Hafner's sore shoulder and other Tribe matters

They're saying Victor Martinez will be back up with the Tribe very soon.

That's the the good news.

The not-so-good news - Travis Hafner's shoulder is barking again.

According to the Plain Dealer's Web site, Hafner was kept out of the lineup down in Buffalo yesterday and today because of pain in his shoulder.

This would seem to be a setback by any definition of the word.

But that just ain't so, said Tribe skipper Eric Wedge to the PD.

"I wouldn't call it that at all. He's moving forward, but we're still trying to build a foundation for him. He hasn't played [in the majors] in 10 weeks. It's part of the process. He's been building up. We want to find that mixture of work days, batting practice, whatever it might be, and playing."

How can you call it a setback? He's perfectly fine - at least for the first couple of innings each night?

"He feels good early in the game, but he needs to feel better later in the game. He didn't swing a bat for a long time, but he definitely feels better than he did before."

I don't know about you, but I'm convinced. I'm especially confident that everything's fine because the Tribe has been so forthcoming about injuries so far this season.

Anybody besides me think that maybe it would make sense just to shut Hafner down for the rest of the year and hope to God a full off-season of rest will make him a viable option for next year?

Anybody getting the feeling that that is anything but a sure thing?

--
While we're talking about shutting folks down, shouldn't the Tribe consider it for Masa Kobayashi?

The guy has made 5 appearances this month and hasn't been effective in any of them, including tonight when he allowed the Tigers to tie the game at 3-3 in the 7th after taking over for Zack Jackson.

Kobayashi is clearly out of gas and one has to wonder if it made sense to sign a guy whose history has him pitching a lot fewer innings than the typical MLB late-inning reliever pitches each year. Maybe he'll fight his way through the wall he's hit and be ready to take on a full MLB work load next year. Maybe, and maybe not.

--
Just watched Jensen Lewis put up his 7th straight save and the Tribe put up their 8th straight win. This game can still be fun.

--
Which brings us back to Zach Jackson, who had his best outing so far for the Tribe, scattering 7 hits and allowing 3 runs (thanks in part to Kobayashi) over 6 1/3 innings. The outing brought Jackson's ERA down to 4.91, though he is still looking for his first win with the Indians. Tonight certainly makes you wonder if there's something to this Jackson guy, but based on his mediocre body of work in the minors you have to still assume that he's not on the A-list of prospects.

--
I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Grady Sizemore - with two homers tonight - joined the 30-30 club. He's at 31 homers and 34 SBs. Is 40-40 possible? It would be fun, no?
--

I'll be heading down to DC for the next three days (with a quick stop at Camden Yards tomorrow night). So this will be it until the weekend. Let's hope the streak is at a dozen by then.