Brantley diagnosed with mild concussion

CLEVELAND -- Indians left fielder Michael Brantley has been diagnosed with a mild concussion. He was out of Wednesday's lineup before the game was postponed due to weather.

The team had sent Brantley to undergo further testing on Tuesday, and ultimately it was determined that he would need to deal with the league's concussion protocols before being medically cleared to return. However, because the concussion is less severe than what catcher Carlos Santana suffered in May, Brantley could avoid the 7-day concussion disabled list and be back on the field by Saturday.

"The way it was explained to me, it's the type of concussion that should go away faster," Cleveland skipper Terry Francona said. "And I think we're actually seeing that."

Brantley played catch, hit off a tee and managed to get a workout in before Wednesday's game was postponed, mentioning that all his feedback from the team's medical staff has been positive to this point.

"I don't want to put a deadline on anything," Brantley said of his potential Saturday return. "But my goal is to get back out there with my team as fast as possible. That involves listening to the medical staff and making sure I'm ready to go 100 percent."

The Indians made Brantley a late scratch from Tuesday's game after he complained of concussion-like symptoms during his pregame routine. He was removed from Monday night's tilt with the Angels after he collided with shortstop John McDonald at second base while attempting to break up a double play. The decision had initially been called precautionary.

Brantley has hit .323 with a .391 on-base percentage this season, and he leads the club in home runs (11), RBIs (46) and runs scored (49). He was named the American League Player of the Week on Monday and has garnered the seventh-most fan votes for the All-Star Game among AL outfielders.

"If he's playing Saturday, he's fine," Francona said. "Because that's the last thing we want to do is run someone out there that shouldn't be. But because of the importance to the lineup and who he is, we'd like to try to have him back as soon as we can."