Indians have reported interest in free agents Peraza and Pinder

The Indians have been quiet so far at the winter meetings in San Diego, but Tuesday were linked to two possible utility players, Jose Peraza and Chad Pinder

The New York Yankees broke the bank at the 2019 MLB Winter Meetings on Tuesday as they came to a deal with free agent pitcher Gerrit Cole on a nine-year deal for a record-breaking $324 million.

As if it needed to be said, the Indians were not in on negotiations for Cole.

That doesn’t mean that they were not busy in San Diego, as Tuesday night they were linked to a couple of players but it’s likely the two names the Tribe is looking at won’t get fans too excited.

The first player that the Indians were linked to is former Cincinnati Reds second basemen, shortstop and outfielder Jose Peraza.

The report came from MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand, who claims that the Indians along with the AL East bottom dwellers the Baltimore Orioles are interested in Peraza.

Last season was a bad one for Peraza, as he hit just .239 with six homers and 33 runs batted in. He played in 141 games last season with 376 at bats.

He also had just a .346 slugging percentage. He drew 17 walks, striking out 58 times.

Two seasons ago Peraza was much better at the plate, as in 157 games he hit .288 with 14 homers, 58 runs batted in and 23 steals.

One thing that is a draw from for the Indians when it comes to Peraza is the fact he can play a couple of positions, two of which the Indians need right now – second base and the outfield.

A second player that has been linked to the Indians is Oakland A’s utilityman Chad Pinder, who like Peraza can play second, short and the outfield.

The 27-year-old had a solid 2018 for the A’s, as he hit .258, with 13 homers and 27 runs batted in playing in 110 games.

Pinder was a second-round pick from the A’s in the 2013 MLB Amateur Draft, and over the last four seasons has played in 343 games, hitting a total of 42 homers with 120 runs batted in.

There’s no question that the two players both have the versatility that the Indians like, and neither player is going to be able to demand much money wise which is another plus for the Tribe.