Hello Tribe fans everywhere!

Kelly Shoppach, whose pinch-hit, 3-run homer with two outs in the 9th inning Tuesday propelled the Indians to a come-from-behind 8-5 win over the A's, needs to be in the lineup on a more regular basis. Trouble is, Victor Martinez, the Tribe's best hitter, is a fairly capable catcher. His defense has improved dramatically from last season when injuries severely limited his ability to throw out runners, although he still lags behind Shoppach as a catcher.

You would think that Martinez, 29, would block Shoppach's chances of becoming the Indians first-string catcher for the forseeable future, except that Kelly's superior receiving skills look mighty impressive next to his curent .382 batting average. That's not to suggest that Shoppach's batting average would continue to hover in that stratosphere should he step in as the Tribe's first-string catcher. But if he could hit .260-.270, with the power he's shown throughout his minor league career, the Indians would be well served with Shoppach behind the plate.

So, what would the Indians do with Martinez? I say play him at first base, where he's demonstrated a natural grace around the bag. I've written in recent blogs that the Tribe might accomplish this goal by trading young Ryan Garko, but if they couldn't receive equal value for Garko, they should hang on to him in case Travis Hafner bolts from Cleveland when his contract expires after the 2008 season.

That would seem like a sensible plan, as the Indians have a dismal record of re-signing top-notch players once they become free agents.

Meanwhile, the goal should be to try and find as much playing time for Shoppach as possible. He's already become the personal catcher for veteran righthanded pitcher Paul Byrd, who loves the way Shoppach calls a game. I must say I also enjoy watching Shoppach gun down would-be base stealers with his howitzer-like arm.

With Andy Marte languishing at Buffalo, where he's batting .245, Cleveland's trade of Coco Crisp to Boston would be a complete flop -- except that Shoppach shows such promise behind the plate.

A big part of the challenge to find playing time for Shoppach is to convince Martinez to make the move. He, too, loves catching, and is not too shabby at it. He probably ranks with the league's top ten receivers. But Martinez is a switch hitter who's such a skilled batsman that he could be looking at an Eddie Murray-like career if he made the switch. Also, think of Joe Torre once he left the Braves and played third base and first base for St. Louis. Torre had also been an all-star catcher, but playing that position was turning him into an old man. Once he left the tools of ignorance behind, he shed weight and played as if he'd been rejuvenated. He even batted .363 one year and led the league in hitting.

If the Indians aren't seriously planning ways to get Kelly Shoppach into the lineup on a more regular basis, they'd better start thinking in that direction. It makes sense and is the right way to go.

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The answer to yesterday's quickie quiz is: Rick Sutcliffe. He was traded by the Indians to the Cubs in 1984 and promptly posted 16 wins in 17 decisions.

Today's quiz: Name the pitching brothers who, in 1974, combined for 38 wins for the Indians.

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-- Kevin Cuneo