Baseball is a funny game. Just when it looked like the Chicago White Sox were returning to full strength the baseball God looked down and laughed. Tim Anderson, Lance Lynn, and Lucas Gioliot are all expected to miss some time in the coming weeks.
Tim Anderson was out of the lineup once again Tuesday with sore legs. He missed four games on the team's latest road trip with the same nagging ailment. Manager Tony La Russa said that if this was the playoffs that he would be in the lineup.
However, this is still something to keep an eye on. A fierce competitor like Anderson is not someone that likes taking games off which begs the question of just how serious the leg issue is. Especially considering that his legs are such a vital part of his game. Anderson makes his money off of his speed, range, and athleticism. It is tough to hit with sore legs.
Tony La Russa expects him to return to the weekend series against the Kansas City Royals.
The White Sox will also be without their ace Lance Lynn during his next scheduled start. Lynn was placed on the injured list with right knee inflammation. This was an issue that first popped up after the Field of Dreams game. The veteran right-hander tried to pitch through it during his next couple of starts but the issue persisted. As a precautionary measure, the White Sox decided to place Lynn on the IL to make sure the issue didn't grow worse.
Lynn is expected to miss just one start for the White Sox. With three off days in eight days, the White Sox hopes to take advantage of this and rearrange their starting staff accordingly.
A few hours after this news was announced on Tuesday, Lucas Giolito left his start early against the Pirates with hamstring tightness.
Giolito fell victim to his own changeup. He got Ben Gamel to hit a nubber off the end of the bat that dribbled just of the side of the mound. Giolito raced in to field the ball and slipped.
"The slip was awkward, but I didn't feel anything," Giolito told reporters after the game. "I didn't feel any sort of injury or anything like that on that play. And then I threw one pitch fine and then the next pitch after was when I felt that little tug there."
The slip caused a late throw and Gamel was safe at first.
Tony La Russa, Ethan Katz, and head trainer James Kruk went to check on their tall right-hander. He indicated that he wanted to shake it off and stay in the game. But after a wild pitch that brought a run home Katz came out to visit Giolito again.
When Katz returned to the dugout Giolito proceeded to throw two more balls that missed badly. The coaching staff came out to visit Giolito a final time and decided enough was enough. Giolito threw one final warmup toss before handing the ball to Tony La Russa and walking off the field with Katz and Kruk.
The former All-Star ended the night with 4.1 innings pitched, earned two runs on three hits, four walks, and five strikeouts.
Giolito dealt with a hamstring injury in 2019 that kept him out of the rotation for two weeks. The concern is that this is a similar injury. He will be further evaluated on Wednesday.
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