Cleveland Indians: Greg Holland a good fit for the right price

The Cleveland Indians lost two key pieces to their esteemed bullpen this offseason. They could still find a way to strengthen the ‘pen through this year’s slow moving free agent market.

By losing Bryan Shaw and Joe Smith, the bullpen/s set-up man spot has been left open. Someone who could fill that role is free agent relief pitcher Greg Holland… for the right price. Holland spent last year with the Colorado Rockies, where he had an average season by his standards. He posted a 3.61 ERA, while giving up a career high seven home runs.

The Cleveland Indians are fully aware of Holland’s potential as he spent six years with the rival Kansas City Royals and was a part of their World Series winning team. His career in KC boasts a strong 2.42 ERA in 319.2 innings. His time as a Royal came to an end after he required Tommy John surgery in 2016.

In the last two years, the body of work between Shaw and Holland has been similar. Shaw has been more susceptible to the long-ball, but Holland had that same problem last year. Prior to 2016 however, Holland was posting ERA’s below 2.00 while going over 60 innings.

Something he has over anyone else on the market is his ability to strike hitters out. Holland had a career high 103 strikeouts in 2013 and followed it up with 90 in 2014. Last year, he struck out 70. He also led the NL in saves last season.

What would it cost for the Indians to sign Holland?

Signing Greg Holland to a long term deal would give the team a contingency should they lose Andrew Miller. But the team has to wonder how much he’s asking for. Holland turned down a three year, $52 million deal from the Rockies earlier in the offseason. Bryan Shaw signed with the same team for three years, $27 million.

With teams refusing to give up big contracts at the moment, maybe he will lower his price. Should the Tribe manage to snag him at a lower cost, he would make a strong asset to the bullpen.

Next: Does Tyler Clippard make sense for the bullpen?

It is unknown if Holland turned down his deal because he wanted a longer deal or because he wanted more money. He did turn down the qualifying offer of $17.4 million. which would signify he may be looking for something near $20 million a year. At age 32, that is too much for the Cleveland Indians to offer up with star players contracts looming.