The Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball (MLB) have acquired right-handed starting pitcher Lucas Giolito, 29, right-handed reliever Reynaldo Lopez, 29, and left-handed pitcher Matt Moore, 34. They were placed on waivers by the Los Angeles Angels the day before our time (30th), and Cleveland claimed them.
This means their remaining $3.5 million salary for the season will be paid by Cleveland. The Angels, who were over the luxury tax threshold by $2.26 million, also avoided the luxury tax. The Angels also accomplished what they set out to do.
Cleveland is currently in second place in the American League (AL) Central with 64 wins and 70 losses. They’re five games behind the first-place Minnesota Twins (69 wins and 65 losses).
The wild card race is tough, as we’re 11.5 games out of the third wild card spot, but first place in the AL Central is within our grasp. They’ve bolstered one starter and two bullpen arms for a final push.
Giolito and Lopez are notable because they’ve been with the same team for a whopping 12 years, this time in Cleveland uniforms.
Their first organization was the Washington Nationals. Giolito was selected in the 2012 First-Year Player Draft (16th overall), and Lopez joined Washington via international signing in 2012.
They made their major league debuts side-by-side and were traded together to the Chicago White Sox in December 2016. Washington, then the reigning National League (NL) East champions, received outfielder Adam Eaton from the White Sox for “Winnow” as part of the deal.
And both players blossomed in the White Sox organization. Giolito spent seven years with the White Sox, going 59-52 with a 4.20 ERA and 993 strikeouts in 929 innings, earning his first All-Star nod in 2019 and finishing sixth in the AL Cy Young Award voting. Lopez also spent seven years splitting time between the starting rotation and the bullpen, compiling a 33-44 record, 19 shutouts, four saves, and a 4.38 ERA in 611.2 innings.
The White Sox even made the postseason two years in a row in 2020 and 2021 on the back of their performance.
However, after giving up on this year’s performance, the White Sox traded them to the Angels in a “fire sale” on March 27. They gave up a half-year head start on free agency after this season in exchange for prospects.
But this time, they were claimed by Cleveland together, making them a bizarre “community of destiny,” playing together for four teams in 12 years.
“It’s not often you get an opportunity to improve a team,” Cleveland general manager Chris Antonetti said, “and it’s even rarer to get good players without a trade.”온라인카지노
After 12 years as the “original team,” all eyes will be on Giolito and Lopez to see how they fare in what will likely be their final season together.