Chisenhall stays locked in at the plate

Top Indians prospect Lonnie Chisenhall continues to swing a hot bat, slugging his second Cactus League homer in Sunday's 3-1 loss to the Colorado Rockies at Scottsdale, Ariz.

The 22-year-old is expected to start the season at Triple-A Columbus, but he is making a case for a spot on the 25-man Opening Day roster.

Chisenhall, batting in the No. 2 hole, went 2-for-4 to raise his average to .467 (7-for-15) in seven Spring Training games. He pulled a 2-0 fastball from Rockies starter Jason Hammel over the right-field wall in the first inning, then singled to right in the third.

Selected 29th overall in the 2008 Draft, Chisenhall tried to stretch his base hit into a double but was gunned down by Seth Smith after sliding past the bag.

Chisenhall flied out to center to end the fifth and popped up to second in the eighth. MLB.com's No. 36 prospect has four RBIs, four runs scored and a pair of walks in Cactus League action.

"We swung the bats well. (Travis) Buck and Chisenhall continue to hit the ball right on the nose," Indians manager Manny Acta told MLB.com.

Despite Chisenhall's impressive showing in camp, Indians vice president of player development Ross Atkins said he's unlikely to start the season in the Majors.

Last season, the North Carolina native batted .278 with 17 homers and 84 RBIs in 117 games at Double-A Akron.