Pinch me. Throw cold water on me. Is it a dream?
The Cleveland Indians have traded Jhonny Peralta to the Detroit Tigers. Finally! I hope they didn't have to wake him up during a workout to tell him. Now he can sleepwalk for the Tigers.
Am I happy? I can't believe it. But will the Tribe take advantage of the opportunity to give a true prospect a chance at 3B? Well of course not. I can't get everything out of this. I can't be that selfish or that logical. No, they aren't calling up hot prospect Jared Goedert to give him a look on the major league club. Why of course not. Instead, here comes....Luis Valbuena. Again. The same Valbuena with the .166 batting average that lost his 2B job to Jason Donald. That Luis Valbuena. And I wouldn't doubt that we'll see Andy Marte get some starts at third as well. The Andy Marte that keeps showing up like an old penny. He just won't go away. But how can I be upset? Jhonny Peralta will be snoozing and drooling on his Old English D uniform of the division rival Tigers. They are desperate for help at the hot corner. True to form, after serving in the role of Rip Van Winkle for the Indians, Peralta will probably awaken and lead the Tigers to a division title. But then again, I doubt it. At the end of the day he's still....Jhonny Peralta after all.
And just who did the Tribe pry away from the Tigers for Jhonny with an h before the o Peralta? None other than a 19 year old single A pitcher with a history of injuries. That's fine. Geovanni Soto can wait in line with all of Mark Shapiro's pitching hopefuls and work his way through the Tribe's corporate pecking order. Hey, I'm not complaining. He throws left-handed, he is breathing without the assistance of oxygen and at last report he was awake and taking solid food. What an upgrade for the roster! I have never seen Soto pitch. I don't comment on pitchers I haven't seen. But given the Indians track record in trading for pitchers, we'll probably see Soto in say....2020. Oh I almost forgot, one of my Cleveland sources told me the Indians get to pay Peralta's salary as well. What a great perk.
You say I'm sarcastic? Not usually. But I've seen just about enough of Jhonny Peralta to last me a lifetime, thank you. I can't get over the fact he hits long home runs when the team is ahead by 6 or down by 8. He won't move to his left to pick up a ground ball. Or to his right. He balked at playing 3B to allow Asdrubal Cabrera to play short for the Tribe. It's no secret why he was upset. He can't play third. Or short for that matter. Range? Nope. None. Clutch hitting? Uh....no. Energy? No.
Look, I know there are some good stats regarding Jhonny Peralta and he has some people convinced he can hit. Not me. Never. Ever.
Finally, Jhonny and I part ways. I'm waiting for Lonnie Chisenhall who I think will assume the 3B role at some point in 2011. I think Jared Goedert and Chisenhall will be the future at third. The team just dumped Wes Hodges off the 40 man roster, giving up on their proclaimed "third baseman of the future." Well, he was proclaimed last year and this is this year. Long range plan? What plan? We go day to day and hour to hour on the Indians. But rejoice! Luis Valbuena is back.
On another front, the Dodgers just improved. They got Scott Podsednik who has been playing well now for two seasons. He'll see plenty of playing time in left field for the Dodgers who have looked to fill that position for months while Manny is hurt. What happens to Podsednik when Man Ram returns? He becomes this year's Juan Pierre. Watch it carefully Podsednik owners. I'm included in that group. His playing time could prove an issue going forward. You better have a plan in mind.
I guarantee you Cleveland fans are in ecstasy tonight. For me, all is well in the world. Jhonny Peralta is a Tiger. I have bruises from where I've been pinching myself. Good night. Sleep tight. I know Jhonny is. I'm out.