Jason Kipnis rounds first base after singling in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning as the Indians topped the Los Angeles Angels, 3-2, on July 25.CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Indians will have second baseman Jason Kipnis and infielder Luis Valbuena available for tonight's game against the Detroit Tigers at Progressive Field.
Kipnis, in fact, is in the starting lineup.
The Indians have announced they have activated Kipnis from the 15-day disabled list, and have recalled Valbuena from Class AAA Columbus.
Kipnis is hitting .279 (19-of-68) with six home runs, four doubles, 11 RBI and 14 runs in 18 games -- the first games of his big league career -- for the Indians after spending most of the season at Columbus. Kipnis, though, has been on the disabled list since Aug. 14, first missing three games with soreness in his right side, and then straining his right hamstring prior to the Indians' Aug. 18 game at Chicago.
The left-handed hitting Kipnis homered in four straight games from July 31-Aug. 3.
Valbuena has spent most of the season at Columbus, where he hit .302 with 17 homers, 22 doubles, 75 RBI and 64 runs in 113 games. He appeared in 75 Clippers games at shortstop, 15 at third base, eight at second base and 11 in left field.
Valbuena, another left-handed hitter, has hit .125 (4-for-32) in 11 games over three previous stints with the Indians this season. He hit a combined .226 for the Indians in 643 at-bats in 2009-10, with 37 doubles, three triples, 12 homers and 55 RBI.
The Indians' major league roster is now at 29 players. They didn't have to move anyone off the roster to make room for Kipnis and Valbuena, as big league rosters can expand to as many as 40 players on Sept. 1 of each season.