Cleveland Indians: 3 Bats the Team Should Look into at the Deadline

The Indians are currently 8-6, one game behind both the Tigers and White Sox in the AL Central.

With a collection of solid hitters in the lineup (Asdrubal Cabrera, Shin-Soo Choo, Travis Hafner, Carlos Santana and Jason Kipnis), the Indians have the potential to compete for a playoff spot.

Should the team pull off a deal for a bona fide power hitter at the deadline, the team could propel themselves into serious contention.

As with every trade deadline, several big-name hitters will be available come July.

The Indians will no doubt look to make improvements to an inconsistent lineup and should be able to acquire a couple of aging veterans on the cheap. 

Carlos Lee

Carlos Lee could be a great addition for the Indians, should Michael Brantley continue to prove that he's not capable of being an everyday player.

Brantley could slide into the fourth outfielder's role, with Johnny Damon moving to center.

With Lee and Damon both in the outfield, the defense would likely take a big hit. The offense, though, would be greatly improved.

Lee has gotten off to a decent start thus far, hitting two home runs and collecting 11 RBI. He's posted a line of .261/.329/.377.

He is in the last year of his current deal with the Astros, so he would likely be a one-year rental player for the team if they're in the playoff hunt.

He'd probably come cheaply as well, as it would be a pretty big salary dump for Houston.

Bobby Abreu

Bobby Abreu and the Indians were connected for the latter part of Spring Training, but a deal was never able to get finalized.

By the deadline, look for the Indians to call the Angels back to see if they can make a deal.

Abreu, although clearly past his prime, still brings his patience and ability to get on base to a team each and every game.

He's never posted an on-base percentage less than .352 in his career as an everyday player—he posted a .329 OBP in 1997 through 59 games.

Even though he won't provide much pop, he can give the Indians a consistent bat that even still has the ability to steal 20 bases.

As with Lee, the defense would likely suffer a bit.

In the end, the team could do far worse than Abreu in left field.

B.J. Upton

It seems as if B.J. Upton has been "on the move" for the better part of the past two seasons. 

This season could finally be it, though, as Upton is set to be a free agent after the playoffs end.

The Rays figure to be competitive yet again this season (they've started off 10-7), so it'll likely cost a team dearly if they want to acquire Upton's services.

Upton would be different than acquiring Lee or Abreu. He'd obviously provide better defense and much more speed, while still supplying above average production at the plate.

The Indians could also try and work out a deal with him so he stays in Cleveland long-term.

He may cost the most out of the three options I have presented, but he'd definitely give the Indians the most in return.