The Cleveland Indians should trade Chris Perez to the Cincinnati Reds in order to acquire Yonder Alonso to be their every day first baseman.
According to MLB Trade Rumors, the Reds have decided to hold onto Joey Votto for the 2012 season but are more than willing to trade Alonso in order to acquire pitching. In their search, the Reds are looking for a No. 2 starter or a closer to replace Francisco Cordero.
It wouldn’t make sense for the Indians to trade Ubaldo Jimenez or Justin Masterson, but the Indians can more than afford to move Chris Perez.
Chris Perez may have finished with 36 saves—good for fourth in the American League—but he is absolutely replaceable. His ERA was a strong 3.32, but his FIP was 4.27, his xFIP was 5.01 and his fWAR was only 0.1. Add in the fact that his SO/9 dropped from 10.74 in 2009 to 8.71 in 2010 to 5.88 in 2011 without a decent corresponding drop in his BB/9 (4.26 in 2009, 4.00 in 2010, 3.92 in 2011), and 2012 Chris Perez is a recipe for disaster.
Knowing that there is a good chance Perez will struggle in 2012 and knowing the volatility of relievers, it makes absolute sense to sell high on Perez now. Perez alone likely won’t be enough to bag the Tribe Alonso, but throwing in a decent starter such as Jeanmar Gomez, along with a decent prospect like catcher Chun Chen, could be enough to sway the Reds. Read More…
From Bleacher Report, November 28, 2011