If I told you the Indians opening day roster in 2012 looked like the following, would you have serious complaints?
OF: Choo, Sizemore, Weglarz, Brantley
IF: LaPorta, Kipnis, Cabrera, Chisenhall, Phelps, Santana, Marson, Donald
DH: Hafner
SP: Carmona, Talbot, Masterson, Carrasco, Kluber
RP: Perez, Sipp, Hagadone, Putnam, Stowell, Price, Bryson
Obviously the pitching looks thin and this would be an impressively/frighteningly young squad, but this doesn't factor in Pomeranz, Huff, Gomez, Tomlin, De La Cruz, Rondon, McAllister, Pino, Todd, or an assorted cast of other pitchers we have floating around at the moment. What all these players have in common is that they are already part of the organization and at, or in most cases above, the AA level. So when we think about possible roster additions this winter, we are likely not thinking about long-term solutions. Obviously we aren't going to be entering the 5 or 6-year death-grip negotiations over Cliff Lee, but I'd be surprised if we gave anyone a contract with more than 2 years (and that second year more likely optional). Instead, we will once again be targeting the Austin Kearns and Shelley Duncan's of the world. Which is ok, in some respects. We have had a fair bit of success with these guys in the past. And the key is not that we produce a 90-win roster in 2011, which is highly unlikely, but that we get value out of roster. Value in a 1-year player is at least partially encapsulated by the potential to sell high on him mid-season...making Cleveland baseball's version of an amateur day trader.
So my question is who should the Indians be targeting this off-season with this goal in mind?