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June 17, 2008LeBron James Thinks You’re Fat
June 17, 2008With all of this talk regarding the Indians and the potential to be the future owners of former members of the New York Yankees, I present to you the ironically-timed announcement from the Indians Media Relations department:
The Cleveland Indians announced they have signed 3B MORGAN ENSBERG to a minor league contract and assigned him to the AAA Buffalo Bisons. Ensberg, 32, played in 28 games this year for the New York Yankees batting .203 (15-74) with 6 runs scored, a HR and 4RBI before being designated for assignment by the Yankees on June 2.
This acquisition puzzles me for several reasons. One, Ensberg once provided a ton of potential from his days with Houston. In 2005, he hit for a clip of .283/.388/.557 providing an OPS of .945 through 526 at-bats. For one reason or another, he failed to pan out since said season, hitting near .230 each year since.
Being 32-years old, the Tribe obviously doesn’t anticipate Ensberg making an impact in the future, but likely sees the same potential that he showed only a few years back at a position that has been severely lacking run-production over the entire year. This move won’t make a dent in the anticipated production from guys like Wes Hodges, but it may not mean the best for Andy Marte.
Over Ensberg’s career, he has been much more productive during the second-half of the year hitting .274 post-All Star break (versus .256 pre-break). Perhaps this is a testament to how weak our infield is at the minor league level, or I could be reading entirely too much into a potential impact at the big-league front. Either way, I wouldn’t count on production near 2005; but in the same, I would not be surprised to see a few at-bats for the Indians before the season is over. After all, he does have the long-ball potential that we’ve all been longing for. No pun intended.
5 Comments
Signing another third baseman makes sense, especially since Casey Blake is a free agent next year. However, I would like to see the Tribe make a pitch to keep “Mr. Clutch”……
BTW, I don’t know if it’s been mentioned yet, but does anyone realize that the Tribe has the hottest offense in all of baseball! No, really, I’m not kidding! Through the month of June, the Indians have scored 95 runs, more than any other team in the MLB!
Tonight, we start a 3 game series in Denver, Colorado. Let’s hope that thin air at Coors Field helps keep these bats alive!
Go Tribe!
His expression wreaks of such hope and promise in that photograph. Sadly, his days ahead as a baseball player are about as hopeful as Big Pussy surviving that ride on The Stugots.
I can’t help but agree with the thought that this bodes poorly for Andy Marte. I’m hoping so, anyway. If Marte goes, though, he’ll likely get more consistent playing time elsewhere, and I imagine he’ll be grateful for it.
On the other hand, this could bode poorly for Casey Blake. I could see one of the two of them (Marte, Blake) being traded soon — perhaps Casey if we’re playing “for the future” and perhaps Marte if we’re playing for “now.” Despite my avowed pessimism about our chances of making the playoffs, I did vote for play for “now,” and I’m hoping that this is the mentality.
I’m foreseeing the day of his call-up:
Wedge “Yeah… go do that thing you used to do.”
I think this means Casey will be gone by the end of July.