Indians Lookback: Tribe Ships Gomes to the Nationals in Deal to Get Prospects and Save Cash

The Cleveland Indians finished the 2018 season being dispatched what seemed to be rather easily by the Houston Astros in the ALDS three games to none.

The offseason was set to be a painful one for the franchise, as the Dolans proclaimed that there was going to be a reduction in payroll, and some of the higher priced players were going to be moved to have an overall cheaper payroll.

The first big move came on Friday, November 30th, an otherwise normal Friday about four weeks before the arrival of Santa and the Christmas holiday.

The team felt that they had an area of strength to deal from, and that was from the catcher spot.

The highest priced catcher on the team was veteran Yan Gomes, a player who was very popular among the fans, but to the Indians became expendable after the club inked fellow catcher Roberto Perez to a multi-year contract.

Gomes’ value was likely never higher, as he was coming off an All-Star season, hitting .266 with 16 homers and 48 runs batted in.

In his career with the Tribe, coming over from the Blue Jays back in 2103, he hit a career .250, with 83 homers and 295 RBI in 609 games.

The bigger issue was the money he was owed should he stay with the Tribe.

He was inked through 2019 with club options for 2020 and 2021. He will make $7 million in 2019, and the club options the next two seasons would have cost the Indians $9 million and $11 million.

In that regard it made sense for the Indians to target Gomes as their first big trade of the offseason, and they quickly found a taker in the Washington Nationals.

The Nats sent three prospects to the Indians, two of which have already been involved with the Major League organization.

The first was prospect Daniel Johnson, the outfielder who many Tribe fans want to see get a shot at the Major League level as soon as possible.

Johnson was coming off a season in Double-A for the Nats where he hit .267 with six homers and 31 runs batted in to go along with 21 steals.

The youngster has shined in the minors with the Tribe, hitting .306 in Columbus last season with nine homers and 44 RBI.

The other bigger prospect moved to the Indians was pitcher Jefry Rodriguez, a 6’6, 232 pound thrower who could crack the rotation at some point.

Rodriguez did get some starts in 2019, but struggled finding the plate and eventually was placed on the 60-day IL with a right shoulder strain.

In his eight starts with the Tribe he went 1-5 with a 4.63 ERA. He walked 21 batters in just over 46 innings, and the team really wants him to focus on his control as he moves forward with the club.

The third player who came aboard in April was infielder Andrew Monasterio, who in 70 games with AA Akron in 2019 hit just .219 with one homer and 11 RBI.

As for Gomes, he now sports a World Series ring after playing in 97 regular season games last year, hitting .223 with 12 homers and 43 RBI.

He caught the last strike against another former Indian, outfielder Michael Brantley, in game seven of the World Series against the Houston Astros.

The Indians though didn’t do so badly when it came to the player who took over for Gomes, as Perez in his first year as full-time catcher set career highs in average at .239, homers with 24, and RBI with 63.

He also was a Gold Glove winner behind the plate, and is highly regarded as one of the best defensive catchers in the game.

For now, it’s safe to say that both sides of the deal got what they wanted. The Nats got a veteran catcher who was able to stabilize the position and help the team win a title.

The Indians got a solid season from Perez, and now have a couple of prospects with Johnson, Rodriguez and Monasterio.

The team also saved quite a bit of money on Gomes as well.

While the fans may not have liked it, for the team it was mission accomplished, a deal that saved money and got them players for the future.

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