My faith has been re-Bourn

Despite the fact that the Cleveland Indians' pitchers and catchers already reported to Spring Training, it appears that the Tribe isn't finished making off-season moves. And this latest one is a doozy as they have signed free-agent All Star center fielder, Michael Bourn. This is a deal that in past years the Indians would never have made, so I'm thrilled to see them be so aggressive. They also signed Jason Giambi and Dice-K to minor league deals. While both of those guys are nowhere near as good as they once were, if we can get anything out of them, it's another plus for this team. For more on the Bourn signing, here's the report from SI.com:

Criticized for not spending enough on free agents in recent years, the Indians splurged on another star.

The club agreed to terms Monday with outfielder Michael Bourn on a four-year, $48 million contract. It's the second major deal this winter for the Indians, who signed free agent Nick Swisher to a four-year, $56 million contract in January.

Bourn, who was an All-Star with Atlanta last season, must pass a physical later this week in Goodyear, Ariz., before the deal can be completed. Bourn batted .274 with nine homers, 57 RBIs and 42 steals last season for the Braves. It's not yet known when Bourn will have his medical exam.

As long as there isn't a hang-up, the 30-year-old Bourn, who has remained on the market all winter, will move into the Indians' starting lineup. The speedster played center field last season and would give an immediate boost to a Cleveland team that has reloaded with the acquisition of Swisher, manager Terry Francona and starter Brett Myers. Fox Sports first reported Bourn's deal.

Bourn, a two-time All-Star, Gold Glove winner and three-time steals leader in the NL, had also been pursued by the New York Mets and Chicago Cubs.

Getting Bourn will cost the Indians picks in June's amateur draft. But it's a small price for a player who will help them score more runs, improve their attendance - Cleveland averaged just 19,797 fans at home - and maybe even close the gap on Detroit in the AL Central.

The surprise signing caught one of Bourn's new teammates off guard. "Did we just sign Michael Bourn?" second baseman Jason Kipnis asked on his Twitter page.

Bourn, a .272 career hitter in seven seasons with Philadelphia, Houston and Atlanta, could wind up in a starting outfield alongside Swisher and Michael Brantley. The Indians also acquired center fielder Drew Stubbs in a trade with Cincinnati, giving Francona options and depth. It's possible Swisher could be moved to first or even be used as the club's designated hitter. Mark Reynolds, also signed during the offseason, can play first or DH.

The deal for Bourn also comes after the Indians signed slugger Jason Giambi and pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka to minor league deals this last weekend. Matsuzaka must still pass a physical with the club.

The Indians collapsed in the second half last season, finishing 68-94 and 20 games behind the first-place Tigers. Manager Manny Acta was fired after Cleveland lost at least 90 games for the third time in four seasons.

But beginning with the hiring of Francona, the Indians have shown they're not going to sit around and wait for things to improve.

A gift from St. Nick

Amidst the holidays, I neglected to report on this big Indians news here when it was first announced. In case you missed it, here's the details on how we managed to get Nick Swisher.

The Indians got what they wanted for Christmas: outfielder Nick Swisher. On Sunday, MLB.com confirmed that Cleveland has reached an agreement on a four-year contract with Swisher. The deal with the outfielder is pending a physical and is unlikely to be officially announced until after the holiday. As such, the ballclub would not comment on the agreement.

Adding Swisher to the fold was the latest move within an aggressive offseason for the Tribe, which is trying to swiftly move beyond its 94-loss showing last year. Cleveland already brought in a new manager in Terry Francona, signed a new first baseman in slugger Mark Reynolds, and added a top-flight pitching prospect via trade in Trevor Bauer. Swisher now becomes the biggest free-agent signing in Indians franchise history.

The agreed-upon contract will pay Swisher $56 million over his four guaranteed seasons and includes a vesting option based on plate appearances for 2017. If the outfielder reaches the required plateau in the 2016 campaign, he could earn another $14 million in '17, pushing the deal's potential value to $70 million. Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News first reported the agreement.

Swisher took to social media to share his excitement. "Wow! What a crazy few weeks," he wrote on his Twitter account, @NickSwisher. "Hey Cleveland! Are you ready? Because I'm coming home!"

The handshake deal completes what was a strong push to acquire Swisher by the Indians, who treated the free-agent outfielder like a star recruit throughout the process. Last week, the Indians hosted Swisher and his wife, JoAnna, in Cleveland for a two-day visit on Monday and Tuesday. Swisher met with Francona, team president Mark Shapiro, team CEO Paul Dolan and other club executives. During the visit, the Indians also had former Ohio State University football coach Jim Tressel on hand to try to help sway Swisher to bring his family to the Buckeye State. Swisher -- born in Columbus, Ohio, and raised in Parkersburg, W. Va., near the southeast Ohio border -- played baseball at Ohio State. His father, former big leaguer Steve Swisher, attended Ohio University.

The Tribe focused on Swisher's Ohio roots during the negotiations. As part of Swisher's tour of Progressive Field, Cleveland showed his image in an Indians uniform on the scoreboard above the left-field bleachers, and then played a special video message featuring the likes of OSU football coach Urban Meyer and basketball coach Thad Matta, among others. Swisher and his family were impressed by their visit with the Indians.

The outfielder brings more than local appeal to Cleveland, though. The Indians wanted to bring him into the mix to provide some added power and on-base ability to a lineup that ranked just 13th in the American League in runs scored last season. The 32-year-old Swisher can also provide some veteran leadership to a relatively young roster, taking some pressure off of Cleveland's up-and-coming players. Adding Swisher to play right field completes the starting outfield picture for the Tribe, which projects to have Drew Stubbs and Michael Brantley filling the other two spots. It remains undetermined if Brantley -- Cleveland's starting center fielder for most of the past two seasons -- will shift to left field to allow Stubbs to patrol center.

Right field was vacated earlier this winter when the Indians teamed with the Reds and D-backs for a blockbuster nine-player trade that shipped Shin-Soo Choo from Cleveland to Cincinnati. As part of that deal, the Indians aquired Stubbs from the Reds and Bauer, along with relievers Matt Albers and Bryan Shaw, from the D-backs. Besides Choo, Cleveland parted with infielder Jason Donald and $3.5 million (to Cincinnati) and left-handed reliever Tony Sipp and Minor League first baseman Lars Anderson (to Arizona). The Reds sent shortstop prospect Didi Gregorius to the D-backs to complete the complicated trade.

Swisher, who spent the past four seasons with the Yankees, turned down a one-year qualifying contract offer from New York worth $13.3 million in order to test free agency this winter. By turning down the offer, the Yankees secured a compensation pick in next June's First-Year Player Draft. Under the latest Collective Bargaining Agreement, however, the top 10 selections are protected from free-agent compensation. That means that Cleveland will not lose the fifth overall pick in the first round by signing Swisher. The Indians will lose their second round pick, though. The Yankees will earn a compensatory pick between the first and second round.

During his four years in the Bronx, the switch-hitting Swisher posted a .268/.367/.483 slash line with an average of 26 home runs and 87 RBIs per season. Over his nine-year career in the big leagues -- spent with the A's, White Sox and Yankees -- Swisher has hit .256 with a .361 on-base percentage and a .467 slugging percentage. An American League All-Star in 2010, Swisher has averaged 151 games over the past seven seasons, posting an average of 27 homers and 84 RBIs in that span. He set his career bests in homers (35) and RBIs (95) in 2006 with the A's, and equaled a personal high in doubles (36) this past season with the Yankees.

In 148 games last year, Swisher hit .272 with a .364 on-base percentage and a .473 slugging percentage. Along the way, he piled up 24 home runs, 75 runs scored, 77 walks and 93 RBIs in helping the Yankees to their third AL East crown in his four years in New York. With the Swisher signing nearly in the books, Cleveland will likely turn its attention to its starting rotation. The Indians, who added lefty Scott Kazmir on a Minor League deal earlier this week, would like to add an arm or two to the mix before Spring Training. The aggressive Tribe also has a vacancy at designated hitter.

Back surgery for Sizemore

From SI.com:

Grady Sizemore will start the season in a familiar spot - on the disabled list.

The oft-injured Cleveland Indians outfielder is expected to miss eight to 12 weeks with a back injury, the latest medical setback for a three-time All-Star who once appeared to have a sensational career ahead of him.

The team said Sizemore underwent a "minimally invasive" lower back procedure Thursday in Miami. He required a micro discectomy that was performed by Dr. Barth Green of the University of Miami School of Medicine.

"Grady's obviously frustrated," general manager Chris Antonetti said in comments posted on MLB.com. "He wants more than anything to be out on the field contributing and helping the team win. This is a setback in his timetable for doing that, but I think he understands that, if he sees this process through and doesn't have setbacks along the way, he can still contribute for the majority of the season."

Sizemore, who re-signed with the Indians in the offseason, will return to spring training in Arizona "in the coming days" to further his rehabilitation, the club said.

"It will be an extensive rehab process," Antonetti said. "But we still are hopeful we will get him back for the bulk of the season."

Sizemore was limited to 71 games last year, hitting .224 with 10 home runs, 32 RBIs and 34 runs scored. Hoping to bounce back with a healthy season, he was injured while fielding ground balls early in spring training.

Before that, Indians trainer Lonnie Soloff said Sizemore had been doing well in his rehab from knee surgery and appeared on track to possibly begin the season on time.

"I feel bad for him," manager Manny Acta said. "Obviously, it seems like he can't catch a break over the last couple of years."

Cleveland re-signed Sizemore as a free agent in November after choosing not to exercise a $9 million option on him. But the Indians, perhaps out of some loyalty to Sizemore, decided to bring him back with a one-year, $5 million contract loaded with incentives that could have earned him an additional $4 million.

Sizemore has undergone five operations the past two years and played in only 210 games the last three seasons because of injuries. His full-speed-ahead style may have caught up with the 29-year-old, who once played in 382 consecutive games and endeared himself to Cleveland fans with hustle that could turn a double into a triple or save an extra-base hit with a crash into the outfield wall to make a catch.

Sizemore also started last season on the disabled list. He made three trips to the DL and underwent right knee surgery on Oct. 3, just days after his season ended without a stolen base for the first time in his career.

With Sizemore sidelined, the Indians will likely move Michael Brantley from left field to center. Shelley Duncan, Aaron Cunningham, Ryan Spilborghs and Felix Pie are among the team's options in left.

"There's going to be plenty of at-bats to have out there," Acta said. "You might not have seen it as a big deal during the offseason, but now it looks pretty big when you have a full bag of guys like that who have been in the big leagues the last few years and have experience."

The Indians, ravaged by injuries last season, have 12 other outfielders in camp. Cleveland opened last season 30-15 and played well in long stretches without Sizemore so there's reason to believe it can compete again.

"Our scouts will continue to be out there evaluating other camps," Antonetti said. "We're always looking for ways to improve the roster, but we feel good about some of the guys that we already have in camp, and we're looking forward to seeing some of them compete.

"But, part of our responsibility is to make sure we understand who the alternatives are and if we have an opportunity to acquire them, and improve our roster, we'll certainly look to do that."

"Carmona" throws a curveball

From SI.com:

From year to year and game to game, the Cleveland Indians never knew what to expect from Fausto Carmona.

On Thursday, he stunned them again.

Carmona, the Indians' opening-day starter last season, was arrested in the Dominican Republic for allegedly using a false identity. Officials in his native country are contesting his real name and birthdate.

Police spokesman Maximo Baez Aybar said Carmona was arrested in Santo Domingo outside the U.S. consulate, where he had gone to renew his visa. Carmona had played winter ball in the Dominican as he prepared to report to the Indians' training camp in Goodyear, Ariz., next month.

At this point, his future with the club is uncertain.

Aybar said Carmona's real name is apparently Roberto Hernandez Heredia and he's 31, three years older than the pitcher claimed. The Indians list Carmona's birthday as Dec. 7, 1983, in their 2011 media guide.

"We were recently made aware of the situation that occurred today in the Dominican Republic and are currently in the process of gathering information," Indians general manager Chris Antonetti said. "We are not prepared to make any additional comment at this time."

Carmona's agent said he was caught off-guard by the arrest and that there are Dominican lawyers working on the player's behalf. He did not disclose the names of the lawyers.

"This took us by complete surprise," agent Jay Alou said. "What we have to do now is wait to find out the process that has to be done with the consulate with this new identity in order to see if he can get a new work visa."

Carmona's arrest is the second involving a major leaguer in four months in a false identity case. Miami Marlins reliever Leo Nunez was arrested in September. Last month, an apologetic Nunez said he falsified his identify when he was young so he could play professional baseball. Nunez's real name is Juan Carlos Oviedo and he's 29, a year older than listed in the Marlins' media guide.

Carmona's career in Cleveland has been one of extremes.

After going 1-10 in 2006, the right-hander with a wicked slider came out of nowhere to win 19 games in 2007, shocking the Indians who had briefly experimented with him as a closer. Carmona, though, followed up with a disappointing 2008 season, and in 2009 the club sent him to the lower minors to work on his mechanics.

Carmona rebounded to win 13 games in 2010 in manager Manny Acta's first season. Although he went just 7-15 last season, Carmona stayed healthy, didn't miss a start and was expected to be part of the starting rotation this season. The Indians picked up his $7 million option for 2012 in October.

The Indians signed Carmona to a four-year contract in 2008. The club has options on him for 2013 at $9 million and 2014 at $12 million.

Cleveland signed Carmona as a free agent in 2000.