Five Quick Thoughts: 1/2/13

Happy New Year! I can’t believe it is already 2013. Luckily, it means I’m that much closer to graduating high school. June cannot come soon enough. But for now, I’m going to have to wait. Here are five thoughts, mostly Cleveland related:

1. The Browns fired head coach Pat Shurmur and GM Tom Heckert in an effort to shock Browns fans on New Year’s Eve (sarcasm). The only problem with this is that a new regime will be put in, a new quarterback will be drafted, and new hope will be instilled for the fans, only for them to be thoroughly disappointed. Something tells me there will be some continuity with the new regime, but I’m only 17. I don’t actually know what continuity at head coach is, unless you count 64 games from Romeo Crennel or 58 games from Butch Davis. I want an Andy Reid, a coach who is here for 14 solid seasons.
2. The Indians signed Brett Myers to a one-year deal with a club option for 2014. Myers has some personal issues, including anger problems. He’ll fit right in with Chris Perez. However, Myers knows how to eat innings as a starter while also being a possible bullpen option. Therein is where his value lies, because the Indians didn’t have an average starter last season. Myers would have been far and away the best starter on last year’s staff and he will bring some continuity to a staff that desperately needs it.
3. The Indians claimed Russ Canzler off waivers from Toronto. I wonder what Russ thought of the Great White North in his fewer than two weeks as a Blue Jay, but it doesn’t matter because he’s an Indian once again. However, this claim makes no sense based on the 4 other high-level first basemen in this organization (Reynolds, McDade, McGuiness, LaPorta). Yes, Canzler can also play in the outfield, but it’ll be in a reserve role. It wouldn’t shock me if Canzler is back on waivers by the end of Spring Training because Matt LaPorta is a better option, and he isn’t even on the 40-man right now. Jeanmar Gomez was Designated for Assignment in a corresponding move.
4. The Indians will be holding a press conference tomorrow to officially announce the signings of Nick Swisher and Myers, which also means two players will have to be removed from the 40-man roster. My best guess is that Blake Wood and Cord Phelps get designated for assignment. Phelps has logged plenty of time in AAA Columbus, but he plays second base, where he is stuck behind Jason Kipnis. With a better Major League option available in Mike Aviles, Phelps has no chance of breaking camp with the Tribe. That makes me think there’s no point on him staying on the 40-man. Wood is coming off of Tommy John Surgery in May 2012 and won’t be ready until mid-season. His injury will scare off some teams. Wood was claimed on waivers from the Royals on November 2nd. If the Royals didn’t think he was worth keeping, and god knows they could use the pitching, the Indians may not, at least not anymore.
5. Since my Nash article was published, I’ve gotten a fair amount of backlash on twitter. These issues have mostly been about Chris Paul being better than Steve Nash or that Nash is not a good defender. To clarify, I believe Nash is a fine defender who is hampered by the up tempo systems he has played in for 15 consecutive seasons, and that any defensive issues that he’s had this season are because he’s not yet up to speed as a defender. In a few weeks, the defensive issues Nash is having will be gone. The argument that Paul is better than Nash is a strong one, but Nash improved his team from a lower baseline than Paul’s Clippers. My argument is also not for 5 years from now, or even next season. It is who I feel is the best point guard right now, and I wholeheartedly believe Nash holds that title.

I am always open to hearing what readers think, so comment below, contact us, or hit me up on twitter. That’s three different options, so there’s no excuse not to say something.