Tribe Trades Choo to Reds in Three-Team Deal, Will Receive Trevor Bauer from Arizona

Cincinnati gets their much-needed outfielder while the Tribe gets some prized pitching and more to bolster their roster

The Cleveland Indians have dealt right-fielder Shin-Soo Choo to the Cincinnati Reds in a three-team deal that will see them receive right-handed pitcher Trevor Bauer from the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Indians will also receive outfielder Drew Stubbs, and right-handed pitchers Matt Albers and Bryan Shaw from Arizona. Along with Choo, the Indians sent infielder Jason Donald and approximately $3.5 million to the Reds and lefty Tony Sipp and first baseman Lars Anderson to Arizona.

The Tribe had been shopping Choo, who would have become a free-agent following the 2013 campaign, since the end of the season. Interest sparked earlier this week when Cincinnati informed the team that they were looking for a viable option to play centerfield, which is where Choo is expected to start for them next season. The Indians fill a big void by getting Bauer, who is ranked the number 5 overall prospect in all of baseball. While he is expected to break camp next spring with the Triple-A Columbus Clippers, he will likely work his way into the Tribe’s not-so-grand looking rotation before seasons’ end. He made just one start for Arizona last season, but Bauer posted a 12-2 record with a 2.42 ERA in 22 starts for Triple-A Reno and Double-A Mobile.

Stubbs was the Reds’ first-round selection in the 2006 First-Year Player Draft and at 28-years old should break camp with the Tribe next year. Last season Stubbs hit just .213 with 14 homers and 40 RBIs over 136 games, but he is a force to be reckoned with on the bases as he has stolen 100 bases over the past three seasons. The Indians desperately need outfielders, especially with the departure of Choo, and thus Stubbs will almost certainly make their squad out of spring training with the hope that the can turn his recently decreasing batting average around.

By Robert Gonzalez
Cleveland Indians Correspondent

> View all of the MLB baseball news articles from MLB Center.