White Sox sign outfielder Randal Grichuk, put outfielder Austin Hays on injured list
ANAHEIM, Calif. — White Sox outfielder Austin Hays made it back for a couple of days from an injured right hamstring, but now he’s on the injured list again with a Grade 1 strain of his left calf.
To replace him on the roster, the Sox signed journeyman outfielder Randal Grichuk.
Grichuk, who recently was designated for assignment by the Yankees, will fill a slot for the time being. He’s predominantly a platoon player or pinch hitter against left-handed pitching, as his career splits indicate: He’s a .261 hitter against lefties and a .241 hitter against righties. He batted .194 for the Yankees and barely played, going 6-for-31 with no home runs and two RBI.
Grichuk declined a minor-league assignment with the Yankees and opted for free agency again.
‘‘I had a weird start to the season,’’ Grichuk told reporters in the clubhouse before the opener of the Sox’ three-game series against the Angels. ‘‘I faced [Giants left-hander] Robbie Ray in Game 2, and then we didn’t face a left-hander for 13 days. We didn’t do much pinch-hitting while I was there. I tried to get into a little rhythm at the end, which is all you can ask for.’’
The Yankees already have another right-handed-hitting platoon player in first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, who has been better hitting against lefties during the latter stage of his career. Goldschmidt hasn’t seen much action in the field, either, with Ben Rice having a breakout first month.
‘‘It was an interesting situation,’’ Grichuk said. ‘‘Goldy wasn’t playing. Then [designated hitter] Giancarlo Stanton got hurt. It was weird there the last three or four days I was there.’’
Grichuk has bounced around a bit since the last trade deadline, going from the Diamondbacks to the Royals to the Yankees and now to the Sox. He said he’s just glad to be in Chicago for a bit.
‘‘With Hays going down, we needed a right-handed hitter on the roster,’’ Sox manager Will Venable said. ‘‘We feel really lucky we got him. He’s a guy with a ton of experience that has performed really well in this league. We’ll use him mostly against left-handed pitching. You’ll see him in the outfield. You’ll see him at DH. Maybe against some righties. We’re excited to have him.’’
More bad luck for Hays
Hays returned from a strained right hamstring and was in the lineup Friday against the Padres in San Diego. He had a single in four at-bats and left for a defensive replacement in the eighth inning.
‘‘You know how it goes: The first week playing on these things is always the worst,’’ he said the next day. ‘‘Once you get through all that, it’s fine.’’
He actually was suffering from pain in his left calf, which hasn’t abated. He went on the 10-day IL, and utility player Tanner Murray (broken and dislocated left shoulder) was shifted to the 60-day IL.
What happened?
‘‘I woke up with some soreness after the afternoon game at home [Wednesday],’’ Hays said. ‘‘‘On the off-day [Thursday], I was hoping it was just some fatigue. But it was a little more sore, a little tender.
‘‘So I played the first game in San Diego. Then we tried to give it a couple of days of rest. It just got tighter and worse with the rest, so we decided to get the MRI on it.’’