How Some Former Cleveland Indians From 2017 Performed in Their First Season Playing Elsewhere

Now that the 2018 Indians season is in the books, there's a chance to not only reflect, but also to look around the league at how some of the former Wahoo's did in their first season away from the team.

Carlos Santana, Jay Bruce, Joe Smith and Bryan Shaw are four players that left the Tribe this last offseason for greener pastures, and some felt that the loss of these players took its toll on the franchise this year.

Now that the year is over, it’s a good time to take a moment to see how those players have performed in their new homes, and some of the numbers the players put up in their first year might be somewhat of a surprise.

Carlos Santana Philadelphia Phillies

In his first season in the City of Brotherly Love, Santana ended the season hitting .229 with 24 homers and 89 runs batted in, drawing a total of 110 walks, up 22 from his last season with the Indians.

Santana inked a three-year deal worth $60 million, with him making $18.3 million this past season for Philly, who started strong but faded down the stretch in the NL East.

At the All-Star break, Santana was hitting .209 with 17 doubles, four homers, 52 RBI, 74 BB, 56 strikeouts

In his last year with the Tribe, he hit .259, with 23 homers and 79 RBI, so while his power numbers were almost exactly the same, his average in year one in the NL dropped 30 points.

Bryan Shaw Colorado Rockies

To say that year one for Shaw outside of Cleveland was not an easy one is an understatement, as he had an awful season for the Wild Card Rockies, who lost to the Brewers in three games in the NLDS.

Shaw was so bad in year one in Colorado, he didn't even make the playoff roster.

On the year he 4-6 with a 5.93 ERA, striking out 54 batters and walking 28 in 54.2 innings. Colorado's faith in Shaw fell off big time midway through the season, and it showed in that he threw just 17.1 innings in the second half of 2018.

After throwing in a MLB high 79 games last year, he threw in 61 in 2018, this after inking a deal worth $27 million for three seasons.

At the break he was 3-5, with a 7.23 ERA. He has put up 11 holds, 37.1 innings pitched, 52 hits allowed, 30 earned runs, 21 walks and 36 strikeouts.

His second half was just as bad, a fall from grace from his success from his time in Cleveland.

Jay Bruce New York Mets

The Indians never made Bruce an offer after they made a deal for him last August, and they made the right decision, as his first year back in New York with the Mets was a nightmare.

Bruce inked a three-year deal worth $39 million this offseason with New York, and for that money they got a player who played in just 94 games, hitting .223 with 9 homers and 37 RBI.

He suffered from injuries for a good part of the season, having a foot as well as hip injury that kept him on the disabled list.

In the first half Bruce hit .212 with three homers and 17 runs batted in with 24 walks and 48 strikeouts. Considering he hit 7 homers in 43 games with the Indians, the Mets got taken on this one.

Austin Jackson Free Agent

Jackson was all over the place in 2018, as he started the year with the San Francisco Giants, inking a two-year deal worth $6 million, and then was traded to the Texas Rangers on July 8th.

He never reported to the Rangers, and ended up with the Mets, where in 57 games he hit .247 with three homers and 19 runs batted in.

Jackson hit .242 with the Giants, eight 8 doubles, no homers, 13 RBI, 14 walks, and 59 strikeouts in the first half of the season, and really by the time he got to the Mets it was already a lost season for the one-time Indians outfielder.

Joe Smith Houston Astros

Smith was one player who was effective for his new team, as he ended up in Houston inking a two-year deal with the Astros, who placed him on the ALCS roster after keeping him off during the ALDS against Cleveland.

When the Indians dealt for him last August, he appeared in 21 games for the Tribe in the last two months of the season, going 0-0 with a 3.44 ERA.

On the season Smith went 5-1 with a 3.74 ERA, throwing a total of 45.2 innings, appearing in 56 games. These numbers came after he went 3-1 with a 4.26 ERA at the All-Star break, appearing in 29 games.

Gio Urshela Toronto Blue Jays

There was quite a bit of debate when the Indians decided to let Gio Urshela walk in favor of Erik Gonzalez, but now that it's all said and done, the decision appears to have been the right now.

Upon his release from the Tribe earlier in the 2018 season he inked a deal with the Blue Jays, and appeared in 19 games hitting .233 (10-43,) one double, one homer with three RBI with two walks and 10 K's.

He was then DFA'd by the Jays, and while in the minors was dealt to the New York Yankees on August 4th in exchange for cash considerations.