Cleveland Indians: Carlos Santana returns to the outfield tonight

The Cleveland Indians are in Cincinnati tonight, meaning Carlos Santana is back in the outfield for another round of interleague play.

For those who love seeing Carlos Santana in the outfield, tonight is your night.

The Cleveland Indians are down in Cincinnati to take on the Reds in the first of four games between the two teams, with two set for Cincy and two set for Cleveland.

And with the first two being under National League rules, Terry Francona has opted to keep Santana in the field, this time in right field.

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Santana has been in left field during his recent ventures into the outfield, but Francona wouldn’t put him in right if there was any major concern of him being a defensive liability. If anything, this one game can serve as evidence for later in the year if Santana is a capable right fielder.

And even though Santana is only hitting .222 this season, he is still a valuable veteran bat, and the Indians’ cleanup hitter as of right now.

So with the options being Santana or Bradley Zimmer, it makes sense to give the veteran the nod in this instance.

The Indians are coming off a dominant sweep of the Houston Astros this past weekend, while the Reds have leveled out after a hot start and are 2-8 in their last ten games.

Tonight’s game is a big one for Josh Tomlin, who is rocking a 6.86 ERA while Mike Clevinger continues to show he may be worthy of a full-time spot in the rotation once Corey Kluber returns from the disabled list.

Next: 3 takeaways from the sweep in Houston

A great game tonight may not solidify a spot, but it would help Tomlin avoid any imminent talks of losing his job.