The Indians have traded 25-year old righty swinging outfielder Franklin Gutierrez to the Mariners as part of a 3-team, 12 player deal also including the Mets. The Indians have received 24-year old righty reliever Joe Smith and 23-year old lefty swinging 2B Luis Valbuena. Gutierrez played in 134 games for the Indians last season and he was 99 for 399 (.248 avg, .690 OPS) with 54 runs scored, 8 homers, 41 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Gutierrez has now played in 284 games in his major league career and he is 208 for 807 (.258 avg, .717 OPS) with 118 runs scored, 22 homers, 85 RBIs and 17 stolen bases. He will likely be the starting center fielder for the Mariners in 2009. Joe Smith will likely slide into a decent little role for the Indians out of the bullpen against righty batters. Smith pitched in 82 games (0 starts) for the Mets last season and he was 6-3 with a 3.55 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. In two years with the Mets, Smith has pitched in 136 games (0 starts) in which he is 9-5 with a 3.51 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. Luis Valbuena could battle for the starting job at 2B unless the Indians find someone better before spring training starts. Valbuena played in 18 games with the Mariners last season and he was 12 for 49 (.245 avg, .662 OPS) with 6 runs scored and 1 RBI. He also played in 128 games in AA + AAA ball last season and he was 137 for 452 (.303 avg, .813 OPS) with 84 runs scored, 11 homers, 60 RBIs and 18 stolen bases. This appears to be a good move for the Indians as they have outfielders that they like better than Gutierrez on the roster.

The Indians have signed 31-year old righty Kerry Wood to a 2-year, $20 million dollar contract to take over as the closer. He pitched in 65 games (0 starts) for the Cubs last season and he was 5-4 with 34 saves, a 3.26 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. In his first year as a closer he whiffed 84 batters in only 66.1 innings pitched. The Indians hope that Wood can stay healthy because they’ve wanted a flame throwing closer for some time and he definately qualifies as one of those. Wood has now pitched in 276 games (178 starts) in his major league career and he is 77-61 with 34 saves, a 3.65 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. Wood has whiffed 1,407 batters while allowing only 947 hits in 1,219.1 career major league innings. This was a outstanding move for the Cleveland Indians.

The Indians have sold 27-year old righty reliever Tom Mastny to the Yokohama Bay Stars. It’s amazing that the Indians found someone that wanted Mastny based on how poorly he pitched in 2008. Mastny pitched in 14 games (1 start) for the Indians last season and he was 2-2 with a 10.80 ERA and a 1.95 WHIP. Mastny pitched in 80 games (1 start) in his career with the Indians and he was 9-5 with 5 saves, a 6.13 ERA and a 1.69 WHIP. This is addition by subtraction for the Cleveland Indians.

The Indians have signed 32-year old righty starting pitcher Tomo Ohka to a minor league contract. Ohka pitched in 28 games (20 starts) in AAA-ball last season and he was 5-11 with a 4.18 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. Ohka has also pitched in 184 games (172 starts) in his major league career and he is 50-62 with a 4.14 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. This is a nice low risk signing for the Cleveland Indians as Ohka could possibly win a spot in the starting rotation with a strong spring.