Both Nix and Valbuena were hurt by the success of Jack Hannahan and Adam Everett this spring. Along with the signing of Orlando Cabrera, that leaves no open spots for these two. they both had a chance to prove themselves on the Tribe but failed to impress.

Valbuena spent two years on the Tribe and spent most of his time at second base. He struggled at the plate which resulted in him not gaining a starting role. He hit .250 in 2009 with 31 RBI’s but only hit .193 last season with 24 RBI’s. He will start the season in Columbus along with pitcher Jess Todd who was also cut.

Jayson Nix had a short stint with the Tribe, but he made a difference. After being acquired from the White Sox he hit 13 home runs and had 29 RBI’s in only 78 games. His struggles were the opposite of Valbuena’s, as his were on defense. He was put at third base after spending a majority of his career playing second base. In only 56 games at third, he had 16 errors.

With the acquistion of Orlando Cabrera, Nix’s only chance at making the roster was at third base. The recent success of Jack Hannahan took away the possibility of Nix playing at third.

The Indians front office has great respect for Nix and traded him to Toronto so he can be on a major league roster this season. The Indians receive cash in return.

Hannahan is a great story, as he was out of the majors last year. He spent 2009 on the Mariners, but could not make their roster last season. He was invited to the Indians camp as a non-roster invite and was expected to be in the minor league camp. He proved that he belonged in the big leagues. This spring in Goodyear he is hitting .375 in 48 at bats.

His main competition was Jayson Nix, who played some time at third last season. He was decent at the plate but he made too many errors at third to play there every day. In spring he is only hitting .167 in 30 at bats. Nix will still be on the major league roster even though he has struggled this spring.

The problem of who to play at third will arise again once Donald is healthy. After being called up last season due to the injury of Asdrubal Cabrera, he hit .253 with 24 rbi’s. He fell into the starting role at third once Jhonny Peralta was traded to Detroit.

A player who is still on the roster that is often forgotten is Luis Valbuena. He primarily plays second, but the team had thoughts of putting him at third with all of the uncertainty that they had at the position. Valbuena’s problem is his offense. In 91 games last season he hit .193 with 24 rbi’s. That is the same number of rbi’s as Donald, but Donald’s average was much better.

An average of .193 will not cut it in the majors, but the Indians are giving Valbuena another chance. If he cannot produce this season he could be part of a trade in the near future.

Cabrera spent 2010 with the Reds and had an average season at best. In 123 regular season games, he had a .263 average with 42 RBI’s. He, and basically the whole Reds team, was a disappointment in the playoffs when the Reds were swept easily by the Phillies.

His addition to the team is an obvious attempt at strengthening the weak infield by the Indians front office. There is uncertainty at second and third base. Cabrera is likely coming to camp with the thought that he will compete and win the job at second. I think that this signing is good and bad at the same time.

It is good because the Indians add a veteran presence to an already young team. He can also be a reliable double play partner for the other Cabrera at shortstop. (Possible superhero duo nickname?) There would be no constant lineup changes as there was next year.

The infield would finally have a set lineup with LaPorta at first, Orlando Cabrera at second, Asdrubal Cabrera at short, and most likely Jayson Nix at third.

The only thing that doesn’t quite make sense to me, is that the Indians had seemed to be making a youth movement the last few years. They traded their veterans for prospects. They called up young players such as Jason Donald and tried to fit them into the infield spots.

Now that they have Cabrera, they have to find something to do with players such as Jason Donald. They can keep them in the minors and let them become the next Andy Marte, or just release them. It will be interesting to see what the Indians do with the young players this season.

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