White Sox finally climb over .500
You hear A.J. Pierzynski is on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday afternoon and the first thing you think is … waiver claim.
For as mystifying as the White Sox have been this season, they still are smack in the middle of the AL Central race.
It took some time, a very long time actually, but the Sox (61-60) are over the .500 mark for the first time since April 15 after outlasting the Cleveland Indians 8-7 in 14 innings Tuesday night.
Now a half-game behind second-place Cleveland, the White Sox blew a 5-2 lead but came back to beat the Indians on Juan Pierre’s single with one out in the 14th.
Getting back to the hole behind the plate, surely general manager Kenny Williams was working the phones after getting the news of Pierzynski.
Surely, he was kicking the tires on veteran catchers such as Rod Barajas, Gerald Laird, Yorvit Torrealba, maybe even Pudge Rodriguez.
Actually, Williams was doing nothing of the kind.
Tyler Flowers was in the starting lineup against the Indians, and that’s where he’s going to be until Pierzynski returns. Donny Lucy had his contract purchased from Class AAA Charlotte and is the new backup.
“There’s no help coming from outside,” William said. “Where are you going to … there’s no help coming. Tyler Flowers.”
Picking up a serviceable catcher for the stretch run wouldn’t exactly break the bank, but this is just another example of the White Sox being completely tapped out.
“I’ve made no secret about it for quite a while that we are limited from a payroll standpoint at this point in time,” Williams said. “We haven’t earned our fans’ patronage enough to put us in that position, and that’s nobody’s fault except our own fault. Anything that would come across right now, even if it were appealing from a talent standpoint, we are not in a position to be able to do it. Again, that’s our fault.”
The White Sox are hoping to catch a break with Pierzynski, who could be back by the end of August. The workhorse catcher doesn’t have a classic fracture — trainer Herm Schneider described it as a mix between a bone bruise and a sprain.
The Sox are being cautious, but Pierzynski is going to hit and catch in 10 days and he could be good to go. After being hit on the left wrist by a Bruce Chen pitch Friday, initial X-rays were negative.
“It had nothing to do with the first X-rays,” Pierzynski said. “They thought they saw something; they wanted to see how it was in a couple days. It’s more of a precautionary thing, so we did an MRI yesterday and a CT scan yesterday. They found, I don’t even know what to call it, a hairline fracture or something in there.
“It’s not displaced or anything, so it’s more of a precautionary thing than anything. Knowing me, I’d try to play today, but they’re basically doing this to keep me out of my own harm’s way. Hopefully we’re going to retest it in 10 days and if it’s better then hopefully I’ll be ready to go.”
Until then, Flowers is going to be the mainstay behind the plate. Before Monday, the 25-year-old catcher had 26 games of experience with the Sox over the past three seasons.
Flowers came through with an RBI double in the fifth inning to put the Sox in front 5-2. He added a triple with two outs in the ninth.
The White Sox hit 5 triples against the Indians, 2 by Alejandro De Aza. That was the most in a game since the Sox had 6 triples on Sept. 17, 1920.
Flowers has some good pop in his bat, but the 6-foot-4, 245-pounder said catching is his primary mission until Pierzynski returns.
“You definitely don’t want to see A.J. get hurt,” Flowers said. “A lot of what I’ve been able to do behind the plate comes from him, game plans and such. He’s the guy that stands three feet behind the hitters every day. It’s a tough blow to lose that, but it’s my job to fill in and pay attention to those things.
“I guess it’s an opportunity, but I’m not overly concerned about me going out there and getting hits and stuff. I’m more concerned about my pitcher on the mound and having good outings and the Chicago White Sox having more runs than the Indians.”
sgregor@dailyherald.com