Asdrubal’s big day

Asdrubal Cabrera went 5-5 with two home runs and five RBI on Sunday afternoon, just the 4th such game by an Indian in the baseball-reference era (since 1919) and the first by a shortstop. More than likely, he is the first shortstop in team history with such a stat line (technically it’s possible that it happened pre-1919, but highly unlikely given the lack of home runs, especially by middle infielders).

Cabrera is also the only player on that list to also steal a base in the same game.

Cabrera is also just the third Indians with five hits and two home runs from the No.2 slot in the batting order, joining Ellis Burks (June 19, 2001) and Bobby Avila (June 20, 1951).

But Cabrera’s numbers aren’t just historical by Indians standards. The only other shortstop in the baseball-reference era with at least 5 hits, 2 HR and 5 RBI was Roy McMillan of the Cincinnati Reds on April 20, 1960.

Cabrera also joins just six others – regardless of position – in the baseball-reference era with five hits, two home runs, five RBI and a stolen base.

Player	Date	Tm	Opp	Rslt	H	HR	RBI	SB	Pos.
Asdrubal Cabrera	2011-05-22	CLE	CIN	W 12-4	5	2	5	1	SS
Danny Bautista	2004-04-22	ARI	MIL	W 11-9	5	2	5	1	RF
Mike Marshall	1984-04-22	LAD	SDP	W 15-7	5	2	6	1	LF
Willie Stargell	1968-05-22	PIT	CHC	W 13-6	5	3	7	1	LF
Bob Johnson	1937-08-29 (1)	PHA	CHW	W 16-0	5	2	7	1	LF
Carl Reynolds	1930-07-02 (2)	CHW	NYY	W 15-4	5	3	8	1	LF
Jimmie Foxx	1929-05-01	PHA	BOS	W 24-6	5	2	5	1	1B

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 5/23/2011.

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.

Peralta Inside the Park Home Run

Thanks to an unlocked bullpen gate, Jhonny Peralta rounded the bases with his first career inside the park home run on Sunday afternoon. He became just the 5th Indian to hit an inside the park homer in Jacobs Field – all five of which have come since 2000.

This is an odd stretch of five inside the park home runs in an 11-year span for the Tribe. Prior to Enrique Wilson‘s in 2000, the Indians hadn’t hit one in their home ballpark since Mel Hall rounded the bases against the A’s in 1988.