Can Carlos Santana turn it around?

Carlos Santana is one of just six Indians over the past 20 seasons to post a batting average under .200 through the team’s first 30 games (min. 100 PA). And while 30 games is a small portion of the 162 games schedule, he may have already dug himself a hole too deep to climb out of.

Of the previous five, only Asdrubal Cabrera in 2008 was able to raise his season average above .250 after the slow start. And you have to go all the way back to Toby Harrah in 1979 to find the last time a player raised his average above .275 after this type of start.

Like Harrah did with his .373 BA through June and July, Santana is going to need to catch fire in order to raise the batting average to a respectable level. His walk off grand slam looked like it may be a turning point, but he’s just 3-15 in the four games since.

While the Tribe’s 21-9 start is certainly encouraging, it’s going to be difficult to keep up this pace with a cleanup hitter batting below the Mendoza line.

Jayson Nix goes deep twice

Jayson Nix belted two home runs on Monday, becoming the 7th Indians second baseman in the last 50 seasons with a multi-home run game and the first since Robbie Alomar in 2001. Each of the last 12 instances, all of which occurred between 1991 and 2001, came from Alomar or Carlos Baerga. The last to do so other than those two was Tony Bernazard in 1987.

The nine year drought between multi-home run games by an Indians second baseman had been the longest current drought for a position other than pitcher. Earlier this season, Austin Kearns also snapped a drought for left field which dated back to Matt Lawton in 2004.