On Friday the Chicago White Sox placed Eloy Jiménez on the 10-day injured list with an adductor strain. Injuries have hampered Jiménez throughout his career. Last season he was out with ankle, elbow/arm, and hamstring injuries, including an appendectomy that kept him out for three weeks. The Dominican slugger has never surpassed 122 games in his career, only doing it once in his rookie season in 2019. The club selected the contract of Robbie Grossman and designated Alex Speas for assignment to make room for a roster spot for the veteran outfielder. White Sox general manager Chris Getz said earlier this week that Grossman could be added to the roster sooner than later.
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) April 5, 2024
White Sox Select Robbie Grossman
Grossman, 34, spent the 2023 season with the Texas Rangers, batting .238/.340/.394 en route to a World Series. He’s an average hitter in six of the past eight seasons. In that span, he hit a combined .245/.350/.387 slash line. Grossman is a career .282/.381/.426 against left-handing pitching but mediocre at best against right-handed pitching. Grossman comes with experience playing all three outfield spots, spending a bit of his time in center field, but that came in 2013. He’s usually a corner outfielder and designated hitter, with the majority of the work coming from left field.
Grossman’s Outfield Versatility
Despite having average defensive marks, Grossman can offer Chicago a veteran bat to step in for the injured Jiménez. He can fill in at the designated hitter spot and could also rotate with left-handed-hitting corner outfielders Andrew Benintendi and Dominic Fletcher against left-handed starting pitchers from time to time. As for Speas, he was a waiver claim from last October. The right-hander can hit 99-100 mph with his heater and he can reach higher than that. It led to strong strikeout totals in the minors but never translated well in the upper minors. He only pitched two innings for the Rangers last season but spent time between Double-A and Triple-A.
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