CLEVELAND — Long before fans were allowed to enter the ballpark Thursday, Travis Hafner took a big step toward rejoining the Indians.

The burly designated hitter took batting practice at Progressive Field for the first time since being shut down with a strained right shoulder on May 30. He swung at roughly 50 pitches from first base coach Luis Rivera in an afternoon session that, from all accounts, went well.

Hafner’s on-field activity came one day after he ran the bases at the ballpark, giving Tribe manager Eric Wedge hope he will be back by the end of the month.

“Travis is a competitor, so we’ll have to watch him, but it’s great to have him back around the club,” the skipper said. “We didn’t expect it taking this long, obviously, but I know he’s exited and so are we.”

Hafner, who last played in a game on May 25 against Texas, is hitting .217 with a .326 on-base percentage this season — both career lows for the seventh-year pro. He only hit four home runs and had 22 RBI in 46 contests prior to being placed on the disabled list.

Making his difficult season even more trying, Hafner’s father Terry passed away after a long battle with cancer on July 26.

“This year hasn’t been much fun,” Hafner said. “I can’t remember going this long without hitting. Getting on the field, even at 3 in the afternoon, was a blast.

“I felt strong and I didn’t have any pain, but we’ll see how I feel (today) and go from there.”

Hafner’s improvement is the latest good news on the Indians injury front as second baseman Josh Barfield (left middle finger surgery) and catcher Victor Martinez (right elbow, left hamstring) have both been sent on rehab assignments to Double-A Akron.

“We’re getting close on all three guys,” Wedge said. “Hopefully, we’ll get Travis along like Josh and Victor are pretty quickly.”

Tribe tidbits

The Indians will play the first regular season game at the new Yankee Stadium on April 16, 2009, the Associated Press reported. Major League Baseball officials are currently finalizing next year’s schedule, but teams were given a preliminary list of games last month.

• Shortstop Jhonny Peralta’s 56 extra-base hits are three more than noted sluggers Alex Rodriguez and Miguel Cabrera had entering Thursday.

• Outfielder Grady Sizemore is on pace for 37 home runs and 37 stolen bases.

• Masa Kobayashi has six saves. No other American League rookie has more than two.

• The AL East is the only division the Indians have a winning record against.

• Indians pitchers did not post a strikeout Wednesday against Baltimore, marking their first zero in the category since April 28, 2004.

• Ex-Cleveland ace CC Sabathia is tied with Toronto’s Roy Halladay for the major league lead in complete games with seven, three of them coming before he was traded to Milwaukee.

• Wedge didn’t rule out using Zach Jackson as a reliever down the stretch, in addition to his current role as a starter.

Dollars and sense

Right-handed pitcher Zach Putnam, the Indians’ fifth-round selection this year, was one of four players signed by the club Thursday.

Putnam was 9-0 with a 2.58 ERA for the Michigan Wolverines this season and will report to Single-A Mahoning Valley. The minor-league deal is reportedly worth $650,000.

Also inking contracts were catcher Roberto Perez (33rd round), pitcher Edwin Burns (39th round) and outfielder Tim Palincsar (40th round), which means the Tribe has signed 26 of their 50 selections in the 2008 First-Year Player Draft. The MLB deadline to sign the rest of their choices is today.

Up next

The MLB-leading Los Angeles Angels make their first visit to Progressive Field in two years with a three-game series beginning tonight. The Angels’ lone scheduled series in Cleveland last season was moved to Milwaukee’s Miller Park due to poor field conditions.

Left-hander Cliff Lee (16-2, 2.45 ERA) gets the call tonight against Los Angeles righty Jared Weaver (10-9, 4.51 ERA). Saturday has Fausto Carmona (5-4, 4.91 ERA) taking on John Lackey (9-2, 3.15 ERA) in a battle of right-handers, while Sunday pits Jeremy Sowers (1-6, 5.70) against Joe Saunders (14-5, 3.07 ERA) in a lefty vs. lefty matchup.

Roundin’ third

The out-of-town scoreboards received a technology upgrade and now display the number of outs, in addition to baserunners and the current pitcher/batter matchup.

• Lee is the first pitcher in Indians history to go 16-2 to begin a season. He leads the AL in wins and ERA.

• Top power prospect Matt LaPorta hit a three-run homer Thursday, leading the United States Olympic team to a 7-0 win over the Netherlands.

• Eastern League Player of the Week Scott Lewis, a left-hander, was promoted to Triple-A Buffalo and started Thursday for the Bisons. He was 6-2 with a 2.33 in 13 starts at Akron.

• This is Indians Hall of Fame Weekend, highlighted by the induction of Mike Hargrove and Joe Gordon. Both will be feted with plaques at Heritage Park beyond the centerfield fence.

Contact Brian Dulik at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.

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