Rotation juggling: Sox will start Broadway on Sunday
With Carlos Quentin, Paul Konerko and Joe Crede all out with injuries, White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen has no choice but to patch a lineup together every day.
The same goes for the Sox' starting rotation.
Jose Contreras ruptured his Achilles' tendon against the Red Sox on Aug. 9 and is out for the season. Left-hander Clayton Richard moved into Contreras' spot, but the rookie has struggled while going 2-4 with a 6.94 ERA and equally bad .323 batting average against.
In his last 2 starts - both losses - Richard pitched 8 innings and allowed 8 earned runs on 12 hits.
Richard will not make his next scheduled start, Sunday night against the Tigers.
"It's going to be, right now, Mr. (Lance) Broadway," Guillen said. "Right now, that's what we talk about against Detroit. We talk about (Broadway) because of the right-handed matchup."
Javier Vazquez moves up a day and starts against the Tigers on Saturday.
"I'm ready for whatever," said Vazquez, who started Game 1 of Tuesday's day-night doubleheader against the Blue Jays. "If they want to bring me back, I'm fine with that."
No excuses: The White Sox' lineup Wednesday featured Dewayne Wise playing left field and batting second, second baseman Alexei Ramirez moving up to the No. 5 spot and Jerry Owens batting ninth and playing center field.
"I still believe in the guys out there," manager Ozzie Guillen said. "They have to know we're in the pennant race; this is not a September call-up. If they don't play right, if they don't play the way the way we think they should play, we'll put somebody else out there. We'll try to figure out the best lineup every day."
Wise and Owens give the Sox something they've been lacking all season: speed.
"I think we still have some talent out there to perform in a different way," Guillen said. "(Joe) Crede's not there, (Carlos) Quentin's not there, Paulie (Konerko's) not there, then we have to execute better, we have to run the bases better, we have to get on base, we have to bunt. Those guys are supposed to do that and they better do it."
In the sixth inning Wednesday, Owens scored big points while laying down a perfect suicide squeeze bunt to score A.J. Pierzynski.
Feeling better: Javier Vazquez's mother-in-law was treated and released Tuesday night after being hit in the head by a foul ball during Game 1 of a doubleheader against Toronto.
"The CAT Scan was clear, so they let here go," Vazquez said.