Will Venable referred to Chicago White Sox infielder Lenyn Sosa as a “sneaky performer.”
“He’s just a guy that was in there every day and (you) kind of just look up and he’s among our team leaders in all categories,” the Sox manager said Wednesday afternoon.
Sosa entered Wednesday with a team-leading 55 hits. But he’ll be out of the mix after going on the 10-day injured list with a right hip flexor strain.
Sosa said the setback occurred while he was running in Monday’s game against the Detroit Tigers at Rate Field.
“I started feeling it early in the game and as the game progressed, the pain was more intense,” Sosa said through an interpreter. “Thank God it’s nothing serious. I think (in) a week and a half, I’m going to be able to come back.”
With Sosa sidelined, the Sox recalled first baseman Tim Elko from Triple-A Charlotte.
“It’s been a journey and that’s part of the game,” Elko, 26, said. “I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. You’ve got to enjoy the ups and downs. Being back here definitely feels great to be with these guys and just get ready to win some games.”
Elko went 5-for-31 (.161) with three home runs and five RBIs in 10 games during his first stint with the Sox from May 10-22. He said his biggest takeaways from that experience included “trying to stay within myself, not try to do too much and just kind of see ball, hit ball.”
“I think when I was up here at the beginning, I think maybe I was overswinging a little bit, trying to do a little too much,” Elko said. “(It’s) kind of just staying within myself and just trusting myself.”
Elko has been a force with the Knights, ranking third in the International League in slugging percentage (.596), fourth in OPS (.984), tied for fourth in home runs (11) and 10th in batting average (.315).
“I felt really good yesterday, kind of got back in my groove and felt like myself,” Elko said of a 2-for-4 performance against Lehigh Valley. “So glad to be back here today.”
The Sox had Elko at first base and moved Miguel Vargas back to third for Wednesday’s game against the Tigers. Vargas had been playing more at first after the Sox optioned Andrew Vaughn to Charlotte. Josh Rojas shifted from third to fill Sosa’s spot at second.
“As we shuffle things after Sosa’s injury, just kind of made sense to backfill some infield stuff, we have the flexibility to do it,” Venable said. “We … were just talking about doing some iterations of our lineup where we do mix in Vargas at third base, just to continue to mix it in because it’s such an important part of his game and he does so well.
“So now we have the opportunity to do that. We’ll mix back and forth, but you’ll see him at third base.”
The Sox hadn’t locked down a timetable for Sosa’s return as of Wednesday afternoon.
“Today is a big evaluation day for him, we’ll set a plan at some point today and take it day by day,” Venable said.
Sosa is slashing .274/.291/.383 with four home runs, 10 doubles, 17 RBIs and 15 runs in 57 games. He has a .320 average in his last 21 games.
“I was feeling very good (at the plate),” Sosa said.
He has had success with two strikes, batting .271 (29-for-107). That was the fifth-best average in the American League in those circumstances as of Wednesday afternoon.
“Just be more patient in that situation, in that count,” Sosa said of his two-strike approach. “Because usually I like to swing at pitches out of the strike zone. That’s who I am, but in that count I try to be more patient and have a better selection.”
Venable said Sosa has provided a “really good performance and (has been) productive.”
“He’s meant a lot to this team and solid defense at second base,” Venable said. “We’re going to miss him. He’s been doing a great job, and hope he gets back soon.”
The Sox made two more roster moves Wednesday, claiming pitcher Ryan Cusick off waivers from the Tigers and optioning him to Charlotte while transferring pitcher Miguel Castro to the 60-day injured list.
Cusick, 25, has a 6.32 ERA and 11 strikeouts in 14 relief appearances this season between Triple-A Las Vegas in the Athletics organization and Triple-A Toledo in the Tigers system. Castro originally went on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to Thursday) with a patellar tendon tear in his right knee suffered while covering first base on May 28 against the New York Mets at Citi Field.
