and the Indians will surprise us.

Or maybe not.