The White Sox announced that outfielder Andrew Benintendi has been placed on the ten-day injured list, retroactive to April 7, with a left adductor strain. Fellow outfielder Greg Jones has been recalled to take his place on the active roster.
The news isn’t significant for the Sox in the short-term. They were unprecedentedly bad last year, setting a modern era record with 121 losses. They are out to a 2-8 start this year. They’re one of the few teams in the majors not actively trying to compete.
But they would surely love for their veteran players to build trade value and Benintendi is one of the most interesting guys to watch in that regard. Broadly speaking, his signing has not worked out well. The Sox gave him a five-year, $75MM pact ahead of the 2023 season but he hit just .246/.309/.374 for a wRC+ of 90 over the first two seasons.
However, he did have a strong finish last year. He started out with a brutal .195/.230/.284 showing, carrying that line when he headed to the IL in June due to an Achilles injury. He came off the IL and then hit 16 home runs in his final 322 trips to the plate. He drew walks at a 9.9% clip and only struck out at an 18.9% pace. His .251/.326/.470 line in that time translated to a 124 wRC+.
That gave him a bit of momentum coming into 2025, which has been up-and-down so far. He was hit by a pitch early in spring and fractured a bone in his hand, putting him on ice for a few weeks. He was able to get healthy by Opening Day and has a strong .290/.333/.484 line in his first 33 plate appearances this year. Unfortunately, he’ll now have to be put on the shelf for a while.
It may not be an extended absence. Benintendi departed Sunday’s game due to this adductor issue. The Sox didn’t initially put him on the IL, perhaps suggesting it was more of a day-to-day thing. But after a few days, he’s now been placed on the IL after all. Since it’s been backdated by two days, he could theoretically be back in just over a week.
Once he’s back, he would ideally pick up where he left off. He’s making $16.5MM this year and will be owed $31MM over the final two years of the deal. That will leave about $37MM left to be paid out when the deadline is approaching. Given his inconsistent performance in recent years, the Sox would probably have to eat a bunch of that to line up a deal, but they should be able to do that easily since they have almost nothing else on the books. How much they have to eat will depend on what kind of health/performance they get from Benintendi in the coming months.
For now, White Sox fans can get their first look at Jones, who was claimed off waivers from the Rockies just before Opening Day. He has only six big league plate appearances but has huge speed. He stole 46 bags in the minor last year, despite only playing in 89 games.