Sox' Adam Eaton may be hurt for a few games after wall slam
Much like last season, the losses are piling up on the White Sox and you find yourself glancing at the schedule to see if the finish line is in view.
But through another year of steady disappointment, new center fielder Adam Eaton has played with a fire that the Sox are hoping sparks some future success.
That's why there was some serious concern in the second inning of Wednesday afternoon's 3-1 loss to the Rangers at U.S. Cellular Field.
After White Sox ace Chris Sale hit J.P. Arencibia to open the inning, Maine South High School product Adam Rosales followed with a deep drive to right center, and Eaton was on the move.
"A ball hit earlier in the game (by Adrian Beltre) kind of had the same trajectory off the bat," Eaton said. "My initial read was it had the same, maybe a little bit more. The ball just kept going. My main objective is to catch it but I kind of miscalculated a little bit."
Eaton wound up slamming into the chain link portion of the fence at full speed, and he also caught some of the padding before crumpling in a heap on the warning track as Rosales rounded the bases with a 2-run homer.
Eaton slowly got to his feet and he had to leave the game with a bruised lower back. X-rays were negative, but the Sox' leadoff man might need a few more days to fully recover.
"As soon as I hit the wall, that was my initial feeling, I felt a little tension in the back," Eaton said. "Not a pop, but I definitely felt it. It was kind of scary. Tanky (Dayan Viciedo) kind of kept trying to pick me up. I told him to leave me alone, I can't even breathe. Let me catch my breath. I knocked the wind out of myself.
"My back was just kind of a scary moment. The first thing you hit the wall, you collect your body parts and make sure everything is working right. I'm glad it wasn't a concussion or anything like that."
Not many hitters are successful against Sale, but Rosales is now a career 6-for-11 with 3 homers and 6 RBI.
"I feel like I've always picked up the ball pretty well against Sale," Rosales said. "I'm an aggressive hitter and he just comes right at me. You better be ready. He's a great pitcher. I've just been fortunate in the few at-bats that I've had against him and the little success I've had against him."
Sale (10-2) said it was fortunate Eaton wasn't seriously injured.
"Obviously, we hope we get him back as quick as possible," Sale said. "I'd hate to be the guy that takes one of your top guys out. He's going to work hard to get back. I'll buy him some dinner or something."
Eaton's reckless style of play has been a big hit with Sox fans, but the risk of injury is always going to be there.
"That hurts him and obviously helps him," Sale (10-2) said after pitching 6 innings and allowing 2 runs on 3 hits and 2 walks. "But you respect it. You've got a guy who brings it every day and plays hard every single day. If the worse thing you say about the guy is he plays too hard, that's probably the best compliment you can possibly give him."
For the second straight start, Sale was limited to 6 innings of work.
"I was kind of sporadic through the whole game," he said. "It's been the last couple starts where my fastball command's been kind of off. Just work on that between here and next week and hopefully be able to get a little bit deeper into the game next time."