First, the obvious caveat: Sheets is an injury risk. He hasn't logged 200 innings in a season since 2004, and he missed time last year with a muscle tear near his elbow. On the other hand, the market and, by extension, his price tag will reflect that risk. He's also got tremendous upside. Sheets boasts the fourth-best strikeout-to-walk ratio of all-time, and he's coming off a season in which he ranked fifth in the NL in ERA. When healthy, Sheets is among the best pitchers in baseball.

As for the Indians, they need another starter. Behind Cliff Lee and Fausto Carmona, the rotation is roundly unimpressive. Signing Sheets would be a gamble, but it's a high-risk, high-reward kind of gamble. If the Tribe is to win the tough AL Central, then they'll need to take some chances.