Cleveland Indians: Decision Looms As Abraham Almonte Returns

On February 28th, Cleveland Indians outfielder Abraham Almonte was suspended 80 games for violating the MLB’s substance abuse policy. This was a big blow at the time, as the Indians were preparing for spring training, and Almonte was a key cog in their plans, as star outfielder Michael Brantley was going to start the season on the disabled list (where he has since forth stayed, sans an 11 game big league stint).

More from Away Back Gone

• Cleveland Guardians: Terry Francona becomes meme in profanity-laced ejection
• Say goodbye to defensive shifts and hello to bigger bases, pitch clock in 2023
• Cleveland Guardians: Shane Bieber second-fastest to 800 strikeouts in major-league history
• The next week will make or break the Cleveland Guardians’ season
• The Cleveland Guardians offense is suddenly inept

Fast forward four months, and the Cleveland Indians have a 45-30 record (tied for the second-best record in the American League) and lead the defending world champion Kansas City Royals by five games in the AL Central. One of the key reasons for their success has been their offense production by everyone in the lineup, especially their (crowded) outfield.

The Indians outfield is five men deep, as it consists of Rajai Davis, Tyler Naquin, Lonnie Chisenhall, Michael Martinez, and Jose Ramirez. Davis, Naquin, and Chisenhall are the three whose lone position is in the outfield (Chisenhall was converted to the outfield from third base last year and has not gone back since), while Ramirez and Martinez are utility players who fill in in the outfield when needed. Each one of them brings something different to the table, and so far they have all made key contributions to the Indians so far. Davis currently leads the American League in steals with 20, Naquin and Chisenhall are tied for the team lead in triples with four, Ramirez currently has a .771 OPS and 28 RBI, and Martinez is batting .304 while providing above average defense at every position he plays. One key name not included in this is the aforementioned Brantley, and it looks like he will be returning sooner rather than later after it was announced that he has right bicep tendinitis.

Next: The Cleveland Indians Should Acquire Boone Logan

The Indians acquired Almonte at the trade deadline last year in exchange for Marc Rzepczynski. Almonte did not really do anything spectacular with the Indians last year as he batted .264 with five home runs and 20 RBI in 51 games. You know what you’re going to get with Almonte, he’s going to have a little bit of pop at the plate and give you good defense, which the Indians have been getting out of every outfielder on their 25-man roster currently. Almonte also has a minor league option, so the Indians could also send him down to Triple-A and have he get some at-bats in while having the piece of mind knowing they have a veteran outfielder who they can call up on a whim.