Choo played six innings, grounded out weakly to second and took a called third strike in two plate appearances. Meanwhile, Carlos Carrasco goes on DL with elbow issues.
View full sizeShin-Soo Choo went hitless in his first rehab game at Lake County, but is eager to help the Indians down the stretch of the 2011 season.EASTLAKE, Ohio -- On the eve of the Indians' big three-game home series with Detroit, attention shifted temporarily 18 miles east, to a man and his thumb.
Shin-Soo Choo, on the disabled list since breaking his left thumb after being hit by a pitch on June 24 in San Francisco, made his first rehab appearance Monday with the Lake County Captains. Choo played six innings, grounded out weakly to second and took a called third strike in two plate appearances. In the field, he flagged down a long fly to the fence in right.
Choo said he was a little nervous and his timing is a little off, but otherwise felt comfortable at the plate and felt no pain. He hasn't heard from the Indians about when he might rejoin the club.
"I really want to play. The next six games against Detroit and Minnesota are big series I really want to play," he said. "My body's ready, but I'll see more pitches here, make sure everything feels good."
At the time of his injury, Choo was batting .244 with 10 doubles, two triples, five homers, 28 RBI and 11 stolen bases in 72 games.
Choo batted third and wore number 25 instead of his usual 17. Fans at Classic Park greeted him with the familiar "Chooooo" as he stepped to the plate each time.
Facing Dayton Dragons left-hander Mitch Clarke, Choo swung at the first pitch of his first at-bat, bouncing it foul past first, then took a called strike on the outside corner. On an 0-2 count, he sent a weak chopper to second and was thrown out by a step.
In the top of the second, Choo, who turned 29 last month, chased down a long sacrifice fly to the fence.
Choo's second plate appearance came with the Captains down, 3-0, in the fourth. He was called out on strikes on a 1-2 fastball, looked back at the umpire and gave his bat a little kick as he walked back to the dugout.
Before his injury, Choo's batting average had climbed 13 points in 10 days -- suggesting he might be regaining his form from 2010 and 2009, in which he hit .300 and at least 20 homers each season. He once called 2010 "the greatest year in my life."
This year? Not so great.
The thumb required six screws to stabilize. It's scarred and discolored.
Besides the batting slump and injury, he was fined $775 and had his driver's license suspended for 180 days late last month for driving drunk on May 2 in Sheffield Lake.
The Captains were three-hit and lost 3-0. But Choo's appearance bumped attendance to 6,105, compared to 4,500 to 5,000 for a typical Monday "Buck Night" promotion.
Elbow sidelines Carrasco: The Indians placed starter Carlos Carrasco on the 15-day disabled list Monday with inflammation in his right elbow, temporarily voiding his six-game suspension for throwing at Kansas City’s Billy Butler.
Carrasco was suspended for six games on Aug. 1 for throwing at Butler’s head in a July 30 game. Carrasco intended to serve his ban following his Aug. 3 start against Boston. However, Carrasco felt discomfort in his elbow after facing the Red Sox, according to an Indians release.
The Indians also reinstated third baseman Jack Hannahan from the paternity list. Hannahan was not with the Indians for their three-game weekend series in Texas, staying with his wife for the birth of the couple’s first child.
Carrasco’s injury leaves the Indians without a starter for Saturday’s home game against Minnesota. The most likely candidate is left-hander David Huff, who is 1-1 with a 0.51 ERA in three starts.
By the numbers: With the Tigers and Indians opening a big three-game series, here are some numbers and facts to remember:
• The Tigers have lost 11 straight at Progressive Field.
• The Indians and Tigers will play each other 12 times, six in August, six in September. They will end the season with a three-game series at Progressive Field starting Sept. 26.
• Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski and manager Jim Leyland had their contracts extended on Monday. Until then, they'd been working in the final year of their contracts.
Dombrowski's deal was extended for four years and Leyland was signed through 2012. Could it be a coincidence that the extensions were announced the day before the Tigers try to extend their four-game lead?
• In case you're wondering, manager Manny Acta is signed through 2012 with a club option for 2013.
Date with destiny: After going 3-4 on a trip against Boston and Texas, Acta said the Indians were going home to "take care of their own destiny."
The Indians will play 39 of their remaining 50 games in the own division. They are 16-18 in the AL Central and will need to go on quite a run to make the postseason.
"The schedule is mapped out for us to make any kind of run we want to," said rookie second baseman Jason Kipnis. "We can be 10 down or 10 up by the end of the season."
Closer Chris Perez said this series with the Tigers is important, but not in a sweep-or-go-home sense.
"We play them a lot," he said. "We just need to stay close, within striking distance, and not let this thing get too far out of reach for us. We've still got a lot of games left with them.
"This series at home is going to be huge. We've got our horses lined up."
The Indians are starting Justin Masterson, newcomer Ubaldo Jimenez and Fausto Carmona against the Tigers.
Added reliever Joe Smith, "If we take care of business when we get home, we'll be all right come September and, hopefully, make it a race down to the end."
The next 12 games are in the AL Central, six against the Tigers, three against the Twins and three against the White Sox.
Testing, testing: The Tigers gave former Indians catcher Victor Martinez the day off Sunday after he sprained his left knee Saturday against Kansas City trying to avoid a tag at the plate. With Monday's open date, there's a chance Martinez will be in Detroit's lineup during the series.
Sign here: The Indians have signed 14th round pick Cody Anderson, a right-hander from Feather River (Calif.) Community College, and 38th round pick shortstop Yhoxian Medina, who just completed his sophomore season at Southeastern (Iowa) Community College. Teams have until midnight Aug. 15 to sign their draft picks.
Staff writer Paul Hoynes contributed to this report.
Source: http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ssf/2011/08/shin-soo_choo_goes_0-2_in_firs.html
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