Cleveland Indians: The Ill-Fated Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn Signing Have Reached Their Disappointing Ends

The former Cleveland Indians have been released by the Atlanta Braves, but there is a silver lining to this story

Back in the off-season before 2013, the Cleveland Indians shocked by baseball world by signing Nick Swisher (link) and Michael Bourn (link). At the time, the moves looked to be brilliant for the Tribe, as both players had been absolute studs in the prior years and the Indians showed a need for those two players. Swisher had just hit 20 or more home runs for eight straight seasons, and Bourn had just finished a six-win season.

Neither of the two players put up big years in 2013, but at least, they were average. Both of their contributions came in at just around their salary, although those same salaries became burdens for the low-payroll Indians. 2014 seemed like a new opportunity for the two to rebound and show the city of Cleveland just how great they could be.

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But that never happened. Swisher was quite possibly the worst player in baseball despite only playing 97 games. Bourn’s decline set in far sooner than expected, and he struggled to be a replacement-level player. The misadventures continued until the Indians eventually traded the two to the Atlanta Braves for Chris Johnson this past summer.

The general hope of the trade was that the players would rediscover their former glory in new places, but that never happened. This winter, the Indians released Chris Johnson after he posted iffy results last year; and now the Braves have released both Nick Swisher (link) and Michael Bourn (link).

As a whole, the two signings have reached their disappointing ends. Neither player became the All-Star the Indians wanted, and they both failed to bounce back with the Braves. Clearly, the signings look regrettable in retrospect.

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While some people may take this news as a sad reminder of the front office’s missteps, we should find a way to make it into a positive. Instead of remembering the Swisher and Bourn contracts as disasters, let’s remember them as reminders to enjoy a player when he’s in his prime. Let’s use them as ways to greater appreciate the successes of Jason Kipnis’ contract, which appears to be a big win for the team.