CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox placed infielder Miguel Vargas on the 10-day injured list on Friday with a sprained left hand.
Vargas departed in the fifth inning of Chicago's 10-4 loss to the New York Yankees on Thursday night. He was playing first base when he got hurt while trying to stretch for Curtis Mead’s throw from behind third.
It looked as if Aaron Judge’s left leg struck Vargas’ glove hand as he ran to first. Vargas’ glove fell off as he crumpled to the ground in pain.
“No break or fracture ... so he’ll rehab over these next few days," manager Will Venable said. "Obviously we put him on the IL, but hopeful that after his 10 days that he’s close and has progressed to the point where we can activate him.”
Vargas hit his first career grand slam in the second inning of the loss to New York. He is batting .234 with 14 homers and 52 RBIs in 121 games this season.
“It’s way better. I prayed for it to not have anything broken and be able to be here," Vargas said. "I guess it’s good news and hopefully I’ll be back soon.”
The White Sox also have center fielder Luis Robert Jr. on the IL after he got hurt on Tuesday. Robert could miss the rest of the season with a left hamstring strain.
While Vargas and Robert are sidelined by injuries, rookie shortstop Colson Montgomery returned to the lineup Friday night. He missed two games because of left side soreness.
“He’s in a good spot, excited to be out there,” Venable said. "He’s one of our guys, and when you’re down (Robert), you’re down (Vargas), just to have a guy out there with power and physicality like Colson does, it’s nice.”
Robert left Tuesday night’s 5-4 loss to Kansas City because of hamstring soreness, just when it looked as if he had found his form at the plate after a rough start to the season.
The 28-year-old Robert, a 2023 All-Star, is batting .298 (34 for 114) with five homers and 18 RBIs in his last 31 games.
“It’s no secret my first half was a bad one, but in the second half, everything was going my way,” he said Friday through a translator. “I was feeling good. I was feeling good in the outfield. I was feeling good at the plate. My body was feeling good. I was just focused on staying healthy and play as many games as I could because that’s what you want as a baseball player. But unfortunately this happened and there’s nothing I can do.”
Robert’s contract has $20 million club options for 2026 and 2027, with a $2 million buyout for each season. General manager Chris Getz has indicated the team plans to bring him back next year.
“I will be happy to stay here as long as they want me here,” Robert said. “But I also know that this is something that things can change. But yeah, definitely I would like to stay here.”
Chicago also recalled Tim Elko from Triple-A Charlotte before its matchup with New York. The rookie first baseman was in the starting lineup against the Yankees.
Elko batted .145 (9 for 62) with four homers and eight RBIs in his first 20 games of the season with the White Sox.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Jay Cohen, The Associated Press
