Indians Designate Derek Lowe, Dodgers Designate Bobby Abreu

Now that the non-waiver trade deadline has come and gone, teams will start to trim the fat on their rosters.

Players who have underperformed for most the year and do not contribute to postseason hopes will be sent packing.  Such is the case for Indians’ pitcher Derek Lowe and Dodgers’ outfielder Bobby Abreu.

The Indians designated Lowe for assignment yesterday.  He will likely be reporting to Triple-A, but may eventually be released.  Lowe has struggled this year, and the Indians need all the help they can get.  They are not far from a play-off spot.  Cleveland is 4 games under .500, but they are only 6 games out in the Wild Card hunt.

Lowe, once a prominent starter for the Boston Red Sox, has struggled for a number of years now.  His ERA in Cleveland jumped to 5.52 after getting shelled by the Royals on Tuesday.  He hasn’t posted an ERA under 4.00 since 2008.  Rookie righty Colby Kluber will take Lowe’s spot on the 25-man roster.

The Dodgers have had similar problems with Bobby Abreu, and they have no room for an under-performing outfielder.  With the addition of Shane Victorino, the Dodgers could have kept Abreu and use him in the occasional start and off the bench.  However, Abreu has not provided much in the way of offense for the Dodgers this year.  Los Angeles designated him for assignment yesterday.

Abreu started the year with the Los Angeles Angels.  He only played eight games with them and hit just .208, so the Angels released him.  The Dodgers quickly scooped him up, where Abreu improved slightly.  For the Dodgers, in 70 games, he has hit .251/.359/.341.  He has lost almost all his power though which has placed his OPS below league average.

Abreu may be released from the Dodgers if he doesn’t accept the designation.  The Dodgers have 10 days to trade him.  The rosters expand to 40-man rosters on September 1st and Abreu would likely be recalled then, but he may not be around for that.

Both Lowe and Abreu are nearing the ends of their careers.  They will find work elsewhere if necessary, but they don’t have many years left.