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Oakland Athletics: A Brett Lawrie Trade With the Cleveland Indians Makes Sense

By Katrina Hamrick

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Could Oakland Athletics Swap Brett Lawrie For a Pitcher?

The Oakland Athletics’ recent trade for Jed Lowrie has created an excess of infielders on the A’s roster. Both Brett Lawrie and Danny Valencia have been hot trade topics, with several teams reportedly inquiring about them.

One club that might match up well with the A’s is the Cleveland Indians, who are looking to deal part of one of the league’s best rotations in an effort to improve their struggling offense. Although they have the runner-up Rookie of the Year at shortstop in Francisco Lindor, as well as an All-Star second baseman in Jason Kipnis, the Indians are in need of improvements at the corner infield positions.

The Tribe experimented with both Jose Ramirez and prospect Giovanny Urshela at third this year, after moving Lonnie Chisenhall to the outfield permanently. Neither were impressive, and although both are still very young, the Indians are ready to contend now. The team could definitely use a quick upgrade, and the fact that Lawrie is a right-handed hitter with some power in his bat is certainly a nice bonus.

So what could the Athletics get back in return? Lawrie is a high-ceiling player, but his injury history is terrifying. The 2015 season was actually the first year in which he played in more than 125 games, and it showed. After a decent start – a .282/.318/.417 line in the first half – his production dropped off and he finished the year with an overall .260/.299/.407 line, including 16 home runs and five stolen bases.

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Those kind of numbers combined with his inconsistent health will lower his value considerably. The Athletics aren’t going to get a Corey Kluber or Carlos Carrasco in exchange for Lawrie, but the Tribe has a second tier of pitchers who might be worth considering.

Cody Anderson would be an impressive pickup. The 24-year-old made his major league debut in 2015 after posting consistently good minor league numbers, and he continued to find success in Cleveland. In 15 starts, he posted a 7-3 record with a 3.05 ERA over 91.1 innings. While he isn’t likely to sustain those numbers – his FIP was 4.27, suggesting that his ERA will normalize at least a little next season – he’s still going to be a solid mid-rotation arm.

Anderson isn’t a strikeout pitcher, as he punched out only 12.1 percent of batters, but he also walked just 6.6 percent – which is much lower than the major league average. He’s also under team control until 2022, and won’t be arbitration eligible until 2019, so he’d likely cost the A’s additional pieces in order to get the deal done. A relief prospect like Dylan Covey might do the trick – someone with high upside, who is worth gambling on – but it’s also possible that the Tribe will seek more, given how young Anderson is.

The Indians have also mentioned Josh Tomlin in trade talks, but Tomlin is only under team control through next season. The 30-year-old right-hander pitched 65.2 innings last season, making 10 starts and posting a 3.02 ERA. Tomlin had Tommy John surgery in 2012, which forced him to miss all but one game in the 2013 season. Since his return, his strikeout rate has nearly doubled – from the low teens to 21+ percent in each of the last two seasons. His walk rate has remained consistently low, with a career average of 4.1 percent and an average in each of the last two seasons that was just over 3 percent.

The main critique of Tomlin has been his propensity to give up home runs, but that would be minimized in Oakland thanks to both the size of the ballpark and the climate’s impact on fly balls. He would be a great fit for the A’s in terms of pitching style and results, as well as his ability to pitch well both in the bullpen and in the rotation, but it’s hard to imagine the A’s dealing Lawrie for Tomlin unless the Indians threw in a decent reliever as well.

Lawrie has an extra year of control, which makes him more valuable even if his results don’t make him an elite hitter. Possibilities include relievers Austin Adams and Shawn Armstrong, who both have had limited success and could intrigue an A’s front office that is looking to revamp the entire relief corps this winter.

Next: Who Will Go, Lawrie or Valencia?

Given the Athletics’ need for starting pitching, the Indians need for a third baseman, and the fact that both teams have an excess of what the other wants, this would be a logical fit for both clubs.