White Sox’ Keppinger makes no excuses for his hitting

Infielder Jeff Keppinger was back in the White Sox’ clubhouse Sunday collecting his belongings, and his right arm was in a sling following right-shoulder surgery Thursday that repaired fraying in the rotator cuff and labrum.

Keppinger said the shoulder bothered him all season, but he didn’t blame the discomfort on his subpar .253/.283/.317 hitting line.

“I never felt anything while I was swinging,” said Keppinger, who is signed for two more seasons. “Just throwing the ball got me pretty good. I had what you’d call chronic tendinitis. I would have a shot that would calm it down, but without giving it the rest it would keep coming back.

“I had an inflamed bursa sac that constantly kept coming back and getting inflamed, so they went in there to clean it out and take care of it so it would work smoothly and not be a problem next year.”

Keppinger said the recovery time is six weeks.

“By mid-November I should be 100 percent,” he said. “I start (preparing for the next season) in mid-November, early December, so it’s a good timetable to get healthy and get my arm back strong.”

How Keppinger fits into the Sox’ plans next year remains to be seen, but he’s happy the current season is finally over.

“Without a doubt,” Keppinger said. “Without a doubt. Tough season.”

Mr. 200:Closing his second year in the White Sox#146; starting rotation, Jose Quintana pitched 7 innings in Sunday#146;s loss to Kansas City and finished the season with 200, an important milestone.#147;I#146;m very happy because getting to 200 innings means that I was healthy, and I was also happy because I feel like I learned a lot this year,#148; Quintana said through a translator. #147;Those are the two main things that I feel very good about this year.#148;New hitting coach?After firing hitting coach Jeff Manto on Saturday, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said he#146;d prefer hiring a replacement that has experience at the major- or minor-league level.That would seem to eliminate Jim Thome and Frank Thomas from the search, which Hahn hopes to wrap up at some point in October.Rudy Jaramillo is an interesting name, and the former Rangers and Cubs hitting coach sounds like he#146;s interested in the job. The Cubs fired Jaramillo in June 2012.#147;It has been a long year-and-a-half away from the game,#148; the 60-year-old Jaramillo told ESPN Chicago. #147;I love the game and still have great passion for teaching. I am still fine-tuning my teaching and finding ways how to get better as an instructor.#147;I have known (Sox assistant general manager) Buddy Bell for a long time and (scouting and minor-league assistant director) Del Matthews is also a good friend.#148;