Cleveland, OH – The Cleveland Indians have signed catcher Carlos Santana to a five-year contract with a club option for 2017.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported it to be worth $21 million. The new deal takes Santana through what would have been his first year of free agency.
Santana is entering his second full season as Cleveland's catcher. After playing 46 games in 2010, he appeared in 155 games last season and hit .239 with 27 homers and 79 runs batted in. The home run total set a club record for a switch-hitter and his 97 walks were third-most in the American League.
In four games this season entering Tuesday's action, Santana has two homers and four runs batted in. He is a career .244 hitter with 35 homers in 205 games.
The Dominican native, who turned 26 on Sunday, was acquired by Cleveland from the Dodgers on July 26, 2008 in exchange for Casey Blake.
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