Raburn hopes to return to Indians Tuesday

CLEVELAND -- Earlier this season, things were going so well for utility player Ryan Raburn that he said it felt like nothing could go wrong for him on the field.

That was before right calf discomfort and a left Achilles strain put Raburn on the 15-day disabled list, where he has stayed retroactively since Aug. 19. But Raburn hit during injured starter Corey Kluber's simulated game at Progressive Field on Monday and said he's hoping to return to Cleveland's active roster on Tuesday.

"I still felt a little sore," Raburn said. "But I didn't feel like it was hindering my swing any, so that's good."

Through 70 games this year, Raburn is batting .272/.366/.574 with 15 home runs and 41 RBIs. The club was so pleased with his output that it signed him to a two-year extension with a club option for 2016 that was announced a month ago.

Indians manager Terry Francona agreed with Raburn on the player's return, partly because September allows teams' active rosters to expand to 40 players.

"There's not really a reason not to bring him off the disabled list," Francona said. "Whether he gets in a game or not, we have extra bodies. If he can hit, we can pinch-run. I would anticipate that, yeah, [Tuesday would] probably be the case."