With Andy Marte Injured, Jhonny Peralta Will See Time at Third

Many fans got their wish on Wednesday. Andy Marte will no longer be a part of the Indians' lineup for 2008. He heard a pop in his left calf and was taken off the field. The injury has been diagnosed as a calf strain and has forced Marte to use crutches to get around, effectively ending his season.

I wouldn't say that anyone wished for Andy Marte to get injured—just to see him out of the lineup.

On the season Marte was batting .221 with only three home runs and 17 RBI. Not exactly the kind of numbers that you would like to see coming from a potential everyday third baseman.

In the meantime Jamey Carroll has taken over at third base, and with Asdrubal Cabrera suspended for his role in the fight last week, Josh Barfield has taken the reins at second base.

So many Tribe fans have expressed their discontent with Marte since his arrival to the team. Arriving via the Atlanta Braves, in a three-team deal that saw Coco Crisp leave the Indians to join the Boston Red Sox, Marte has never been able to live up to the potential that he showed as a prospect in the Braves' farm system.

This season, with no minor league options left on his contract, the Indians opted to keep Marte on the 25-man roster all season rather than expose him to waivers and risk losing another Brandon Phillips type player.

This decision left many scratching their heads, as, until Casey Blake was traded to the Dodgers midseason, Marte spent much of his time warming the bench. Upon Blake's trade Marte began to see more playing time, however, still failed to impress.

This prompted many fans, who presumably are big Barfield fanatics, to question Wedge's decision not to move Jhonny Peralta from short to third and move Cabrera to his natural position at short, thus placing Barfield in at second.

It seems like a natural solution to a nagging problem, however, the Indians time and time again have shown an unwillingness to make any such moves.

Now, with Marte shelved, it seems time for the Indians to experiment. Sure there are only four games left, and Cabrera is suspended, but what the hell, do it Uncle Eric! Consider this the first phase of Spring Training, the fall installment.

Personally, I think the Indians have made a big mistake hanging onto Marte for this long. So what if we got burned on Brandon Phillips? The guy we have at second now certainly is no slouch. Besides that we traded Kevin Kouzmanoff for Barfield, so we may as well see what the kid has in him. He's already proven his worth at the big league level, which is more than Marte can say.

So, to the Indians front office, I humbly suggest that you shift Peralta over and see what he's got—we all know he can't play short forever. Then cut your losses on Marte and see what you've got in Barfield.

I can guarantee that I won't be the only fan happy if you make these moves.

Update

According to Anthony Castrovince's blog for MLB.com, Jhonny Peralta has been informed that he will start at third on Friday. So, thanks Eric, you listen well.