In the dog days of August, as players are accumulating around 500 at-bats worth of wear and tear, the disabled list accumulates casualties. Every team goes through it but, lately, it seems like a never-ending parade for the White Sox with the Yoan Moncada newest member of the DL.
Moncada was placed on the 10-day DL Friday after having an MRI, as well as a blood test to check his vitamin D levels, and was diagnosed with shin splits and a contusion. Thankfully, none of this is newly emerged, Moncada was sidelined with shin splints for two games on August 19 and 20.
“It’s a bruise on his shin,” Manager Rick Renteria said. “So, we’re going to keep him off his feet, let it calm down and we’ll see where he’s at in a few days. I think we’re going to keep him with inactivity for seven days. Let it calm down. I know that we’d given him a couple of days and it calmed down significantly, in terms of his opinion. He just aggravated it with a misstep at third yesterday. It was a left foot misstep and then a right step on the bag. It seemed kind of awkward, so he irritated it.”
Moncada is hopeful that the injury won’t keep him off the field for much longer than the 10-days. “For now, it’s going to be just the 10 days,” Moncada said through an interpreter. “But it’s going to depend on how the rehabilitation is going. I don’t like to be injured. No one likes to be on the DL. But there is nothing I can do about it. It is the best in this moment for me. I have to rest.”
Renteria is not concerned that the time Moncada spends sidelined will affect the progress he’s made this season. “Honestly, you could see him progressing,” Renteria said. “Both at the plate and in the field. Any injury or any time down for anybody is never a good time, but as far as where he’s at, we know he’s moving forward in a positive direction. We’ll just deal with it and see if we can get him back on track once he’s back on the field again.”
Moncada is currently hitting .188/.328/.356 on the season with three home runs and one stolen base. The most impressive thing Moncada has brought to the majors? His plate discipline. Moncada is currently walking at a 15.6 percent clip, which is helping keep his on-base percentage at a healthy level despite the low batting average and menial power numbers.
Moncada isn’t satisfied, though. He wants to improve and will always look for ways to do so — as soon as he can get back on the field. “I think the results haven’t been as good as I was expecting,” he said. “But now I’m just trying to get my focus and my learning process and to be prepared for next year.”
Another new young face may be seeing his first big-league trip to the DL soon. The White Sox scratched the recent White Sox under-the-radar sensation Nicky Delmonico from Friday’s lineup against the Detroit Tigers due to a sprained right wrist.
“We took an X-ray and there was nothing structurally, as far as the regular X-ray is concerned,” Renteria said pregame. “He took a swing, felt it. So, we’re sending him out to get an MRI and we won’t know until we get that back. So, I can’t comment on where he is, in terms of what degree of injury it is, if it’s long lasting or if it’s game by game.”
Delmonico began feeling pain around the third at-bat of Thursday’s game against the Twins, but stayed in the game, according to Renteria.
“He went up for the last at bat, and he didn’t mention anything to us during the game last night. But this morning he woke up and was uncomfortable. We sent him out to get the X-ray. Nothing structurally wrong. Now with the swing and pain, we’re going to send him back to get an MRI.”
The White Sox should have more information available on Delmonico’s status this weekend.
