Cleveland Indians: Francisco Lindor joins list of superstars team couldn’t afford

The Cleveland Indians traded both Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco to the New York Mets on Thursday.

It’s commonly believed that life presents us with some universal truths. These can be defined as ideas that are universally held, which transcend both times and places. Life is short, money doesn’t buy happiness, we all want love and acceptance, are just a few examples.

Well, here’s another universal truth for you. The Cleveland Indians are a small-market team that struggles to afford its superstar talents.

Francisco Lindor became the latest Cleveland superstar to join this long list of talented ballplayers the franchise couldn’t afford. Ahead of Lindor’s final year of arbitration in 2021, the Indians traded away the four-time All-Star to the New York Mets. The deal also included Carlos Carrasco, an 11-year veteran starting pitching who owns a sub-4.00 ERA.

In return, the Indians acquired shortstops Amed Rosario and Andres Gimenez and two minor league prospects. So what exactly was the end game for Cleveland? Well, here comes that universal truth.

Lindor is one of the premier shortstops and position players in the MLB. He’s only 27-years-old. Add in his charismatic personality with teammates and media, he’s a bonafide superstar. Cleveland is both unable and unwilling to spend excess money on its young superstars.

A young talent, often drafted, approaches arbitration or unrestricted free agency with a big price tag. What follows? The Indians trade away this superstar for a crop of young prospects. Oftentimes, the superstar talent goes on to winning organizations. Yes, Cleveland does an exceptional job identifying and cultivating talent from its prospects, but this isn’t a winning formula. Since 1915, the Indians have only won two World Series championships.

Unfortunately, this narrative comes as no surprise to Cleveland Indians fans. Back in 1960, former GM Frank “Trader” Lane completed the most infamous trade in franchise history. Two days prior to Opening Day, Lane traded away the 26-year-old budding star, Rocky Colavito, to the Detroit Tigers for outfielder Harvey Kuenn.

Colavito was a fan favorite, leading the American League with 42 home runs in 1959 and leading the Indians to 89 wins. Kuenn did win the 1959 batting title with a .353 batting average, but this trade has gone down in infamy. According to historical reports, Lane was enamored by hitting for average and thought that Colavito struck out too much. Colavito also requested a raise from $28,000 to $45,000 before Lane opted to pay Kuenn $42,000 for his batting average in 1960.

And yes, looking back, this trade was a disaster. Kuenn lasted one season in Cleveland after the Indians record fell below .500 baseball. Colavito went on to earn two All-Star Game appearances with the Tigers after hitting 139 home runs in four seasons.

Colavito was just the beginning of this miserable universal truth for Cleveland fans.

In 2002, Bartolo Colon was off to the best start in his career. He owned a 2.55 ERA through 16 starts, but he was due to hit free agency that offseason with Cleveland stuck in third-place. Sure enough, Colon was sent to the Montreal Expos. He went on to pitch 15 more years in the MLB including a Cy Young Award-winning season in 2005 and three All-Star appearances.

CC Sabathia spent the first eight years of his career in Cleveland. During that span, he owned a 3.83 ERA while notching at least 10 wins every year. In 2007, he went 19-7 en route to winning the Cy Young. This story ends the same. Sabathia was due to hit free agency at the conclusion of the 2008 season. Cleveland sent him to Milwaukee in the middle of a pennant race and he signed a massive contract with the New York Yankees that offseason. Sabathia is bound for the Hall of Fame, pitching 11 more seasons in New York with three All-Star appearances, three 19+ win seasons, and 251 career victories.

Cliff Lee was another homegrown talent. While the Expos drafted Lee, the former ace made his MLB debut in Cleveland in 2002. Lee spent eight years in Cleveland, highlighted by his 22-3 and 2.54 ERA Cy Young campaign. With a year remaining on his contract, the Indians dealt Lee to the Philadelphia Phillies in 2009. Lee ended up leading Philadelphia to a World Series appearance that season, and the only notable prospect return was Carrasco.

In the past two years, the Indians have continued this trend, especially with starting pitching. Corey Kluber, a two-time Cy Young winner, was sent to the Texas Rangers in 2019. Trevor Bauer, the reigning NL Cy Young winner, was dealt to the Cincinnati Reds the same year. Last season, Cleveland sent away Mike Clevinger to the San Diego Padres.

It’s expected Lindor will end up signing a long-term deal in New York, but regardless of where he ends up, the 27-year-old remains a superstar talent. Cleveland Indians fans will undoubtedly remember this trade for years to come.