CLEVELAND: Today is the day. New blood will be added to the Indians’ roster.
Of course, patients have received transfusions before and remained sick or worse. So it would be foolhardy to expect a player who has been in Triple-A for all or most of the season to transform the Tribe into a dynamo.
“A couple of guys are coming up tomorrow and the rest after [Triple-A] Columbus’ season is over,” manager Manny Acta said. “There will be a few position players and a couple of pitchers.”
Actually, that isn’t quited the way it turned out. Three players will arrive in Cleveland today, two from Columbus and one from Double-A Akron.
Russ Canzler is batting .259 for the Clippers, but he has 21 home runs, 34 doubles and 73 RBI. His relatively low batting average is partly a product of a slow first month.
Canzler, who bats from the right side, has started 47 games in the outfield, 46 at first and eight at third. The knock on him when he was signed over the winter was his defense.
Scott Barnes made his big-league debut earlier in the season, but none-too successfully. However, he has promise as a reliever and made the cut.
Thomas Neal batted .314, hit 12 home runs and had 541 RBI in 405 at-bats for the Aeros to qualify for his promotion. The outfielder gives the Tribe another right-handed batter.
Who else might show up on Tuesday, the day after the Clippers end the season?
• Vinny Rottino is batting .294 with the Clippers and .299 overall (he came from the New York Mets’ system). He bats from the right side but without power and without great on-base potential. He also is 32, so why would the Indians call him up? Because they saw something they liked when they claimed him on waivers.
• Lars Anderson is the Matt LaPorta of Boston, only younger (24): a once-bright prospect who has yet to fulfill his promise, which is why the Red Sox cut him loose.
He is batting.250 overall (including time at Triple-A Pawtucket) with nine homers and 59 RBI. He walks enough (65 times) to have compiled a .353 on-base percentage as a first baseman.
• Frank Herrmann has been here, done that. The Tribe could wait until spring training to see him again, but maybe he’ll get a call to pitch in the bullpen.
“We don’t reward guys with call-ups if we don’t need to see them,” Acta said. “Guys who come up are going to be looked at, they are going to get at-bats. This is going to be an evaluation.”
Late scratch
After feeling a twinge in his right ankle, which he sprained in his last start, right-hander Roberto Hernandez was scratched from his start tonight. Jeanmar Gomez will take his place. Gomez is 4-7 with a 5.11 ERA.
Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Indians blog at http://www.ohio.com/indians. Follow him on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/SheldonOckerABJ and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/sports.abj.
