Leury García started stumbling over on his swings again Monday, reopening the question of how long he could continue playing without a base.
The White Sox finally answered that question with "today" by putting him on the 10-day injured list with a lower back strain. They recalled Romy González from Charlotte, and he'll get the start tonight.
García, who had been playing closer to acceptable shortly before Tim Anderson went on the injured list last week, had been showing visible discomfort just as he assumed the starting role at shortstop. He tweaked something during the first at-bat of the second game of the doubleheader against the Royals on Aug. 9, and he spent the rest of the game buckling after every subsequent swing.
The injury limited García to two starts over the past week, but once he resumed falling over on Monday, the Sox probably determined that they couldn't rest him through it.
Alas, Lenyn Sosa is just 4-for-34 with one walk and 11 strikeouts in his place, along with some shaky defense. He doesn't quite look ready for the majors, which is understandable given that he's 22 with little experience at Triple-A.
In the meantime, they're calling up González, who would've been the first choice among Charlotte utility infielders had he not been hamstrung by hamstring issues and a tonsillectomy for most of the year. A month and a half on the injured list seems to have finally given him the time to heal up on both fronts. He crushed ACL pitching during a rehab stint, and he's back to playing everyday with Charlotte, although he's just 3-for-25 with a homer, double and nine strikeouts in his first six games back with the Knights.
The situation is a cry for help, and a fresh possibility emerged on the open market when the Oakland Athletics released Elvis Andrus.
The A's didn't cut him for performance reasons. He's hitting .237/.301/.373 over 106 games. Combine it with his average defense at short, and it's been good for a 1.3 bWAR and 1.6 fWAR. He's got a higher OPS in the second half (.767) than the first (.651), so it's not like there's a recent, sudden loss of skills.
So why did the A's release him? Probably the vesting option, which would guarantee him $15 million for 2023 if he reaches 550 plate appearances, and 386 to date puts him within striking distance. Because Andrus has been released rather than DFA'd, any new team would only have to pay him the prorated league minimum on a new contract for the rest of the year, and MLB Trade Rumors says the team signing him would not be on the hook for that option.
The White Sox would appear to be a mutually agreeable fit. Andrus would give them an adequate front-line starter (especially given the circumstances) during García's absence, and a great time-sharing candidate if García can somehow get his legs back, with Sosa and/or González returning to Triple-A to resume their development. The White Sox would give Andrus the playing time and the stage for his next opportunity, wherever it may be.
It makes so much sense that I'd be surprised if it didn't happen, so here's hoping there isn't a Michael Conforto-like injury issue that hasn't yet been made public.
