3 Moves the Indians Should Make Before the 2021 MLB Season Starts

The Cleveland Indians showed a lot of fight last season finishing with a 35-25 record before eventually falling to the New York Yankees in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. They head into the 2021 season looking to make the postseason once again, but there are still moves left to be made.

The offseason hasn't ended yet and the Indians could benefit from taking advantage of the free agent market while making some vital roster decisions. With that in mind, here are three moves the Indians should make before the 2021 MLB season starts.

1. Add Depth to the Outfield

The Indians could deepen their outfield position by signing a player like Jackie Bradley Jr. / Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images

The one position where the Indians do not have much depth on the roster is in the outfield. The Indians signed Eddie Rosario in the offseason, but he is surrounded by mostly young unproven players such as Daniel Johnson, Bradley Zimmer and Oscar Mercado. Luckily, the free agent market still consists of a few proven veteran outfielders including Jackie Bradley Jr. (28 combined home runs last two seasons) and Danny Santana (81 RBI in 2019). The Indians know that depth is important in the MLB and adding a player they can count on to come in and perform could benefit them in more ways than one.

2. Sign Shane Greene

Shane Greene would bring experience and depth to the Indians' bullpen. / Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

The Indians' bullpen took a hit in the offseason when it lost Brad Hand and Oliver Perez to free agency. A lot of young players will now be counted on to pitch the late innings of ballgames. James Karinchak is expected to take over the closer role, but a big name veteran pitcher with experience remains unsigned. Shane Greene has posted an ERA under 2.61 in three of the last four season and saved a career-high 32 games in 2018. Having Greene on the roster would allow the Indians to give their young players a chance without having them feel pressure to excel right away. He would give the Indians enough firepower to come out on top in close games.

3. Trust Triston McKenzie as your SP4

Let Triston McKenzie work out his flaws up in the majors. / Jason Miller/Getty Images

While this may seem like an obvious strategy, young pitchers have been demoted and brought back up way too many times in the MLB recently. Triston McKenzie has proven he can be trusted as the Indians No. 4 starting pitcher this season. He pitched 33.1 innings last season (6 starts) and finished with a 2-1 record and a 3.24 ERA. McKenzie also struck out 42 batters and showed he has flat-out talent on the mound. He may struggle as hitters figure him out a little bit, but having him work out those flaws in the major leagues will help him develop in the long run. He could be an underrated star for the Indians in 2021.

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Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.