Blue Jays: Indians among teams interested in Justin Smoak

According to Jon Heyman of the MLB Network, the Cleveland Indians are among the teams showing interest in Blue Jays first baseman Justin Smoak.

The Cleveland Indians currently sit atop the American League Wild Card race and are said to be looking to shore up the first base/designated hitter position heading down the stretch. Blue Jays first baseman Justin Smoak could very well fit their needs before he becomes a free agent this offseason.

The DH spot in Cleveland has been a revolving door this season and has included the likes of Hanley Ramirez and Carlos Gonzalez. The acquisition of Smoak could provide a nice tandem with Carlos Santana at first base and DH for the Indians.

The 32-year old is hitting .215/.357/.427 with 18 homers in 86 games this season. Smoak hasn’t exactly done much over the past month to boost his trade value as the power hitter is hitting just .192 with six homers in his last 47 at-bats.

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Smoak has been with the club for both their postseason runs after signing with the Jays as a free agent in December of 2014. The first baseman re-upped on a three-year pact in 2017 and is earning $8 million in the final year of his deal.

In 649 games with the Blue Jays, Smoak is hitting .240/.340/.465 with 113 home runs and a 7.3 WAR. Smoak currently ranks 16th with Ed Sprague on the Blue Jays all-time home run list and is three dingers behind Josh Donaldson for 14th place.

The Jays have already dealt Eric Sogard and Marcus Stroman with the likelihood that Smoak, Daniel Hudson, and others will be on the move before tomorrow’s trade deadline. Ken Giles and Freddy Galvis have also garnered interest but both players are banged up with elbow inflammation and a wonky back respectively.

The Blue Jays brain trust have a familiarity with their old stomping grounds and have pulled off a number of trades with their former employer since coming north of the border. Don’t be surprised if Smoak does land in the Rock and Roll Capital of the World before 4 pm tomorrow.