The White Sox provided some updates this afternoon that featured a little bit of good and a little bit of bad.
Starting with the bad, the club placed reliever Reynaldo Lopez on the 15-day IL with a lower back strain. The move is retroactive to July 25th and a corresponding transaction will be announced prior to tomorrow night’s game. As for the good, outfielder Luis Robert has headed to Triple-A Charlotte to begin his rehab assignment later this evening.
Lopez, who’s turned into a valuable member of the White Sox bullpen, hasn’t appeared in game action since Saturday, July 23. Over 37 appearances this season, the right-hander has gone 4-2 with a 2.98 ERA (14 ER/42.1 IP), 5.50 K/W, 1.68 FIP, and 1.063 WHIP. Given how shaky the bullpen has been thus far, the team cannot afford to get any thinner from a depth perspective. In fact, the group has been tabbed as the “most obvious need” by GM Rick Hahn heading into the deadline, hinting that some further additions could be on the way.
As for Robert, the centerfielder has been sidelined since the club’s July 15 game at Minnesota. During which, the 24-year-old appeared to have trouble tracking several fly balls. The team has been vague when describing his diagnosis, citing blurred vision and dizziness as the key reasons for his absence.
Robert, 24, has been hitting .301/.334/.461 with 12 home runs, 54 RBI, a 126 wRC+ and 2.2 fWAR on the year.
No timetables have been given for either player’s return. The next few nights will likely be key in signaling whether Robert is feeling any improvement, so all eyes will be on Charlotte through the weekend.
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Featured Photo: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
