Indians send Barfield and Veras outright to minors

CLEVELAND(AP) -- Right-hander Jose Veras and infielder Josh
Barfield were sent outright to Triple-A Columbus on Tuesday by
the Cleveland Indians.

The 26-year-old Barfield was Cleveland's starter at second base
for most of 2007 after being acquired from San Diego. A son of
former All-Star outfielder Jesse Barfield, Josh Barfield hit
.280 with 13 homers and 21 steals for the Padres in 2006.

He struggled with Cleveland and hit .243 with three homers in
130 games, losing his job to Asdrubal Cabrera as the Indians got
within one win of the World Series. Barfield played only 12
games for the Indians in 2008, batting .182, and missing two
months with a finger injury on his left hand.

During training camp this spring, Barfield worked to learn
playing the outfield and third base in order to increase his
value to the team.

"Along with learning 40 new positions, there's always running
work and lots of hitting so it has been a busy spring for me,"
Barfield said in March. "I just love to play baseball, so it is
all fun."

Barfield was 8 for 20 with two RBIs for Cleveland this season,
spending most of his time at Columbus.

Veras, acquired from the New York Yankees on June 24, was
designated for assignment last week.