Reynolds, Santana post first months among best

CLEVELAND -- One month into this season, Mark Reynolds and Carlos Santana have developed into a dynamic offensive duo for the Indians.

It seemed fitting that in the first inning of the final game of April, Santana and Reynolds each launched two-run home runs, sending Cleveland on its way to a 14-2 romp against the Phillies on Tuesday night at Progressive Field.

For Reynolds, the blast marked his team-leading eighth of the season, giving him the most in a season's first month by an Indians hitter since Juan Gonzalez hit eight in 2001. Reynolds' 22 RBIs are also the most in April since Gonzalez collected 26 in the first month of '01.

"I've had months where I've hit eight or more -- never at the beginning of the season," said Reynolds, who hit .143 with no homers and three RBIs last April with the Orioles. "It just feels good to get off to a good start and to be able to put some good [at-bats] together, and not dig myself a hole so early in the season. Hopefully I can just keep playing and stay consistent."

Entering Wednesday, Reynolds was hitting .301 with a .368 on-base percentage, a .651 slugging percentage and a 1.019 OPS through 20 games. His April batting average marked his highest average in any single month (minimum 50 at-bats) since he hit .342 as a rookie in August 2007.

Santana entered Wednesday's action with a slash line of .389/.476/.722/1.198 to go along with five home runs, nine doubles, 12 walks, 13 RBIs and 14 runs scored in 20 games. He led the Majors in average and OPS, and turned in the highest April average for an Indians catcher in club history.

"I think he's done a lot of everything that I think sometimes goes unnoticed," manager Terry Francona said of Santana. "He's a switch-hitting catcher. He hits for power. He hits for average. He can take a walk. He can throw with anybody in the league. He can move to play first base seamlessly. There's so much to like. And as he grows as a young catcher, that'll make it even more impressive."