CHICAGO — The Chicago White Sox placed infielder Elvis Andrus on the 10-day injured list on Saturday with a strained left oblique.
The 34-year-old Andrus got hurt during his final at-bat in the eighth inning of Friday night’s 5-1 loss to Houston. He is batting .201 with a homer and 13 RBIs in 39 games this season.
There is no timetable for Andrus’ return.
“It’s even hard to evaluate that right now,” manager Pedro Grifol said. “You’ve got to wait a few days to see how it settles down and then see where he’s at. See how much pain there still is there and how he recovers. That’s going to be a slower process.”
Infielder/outfielder Romy Gonzalez was reinstated from the 10-day injured list. Gonzalez had been sidelined by right shoulder inflammation.
Hanser Alberto is expected to get most of the time at second base while Andrus is out. Gonzalez also could fill in at the spot.
Catcher Yasmani Grandal was slated to return Saturday night against Houston, but he was scratched. He left Thursday’s 4-3 loss at Kansas City because of right hamstring tightness.
Grifol said Grandal is still feeling the injury “a little bit,” and the manager wanted to be cautious.
“Especially with the off day on Monday,” Grifol said. “We’ll reassess it tomorrow. If he can play tomorrow, I might put him in there. If not, we’ll give him the extra 48 hours so he can be ready to go on Tuesday.”
Infielder Jake Burger was back in the White Sox clubhouse after playing two games in a rehab stint with Triple-A Charlotte. Burger had been sidelined by a strained left oblique, but he could be activated as soon as Sunday.
“I think it’s probably been four days where I fully felt like I could do everything,” Burger said. “Obviously progressed quicker than I felt like it was going to. I’m just happy to feel back to myself.”
