Indians extend Hafner: 4 years/$57 Million

The Indians signaled to their fans and the rest of the baseball world that they; at least for the time being, have a commitment to bringing a championship back to Cleveland. The Indians locked up Travis Hafner for 4 more years with $57 million dollars being the amount agreed upon in the deal. This ensures Hafner of being under contract with the Indians for 5 more years total. It also parallels the mid-90’s Indians when former GM John Hart locked up all the young talent the Indians had back then to long-term deals, allowing the club to make a run to two World Series.

The Indians locked up Grady Sizemore last season, and now have done the same recently with catcher Victor Martinez, Jake Westbrook, and now Hafner. The last big cog that must get signed and locked up is the staff ace C.C. Sabathia. This goes a long way in convincing Sabathia that the place to be is C-town. I commend Indian’s current GM Mark Shapiro for having a plan in place, and sticking to it. This team clearly has a clue about what it will take to win in the Major Leagues unlike the team that is just down I-71 south.

A typical day in the life of Pronk. (Diamond Hoggers)