Indians coach Terry Francona announced this morning that Cleveland has replaced the veteran infielder Mike Freeman for reds (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Mandy Bell). Cincinnati sent money to Cleveland to complete the minor exchange, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic tweets. Freeman was at camp with Cleveland as an unscheduled guest, so he will not be joining the 40-player roster in Cincinnati at this time.
Freeman, 33, has spent the past two seasons with Cleveland, working as a utility and posting a combined .270 / .352 / .377 hitting line in 256 trips to the plate. He spent time in all four points of the inner court and in both corners of the outer court during that time, although most of his work came as second base and third base. Freeman does not offer much power and has a very limited MLB history, but he is a .304 / .369 / .418 hitter with quality stripes and walking fees over parts of six Triple-A seasons.
Freeman was competing for a spot on the Cleveland bench, and he will give the Reds another option as they try to decide who will have playing time on the shortstop this year. He has 1901 career entries in the position between the minor and major leagues, although he hasn’t played there on a semi-regular basis since his 2018 run with the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate.
Still, Freeman at the very least gives the Reds a possible bank option that can handle the position. At the moment, favorites to play on the shortstop seem Kyle Farmer, Kyle Holder and unscheduled veteran Dee Strange-Gordon. In the long run, the hope is that the prospect Jose Garcia can handle the situation, but the 22-year-old looked defeated in his first taste of MLB action last year, hitting just 0.194 / 0.206 / 0.194 in 68 plate appearances.
In Cleveland, Freeman’s departure lends a little clarity to the internal mix. Andres Gimenez and Amed Rosario are competing for initial representatives on the shortstop, and if Gimenez wins, it would apparently push Rosario into an off-the-bench function. Yu Chang could join it as a utility piece outside the bank. If the club decides to send Gimenez to the minors to start the year, Rosario will likely take over the reins soon, with Chang serving as the main backup on the infield.