May 18, 2013

MLB News: Johnny Damon says he is an Indian, would like to wear number 22

April 12, 2012 by 14 Comments

Whether or not a deal is official, OF Johnny Damon sure thinks he is coming to the Indians. Damon has been texting, emailing and outright saying he and the Indians have reached an agreement to bring him to Cleveland. Here is Damon in an interview with Sirius XM radio on the deal.

MLB Network’s Inside Pitch

Damon also told ESPN’s Jim Bowden that a deal “has been finalized”. Cleveland beat writers seem to be shy to make any comment on Twitter about the deal until they get some sort of conformation from the Indians. Alas, Bowden reports that the deal is for one year, $1.25 million with up to $1.4 million in performance bonuses.

Damon, in turn, is already thinking about his jersey number-

“Johnny Damon told us if Jason Kipnis would like a nice watch…and if No. 22 isn’t that important to him…he’d like to wear it”

It seems the only thing that could throw a monkey wrench in the deal is a physical. But if you are the Indians, you are probably pretty interested in that physical.

The 38-year-old hit .261/.326/.418 with 16 home runs, 73 RBI and 19 stolen bases last season for the Tampa Bay Rays.

[Related: On the Johnny Damon signing...]

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  • Trevor T.

    Aw geez, he’s already marching in here and demanding a jersey number that’s already taken.

  • MrCleaveland

    Nothing good can come from Damon publicly disclosing that he wants Kipnis’ number until after he gets it — if he does. If he doesn’t get it, he provides the internet beast with an opportunity to concoct rumors of selfishness and clubhouse dissension.

    (I’m a little embarrassed that I even think this way.)

  • Natedawg86

    Give him the number 0.

    Please don’t do it Kipnis, you are a starter.

  • Natedawg86

    so we landed a guy that noone else even invited to spring training…

  • mgbode

    aren’t 8 and 18 available?   Damon, did you really become attached to 22 after one cruddy year in TB?

  • erchoov

    That cruddy year would be a career year for 5 of the guys in our normal starting lineup.

  • Garry_Owen

    Kipnis’s potential responses:

    “How nice of a watch?”

    “I like watches.  One for every day of the year.”

    “Go buy a Jason Kipnis jersey and you can wear #22 all you want on your down time.”

    Somehow, though, I’ll bet he lets Damon wear it.  Kipnis doesn’t seem to be the kind of player that really cares all that much – and he’ll get to wear it again when Sizemore takes a sabbatical from the DL. 

  • Slooz

    Instead of a watch, can he jumpstart Kipnis’s offense? I was SO looking forward to the Kip-show that we saw at the end of last year.

  • mgbode

    doesn’t make it a non-cruddy year :)

  • Jaker

    … and the suture of this team

  • Hermie13

    18 is retired. Was Mel Harder’s number.

  • Hermie13

    Are you even allowed to switch jersey numbers during the season? Seems like tht could cause issues with jersey sales. I think the league office would have to approve it though not positive.

  • Tkookan

    …literally ordered a 22 Kipnis jersey on Wednesday.

  • Ceazealeo

    Johnny Damon has always worn #18, except in Oakland where he wore #8 (Ex-Yankee Rande Velarde was wearing #18 in Oakland at that time…Damon got Velarde’s #18 Yankee jersey…lol.) J.D. should wear #8 like he did in Oakland. Let Kipnis keep his #22…especially since J.D. wore it only one, in wack ass Tampa Bay.