A reunion of former teammates took place Sunday night at the headquarters hotel for the All-Star game. Can you guess who they are and what they talked about?
CC Sabathia says the Indians' fall from contention since their playoff run in 2007 remains "a tough thing to watch."ALL-STAR CHATTER
Clubhouse confidential: The San Diego Padres, who went into the break with a two-game lead in the NL West, are one of the teams showing interest in right-hander Jake Westbrook.
Westbrook is one of several players the Indians are looking to move. He’s a free agent at the end of the season and has about $4.48 million left on his $11 million contract.
It would not be a surprise if the Indians kept Westbrook and tried to sign him after the season. Westbrook has said he’d like to stay.
Praise for Santana: Agent Scott Boras said as far as young hitters go, he puts Tribe catcher Carlos Santana in the same class as Manny Ramirez when he first emerged with the Indians.
“He’s had the best at-bats anybody has had against Stephen Strasburg,” said Boras, Monday at the All-Star festivities. “He was on every pitch.
“I don’t think he’s going to be a catcher for long. He’s too good a hitter to keep back there.”
What position could Santana end up playing?
“He’s an IDM player ... it doesn’t matter,” said Boras. “That’s how good of a hitter he is.”
Stat of the day: In the first 80 All-Star Games, the American League has outscored the National League, 339 to 336.
— Paul Hoynes
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Three All-Stars bumped into each other Sunday night at the headquarters hotel. There were two former Cy Young winners and an All-Star catcher.
As recently as 2008 they all played for the same team. Between then and now they've all been traded. The team that dealt them has fallen on hard times, finishing the first half of this season in last place after losing 97 games last year.
Can anyone guess the identifies of the three players? Don't bother, Victor Martinez will do it for you.
"When I got in last night after dinner, I saw CC [Sabathia] and Cliff [Lee] in the lobby," said Martinez on Monday. "We were just talking about being teammates two years ago. It's just amazing the way everything was taken apart."
The Indians traded Sabathia to Milwaukee in 2008. He used that as a springboard to sign a record-setting, seven-year, $161 million deal with the Yankees.
Last season the Indians traded Lee to Philadelphia and Martinez to Boston. Lee has since been traded two more times. Martinez is still in Boston, but won't play in Tuesday's All-Star Game because of a fractured right thumb.
The Yankees came close to reuniting Lee with Sabathia on Friday, but failed in their attempt to work a deal with Seattle. The Mariners instead sent Lee to Texas.
When asked about his history with Lee and the Indians, Sabathia said, "That wasn't our fault. They traded us. That's on them."
Sabathia feels the 2007 Indians, who reached the seventh game of the ALCS, had greatness in their future.
"If they had kept everybody at least for two more years, I think we had a chance of having a really good team," said Sabathia. "You look back on Cleveland and the only one that's left is Jake [Westbrook]. It's kind of sad to me.
"We all came up together. We grew up together. It's been a tough thing to watch."
Sabathia considers himself lucky that he was only traded once before being eligible for free agency. It's been a different road for Lee, a free agent at the end of the year.
"I don't think he should have had to go through that," said Sabathia.
No timetable: Martinez doesn't know when he'll be able to play again.
"I still can't put my hand in the glove because of the pain in my thumb," he said. "The fracture is just above the nail."
Eye on the prize: Drew Pomeranz, the Indians' top pick in the June draft, is one of the five finalists for the Golden Spikes Award, which honors the top college player in the country. The award will be presented as part of the All-Star Game festivities.
The other finalists are Bryce Harper of Southern Nevada; Chris Duffy of Central Florida; Yasmani Grandal of University of Miami and Chris Sale of Florida Gulf Coast.
No way: Josh Johnson, the NL's ERA leader, kept hearing from his teammates that he should start the All-Star game. Johnson certainly would have accepted the honor if manager Charlie Manuel named him, but he kept looking at Ubaldo Jimenez's 15-1 record.
"I thought I had a chance," he said. "My teammates kept telling me that I should start, but I definitely think Jimenez deserved it.
"How can't he start when he's 15-1? I just told my teammates, 'No, he's 15-1 ... 15-1. That's it.'"
Booster shot: Super agent Scott Boras has a high opinion of Manuel, who is managing his second straight All-Star Game after taking the Phillies to two straight World Series.
"He's a baseball genius when it comes to dealing with players and growing players," said Boras. "Look at the players who have played their best under him."
Finally: Cincinnati All-Star Joey Votto when asked who's the best big-league player from Canada didn't hesitate in his response.
"Justin Morneau," said Votto, born in Toronto. Morneau made this year's AL All-Star team, but can't play because of a concussion.