White Sox place veteran infielder on injured list, likely to miss 3-4 weeks

The White Sox placed infielder Elvis Andrus on the 10-day injured list with a strained left oblique.  Taking Andrus’ spot on the active roster is Romy Gonzalez, who returns after his own 10-day IL stint due to inflammation in his right shoulder.

The injury occurred in Friday’s 5-1 loss to the Astros, as Andrus reported some discomfort in his side after his final at-bat of the game. Andrus was then replaced in the field for the top of the ninth, and the injury has proven troublesome enough to merit a trip to the IL. The severity of Andrus’ strain isn’t yet known, though even if Andrus has only a Grade 1 strain (the lowest level of oblique problems), he is still likely to miss at least three or four weeks of action.

It has already been a rough year for Andrus, who has hit only .201/.280/.254 over 151 plate appearances. Re-signed to a one-year, $3M free agent deal in the offseason, Andrus was projected to be Chicago’s regular second baseman, but he has ended up getting a lot of time at his normal shortstop position due to Tim Anderson’s own stint on the IL earlier this season. Defensive utility notwithstanding, Andrus’ lack of offensive production has resulted in a -0.1 fWAR performance through his first 39 games of the season.

Lenyn Sosa saw a lot of time at the keystone when Andrus was playing shortstop, but with Sosa currently at Triple-A, Gonzalez and Hanser Alberto figure to split second base duties in Andrus’ absence.  It’s not an ideal situation for a White Sox team that signed Andrus to ostensibly stabilize a longstanding hole at second base, though Alberto (a minor league signing) has at least hit .255/.304/.510 in his first 57 PA with the White Sox.