I am really scared for this starting pitcher trade. Really scared.

Our trades to obtain Jordan Luplow, Max Moroff, Chih-Wei Hu and Walter Lockett were just stupid.   We obtained a guy with an UPSIDE of being a platoon outfielder (Luplow), a utility infielder who can't play shortstop and can't hit (Moroff), and two pitchers who look like they are 4A players (Chih-Wei'Lu and Walter Lockettt).

The only upside in all these trades was that we lost only one player, Erik Gonzalez, who was important to our success in 2019.

I can't begin to tell you how stupid all these trades were.   There was no sense to any of them.  None.  I would LOVE to see Chernoff/Antonnetti justify trading for guys with zero history of ML success and, as a small market team, trade away a variety of prospects to do it.

There is a better than average chance that NONE of the guys we got in these trades will even play in the majors this year, let alone help the team in 2019.  I do believe, however, that there is no way that the Indians will break camp next spring without Luplow on the team as that would signal how stupid Chernoff's trade was, and there is no way the Indians front office will let that happen.

After seeing these first three trades, in the back of my mind I wondered what this pathetic excuse for general managing would do when they had to make a real trade.

Well, now we found out.

For Yan Gomes, a controllable above average major league catcher, we got back three players, two of whom are mediocre prospects, redundant to what we already have PLENTY of in our minor league system.   We don't know about the 3rd prospect.

So this brings us to the major trade we are going to make this winter.  Trading one of our starters.   Given all the trades we have made already, it seems likely now that we will be disappointed in the return for whichever starter we end up trading.   Our biggest trading chip and we are likely to get less than equal return back.    I had to laugh when local bloggers, trying to suggest CRAP trades that highly favored their team, suggested that we get Michael Taylor (Washington's mediocre 4th outfielder) or Yasiel Puig back for Kluber.  Now, however, given what we have seen already, I am worried that our front office will actually do something stupid like that.

Plus, the Indians saying they want to negotiate an extension with Carrasco or they will trade him is priceless if true.   If I was Carrasco I would immediately cut off negotiations so they DID trade me because, most certainly, they are going to want him at a discount.

Hey, I love the Cleveland Indians.  Have for 60+ years.   But what they are doing this off-season is not defensible and is hurting the near- and long-term future of this team.  

And in front of us we have the trade of the starting pitcher coming up.   Good luck with that!