Crede's cranky back acting up
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The White Sox are expecting the good times to start rolling all the way into the postseason, but they are currently getting bumped from all sides.
The Sox dropped two of three games to the Royals over the weekend to finish 4-6 on a key AL Central road trip that started in Detroit and Minnesota.
The White Sox also fell out of first place for the first time since May 16.
Manager Ozzie Guillen has been trumpeting the eventual return of third baseman Joe Crede, starting pitcher Jose Contreras and workhorse relief pitcher Scott Linebrink from the disabled list.
After starting for Class AAA Charlotte on Sunday night, Contreras is expected to come off the DL and pitch against the Boston Red Sox this weekend, most likely on Saturday.
Linebrink is still in the early stages of a throwing program and appears to be at least two weeks away from being activated.
Crede was expected rejoin the Sox on Wednesday, but the third baseman's return is now uncertain.
After playing for Charlotte on a rehab assignment on Friday, Crede was a late scratch before Saturday's game with twinges in his troublesome back.
Guillen isn't sure when Crede might be ready to return.
"It's a setback for him, and it's not good for the balllclub," Guillen said. "It's not good for him personally. Hopefully, in the next couple of days, we have two days, tomorrow and Tuesday, to see how he feels.
"Hopefully, that tightness and pain is just because he hasn't played for a little while, and then his back got stiff. Hopefully, that's the scenario. But we'll wait and see what happens."
Crede was not in the lineup for Charlotte on Sunday night.
Baby steps: Scott Linebrink did some more throwing off flat ground before Sunday's game against the Royals.
"It felt fine,'' said Linebrink, previously singled out by Ozzie Guillen as the White Sox' MVP in the first half.
"I'm definitely going to have to work through some stuff. We've given it seven days to heal because it was muscular, and hopefully that was the time it needed. Now it's just a matter of kind of stretching it back out.''
Linebrink also played catch on Saturday.
"I didn't throw for seven days, so obviously it's not going to feel 100 percent when you go out there and start playing catch," Linebrink said. "It's a process. I was encouraged by today versus yesterday, so as long as we keep showing steady improvement like that I think we'll be all right."
Joe Cool: Catcher A.J. Pierzynski didn't mind putting on the gear and playing in Sunday's hot and humid conditions.
The heat index at the start of the game was 107 degrees.
"I grew up in Florida, so this kind of weather doesn't bother me,'' Pierzynski said. "You just have to drink a lot of water and try to stay as cool as you can. I'd rather play in this than the really cold weather we had in April.''