5 moves the Angels must make now that Mike Trout is the future
3. Trade For Corey Kluber
The Indians seem set to rest on their laurels, with no apparent concern about anyone catching them in the AL Central. Trade rumors have surrounded Corey Kluber at times this offseason, with Ken Rosenthal and Dennis Lin of The Athletic reporting the San Diego Padres have reengaged Cleveland recently on starting pitching.
#Padres in continued discussions with #Indians on starting pitching, sources tell me and @dennistlin. Interest primarily in Bauer or Kluber, but asking price - while lower than before - remains beyond SD’s comfort level. Trade not close, unlikely to occur before Opening Day.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) March 18, 2019
Kluber is a two-time Cy Young Award winner, and he has topped 200 innings in five straight seasons. He’s also a rare workhorse as bullpen usage has taken over, with 17 complete games over that span.
The shells of Matt Harvey and Trevor Cahill were the Angels’ only notable starting pitching additions this offseason. Add in new injury concerns for Andrew Heaney (elbow) and Tyler Skaggs (forearm) this spring, and things look thin right now.
Kluber is under team control for three more seasons at a total of $52.5 million, with club options for each of the two years after the upcoming one. He will turn 33 in April, but there have been no real signs of erosion in his baseline skill set.
It’s interesting that Cleveland’s asking price for Kluber and Trevor Bauer has dropped, but not yet quite into San Diego’s comfort zone. The Angels could swoop in, with a better pipeline of prospects to deal from than they’ve had previously. The Indians could also still use an outfielder, so maybe Calhoun could be offloaded as a piece in a deal.