Casey Kotchman (back) took dry swings and threw Wednesday. Kotchman is out of the lineup for the fourth straight day due to back discomfort, but Indians' manager Manny Acta is optimistic the injury won't linger deep into the spring. The 29-year-old is projected to start at first base for the Indians this season, but he's unlikely to have much value in standard mixed leagues.

Casey Kotchman was scratched from Sunday's lineup with a stiff back. Just your run-of-the-mill spring training back stiffness. Kotchman should be fine in a day or two. Matt LaPorta has taken his spot at first base.

Indians manager Manny Acta indicated Monday that he views Casey Kotchman as the club's everyday first baseman. The implication here is that Carlos Santana will likely see more time at DH when he's not behind the plate. Travis Hafner owns a lowly .240/.298/.382 batting line against left-handed pitching over the past three seasons, so that might not be such a bad thing.

Indians signed 1B Casey Kotchman to a one-year, $3 million contract. The deal, which was reported Thursday and now become official, also includes some incentives. Kotchman, 28, posted a .306/.378/.422 slash line with 10 home runs and 48 RBI in 563 plate appearances last season for the Rays and offers a defensive upgrade for their groundball-heavy pitching staff. Matt LaPorta will be pushed to a backup role.

CBS Sports' Jon Heyman reports that free agent first baseman Casey Kotchman is "headed to the Indians." In other words, the two sides have already reached a deal or are very close to it. Kotchman posted a cool 306/.378/.422 slash line with 10 home runs and 48 RBI in 563 plate appearances last season for the Rays and ranks among the top defensive first basemen in the sport. He represents a nice upgrade for Cleveland.

Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports that the Orioles "have discussed" free agent first baseman Casey Kotchman. It's not clear if they plan on making an aggressive push for the veteran or if his name just came up when they talked about their options. Kotchman would settle in at first base, which would allow Chris Davis to slide into the DH spot and Wilson Betemit into a utility role. The soon-to-be 29-year-old batted .306/.378/.422 slash line with 10 home runs and 48 RBI in 563 plate appearances this past season for the Rays.

Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports that Casey Kotchman is "high on Cleveland's list" in their search for a first baseman. The club's first choice appears to be Carlos Pena, but that's if general manager Chris Antonetti can convince ownership to raise payroll. Kotchman looks like a fallback plan, and they might be competing against the Rays, who are also interested in Pena and in re-signing Kotchman. The 28-year-old batted .306/.378/.422 slash line with 10 home runs and 48 RBI in 563 plate appearances this past season for Tampa Bay.

Casey Kotchman (chest) is back in the starting lineup for Wednesday's season finale against the Yankees. Kotchman was sent to the hospital as a precaution Tuesday after experiencing tightness in his chests, but all tests came back clean. He'll play first base Wednesday and bat seventh against left-hander Jon Lester.

Casey Kotchman has cleared all tests and was released from the hospital. Great news. Kotchman was sent to the hospital as a precaution after experiencing tightness in his chest Tuesday, but it sounds like he'll be fine. Expect him to be back in the lineup for Wednesday's season finale.

Casey Kotchman (chest) was scratched from Tuesday's lineup against the Yankees. Kotchman was sent to the hospital as a precaution after experiencing tightness in his chest Tuesday afternoon. Sean Rodriguez will start in his place at first base while Reid Brignac plays shortstop.