The White Sox had already planned to skip Dallas Keuchel’s next scheduled start on Saturday against the Tigers and now they’ve placed him on the 10-day injured list because of back spasms.
The left-handed veteran was pulled after only throwing 49 pitches in his last start against the Royals this past Sunday.
White Sox manager Rick Renteria said on Wednesday that the team was hopeful Keuchel would be back against the Twins next week.
The stint on the 10-day injured list for Keuchel is retroactive to Sept. 7, so the earliest he can return would be for the series finale next Thursday against Minnesota.
The White Sox have called up right-hander Reynaldo López to take Keuchel’s spot on the active roster.
López, who missed four weeks after his first start of the season because of a shoulder issue, was optioned to Schaumburg following his outing against the Twins on Sept. 2. He only lasted 1.2 innings in Minnesota and was baffled at the decision of getting pulled after only throwing 53 pitches.
López has only thrown 9.2 innings in four starts this season, allowing nine earned runs on 14 hits. He’s struggled, striking out 10 and walking 8 batters, while allowing three home runs in his limited time.
It’ll be interesting to see if the White Sox push Keuchel or not. At this point the White Sox are a lock to be in the postseason and are in position to win the division. They have eight games left against the Twins and Indians coming up in the next two weeks.
Yet, you have to imagine the team wants to make sure Keuchel is as close to 100% healthy when the playoffs do begin.
