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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports speculates that the Cleveland Indians could be a potential fit for Chicago Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano. It’s been reported that the Cubs would be willing to eat most of Soriano’s remaining salary in order to facilitate a trade this summer.
Rosenthal notes the Indians struggle mightily versus left-handed pitching and that Soriano could be a relatively inexpensive solution. Soriano is a career .277/.345/.520 hitter versus left-handers and has maintained an OPS of .834 against southpaws this season.
While Soriano is owed roughly $42 million through the 2014 season, Rosenthal says the Cubs realize they will need to pay a bulk of the veteran’s remaining salary in order to move him.
Rival teams have told Rosenthal that they expect the Indians to be aggressive this summer. Rosenthal says the Indians are trying to take advantage of a window that likely will remain open through next season.
Soriano endured a rough start to the 2012 season, mustering an OPS of only .513 through April. However, the 36-year-old has rebounded in a big way, hitting at a clip of .290/.353/.591 in May and maintaining an OPS of 1.170 so far this month.
On the season, Soriano owns a line of .275/.321/.507 with 12 home runs, 12 doubles and 40 RBIs.