White Sox's Cordero, Renteria hit with suspensions in aftermath of Contreras incident
A day after hitting the Cubs' Willson Contreras with a pitch, White Sox relief pitcher Jimmy Cordero received a three-game suspension and an undisclosed fine Saturday.
Cordero is appealing is not expected to hear on a final decision until next season. That means the right-hander is eligible to pitch in Sunday's regular season finale and the playoffs.
Cordero, Sox manager Rick Renteria and pitching coach Don Cooper were all ejected in Friday night's 10-0 loss to the Cubs at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Contreras flipped his bat with some serious flair after hitting a 3-run homer in the third inning off White Sox starter Dylan Cease.
In the seventh, Cordero drilled Contreras in the left shoulder.
"I had just come into the game to do my job," Cordero said after Friday's game. "It was just a bad pitch, a bad pitch to him. It was not intentional."
Renteria and Cooper were also fined undisclosed amounts. Renteria served his suspension Saturday night and bench coach Joe McEwing filled in as manager.
"They did what they had to do," Renteria said of MLB's decision. "They have a protocol that they instituted this year and they're trying to stay consistent and follow it. So just abide by it.
"We stated our case, so to speak. We explained that it wasn't something we were looking to do, and it happened. It's in their judgment, it's the protocol that they have in place, so we'll just abide by it."
Engel being Engel:
The White Sox are hoping to have Eloy Jimenez (sprained right foot) back in the lineup when the playoffs start on Tuesday.
For the second straight game, Adam Engel replaced Jimenez in left field. Having a solid year with the bat and a capable defender at all three outfield spots, Engel is just looking to be himself.
"This is my fourth year now playing in the big leagues," Engel said. "The younger me might try to step up and completely fill the shoes of Eloy Jimenez, which is a pretty tall order. But being a little bit older and a little bit more mature, I'd say I'm just going out there and playing my game.
"I try not to step up and try to hit homers and do all the awesome things Eloy does. He's a tremendous player and obviously not having him in the lineup is not an optimal lineup for us. I can't try to be like Eloy Jimenez, that's not who I am. I think I'd make the team worse if I tried to be like Eloy, so I'm just going out there playing my game."
Garcia update:
Out since Aug. 11 after having surgery to repair a severed ligament in his left thumb, versatile veteran Leury Garcia is close to being ready to come off the injured list.
Garcia could be added to the White Sox's playoff roster.
"It's always a possibility," manager Rick Renteria said. "He's been working in Schaumburg, everything looks good, he'll be here tomorrow working a little bit, so we'll put our eyes on him and see what's happening with him.
"Nothing surprises me about Leury. This kid can sit for a month, fall out of bed and hit like he's playing every single day and do a lot of special things between the lines."