Indians ink veteran OF Maybin to Minors deal
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Indians have been no stranger to bringing in veteran Major Leaguers on Minor League deals. Guys like Alex Wilson, Ryan Flaherty, Matt Joyce, A.J. Cole, Tyler Clippard, Hanley Ramirez and Carlos Gonzalez all fell into this category during Spring Training. And now, the Tribe has added another.
The Indians signed veteran outfielder Cameron Maybin to a Minor League contract on Friday and assigned him to Triple-A Columbus. Maybin, who will turn 32 on Thursday, had spent the spring with the Giants prior to his release on Saturday.
"We thought he looked pretty good in Spring Training," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "We made a comment when we saw him that we thought he was in good shape and he swung the bat pretty good."
The 12-year Major League veteran split the 2018 season between the Marlins and Mariners, hitting a combined .249/.326/.336 with four home runs, 28 RBIs and 10 stolen bases over 129 games.
Just a few months ago, the Indians were short on depth in the outfield, having just Jordan Luplow, Tyler Naquin, Leonys Martin and Greg Allen to fill the three positions. But the signing of Ramirez on Feb. 26 shifted Jake Bauers to left field, Gonzalez and Maybin are now waiting in the Minors and Bradley Zimmer (recovering from right shoulder surgery) appears to be flying through his rehab process. They may not have a standout superstar outfielder, but suddenly, the Indians have options.
"[Maybin is a] really good defender, especially on the corner," Francona said. "He's been a Major League outfielder for a while. So, the fact of just having some guys in Triple-A, you don't know what's going to happen, but it's nice to have guys there."
The Tribe carried five outfielders on the Opening Day roster. Bauers and Naquin won the left- and right-field jobs, respectively, and Indians manager Terry Francona seems to be giving them a chance to do more than just platoon. However, both Luplow and Allen are on the bench to mix in, especially against left-handed pitching.
How will the Indians handle having both Maybin and Gonzalez at Triple-A? Gonzalez has until his opt-out date of April 20 to get brought up to the big league club. Expect him to still be the Tribe’s first option next month, leaving Maybin as a safety net to call on if needed. But it’s likely that Maybin will make at least a handful of appearances for Cleveland this season.