Cordero Designated for Assignment

Outfielder Wil Cordero, a major disappointment for the Cleveland Indians the last three seasons, was designated for assignment Monday.

In six games, Cordero was batting .222 (four for 18) with one run batted in.

The Indians had been reluctant to play Cordero, 30, because of his lack of productivity.

He’s in the final year of a contract that will pay him $4 million this season.

Indian General Manager Mark Shapiro said the club will try to trade Cordero in the next week. If the Indians can’t make a deal, Cordero will be released.

The Indians purchased the contract of first baseman Earl Snyder from triple-A Buffalo.

Snyder, 25, came to Cleveland in the eight-player trade in December that sent Roberto Alomar to the New York Mets. Snyder was batting .250 with four home runs and seven RBIs in 16 games for the Bisons.

Cordero was in his second stint with the Indians. He signed with Cleveland as a free agent in 1999 after playing for Montreal, Boston and the Chicago White Sox. Cordero broke his hand at the end of the 2000 season.

Last year, he batted .250--his lowest average since 1993--with one homer and 21 RBIs in 268 at-bats. During one stretch, he went 86 at-bats without driving in a run, and before hitting his homer on May 16, he had gone 257 at-bats without one.

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The Atlanta Braves put starting pitcher Jason Marquis on the 15-day disabled list because of tendinitis in his right shoulder.

The move is retroactive to April 15, the day after Marquis gave up seven runs and 11 hits in six innings against the Florida Marlins.

The Braves recalled left-hander Jung Bong, a 21-year-old native of South Korea, from Greenville of the Southern League.

Bong will make his major league debut today against Curt Schilling and the World Series champion Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Braves will send right-hander Albie Lopez to Greenville for a rehabilitation start today.

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The Texas Rangers acquired outfielder Calvin Murray from the San Francisco Giants for cash. Murray, 30, will join the Rangers for tonight’s home game against Toronto. He hit .245 with six homers and 25 RBIs in 106 games with the Giants last season, including 73 starts in center field.... New York Yankee pitcher Sterling Hitchcock reported no problems after a 15-minute bullpen session at Tampa, Fla. Hitchcock has been on the disabled list since the start of the season because of a lower back strain.