Infielder Josh Rojas is set to begin a rehab assignment in Triple-A Charlotte on Tuesday, after missing the first 28 games of the season with a fractured right toe.
Rojas suffered the injury in Spring Training. At the time, White Sox manager Will Venable told reporters that Rojas was dealing with some pain and that the team is taking the injury day to day. While Venable was optimistic that Rojas could be ready for Opening Day, Venable admitted that his timeline would come down to pain tolerance.
The former Mariner was one of Chris Getz’s key offseason acquisitions, but his injury has thrown the team’s infield plans into flux. The current middle infield rotation has featured Jacob Amaya, who has struggled at the plate with just four hits in his first 50 at-bats, Chase Meidroth, who is currently on the injured list, and Lenyn Sosa, who has been productive offensively with a .271 batting average but has already committed a league-leading five errors at second base.
Rojas seemed to have the inside track to be the White Sox Opening Day second baseman. The six-year MLB veteran has had a strong Spring, batting .313 with a .759 OPS in his first 32 at-bats.
He has also played more career games at third base (282) than any other position, with second base (150) as his next most-played spot.
Rojas signed a one-year deal worth $3.5 million and has plenty of motivation to get back onto the field. The former 26th-round pick can earn $500,000 based on the number of games played. He will earn $100,000 if he plays in 90 games and an additional $100,000 for every 10 games after that, up to 130. Last season, he appeared in a career-high 142 games.
He can also make $500,000 for his number of plate appearances. Rojas will earn $100,000 if he logs 300 plate appearances and an additional $50,000 for every 50 plate additional plate appearances up to 300. Rojas would have met this incentive last season as well after logging 476 at-bats.
Despite his career .224 batting average, Rojas checks plenty of boxes for Getz. In six MLB seasons, the 30-year-old infielder owns a career 10 percent walk rate. Last season, he also had one of the lowest chase rates in baseball at 22 percent.
At the very least, his addition to the lineup will help improve the team’s defense, while giving Venable another veteran hitter to work good at-bats. Once he is ready to return, Amaya is the leading candidate to get jettisoned from the MLB roster.
