Bruised Damon out of lineup after misplay

CLEVELAND -- Johnny Damon's misadventure in left field in the fifth inning of Monday's 10-9 victory over the Reds left him bruised and sore, leading to a day off from being in the starting lineup Tuesday against Cincinnati.

"He was pretty banged up after that one," Indians manager Manny Acta said. "He was pretty sore in the lower back area. He's played a few games in a row, too. We'll try to give him a day off."

In the fifth, Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips pulled a pitch from Derek Lowe down the left-field line, where it skipped into foul territory and kicked off a side wall. On the play, Damon lunged at the ball in an effort to block it, but the ball got by him and skipped into left field as he slammed into the wall.

"I wouldn't make a good hockey goalie," Damon quipped.

The miscue led to a two-base error, allowing Phillips to score on the play. Phillips, however, is appealing Major League Baseball to change the scoring decision to an inside-the-park home run.

It was not the first ball misplayed in left field for the 38-year-old Damon, though Acta is quick to note that the Indians did not sign the veteran for his abilities in the field.

"I think everybody is well aware that Johnny, he's not a Gold Glove-caliber player," Acta said. "I think we know that he has spent a lot of years DH'ing at the end [of his career]. We got him over here to help us out with our offense."

Through 37 games with Cleveland, Damon has hit .190 (23-for-121) with two home runs and 11 RBIs. Entering Tuesday, however, Damon had hit at a .262 (11-for-42) clip with one homer and six RBIs in his last 15 games.