Indians bolster bullpen with Hand, Cimber
With an eye on October and beyond, the AL Central-leading Cleveland Indians acquired All-Star closer Brad Hand and fellow reliever Adam Cimber from the San Diego Padres in exchange for switch-hitting catching prospect Francisco Mejia.
The Indians need Hand, a left-hander, and Cimber, a rookie right-hander, to shore up a bullpen that has been without left-hander Andrew Miller since late May and has a 5.28 ERA, second-worst in the majors. The trade was announced Thursday, well ahead of the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.
The Indians lead the AL Central by 7½ games over Minnesota.
Miller, Cleveland’s two-time All-Star reliever, has been on the disabled list since May 26 with an inflamed right knee. He’s on a minor-league rehab assignment and Indians President Chris Antonetti said his most recent outing was encouraging.
Known for his slider, Hand has 24 saves in 29 chances, with a 3.05 ERA and 65 strikeouts. Cimber is 3-5 with a 3.17 ERA in 42 appearances this season. Hader must ‘re-earn’ trust: Brewers general manager David Stearns wants reliever Josh Hader to “re-earn the trust” of his teammates when he rejoins the team Friday.
Milwaukee is set to resume its season following the All-Star break, the first time the club will assemble since Hader’s years-old racist and homophobic tweets surfaced during the All-Star Game.
“He’s going to have to work very hard to re-earn the trust of some people who may question who he is right now,” Stearns said. “I think I know who Josh Hader is, and I personally do not believe that these comments represent who he is as a person.”
The 24-year-old Hader apologized and took responsibility for the tweets after the game, saying they did not reflect his values or the person he is now.
He’ll return to a conflicted clubhouse, though teammates seem eager to accept Hader’s apologies.
“It’s a lot to deal with. I can’t really defend anything he said. I know it was a long time ago but at the same time, those tweets are wrong. It’s a lot,” third baseman Travis Shaw said. Roster moves: The Cubs acquired right-hander Jesse Chavez from the Rangers for minorleague pitcher Tyler Thomas. Chavez is 3-1 with a 3.51 ERA.
The move came after Chicago placed closer Brandon Morrow on the 10-day disabled list because of right biceps inflammation and activated outfielder Albert Almora Jr. and relievers Carl Edwards Jr. and Anthony Bass.
Almora was placed on the family medical emergency list Sunday. Edwards was on the paternity list, and Bass was sidelined by an illness. Briefly: The Yankees activated catcher Gary Sanchez from the DL and sent catcher Kyle Higashioka to Triple-A Scranton/ Wilkes-Barre . ... The Angels say DH/pitcher Shohei Ohtani’s elbow ligament is healing and he has been medically cleared to begin a throwing progression. An ulnar collateral ligament sprain has prevented him from pitching since June 6.