NEW YORK — The injuries keep piling up for the Chicago White Sox outfield.
Center fielder Luis Robert Jr. has been on the injured list since Aug. 27 with a left hamstring strain. Left fielder Andrew Benintendi followed on Tuesday with left Achilles tendinitis.
And on Wednesday, right fielder Mike Tauchman landed on the IL with a meniscus tear in his right knee.
“Just kind of got progressively worse and worse,” Tauchman said before Wednesday’s game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. “And then kind of the tipping point was when we were in Minnesota (in early September), got a cortisone shot. That’s when I missed like four days, trying to let that settle in. I wanted to be out there, so I felt like the cortisone helped a little bit.
“I was feeling OK, and (Saturday) night against San Diego, made a play in the outfield sliding on it. It’s kind of a similar play to how it initially happened. And I kind of felt it, not pop or click — I felt it on that play.”
Tauchman said it progressively bothered him throughout the game and into the next morning.
“It was kind of feeling how it did before the cortisone, where things like walking around, going up and down the stairs, it was hard,” Tauchman said. “Took the off day, and it really had shown no improvement. It was a tough call, but surgery’s scheduled (Tuesday). It should be a fairly straightforward process.”
Tauchman’s IL stint was one of four moves the Sox announced on Wednesday. Relief pitcher Wikelman González went on the 15-day injured list with right elbow impingement. The Sox recalled pitcher Jonathan Cannon from Triple-A Charlotte and claimed outfielder Derek Hill off waivers from Miami.
Tauchman, 34, slashed .263/.356/.400 with 17 doubles, one triple, nine home runs and 40 RBIs in 93 games after signing a one-year deal with the Sox in December.
“It’s a great group,” the Palatine native said. “I enjoyed my time here. There were some frustrating things from a health standpoint that I’m excited to attack in the offseason. We’ve already started having some conversations about a good plan to put me in a good position for next year.
“I pride myself on being an available player and this year, to my standard, I wasn’t as available as much as I would have liked to have been. That’s going to be a big part of this offseason, is rectifying that.”
Manager Will Venable said Tauchman aided the Sox in a variety of ways.
“(Tauchman) was awesome,” Venable said. “We always talk about our young players and their development. That’s a lot, in part, to the veteran guys we have on our team that have done a great job kind of mentoring this young group and (Tauchman) was one of those guys who certainly made an impact on the young group.
“Obviously his performance on the field, just a really good clubhouse guy, a guy that has been around, understands how to go out there, compete, grind. We talk about finishing strong and he really set the tone of going out there and grinding through a lot of physical ailments and his body just eventually gave up on him there. Tough to lose him because he’s a big contributor, but he had a great season for us.”
Tauchman also made an impact in the community, earning the team nomination for the Roberto Clemente Award.
Shortstop Colson Montgomery said it’s been beneficial picking Tauchman’s brain.
“He played with some really good players and he’s really good at talking through approaches and things like that, simplifying things,” Montgomery said.
Tauchman will be ready to offer assistance from the dugout in the final days of the season.
“My job’s to be on the bench, support guys, (and) if guys have questions, if guys have things they want to talk about, that doesn’t change,” Tauchman said. “The only difference is I won’t be out there, but these games are important. Something that I’ve tried to express to the group this year is that every opportunity is important and every game is important, because you never know when something’s going to click for you, or something’s going to happen that opens you up to a new level.”
González had been one of the young players on the pitching staff. The right-hander, acquired from Boston as part of the Garrett Crochet trade, had a 2.66 ERA in 16 relief appearances.
“I think there’s not a lot of long-term (injury) concern, just where we’re at, trying to get him to the finish line as healthy as possible,” Venable said. “I think he could pitch, just want to protect him a little bit.”
In Hill, the Sox added a player with a .228/.276/.348 career slash line with 16 doubles, five triples, 14 home runs, 53 RBIs and 23 stolen bases in 214 games over six major-league seasons with the Detroit Tigers (2020-22), Washington Nationals (2023), Texas Rangers (2024), San Francisco Giants (2024) and Miami Marlins (2024-25).
Hill, 29, was designated for assignment by the Marlins on Monday after slashing .213/.275/.331 with six doubles, three home runs, 10 RBIs and seven stolen bases in 53 games.
“He’s a high-energy guy, he’s going to come with a positive attitude every day,” Venable said. “He loves to get out there and work. He’s an above-average defender, really good against left-handed pitching, good baserunner, has a ton of speed. He’s a dynamic athlete.
“Excited to have him here and be able to get him these last few games as we lose another good outfielder.”