Dunn sits again, staying patient
Adam Dunn wants to get back in the White Sox’ lineup as soon as possible.
But after playing with a strained right oblique last week against the Twins and re-aggravating the nagging injury, Dunn is trying to be as patient as possible.
“I want to wait until I have no problems as opposed to coming back a day or two early and having this thing do this again and missing significant time,” Dunn said Tuesday before missing his fifth straight game.
Hours in the training room and an injection to ease the pain have helped, but oblique strains are hard to shake, especially when you swing as hard as Dunn.
“I knew that it wasn’t just a nice easy little strain, what I was feeling,” said Dunn, who leads the Sox with 38 home runs and 88 RBI. “It’s one of those things where I don’t know what else to do other than time and treatment. I think we gave it a lot of time so hopefully it’s ready.”
Wild thing:White Sox general manager Kenny Williams was hoping Francisco Liriano would bolster the starting rotation when he acquired the left-hander in a July 28 from Minnesota.Liriano was effective in four of his five first starts with the Sox, but he walked 15 in 14 innings in his last three outings and has been moved to the bullpen for the time being.The Twins did the same thing with Liriano in early May after he got off to an 0-5 start (9.45 ERA).#147;I think I was rushing things, trying to do too much, trying to be too fine to the plate, instead of just going out there to pitch,#148; said Liriano, who faced three Tigers in relief Tuesday night and failed to record an out.Floyd returns:Gavin Floyd is coming off the 15-day disabled list and he#146;ll start against the Tigers on Wednesday night in place of Francisco Liriano.Floyd last pitched on Aug. 26 before being shelved with a right elbow flexor strain for the second time this season.#147;He#146;s healthy,#148; manager Robin Ventura said. #147;He feels good. I thought he was throwing great until his elbow started hurting the last time he started. It#146;s nice to get him back. He#146;s a good arm to get back in there especially at this part of the season.#148;Floyd is 5-2 with a 3.21 ERA over his last 11 starts.Schedule change:The White Sox#146; Sept. 25 game against the Indians at U.S. Cellular Field has been moved from 7:10 p.m. to 1:10 p.m. so fans can attend the game and also observe Yom Kippur.It also means third baseman Kevin Youkilis can play for the Sox.#147;I know there was talk that there was something about maybe changing it for the fans on that day,#148; Youkilis said. #147;But it#146;s a good thing for the playoff stretch. I haven#146;t played (in the past). It#146;s one of those things where I played the night after. But other than that, no.#148;Something special:Rookie left-hander Donnie Veal continued to excel as a specialist Tuesday night, getting lefty Price Fielder to line out to second base with the bases loaded in the seventh inning.Left-handed hitters are 0-for-20 against Veal this season.#147;I#146;ve just been fortunate to this point,#148; said Veal, the Cubs#146; second-round draft pick in 2005. #147;I just try to get ahead and pound the strike zone. Right now, the breaking ball#146;s working for me.#148;