Tribe dilemma: Trying to win and develop young players

PHILADELPHIA: Winning isn't everything, but it's the first priority every game, every day.

The Indians have to balance winning now with how to become a better team in the future. That means going to war with Jason Donald, Luis Valbuena, Trevor Crowe and Carlos Santana even when they might not be the best option to win that day.

""That's still going on right now,'' manager Manny Acta said this morning, referring to the ongoing process of testing new players. ""Our job is to preach and teach and see who can be added to the core of players we already have. We have to see which guys are going to be part of our future.

""We have plenty of time to evaluate and see new people this year. That and try to win, too.''

Acta will try to win every game, but players on the field will be chosen for a variety of reasons, some of which might not be readily understood by the fans.

""I think it's a combination of things,'' Acta said. ""We were willing to take on Lou Marson, Matt LaPorta and Luis Valbuena at the start of the year, and we'll probably have to do that with guys in the second half. We did that with Jason Donald -- threw him into the fire before we were ready to do that.''

Donald was summoned from Triple-A because of an injury that might keep Asdrubal Cabrera out of the lineup for another month.

""Donald has handled himself pretty well,'' Acta said. ""He's wasn't supposed to be here, but he's survived and done some good things. He hasn't been completely overmatched. We're happy with that.''