Robert will finish rehabbing with Triple-A Charlotte this weekend. All signs point to him rejoining the Sox this week, according to manager Tony La Russa.
There will be some tough roster decisions to be made in the next few days as the White Sox are expected to have Luis Robert back from his hip injury.
Robert has been on the injured list since tearing his hip flexor May 2, but he will finish rehabbing with Triple-A Charlotte this weekend. All signs point to Robert rejoining the Sox this week, according to manager Tony La Russa.
At one point, the Sox were down three outfielders in Eloy Jimenez, Adam Engel and Robert, but La Russa is on the verge of having that trio available at the same time for the first time all season.
“The thought of having all three of them, I mean, it’s exciting,” La Russa said. “It’s going to be a fun outfield to put together. We’re going to get squeezed. We’ve had some guys earn a lot of at-bats that don’t want to give them up, so we’ll see what happens.”
Injuries to the Sox’ main outfielders created opportunities for backup players like Brian Goodwin, who has stepped up with clutch home runs twice in the last week.
There’s also Gavin Sheets, who has spent a lot of time in right field and come up with a few timely hits of his own. On Friday, Sheets pinch-hit in the tenth inning and added an insurance run for the Sox on an RBI single.
Since being called up on June 29, Sheets may have done enough of the right kinds of things to have earned a spot with the big league club a while longer. Before Saturday’s game, La Russa praised his plate discipline and two-strike approach.
“That’s what gets your attention,” La Russa said. “That’s the mark of a veteran hitter, and he’s doing it at an early time, and that’s probably the most impressive thing. Like yesterday, just to use the whole field and not just think distance, distance, distance because putting the ball in play is a win most often.”
Power improvements
The Sox have not gotten much power from their bats this season, trailing most of the league in total home runs, but they are trending upward lately. In their last 34 games, the Sox have 51 homers, including two on Saturday.
The uptick La Russa attributes to his guys squaring up the ball better than they had been earlier in the season. But even when longballs were hard to come by, the Sox weren’t struggling to score runs.
“If you just put the ball in play and you group hits, you’re going to score runs,” La Russa said. “Just square the ball up, hard contact, especially with as many guys on our club that have good foot speed, you know, we can do a lot of damage with taking extra bases.”
Grandal rehab timetable not set
Yasmani Grandal did running drills on the field before Saturday’s game, but there isn’t a date yet for when he will start a rehab appearance.
“There’s been some discussion, but I think right now it’s still a guesstimate,” La Russa said. “The big thing, he’s improving, and he’s getting closer.”
La Russa said that one of the things being monitored most closely in Grandal’s recovery is how he responds the day after he does any physical activity. Grandal has been recovering well after rehab work, La Russa said.
from Chicago Sun-Times - All https://ift.tt/3AjyC5G
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