Sox’ Peavy admits extra day off helps
White Sox starter Jake Peavy is an old-school pitcher.
Even with a rash of recent injuries, including a detached lat muscle in 2010 that threatened to end his career, Peavy still likes taking the ball every fifth day.
The Sox have been giving first-year starters Chris Sale and Jose Quintana breaks throughout the season, and Quintana is actually being skipped from his next scheduled start, tonight against Tampa Bay at U.S. Cellular Field.
Quintana is likely to start against David Price (18-5, 2.58) and the Rays on Sunday at the Cell, but the White Sox have been juggling the rotation almost daily and nothing is set in stone.
Peavy starts tonight in the first of four big games against the Rays, and he’ll be working with an extra day of rest.
“They just made a decision and just let me know,” Peavy said. “That’s how I found out about it. There was no dialogue. I do understand it. Any time you get an extra day this time of year, it helps.”
Peavy leads the Sox’ staff with 203 innings, and he’s failed to reach the seventh inning his each of his last five starts. Maybe the added day off will help.
“Any time you get an extra day, you feel a little more recovered,” Peavy said. “You do more stuff in the training room and make your body feel better than it did in the four days, but it’s still not a problem pitching on four days by any means. I’m excited about pitching tomorrow night and getting prepared for a tough Tampa team.”
Fatigue factor:As they head into their final two series of the regular season, there is little doubt the White Sox have been playing like a team that is tired.You can say the same thing about baseball#146;s other 29 teams at this late stage.#147;They#146;re tired,#148; manager Robin Ventura said of the Sox. #147;The season is long but they#146;re not tired where they can#146;t play. They#146;re focused and ready to play.#147;Everybody in the big leagues is tired to an extent. This is fun. And you#146;re at the end of the season with a chance to make the playoffs. If they#146;re that tired that they can#146;t play, they won#146;t play.#148;Black and blue:Since joining the White Sox on June 24, third baseman Kevin Youkilis has missed time with a sore back, knee and ankle.Youkilis appeared to injure his hand while grounding out against the Indians on Tuesday, but it turned out to be a cracked fingernail. He was back in the lineup Wednesday.