INDIANS | Jacobs Field notes

Bullpen woes: Injuries have taken a toll on the Cleveland Indians' bullpen, but manager Eric Wedge believes the team is better prepared to handle the situation than in recent years. "Head to toe, we're a better team than last year," Wedge said Tuesday before the Indians opened an eight-game homestand at Jacobs Field. "We're better than we've shown. Some guys are just a tad off right now." With four pitchers on the disabled list, young Fausto Carmona, Rafael Perez and Brian Slocum all recently made their big-league debuts. Right-hander Jeremy Guthrie, with fewer than 20 innings of major-league experience, also was recalled to help fill the void. "These guys have done a good job in a tough situation," Wedge said. "I'm awfully proud of them." The Indians are without No. 1 starter C.C. Sabathia and three key setup relievers, Matt Miller, Fernando Cabrera and Rafael Betancourt. Sabathia, out since straining an abdominal muscle on opening night, is to make a rehab start at Triple-A Buffalo on Thursday. If all goes well for the big left-hander, he could rejoin the club early next week.
Cabrera, who suffered a bruised right heel when hit by a line drive April 13, has pitched well during his rehab work at Buffalo and could be called up this weekend. Betancourt and Miller both left a game in Baltimore on April 19. Betancourt is progressing from a strained upper back muscle, while Miller is scheduled to undergo elbow surgery today and likely is done for the season.
Feeling better: Pitcher Rafael Betancourt said he feels "much better" after spending most of the weekend icing the area under his right arm and to his strained upper back. "For three days, I was in a lot of pain and didn't know what was going on," the right-hander said. "The good news is my shoulder is fine and I think I should be pitching soon. I hope quicker than three or four weeks." Betancourt said the original prognosis of him missing about a month may be a bit conservative, but he won't know until he actually does some light throwing. "Last week, I couldn't lift my arm over my head," he said. "I couldn't sleep because of the pain. Now, it feels OK, just a little stiff. Maybe by the weekend, I might be able to throw a little bit. I hope it is not too long because I get mad just watching the team on TV."
Stop, thief! Wedge is concerned about the Indians' inability to hold baserunners. Catchers Victor Martinez and Kelly Shoppach are a combined 0-for-19 in trying to cut down opponents trying to steal. "It's a collective effort that we put a strong emphasis on during spring training," Wedge said. "It's the pitchers, infielders and catchers working together. We did a good job a month ago and we've got to get back to that."
Baselines: DH Travis Hafner was back in the lineup after being rested Sunday in Kansas City, where he was 0-for-7 with three strikeouts in the first two games of the series. ... Entering play Tuesday, the combined batting average of the Indians' number 4-5-6 hitters -- Hafner, C Victor Martinez and the first-base platoon of either Ben Broussard or Eduardo Perez -- was hitting .379. That group had combined for 15 home runs and 43 RBI.
Associated Press