Indians call up Pronk, mourn loss of ex-owner

June 6, 2009 at 12:00a.m.

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland Indians activated designated hitter Travis Hafner from the 15-day disabled list Friday and optioned struggling starter Fausto Carmona to the Arizona Rookie League.

Carmona, who won 19 games for the Indians in 2007, is 2-6 with a 7.42 ERA this year. He will report to the Indians’ minor league complex in Goodyear, Ariz., to work on his mechanics and mental approach after he allowed 16 earned runs in his last three starts, spanning 71‚Ñ3 innings.

The Rookie League season hasn’t started yet, but Indians general manager Mark Shapiro doesn’t want Carmona pitching in competitive situations right now.

“Just a demotion to the minor leagues wasn’t going to ensure he’d get back on track,” Shapiro said. “Through the effort to survive and adapt up here, he’d gotten into some very bad habits and routines. We need to get him not just out of the major league fray, but out of the competitive fray for a period of time. We need to assess where he is mentally, physically and fundamentally and put a plan back in place to have him realize his potential.”

The Indians also mourned the loss of former owner Richard E. Jacobs, who had been in ill health and died peacefully at the age of 83 on Friday.

Jacobs and his brother David bought the Indians from the Steve O’Neill estate in 1986 for $40 million. David Jacobs died in 1992.