ABOUT CENTER FIELD

Bradley Zimmer had surgery on his right shoulder & will be out 8 to 12 months.

That means Zimmer will probably not be ready for the start of the 2019 season. Nor will the Indians be able to use the 2018 season to see if Zimmer can claim center field as his own.

Right now, there is a huge question mark in center -- so much different from a year ago at this time.

As play resumed after the 2017 All-Star break, the Indians thought they had their center fielder of the future. That was Zimmer, who had been promoted from the minors early in the 2017 season.

He entered the 2017 All-Star break batting .285 (.790 OPS) with five HR and 25 RBI in 165 plate appearances.

The 2014 first-round draft pick was playing an excellent center field.

He threw out eight runners, didn't make an error and was considered among the top three center fielders in the American League by fangraphs, an analytics site. The numbers matched the eye test.

The Indians knew Zimmer had a long and sometimes slow left-handed swing. He could be vulnerable to inside fastballs.

Since the 2017 All-Star break through June of 2018, he batted .209 (.601 OPS) with five HR and 23 RBI.

That was in 281 plate appearances -- with 120 strikeouts. Zimmer was sent to the minors on June 5 to figure out why he was having such a miserable time at home plate. Then he suffered a shoulder injury swinging the bat.

So let's look at the situation:

1. Not only are the Indians without their projected center fielder in 2018, there are huge question marks next to the name of Zimmer for 2019. Will he be healthy? If he is healthy, can he hit enough to stay in the lineup?

2. The Indians are filling in with Rajai Davis and Tyler Naquin. Davis has done a decent job as a part-time player. He is still acceptable in center, even at the age of 37. But a few times a week is probably best for Davis.

3. Naquin played poorly in center in 2016, and that remains a bad spot for him right now. He is above average in right field.

4. Naquin got off to a strong start this season, batting .338 (24-for-71) before pulling a hamstring in the middle of May. He returned a month later, and it's been a mess, batting .212 (21-for-99) since coming back. He is headed for the disabled list with a hip injury.

5. The Indians hoped Zimmer would spent a few weeks in the minors, put his swing together and come back after the All-Star beak.

6. The Indians are working on trades for an outfielder. They'd prefer it to be a center fielder. But they need a good outfielder, period. They have talked to Baltimore about Adam Jones. He can still hit, but his defense has declined in center field. He also is a free agent at the end of the season.

7. The Indians are looking at the possibility of moving Jason Kipnis to the outfield. He played center for a few weeks last season. The Indians also think he can play right field.

8. I'd put Kipnis in center because center field has been a dead zone for the Tribe. The players who have been out there have batted a combined .220 (.567 OPS) with 23 RBI and four HR. Only Davis (.250) has been acceptable.

9. You can counter with the fact Kipnis is batting only .222 (.675 OPS) with 10 HR and 42 RBI while playing second, but that's better than what the center fielders have done.

10. The plan would be to recall Yandy Diaz from Columbus, put him at third. Jose Ramirez moves to second base. Kipnis goes to the outfield. Ramirez is a defensive upgrade over Kipnis at second. Kipnis will not help the defense in center, but could add more offense.

11. Greg Allen played some center field for the Tribe early this season. He batted only .209 (.533 OPS) in 150 plate appearances. He's in Class AAA Columbus, where he's hitting .289 (.783 OPS) with one HR and 10 RBI.

12. Allen is 25 years old. He could be the long-range answer in center field. If the Indians weren't a contender, they could simply play him there this season. Allen has been recalled as the Indians cope with Naquin's injury. We'll see if he can hit.



ABOUT YANDY DIAZ



Yandy Diaz will be 26 on Aug. 8.

In parts of four seasons at Class AAA Columbus, Diaz has batted .317 (.849 OPS). His problem is a lack of power -- 14 HR in 1,170 plate appearances.

But anyone watching Diaz can tell he's a natural hitter, even if he doesn't pull the ball often. Nor does he subscribe to the fly-ball, launch-angle gospel of hitting.

Diaz opened the 2017 season with the Tribe, batting .203 in 71 plate appearances before returning to the minors.

He came back to Cleveland in August. From that point until the end of the season, he batted .304 (.810 OPS) with zero HR and 10 RBI in 108 plate appearances.

He recently was promoted again and was 7-for-14 before being returned to the minors.

The Indians don't think Diaz can play the outfield.

"I don't think he did very well in left field," Manager Terry Francona told the media earlier in the week." If you put him in right field it will be harder. I hate to talk our players down ever. I think you'd be asking a lot of him to go play right field."

That's why I want him to play third base.

"He needs to play mostly third," added Francona. "Some first. When we get through the trade deadline we'll see where we're at or what's happened. Maybe he'll play a little more first, maybe he plays a little more third."

His best position is third base. He is starting to play some first base.

Unless they make a significant trade to upgrade the outfield, it's time for Diaz to take over at third base. Ramirez can move to second base and Kipnis can help in the outfield.

There is nothing left for him to do in Columbus. The Indians could use another productive right-handed bat. Diaz can fill that role.

I thought Diaz did an acceptable job at third base last season with the Tribe.

I checked with fangraphs, which is an analytics rating site.

Out of 30 American League third baseman who played at least 250 innings in 2017, Diaz ranked 11th. So that's above average. Ramirez was No. 5.

Promoting Diaz is like adding another legitimate hitter to the team -- but not having to trade for him. They should just do it.