MLB Free Agents: Cleveland Indians Sign Casey Kotchman
By Editorial Staff
The Cleveland Indians have reportedly reached an agreement with free agent first baseman Casey Kotchman. The deal is said to be for one year and $3 million plus incentives.
Around this time last year, Kotchman was forced to settle for a minor league deal with the Tampa Bay Rays. The 28-year-old turned in one of his best seasons in the majors, posting a line of .306/.378/.422 with 36 extra base hits over his 563 plate appearances.
This was a huge improvement over the Kotchman most had come to know prior to the 2011 season. After posting an OPS of .721 while splitting 2009 between the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox, Kotchman only managed a mark of .616 over his 457 PA’s with the Seattle Mariners in 2010.
2011 represented the first time Kotchman sustained an OPS north of .800 since he was the Angels regular first baseman in 2007.
The Indians had been tied to Kotchman and other first base options for much of the offseason. Cleveland has been looking for an upgrade over the struggling Matt LaPorta. The 27-year-old has been the Tribe’s primary first baseman over the past two seasons, but he’s been unable to hold an OPS north of .700 during that time.
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You can check out all of the available free agents by position below.