The Cleveland Indians have sent 26-year old righty swinging 1B Matt LaPorta to AAA.  LaPorta has played in 97 games for the Indians this year and he is 76 for 319 (.238 avg, .694 OPS) with 32 runs scored, 11 homers, 44 RBIs and 1 stolen base.  He has now played in 259 games in his first three years with the Indians and he is 205 for 876 (.234 avg, .694 OPS) with 102 runs scored, 30 homers, 106 RBIs and 3 stolen bases.  Hopefully this will send a message to LaPorta, as the Indians are in a pennant race but they decided to send him to AAA anyway.

31-year old lefty swinging 3B Jack Hannahan has been hot with the bat so far in August.  He has played in 15 games so far in August and he is 15 for 39 (.385 avg, .940 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 0 homers and 8 RBIs.  Hannahan will likely continue to play more than rookie Lonnie Chisenhall, as long as he stays hot with the stick.  Hannahan has played in 97 games overall this year for the Indians and he is 67 for 282 (.238 avg, .679 OPS) with 31 runs scored, 5 homers, 31 RBIs and 2 stolen bases.  He is also a wizard with the glove, which somewhat makes up for his lack of hitting.

After placing Michael Brantley on the 60-day D.L., the Indians decided to call up 28-year old righty swinging outfielder Jerad Head.  Head played in 114 games in AAA-ball this year and he was 120 for 422 (.284 avg, .864 OPS) with 67 runs scored, 24 homers, 70 RBIs and 3 stolen bases.  He has now played in 539 games in his first six years in the minors and he was 507 for 1,876 (.270 avg, .814 OPS) with 313 runs scored, 74 homers, 316 RBIs and 39 stolen bases.  He made his major league debut for the Indians yesterday against the Royals and he was 1 for 3.

UPDATE:  (9/7/2011) – The Indians have designated Jerad Head for assignment.  Head played in 8 games for the Tribe and he was 2 for 23 (.087 avg, .255 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 0 homers, 1 RBI  and 1 stolen bases.  With Trevor Crowe and Grady Sizemore back in the fold, the Indians didn’t have a need for Head anymore.

UPDATE II:  (9/10/2011) – The Indians have outrighted Jerad Head to AAA.

The Indians have placed 26-year old righty starting pitcher Josh Tomlin on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to August 25th due to right elbow soreness.  Tomlin has pitched in 26 games (all starts) for the Indians so far this year and he is 12-7 with a 4.25 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP.  The Indians have called up 25-year old lefty reliever Nick Hagadone to replace Tomlin on the pitching staff.  Hagadone came into this season as the Indians’ #10 prospect according to Baseball America.  He can over in the Victor Martinez deal with the Red Sox a couple of years ago.  Hagadone has pitched in 44 games (0 starts) in AA+AAA-ball this year and he is 6-4 with 4 saves, a 2.65 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP.  He has only given up 54 hits in 68 innings in the minors this year while whiffing 74 batters, as he has been impressive in the minors so far this year.  Hagadone has now pitched in 103 games (47 starts) in his first five years in the minors and he is 10-14 with 5 saves, a 2.82 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP.  Hagadone will be working out of the bullpen for the Indians.

The Indians have placed 24-year old lefty swinging outfielder Michael Brantley on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to August 23rd due to right wrist inflammation.  Brantley has played in 114 games for the Indians so far this year and he is 120 for 451 (.266 avg, .702 OPS) with 63 runs scored, 7 homers, 46 RBIs and 13 stolen bases.  24-year old lefty swinging Ezequiel Carrera will likely replace Brantley in the starting lineup until he’s ready to return to action.  Carrera has played in 39 games for the Tribe so far this year and he is 29 for 107 (.271 avg, .649 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 0 homers, 8 RBIs and 7 stolen bases.  The Indians hope Brantley gets healthy soon, because they need him.

UPDATE:  (8/29/2011) – Michael Brantley will undergo season ending surgery on his wrist this week.  This is a big blow to the Indians.