CLEVELAND (AP) — A much-needed win for the White Sox included another tough loss.
Chicago third baseman Yoán Moncada injured his left groin while running to first base in the second inning of Tuesday night’s 7-5 win over the Cleveland Guardians and could be sidelined for an extended period.
The extent of Moncada’s injury won’t be known until he undergoes medical tests.
But the 28-year-old was struggling to walk when he came into the clubhouse after the game and the glum expressions on some teammates’ faces indicated he might be out for a while.
A team translator said Moncada did not want to speak to reporters until he was re-evaluated.
The struggling White Sox, off to a 2-9 start, are already missing outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (hip flexor) and slugger Eloy Jiménez (adductor) with injuries, and could be without another one of their better hitters in Moncada.
The team initially said Moncada hurt his hip, but following the game manager Pedro Grifol changed the diagnosis.
“It’s a groin,” he said. “We won’t know (the severity) until tomorrow, how he wakes up and when he sees the docs and when we get the scans in. He was in some pain out there.”
Moncada, who singled in Chicago’s five-run first inning, was running to first after hitting a chopper to third when he pulled up and collapsed a few feet in front of the bag.
As he writhed in pain on the ground, Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor helped comfort Moncada before a Chicago trainer and Grifol reached him.
Moncada was helped to his feet and assisted to the dugout and clubhouse.
“I feel for him because he was in some severe pain,” Grifol said.
Before the game, Grifol said Moncada had been dealing with a nagging hip/adductor injury the past few days and had been getting treatment, but didn’t expect it to keep the infielder out of the lineup.
Afterward, Grifol said he didn’t think Moncada’s injury is the same one that’s been bothering him recently.
Nicky Lopez replaced Moncada in the bottom of the second before the White Sox blew a 5-0 lead and then picked up their first road win when Dominic Fletcher hit a two-run double in the eighth inning.
When Moncada got hurt, Fletcher said it was tough not to wonder what else could possibly go wrong.
“It sucks,” Fletcher said. “You hate to see guys go down with Eloy and Robert as well. That’s a lot of good hitters in our lineup that are missing, so guys gotta step up and continue to play hard.”
Moncada has been injury prone the past few seasons. He batted .260 with 11 homers and 40 RBIs in just 92 games in 2023 due to a back injury. He had his best year in 2019, batting .315 with 25 homers and 79 RBIs.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
