CLEVELAND: The Indians made it official on Saturday: It's Andy Marte and Ryan Garko time.

They are the immediate beneficiaries of the trade that sent Casey Blake to the Los Angeles Dodgers for 22-year-old catcher Carlos Santana and 24-year-old right-hander Jon Meloan.

''This is a situation we didn't want to be in, but we want to take advantage of our opportunities,'' General Manager Mark Shapiro said of the team's unexpected withdrawal from the Central Division race.

The opportunities come in two varieties: restocking the farm system and clearing out the roster to give Marte and Garko regular playing time.

It is long past time for the Tribe's deep thinkers to find out whether Marte deserves a chance to be the regular third baseman next year. He was considered the Next Big Thing when he was acquired from the Boston Red Sox in January of 2006.

But that has yet to happen. Either nonperformance or injuries have limited Marte's time in the big leagues. At least the rest of this season, nothing will stand in his way.

''This is a fluid situation,'' Shapiro said. ''But we will have to make a decision next year.''

Marte has been in the lineup frequently the past few weeks, but with Blake gone, nobody is ahead of him in the pecking order.

''He's really been our third baseman for a while,'' manager Eric Wedge said. ''We've been playing Casey at first base much of the time.''

Wedge is cautious about evaluating Marte's progress at the plate in light of his .186 average, two home runs and four RBI in 97 at-bats. But Wedge thinks he has seen a glimmer of improvement.

''He has started that process,'' Wedge said. ''It's a hell of a lot better than we've seen before.''

Garko isn't the first player to

struggle in his second full season in the big leagues. He seems to have succumbed to the so-called sophomore jinx, whatever that is. He began play Saturday night with a .239 average, eight home runs and 49 RBI in 305 at-bats.

''This (trade) impacts Garko more (than Marte),'' Wedge said. ''He'll play first base more now. Before, he was being squeezed a little.''

Wedge has put the pressure on Garko the past several weeks.

''Ryan Garko has to hit,'' Wedge said. ''That's why he's here. I think he can be a very good hitter.''

In other words, show me something.

Santana has compiled otherworldly statistics playing for the Inland Empire 66ers of the ''high'' Class A California League. A switch hitter, Santana is batting .323 with 88 runs, 34 doubles, four triples, 14 home runs and 96 RBI in 99 games.

Not only does he lead the league in RBI, he has nine more than anyone else in all of minor-league baseball. He also ranks among the top six in his league in batting average, runs, doubles, extra-base hits (52) and slugging percentage (.563).

''He's a very intriguing guy with a very high ceiling,'' Shapiro said. ''He has a well-above average arm and pretty good hands, but he's still a little rough as a receiver.''

Until last year, Santana, who will report to Kinston, was a third baseman/outfielder.

As a four-pitch pitcher, the Dodgers weren't sure whether Meloan should start or relieve, so he did both. This year, he was made a starter at Triple-A Las Vegas, where he was 5-10 with a 4.97 ERA. He will report to Triple-A Buffalo and return to the bullpen.

Meloan has a power arm and a ton of strikeouts: 99 in 105 innings this year and 335 in 2622/3 innings for his career.

''We're transitioning him back to the bullpen, because of the number of innings he's already thrown,'' Shapiro said. ''We feel he has a big upside as a reliever, but I'm not saying that he couldn't start. He could be up here this year.''

Blake, who is batting .289 with 11 homers and 58 RBI, will be the Dodgers' everyday third baseman.