Cuckoo for Coco Crisp

Many of you have been asking about a new post. While I have been busy workin’ and schoolin’, I wanted to wait until the Coco Crisp deal was finalized before gathering my thoughts to discuss it.

Truth is, I can’t remember another trade quit like this one. As Indian fans, most of us eventually bought into Mark Shapiro’s plan and accepted mediocrity throughout the ’03 and ’04 seasons, assuming we would be contenders in subsequent years. Our patience was justified last season as the Tribe won 93 games, though barely missing the playoffs.

So after putting 2 million fans in the seats last year and already selling over a million for this season, all of the sudden we are rebuilding again?

Does anyone really believe Coco Crisp was not an integral part of the Indians success? We are talking about a guy who is 26 years old entering his prime. The last three seasons he has boosted his average from .266 to .297 and finally cracking .300 last year. He has transformed himself from a banjo hitter with speed to a bona fide power threat from the two-hole in the batting order (16 homeruns and 42 doubles last year). His age and statistical history leads us to believe he is primed to become a 200-hit 100-run guy, and again, he’s just 26!

And now we have shipped him away, along with one of the few reliable relievers we have left, to an American League team, who OH BY THE WAY, we were BATTLING for a wild card spot last season?!

Does any of this make sense?

Look, I want to believe Larry Dolan is more than just a miser and that the Indians make decisions for more than just financial reasons, but does the fact Crisp will earn a significant salary boost in arbitration have anything to do with this deal? If you are truly trying to compete this season, why the hell do you trade a major league-.300 hitter for a “prospect” that hit .275 in triple-A ball?

I know, I know. You are saying, “But Jon, he’s a third baseman with Power!” Yes, he hit 20 homeruns in triple-A, good, but not exactly Barry Bonds numbers. Are you also aware he struck out 83 times in just 389 at bats? Then when he was promoted to the big leagues, he whiffed 13 more times in just 57 at bats, while collecting only 8 hits. Is this guy another Russ “fannin” Branyan?

So to recap, yes, I hate this deal. Coco Crisp was part of the core players that arrived in 2003 along with Hafner, Vic Martinez, Cliff Lee and Jake Westbrook. The intangibles he brought to the lineup could not be measured in stats. The constant hustle, the feeling he gave you that he actually CARED about winning ballgames, the loving relationship he developed with the fans. All this stuff matters, and now he’ll be replaced by a guy named Jason Michaels who brawls with law enforcement officers.

I have been a staunch Mark Shapiro supporter since the Bartolo Colon trade. Believe it or not, I always thought he had a good vision, that team was going nowhere anyways. And then shipping a bitter, broken down Roberto Alomar was another great move, even though injuries derailed Billy Traber’s career. But when you start seeing headlines on the Indians homepage that say “Indians confident despite unpopular trade,” with Shapiro quoted as saying the alleged blue-chip propect we got for Crisp is "Not major league-ready now" and "We'd still like to see him develop a more effective two-strike approach," you start to wonder whether this team is heading in the right direction anymore. Coco has a great two-strike approach and IS major league-ready!

Shapiro continuously preached 2005 as the target date. Well Mark, 2005 is over and we were good, but didn’t make the playoffs. Was that the only shot we get? Is it all about turning a profit at this point?

My heart so desperately wants to believe winning a championship is a top priority for this ball club, but I can’t turn off that voice of reason in my head that thinks otherwise..