Friday was a tough night all around for the White Sox, beyond the club’s 2-1 loss to the Royals. Center fielder Luis Robert Jr. was removed from the game in the ninth inning due to an injury to his right hip flexor, and right-hander John Brebbia was removed in the sixth inning due to a right calf strain. Robert came up limping around first base after hitting a double, while Brebbia’s injury seemingly occurred while fielding a Salvador Perez grounder. Brebbia remained in the game to walk the next batter he faced before being pulled.
Both injuries come with some backstory. Brebbia dealt with a calf strain during spring training, and made only two Cactus League appearances prior to the start of the regular season. Robert’s situation is more ominous, as a right hip flexor strain cost him close to three months of the 2021 season.
More will be known about both players later today, though it would seem like a trip to the injured list is very likely. James Fegan of the Sox Machine blog reports (via X) that infielder Lenyn Sosa is heading from Triple-A Charlotte to join the White Sox in Kansas City, and outfielder Oscar Colas was also pulled late from Charlotte’s game yesterday. If Colas was also added to the active roster along with Sosa, that could mean the team is comfortable going at least one day with only 12 pitchers on the 26-man, at least until they can figure out a more direct pitching replacement for Brebbia.
Beyond the potential losses of Robert and Brebbia, Chicago already placed another prominent name on the 10-day IL just yesterday when Eloy Jimenez was sidelined with an adductor strain. Between these injuries and a dismal 1-6 record, it is looking like another long year on the South Side in the aftermath of the team’s disastrous 101 losses in 2023.
Robert was one of the few bright spots of last year’s campaign, as the outfielder bounced back from two injury-plagued seasons to hit .264/.315/.542 with 38 homers and 20 steals (from 24 attempts) over 595 plate appearances. Since he made his MLB debut in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, this marked Robert’s first regulation-length full season, and it showed the talent that made Robert such a highly-touted prospect both in Chicago’s farm system and coming out of Cuba in 2017. The White Sox gave Robert a $26M bonus as an international prospect and then inked him to a six-year, $50M deal before he had even played in his first big league game.
While the severity of Robert’s injury hasn’t yet been established, another lengthy stint on the IL could impact Chicago’s plans at the trade deadline and beyond. Robert’s contract (which contains club options for 2026 and 2027) makes him one of the more cost-effective talents in the game, and since the White Sox seem to have at least one foot in the rebuilding waters, trading Robert would be the most logical way for GM Chris Getz to restock the farm system with talent. Getz downplayed the idea of a Robert trade during the offseason, and given the amount of team control remaining in Robert’s deal, there isn’t any immediate need for the Sox to trade him soon. An injury could well make this a moot point for 2024, at least, though if Robert misses a lot of time, it will lead to some inevitable second-guessing that Getz should have sold high on Robert this past winter.
Brebbia is a much more clear-cut trade candidate for this year’s deadline, as the righty signed only a one-year, $5.5M deal (with a $6M mutual option for 2025) with the White Sox back in January. If Brebbia’s calf is able to heal relatively quickly, it shouldn’t have much impact on his deadline availability assuming he pitches well after his return, though injuries have been a significant part of his history. The 33-year-old missed all of the 2020 season and most of the 2021 season recovering from Tommy John surgery, and a lat strain cost Brebbia close to half of the 2023 campaign when he was a member of the Giants’ bullpen.
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