Indians rumors: Cleveland 'making a push' for Nick Swisher

The Cleveland Indians are making a push to sign free agent outfielder Nick Swisher, reports Buster Olney of ESPN.

The Indians are making a push in their effort to land Nick Swisher.

— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) December 17, 2012

The Indians have been linked to Swisher for some time now, and the club was reportedly aggressively pursuing the outfielder last week. Cleveland has several voids in their outfield after trading Shin-Soo Choo to the Cincinnati Reds as a part of last week’s three-team trade. They also watched veteran and long-time Indian Grady Sizemore hit the free agent market.

Swisher has spent the last four seasons with the New York Yankees. While he’s been a productive player for the Bombers, they haven’t put up much of an attempt to re-sign him given their current financial limitations.

The Indians were initially hoping to sign Swisher to a four-year contract in the range of $50 million, but according to recent reports the slugger may command upwards of $60 million this winter.

Last season for the Yankees Swisher hit .272/.364/.473 with 36 doubles and 24 home runs. The 32-year-old has hit .256/.361/.467 over nine seasons at the major league level.

Beyond the Indians, the Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and Baltimore Orioles have also been tied to Swisher this offseason.