MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports that Chris Johnson will be going to the Indians in what amounts to a swapping of bad contracts. Swisher, on the other hand, is signed for $15 million next season with a vesting, $14 million option for 2017 based on his health and plate appearances, according to Baseball-Reference.
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Johnson has played sparingly for the Braves this season.
The 34-year-old Swisher is hitting just.198/.261/.297 over 101 at-bats this season and is coming off surgery on both his knees.
As for the Indians, good move dealing away hefty contracts, even if they needed to send cash in the deal. (As fate would have it, both the Braves and the Indians have won 49 games.). He fell below the Mendoza Line with a. 198 average with two homers and eight RBIs in 30 games.
So the $10 million makes things close to even in 2016, with the Braves needing to pay $19 million and the Indians at $17.5 million.
Originally drafted 16th overall by the Oakland Athletics in the 2002 First-Year Player Draft, Swisher also played for Chicago-AL and New York-AL, winning a World Series title with the Yankees in 2009. Still, Johnson is a poor defensive third baseman whose bat has gone missing since he challenged for the National League batting title in 2013, prompting the arbitration-buyout contract the Braves just dumped on Cleveland. It hasn’t been a secret to either party that the team wanted to trade the veteran infielder and that Johnson wanted to be traded.
Bourn also struggled throughout the season, he was dropped from the leadoff spot in the lineup for the first time in April.
Johnson, 30, hit. 235 this season with two homers and 11 RBIs.
The two were expected to bring offense, but after their debut seasons, did little in the department – both bothered by injuries for much of their years in Cleveland.
Bourn, a 32-year-old center fielder, is hitting.246/.313/.294 with 13 stolen bases in 95 games.
Meanwhile, they’ve saved $21.5 million in 2016 payroll, while adding $9 million in 2017 payroll and $1 million in 2018 payroll.
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Francona has been the master of the platoon this year, using it to make Raburn and David Murphy into one complete All-Star caliber player and I would expect he will continue this strategy in 2016.
