Cleveland Indians acquire Chris Dickerson, designate George Kottaras

News out of Cleveland was mixed on Monday, but the team did make a notable acquisition by trading for outfielder Chris Dickerson from the Pittsburgh Pirates. The move was made, at least in part, as a response to the news that Michael Bourn will likely miss at least the next 3-4 weeks due to a strained hamstring.

The 32 year old Dickerson had been with Pittsburgh’s Triple-A affiliate, where he’d been swinging a hot bat. In 280 plate appearances on the year he’s batted .309/.407/.479. His value, however, primarily lies with his defensive abilities as he can handle all three outfield positions well.

Historically Dickerson hasn’t done much at the plate in the major leagues. He’s seen time in parts of six seasons in the majors, most recently appearing in 56 games with the Baltimore Orioles last season. For his career he’s a .262/.339/.406 hitter in just over 700 plate appearances.

Pittsburgh will receive cash or a player to be named later in return for him.

In order to make room on the active roster for Dickerson, the Indians designated catcher George Kottaras for assignment. The backup catcher had posted strong numbers in a very limited amount of playing time. This is the second time this season that Kottaras has been DFA’d.

The 31 year old is a .216/.326/.415 hitter for his career over parts of seven seasons with five different teams.