There was lots of movement on the Indians roster Sunday, and there promises to be more later this week.
View full sizeJess Todd has been called up from Class AAA Columbus to work out of the Indians' bullpen.CLEVELAND -- People were coming and going in the Indians' locker room Sunday and it had nothing to do with the team leaving town for a three-game series in Minneapolis against the Twins following a four-game sweep of Detroit.
Infielder Anderson Hernandez was designated for assignment before the game to make room for right-hander Jeanmar Gomez, who pitched seven innings to beat the Tigers in his big-league debut. After the game, Gomez caught a flight to join Class AAA Columbus in Durham, N.C., while Jess Todd joined the Indians from Columbus to help their surging-but-overtaxed bullpen.
Meanwhile, Shin-Soo Choo and Asdrubal Cabrera are headed to Class AA Akron on rehab assignments. They're both scheduled to play for the Aeros tonight and could be activated when the Indians return home to play Tampa Bay on Friday.
Choo is working his way back from a sprained right thumb. He said he's scheduled to play three games at Akron and anticipates then being activated.
"I want to go to Akron," said Choo, who took 50 swings Sunday morning. "I want to make sure my thumb is OK in a game. Practice is different.
"The last time I played was July [2]. I haven't seen a pitcher for almost 20 days. I've taken batting practice, but I want to see pitchers so I'm more comfortable."
Cabrera, recovering from a broken left forearm, could be activated by the end of the week as well.
"I'll play two more games in Akron and see what happens then," Cabrera said. "My arm is the most important thing, and that feels good."
Cabrera is hitting .313 (5-for-16) in five rehab games. Manager Manny Acta said he wanted Cabrera to get in the neighborhood of 30 at-bats during his rehab assignment.
It was the second time this season the Indians have designated Hernandez for assignment. He's hitting .246 (15-for-61) with three doubles and two RBI in 22 games.
"This is baseball," said Hernandez. "Anything can happen. It happened to me today."
The Indians have 10 days to trade, release or get Hernandez through waivers.
"If I clear waivers, I'll go to Triple-A [Columbus]," said Hernandez, who will stay in Cleveland to await his fate.
Mystery spot: During Thursday's workout, Acta said the Indians would need a spot starter for Tuesday's game against the Twins. It turns out they needed the spot starter Sunday.
The spot starter originally was going to be David Huff. The left-hander was undone by a stray tweet that upset some people in the front office, and the start went to Gomez. Lest anyone forget Grady Sizemore's pictures, Huff is the second Indian to run afoul of the social media since the end of last season.
The spot start was needed because of Saturday's day-night doubleheader. Still, why did the Indians suddenly need a starter Sunday instead of Tuesday?
During Sunday's game, WTAM's Tom Hamilton said Justin Masterson, originally scheduled to start Sunday, was pushed back to Tuesday because of a sore left ankle.
"I did it walking like anyone else," Masterson said. "That's why I didn't think it was anything serious, and it's not. I threw my bullpen [session Sunday]. Ran around. Everything is fine."
Masterson said he could have started Sunday, but the Indians were being cautious. By not pitching until Tuesday, he'll have been off eight days between starts. Masterson's most recent start was July 11 against Tampa Bay.
"It's not the first thing I want," Masterson said on getting pushed back. "You want to pitch. Eventually, this year, they're going to limit innings at some point, too."
Walking man: Rookie catcher Carlos Santana has 30 walks in his first 33 big-league games. The 30 walks are the most since Ferris Fain of the Philadelphia A's had 30 walks in his first 33 games in 1947. . . . Matt LaPorta hit his first big-league triple in the seventh inning Sunday. He's hitting .346 (18-for-52) with four doubles, one triple, four homers and 12 RBI over his past 15 games.