20-year old switch-hitting outfielder Luigi Rodriguez is off to a good start in A-ball for the Tribe this year.  Rodriguez has played in 32 games in A-ball so far this year for the Indians and he is 31 for 112 (.277 avg, .710 OPS) with 18 runs scored, 1 homer, 11 RBIs and 6 stolen bases.  Rodriguez has now played in 271 games in his first four years in the minors and he is 286 of 1,008 (.284 avg, .773 OPS) with 164 runs scored, 17 homers, 105 RBIs and 79 stolen bases.  Rodriguez came into this season as the Indians’ #7 prospect according to Baseball America.  The Indians will likely take things slowly with Rodriguez.

27-year old switch-hitting C/1B Carlos Santana is stepping up this season with the bat.  He has played in 27 games for the Indians so far this year and he is 34 for 95 (.358 avg, 1.129 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 7 homers, 15 RBIs and 1 stolen base.  Santana could be set up to have a career year with the bat now that the Indians have put a lot of good hitters around him in the lineup.  Santana has now played in 371 games in his first four years with the Indians and he is 333 of 1,304 (.255 avg, .829 OPS) with 199 runs scored, 58 homers, 192 RBIs and 12 stolen bases.

The Indians have placed 28-year old righty reliever Vinnie Pestano on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to May 1st, due to right elbow tendinitis.  Pestano has pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Indians so far this year and he is 0-0 with a 2.25 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP.  The Indians have called up 27-year old lefty reliever Nick Hagadone to replace Pestano in the bullpen.  Hagadone has pitched in 9 games (0 starts) for the Indians so far this year and he is 0-0 with a 2.25 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP.  The Indians hope that Pestano gets healthy soon, as he is way too valuable to replace.

29-year old righty swinging DH/1B/3B Mark Reynolds has been ripping the ball so far this year for the Tribe.  Reynolds has played in 24 games so far this year for the Tribe and he is 26 of 88 (.295 avg, .985 OPS) with 18 runs scored, 8 homers, 22 RBIs and 1 stolen base.  Reynolds has walked 10 times so far this year and he has whiffed 23 times.  With his strikeouts down a bit, Reynolds has seen his average hover around .300…..but I don’t think he can keep that up.  The power is real though as he is more than capable of hitting 40 or more homers if he can just stay healthy in 2013.

The Indians have designated 23-year old switch-hitting 1B Michael McDade for assignment.  McDade played in 21 games in AAA-ball for the Indians this year and he was 17 for 74 (.230 avg, .597 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 0 homers and 7 RBIs.  McDade has now played in 651 games in his first seven years in the minors and he is 643 of 2,438 (.264 avg, .739 OPS) with 281 runs scored, 76 homers, 332 RBIs and 4 stolen bases.  The Indians needed McDade’s roster spot for outfielder Ezequiel Carrera, who they recently claimed off waivers from the Phillies.

UPDATE:  (5/7/2013) – The Indians have lost Michael McDade on waivers to the White Sox.