CHICAGO — The White Sox continue to get good news about their walking wounded.
Center fielder Luis Robert is the latest to return to action as he’ll be activated and in the starting lineup on Monday against the Minnesota Twins after being out since early May due to a hip flexor injury.
Manager Tony La Russa made the announcement during a Sunday zoom with reporters about two weeks after he welcomed left fielder Eloy Jimenez back from a torn pectoral.
Robert is a dynamic player who possesses both speed and power. He was hitting .316 with a .822 OPS when he got injured while running the bases.
Role players Brian Goodwin and Billy Hamilton, along with rookies Gavin Sheets and Andrew Vaughn, have picked up the slack while both outfielders were on the mend. Now, for the first time all season, the White Sox outfield will be healthy. Adam Engel missed the first portion of the year with his own injury, a hamstring strain.
The White Sox don’t want any setbacks with Robert after experiencing a small one with Jimenez. He missed a few days recently after injuring his groin while playing left field. La Russa was asked if there is a plan in place for Robert as it relates to playing time.
“I don’t know that he couldn’t play back-to-back,” La Russa said. “(However) no matter how much you work out or are on rehab (assignment) when you actually play in the major leagues, there’s a stress level there and a determination to dig a little deeper. So we have to be really careful there.”
The White Sox are hopeful their starting catcher, Yasmani Grandal, won’t be too far behind both Jimenez and Robert. He’s been out since early July with a knee injury.
“He’s making a lot of progress, and knock on wood, he’ll get back sooner than we thought when he first got hurt,” La Russa said. “It’s something we look forward to.”