Prior to today’s game, the White Sox placed outfielder Andrew Benintendi on the 10-day injured list today due to left achilles tendinitis. Oscar Colas was called up from Triple-A to take Benintendi’s roster spot, as Francys Romero was the first to report (via X) yesterday.
It seemed likely that Benintendi was headed for the IL after he was removed early from yesterday’s game. Sox manager Pedro Grifol revealed to reporters that Benintendi had been playing with the injury for a while, and though the outfielder even homered prior to his early exit Saturday, the discomfort just became too much for Benintendi to bear.
The IL placement is yet another bad turn in Benintendi’s star-crossed tenure with the White Sox. He signed a five-year, $75MM free agent deal with Chicago in the 2022-23 offseason, but then hit only .262/.326/.356 over 621 plate appearances last year. The follow-up has been even worse, as Benintendi’s .195/.230/.284 slash line over 200 PA in 2024 has given him the lowest fWAR (-1.6) of any qualified player in baseball. While there are still over three and a half years remaining on Benintendi’s deal, the largest contract in White Sox history is already looking like an albatross, which isn’t great news for a rebuilding Sox team that will be trying to move as much veteran talent as possible in order to reload with younger players.
Colas was in today’s starting lineup against the Brewers, and he has appeared in one other MLB game this season (a pinch-hit appearance in Chicago’s 7-6 loss to Cleveland on April 10). The outfielder has otherwise spent the season at Triple-A Charlotte, hitting .244/.358/.406 with five home runs over 193 PA. It seems possible that this could be another cup of coffee type of promotion for Colas, as Luis Robert Jr. is expected to be activated from the injured list this coming week, and possibly as early as Tuesday when the White Sox next take the field.
Then again, Colas’ time in the Show could also be elongated depending on Andrew Vaughn’s status, as Vaughn has missed Chicago’s last three games. Vaughn hasn’t played since spraining his left ring finger while sliding into a base on Wednesday, and manager Pedro Grifol told MLB.com and other media that the plan was to see how Vaughn felt after 3-5 days of rest. If Vaughn still isn’t showing improvement on Tuesday, he might go on the IL himself (with three days of backdated placement) if Robert is ready to be activated.
Vaughn is unfortunately not far ahead of Benintendi, as Vaughn’s -0.8 fWAR is the fourth-worst of any qualified player. The former third overall pick had a 107 wRC+ and a .264/.317/.429 slash line over 1170 PA during the 2022-23 seasons, but he has taken a big step backwards with a .199/.264/.313 slash and four homers in his first 220 trips to the plate this year. Gavin Sheets has been filling in at first base in Vaughn’s absence.
Why is Andrew still in Chicago no one is willing to take his contract?
He makes Javy Baez look good.
I’d still rather have Benintendi. I have way more faith he’ll figure it out at the plate than Baez, plus his contract isn’t quite as nuts.
Nobody’s taking that contract when his production crashed through the floor unless CHW pays it way down AND sends prospects along with him.
Benintendi will be fine. He’s putting in the work and you can tell it’s paying off.
He’s just running into pitchers that are throwing the best sequence of pitches they’ll throw all year.
U sound like pedro
Guess again, and it’s NOT Steve Stone.
This guy has been absolutely terrible since signing. At one point he was one of the top prospects in all of baseball. Crazy.
He’s been average in his entire career.
Even as ROTY runner-up, I thought AB was dreadfully overrated.
Wsox have anything but to go up after this season.
With Reinsdorf as the owner it will get worse
The season might be so bad it may or may not force him to sell. I said the same thing to the A’s.
Yeah, but it’s not historically bad.
Before I even read the article, I knew that the injury couldn’t have come while running the bases.
Has anyone been seeing how Chicago Cubs Kyle Hendricks has been pitching the past few weeks.
If any club looking for a solid starter.He your guy
WOW
They should trade him for Ely De La Cruz or Ranger Suarez while they still can.
They might be able to send him to WAS for Joey Gallo if they pay down Benjntendi’s contract. AB has big time negative trade value that’s only getting worse.
Whatever you do, I conclude a lot of help is needed! you looked horrible against the brewers!
As the Yankees found out when they traded three young arms for him (not breakout arms yet), Benintendi just doesn’t quite live up to the promise of his early career. At his best, he’s a good player, not an exceptional one.. Had a 4.8 BWAR as a 23 year old, never been over 2.8 since then, Contract was an overplay.
It’s one contract.. omg one brutal contract after this year… that’s nothing.. the sox have about 50-60 mil for 2025 that’s it.. that’s the team salary when they don’t pick up the options for moncada and Eloy and Maldonado and others.. the Beni contract means doesn’t hinder them at all.. i’d rather see something about how detrimental Pedro Grifol is to the development of these guys and all his horrible pre and post game comments and HORRIBLE in game decisions.. not the kind of guy you want to teach your young guys how to play. I’d rather have renteria back and he was horrible.
That Tommy Pham…
The series to watch this week between the Cubs and Sox won’t be played in Wrigley. It’ll be played in Kodak Tennessee. Barons at Smokies. Smokies started out slow but are heating up and are 2 games back of the Barons for 1st Place. I’ll be watching, Everybody else should too. The games will probably be better anyway.
The only entertainment for these Sox games are afterwards with Frank and Ozzie becoming more and more vocal about the issues they see with the club. I know Ozzie is trying to protect Ventura 2.0 but just be honest Ozzie. Yes, this team is not good (barely average), but everything he (Grifol) was espousing about better defense, smarter play, execution, etc. in the spring is just not happening and apparently he is too afraid to tell ‘the Chairman’s’ puppet that he wants better (or at least different) players. Also it seems like Grifol is watching another team with his comments. As for his ‘tough guy’ act that he tried about the players about a week ago.. well the players know he (and the org as a whole) is a pushover, they can stink it up and still be out there, just like their lame third base coach (how he still has a job, especially after the Pham send to home, is beyond me) The fans are not stupid, well most aren’t, stop trying to con them with his inane comments before or after games.
Again where is the accountability? Why is the hitting coach still here? Yeah, I get that the guy cannot go out and hit for the players, but when the whole team sucks, there has to be a fall guy. That is the hitting coach (right or wrong).