White Sox outfielder Austin Hays headed to injured list after 2-1 loss to Orioles
Left fielder Austin Hays is headed to the injured list after straining a hamstring while trying to run down a fly ball Monday night in the fourth inning of the White Sox’ 2-1 loss to the Orioles.
Hays came up short, and the resulting RBI single off the bat of Orioles right fielder Tyler O’Neill later proved costly when a ninth-inning Sox rally ended with an RBI groundout by Lenyn Sosa with the potential game-tying run on third base.
“Probably if [Hays is] not hurt, that ball is caught,” manager Will Venable said.
The Orioles’ other run came on a solo homer from shortstop Gunnar Henderson on an otherwise strong evening for Sox pitchers Grant Taylor, Erick Fedde and Lucas Sims.
The Sox were expected to make a roster move Tuesday.
“He’s a guy that our younger players look to as a veteran, in the clubhouse and on the field,” Venable said of Hays, who went 7-for-32 with a homer in his first nine games. “It’s a real bummer.”
ABS not as easy as A-B-C
The Sox have had a challenging go of it when it comes to MLB’s new automated ball-strike challenge system.
Sox catchers have made 15 ABS challenges to umpires’ pitch calls, tied for second-most in baseball, but have lost nine of them, a 40% win rate that put them third from the bottom among MLB teams.
Sox hitters have challenged just six pitch calls, among the bottom third of MLB, and won three.
“The overall strategy, it’s going to take time to develop because I do think that umpires are going to adjust as well,” general manager Chris Getz said before the Sox’ three-game sweep of the Blue Jays in their first home series.
Getz didn’t hold catcher Edgar Quero’s trigger finger for challenges against him. Quero, who challenged no calls Monday, has lost eight of his 13 challenges overall, while Reese McGuire is 1-for-2.
“More importantly for us, and just in [Quero’s] continued development, is his framing ability, getting those calls,” Getz said. “To get off course and focus more on the ABS challenging approach, I think, is not right.”
Cold forces time change
The start of the Sox’ scheduled night game Tuesday against the Orioles was moved up to 2:10 p.m. because of a forecasted high of just 37 degrees.
“I don’t think that this game is meant to be played in really, really cold weather,” manager Will Venable said.
Sox starter Shane Smith (0-2, 19.29 ERA) will look to shake off his ice-cold start to the season against Orioles left-hander Trevor Rogers (2-0, 1.38).
Hot hands on the farm
Over the weekend, shortstop Tanner Murray became the first Triple-A call-up to make his Sox debut this season. Fans, however, have long been looking to the next wave of talent coming from Charlotte.
A week into the season, power lefties Noah Schultz (1.00 ERA over nine innings, 10 strikeouts) and Hagen Smith (3.00 over six innings, nine strikeouts) have impressed through two starts, as has right-hander Tanner McDougal (2.00 over nine innings, 11 strikeouts).
The Knights also have gotten major production from Sam Antonacci (9-for-26, two homers, eight walks), an infielder and WBC veteran for Team Italy who’s learning left field on the job to hasten his path to the Sox. Second baseman William Bergolla Jr. (13-for-24, four doubles) also has fared well.
All five figure to get their first cups of big-league coffee this year, but not in the first month.
“You don’t want to get too jumpy,” Getz said. “I know it could be enticing to bring those pitchers up, but these guys are such a significant part of the future of the White Sox, and we want to handle this with care.”
Season’s greeting
The Sox claimed left-hander Doug Nikhazy a week after the 26-year-old was designated for assignment by the Guardians. The Sox optioned him to Charlotte to fill out the 40-man roster.
Nikhazy posted a 4.13 ERA with 467 strikeouts in 96 minor-league games (89 starts). He got rocked for six runs in four innings in his first two big-league appearances last year for the Guardians.