Nick Swisher, Indians reach 4-year, $56M deal, says AP source

The Indians will lose their second-round pick in next year’s amateur draft as compensation for signing Swisher, and the Yankees will get an extra selection following the first round.

It’s been a busy offseason for Indians general manager Chris Antonetti, who is trying to fix a team that has lost at least 93 games in three of the past four seasons.

Antonetti fired manager Manny Acta and replaced him with Francona, the former Boston manager who has spent the past few weeks meeting with his new players. Antonetti also signed free agent first baseman Mark Reynolds and was part of a three-team, nine-player deal that sent Choo to the Reds for Stubbs and brought Cleveland prized pitching prospect Trevor Bauer from Arizona.

The signing of Swisher will take some pressure of Antonetti, who has been criticized by fans for several moves in recent years.

His agreement was first reported by the New York Daily News.

Now that they’ve landed Swisher, the Indians are expected to focus on improving their starting pitching. The club agreed to terms with left-hander Scott Kazmir to a minor league deal this week, pending a physical. The Indians still need to add a designated hitter and there remains interest in Travis Hafner, who was limited to just 66 games last season because of injuries and remains an unsigned free agent.

AP Sports Writer Ronald Blum in New York contributed to this report.

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