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INDIANS

Lots of wheelin', but no dealin'
Friday, January 27, 2006
Paul Hoynes

Plain Dealer Reporter

The verdict on the Indians' trade of outfielder Coco Crisp to Boston has yet to be rendered.

A major-league source said Thursday afternoon that the three-team deal was falling apart.

Later in the day, Indians General Manager Mark Shapiro, who has been mute on the matter since Monday, said negotiations were continuing.

Shapiro would not comment when asked if Cincinnati had replaced Philadelphia as the third team in the deal.

ESPN.com reported that Boston may acquire outfielder Austin Kearns from Cincinnati and trade him to the Indians for Crisp. The Reds are being run by interim General Manager Brad Kullman after Dan O'Brien was fired earlier this week by new owner Bob Castellini.

It is unclear if Castellini would authorize such a deal before hiring a new general manager. The Cincinnati Enquirer speculated Thursday that Chris Antonetti, Indians assistant GM, is a candidate for the Reds job.

Antonetti, a key player in these negotiations, interviewed for the Phillies GM job this off-season before Pat Gillick was hired. He turned down a chance to interview in Boston after Theo Epstein's short resignation.

The Reds, so far, have not asked for permission to interview Antonetti.

Another source close to the negotiations said it was doubtful the Reds were in the mix with the Indians and Red Sox.

The three teams did talk at the winter meetings in December. A proposed trade would have sent Matt Clement from Boston to Cincinnati, Kearns from Cincinnati to Cleveland, and Crisp from Cleveland to Boston along with other players.

It never happened.

A report in Cincinnati said the Indians recently offered Jake Westbrook for Kearns in a one-for-one deal that O'Brien turned down. The Indians denied that report.

The Indians have liked Kearns, 25, for a while. They were interested in Kearns and teammates Wily Mo Pena and Adam Dunn last year at the July and August trading deadlines, but felt the Reds wanted too much in return.

Kearns is attractive for another reason - power. Crisp and center fielder Grady Sizemore are similar players. The Indians have been searching for a right-handed hitting outfielder with power. Kearns hit a career-high 18 homers in 112 games last year.

He played 107 of those games in right field.

Kearns has the label of a talented but injury-prone underachiever. The Reds sent him to the minors last year, saying he was overweight. He has not been healthy since 2003 when a collision at home plate damaged his right shoulder.

The players involved in the original trade included Crisp, right-hander David Riske and catcher Josh Bard going to Boston for third baseman Andy Marte, right-hander Guillermo Mota and catcher Kelly Shoppach. The Indians would have then sent left-hander Arthur Rhodes to the Phillies for outfielder Jason Michaels.

When the Indians raised a question about Mota's right shoulder during his physical Tuesday, they went back to the Red Sox and asked for more. They said they'd take Mota if right-hander Manny Delcarmen was included in the deal. Boston balked and offered two lower-level prospects. The Indians said no and the deal seemed doomed.

If the Reds and Kearns are involved, there would be no need for the Rhodes-Michaels portion of the trade.

Players and agents were told that a decision would be reached Thursday. As of late Thursday night, negotiations were ongoing.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

phoynes@plaind.com, 216-999-5158




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