Lance Lynn

White Sox Make Series Of Roster Moves

By James Hicks | August 27, 2022 at 1:22pm CDT

The White Sox announced a series of roster moves today, including placing right-hander Lance Lynn on the bereavement list and third baseman Yoan Moncada on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain. To take their places on the active roster, the club reinstated utilityman Leury Garcia from the 10-day IL and recalled right-hander Davis Martin from Triple-A Charlotte.

This is the second hamstring-related IL stint of the season for Moncada, who missed 10 days due to a strain in his right hamstring back in June. That absence followed a longer IL stint at the start of the season due to an oblique strain, which delayed Moncada’s 2022 debut until May. All of these injuries have contributed to a miserable season for the third baseman, who has only a .197/.269/.313 slash line over 324 plate appearances.

The White Sox in general have been hampered by injury absences all year long, and Moncada joins other regulars in Tim Anderson and Yasmani Grandal as current members of the IL. Garcia’s return will help make up some of that depth in the infield, though Garcia is himself struggling through a mediocre year at the plate. Garcia, Josh Harrison, and rookie Romy Gonzalez now figure to split duties between third and second base.

Starting Pitching Rumors: Cardinals, Castillo, Mariners, AL Central

By Steve Adams | July 29, 2022 at 9:13am CDT

The Cardinals are “intent on upgrading the rotation, not just spackling it,” Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports in a comprehensive look at the team’s potential deadline trajectories. While past deadline trades have often brought stopgaps options to St. Louis (e.g. Jon Lester and J.A. Happ just last year), the Cardinals could aim a bit higher this time around. Athletics right-hander Frankie Montas and Marlins righty Pablo Lopez are among the starters in whom the Cards have expressed interest, per the report. Goold also lists Angels right-hander Noah Syndergaard as a name of interest, and there are surely others the Cardinals are considering as they look to offset injuries to Jack Flaherty, Steven Matz, Alex Reyes and Dakota Hudson (who has struggled even when healthy this season).

St. Louis has upwards of $155MM already on the books for the current season, though that number will dip to around $90MM for the 2023 campaign (not including several notable arbitration raises). The Cardinals are still nearly $10MM shy of their record Opening Day payroll ($164MM), and they’ve gone a bit further than that with some midseason acquisitions in recent years, so there should still be payroll space to accommodate players making substantial salaries. They also have one of the game’s deepest farm systems, allowing them to bid competitively for the market’s top arms.

Some more notes on the trade market for starters…

The Mariners are looking for rotation help, and Ken Rosenthal reports in his latest appearance with FOX Sports that Reds ace Luis Castillo “seems to be their main focus and target” at this juncture (Twitter link, with video). Seattle’s top four starters — Logan Gilbert, Robbie Ray, Marco Gonzales and Chris Flexen — have made at least 19 starts, and they’ve received good results from top prospect George Kirby since plugging him into the rotation (3.50 ERA through 13 starts). However, Kirby is at 96 innings between the minors and big leagues combined, which is already a notable jump from last year’s total of 67 2/3 innings. Gilbert’s 123 innings effectively match last year’s total of 124 1/3 frames. Beyond that, the Mariners probably can’t expect to avoid any notable injuries on the starting staff all season — few teams can — so there’s good sense in adding another arm to support the group. In Castillo’s case, he’d of course slot right in alongside Gilbert and Ray into a playoff rotation and give the M’s an excellent trio upon which to lean both this season and next.
For all the teams seeking pitching help, however, it’s the trio of AL Central front-runners that are the most aggressive at the moment, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tweets. The Twins, Guardians and White Sox are all looking to bolster their pitching staffs (rotation and/or bullpen help alike). The American League Central is the one division in the sport where there are three legitimate contenders for the division crown at the moment, and both Cleveland and Chicago (who currently trail Minnesota) are within 3.5 games of a Wild Card berth as well. There’s been prior speculation (here included) about the White Sox potentially going another direction, but they’ve been playing some of their best ball of the season this month and have thusly not had any discussions about the possibility of trading away veteran arms like Lance Lynn and Lucas Giolito, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweets.
As for the Twins, 1500 SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson suggested in yesterday’s podcast that Reds right-hander Tyler Mahle could be the likeliest name to land in Minnesota by Tuesday’s deadline, though the Twins are casting a wide net as they seek both rotation and bullpen help. Minnesota has also spoken to the Marlins about righty Pablo Lopez, Wolfson added.

White Sox Place Yasmani Grandal On Injured List, Activate Lance Lynn

By Anthony Franco | June 13, 2022 at 3:24pm CDT

The White Sox announced they’ve placed catcher Yasmani Grandal on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to June 12, due to lower back spasms. Coming off the IL to take his active roster spot is starter Lance Lynn, who is in line to make his season debut. In order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Lynn — who had been on the 60-day IL — the club has placed reliever Ryan Burr on release waivers.

Grandal missed yesterday’s game against the Rangers because of a left hamstring issue, but the back spasms diagnosis comes as a surprise. Chicago selected Seby Zavala to the MLB roster yesterday as insurance, and he figures to back up Reese McGuire for as long as Grandal is out. The two-time All-Star will be eligible to return by the middle of next week, but the team has yet to provide any sort of timetable for his recovery.

Even prior to the injury, the 2022 campaign has been a nightmare for Grandal. Typically one of the game’s best offensive catchers, the 33-year-old has had a very rough first couple months of the season. Over 201 plate appearances, he’s hitting .185/.294/.237 with just a pair of home runs. Grandal is still drawing walks at an excellent 13.4% clip, but he’s collected only five extra-base hits all year as his batted ball quality has plummeted. It’s a rather shocking downturn for a player who hit .240/.420/.520 in 93 games last season, and the IL stint will perhaps afford Grandal an opportunity for a mental reset as he searches for his previous form.

McGuire, acquired from the Blue Jays just before Opening Day, hasn’t made much of an offensive impact either. He’s hitting .235/.280/.286 in 110 trips to the plate in a Chicago uniform, a step back from the .253/.310/.343 mark he posted in Toronto last year. A left-handed hitter, he’ll pair with the righty-swinging Zavala to form the catching tandem for manager Tony La Russa for now.

Lynn is listed as the probate starter for tonight’s game against the Tigers. La Russa suggested yesterday he’d likely be activated on Tuesday, but he’ll take the ball for the first time a day earlier than anticipated. The 35-year-old righty has been out all season after undergoing right knee surgery in April, but he’s now ready to get back on the hill. That should be a notable boost for a Chicago team that owns a disappointing 27-31 record, as Lynn has been one of the game’s most effective arms over the past couple years. He tossed 157 innings of 2.69 ERA ball last season, earning a two-year contract extension in the process.

Burr, meanwhile, could be seeing his time in the organization come to a close. A Diamondbacks draftee, he was acquired by the ChiSox as a minor leaguer in 2017 and reached the bigs a season later. He’s suited up at the MLB level in each of the past four years, making 66 appearances. The righty has a 4.08 ERA across 75 innings, including an excellent 2.45 mark through 36 2/3 frames a season ago. However, he’s posted a mediocre 20.6% strikeout rate and an elevated 12.2% walk percentage during his MLB tenure.

It seems the primary impetus for Burr’s release, however, is a health issue. The 28-year-old has been on the minor league injured list for the past couple weeks with an undisclosed injury. Players on the MiLB IL still count against a team’s 40-man roster, but injured players cannot be placed on outright waivers. To take Burr off the 40-man roster, Chicago either had to release him or recall him and place him on the MLB 60-day IL. The latter course of action would’ve required paying him a major league salary, however, and the Sox have decided they’d rather expose him to waivers.

While Burr hasn’t missed many bats at the MLB level, he’s induced grounders on more than half the balls in play against him and averaged around 95 MPH on his fastball. That could intrigue another team enough to grab him and stash him on their 40-man roster or major league injured list. If Burr clears waivers, he’d be a free agent.

Lance Lynn Likely To Be Activated Tuesday

By Darragh McDonald | June 12, 2022 at 9:03am CDT

White Sox manager Tony La Russa tells reporters, including Scott Merkin of MLB.com, that starter Lance Lynn will likely be reinstated from the injured list in order to start Tuesday’s game against the Tigers.

Acquired from the Rangers prior to the 2021 season, Lynn had just one year remaining on his contract at the time he joined the Pale Hose. He was excellent in his first few months with the White Sox, throwing 90 2/3 innings over 16 starts with a 1.99 ERA. That showing was enough for them to put down $38MM in order to keep him around for two more seasons, with a club option for 2024 as well.

Coming into this year, Lynn was set to be a key member of a rotation that looked to be a strength for the South Siders, though that hasn’t gone according to plan. Lynn left his final Spring Training start with discomfort in his right knee, the same knee that sent him to the injured list for a time in 2021. He ultimately required surgery and has been working his way back to health ever since.

The Sox have seen their rotation depth tested in a few different ways this year, on top of not yet having any contributions from Lynn thus far. Lucas Giolito has been on the IL twice, Vince Velasquez is currently out due to a groin injury, and Dallas Keuchel struggled enough to get released. Still, the starting corps has still held its own, thanks to strong performances from Giolito, Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech and Johnny Cueto. Chicago starters have a 3.99 ERA on the year as a unit, 14th-best in the majors, not terrible considering the hiccups they’ve faced.

The club has been weathering their injuries enough to tread water in the American League postseason race, currently sitting on a 27-30 record, just 2 1/2 games out of a playoff spot. If Lynn can return and show anything resembling his 2019-2021 form, he will give a huge boost to the club. Over those three seasons, he threw 449 1/3 innings with a 3.26 ERA, 27.5% strikeout rate and 6.9% walk rate. The 12.3 fWAR he accumulated in that time was fifth among qualified pitchers across baseball, trailing only Jacob deGrom, Gerrit Cole, Zack Wheeler and Max Scherzer. Once Lynn takes the ball, the rotation should be at full strength, with the 35-year-old slotting next to Giolito, Cease, Kopech and Cueto. Davis Martin, who recently fared well in three spot starts (one behind an opener), will likely be bumped down to the sixth spot on the depth chart, pitching in Triple-A or long relief in the meantime.

AL Central Notes: Lynn, Candelario, Tigers, Twins, Ryan, Dobnak

By Mark Polishuk | June 5, 2022 at 5:52pm CDT

Lance Lynn is scheduled to make his third rehab start on Wednesday, White Sox manager Tony La Russa told reporters (including Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times). Beyond that, La Russa left open the possibility that Lynn could be activated from the 60-day injured list, assuming that the veteran right-hander is feeling good coming out of that next Triple-A outing.

Knee surgery sidelined Lynn in early April, so the hurler has yet to make his 2022 debut. Getting Lynn back in action would be a huge help to a Chicago team that has been bitten hard by the injury bug, but the White Sox are still treading water despite a shorthanded roster. The White Sox improved to 25-27 after today’s 6-5 win over the Rays.

White Sox Place Luis Robert On Injured List; Lynn, Jimenez Nearing Rehab Assignments

By Anthony Franco | May 24, 2022 at 4:01pm CDT

The White Sox have placed center fielder Luis Robert on the COVID-19 injured list. Corner infielder Jake Burger was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte to take his place on the active roster.

Speaking with reporters (including James Fegan of the Athletic), general manager Rick Hahn indicated that Robert has been experiencing symptoms of the virus. Whether he’s tested positive isn’t clear, but Hahn indicated he didn’t expect the 2020 Gold Glove winner to return to the team until next week. In the meantime, it seems likely Adam Engel will handle the center field duties, as he is tonight against the Guardians.

Robert is off to another great start to the season. One of the game’s top defensive outfielders, the Cuba native also consistently posts quality production at the plate. This season, the 24-year-old is hitting .285/.319/.438. That’s far better than the .237/.308/.380 league average offensive output, and Robert has also chipped in six stolen bases. While he’s not likely to be out for an extended period of time, the Sox will be down one of their best players for the next few games.

Hahn provided more fortuitous news on a pair of key players rehabbing from injury. Both starter Lance Lynn and left fielder Eloy Jiménez are likely to head out on minor league rehab assignments within a week. That’s not particularly surprising in Lynn’s case, as the big right-hander had progressed to throwing to live hitters. It’s a more positive development for Jiménez, who is exactly a month removed from a hamstring tendon tear that initially came with a six-to-eight week recovery timetable.

Pitchers are allotted up to 30 days on rehab assignments; those stints can last as many as 20 days for position players. Lynn is still at least a few weeks from his return, as he’s on the 60-day injured list and not eligible to make his season debut until June 6 at the earliest. Jiménez, meanwhile, seems to be trending towards the earlier end of his initial timetable. The power-hitting outfielder had scuffled through the season’s first couple weeks, hitting .222/.256/.333 with a lone homer in 11 games.

Injury Notes: Bryant, Renfroe, Lynn

By Steve Adams | May 24, 2022 at 1:44pm CDT

Rockies left fielder Kris Bryant was scratched from yesterday’s game about 90 minutes before first pitch due to continued discomfort in his back, writes Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. He’ll be further evaluated today, but it’s an ominous scratch given that Bryant only just returned from a month-long absence due to a lower back injury.

Signed to a seven-year, $182MM contract in free agency this past offseason, Bryant was viewed by the Rockies as a potential lineup centerpiece who’d bolster a revamped outfield that also featured trade acquisition Randal Grichuk. Bryant, however, has gotten out to a tepid .270/.342/.333 start to the season and yet to put a ball in the seats. The Rox barely changed the rest of their roster but did sign four in-house players to multi-year extensions (Ryan McMahon, Antonio Senzatela, C.J. Cron and Elias Diaz). Ownership and the restructured/thinned-out front office group clearly had confidence that last year’s group could deliver better results, and while that’s been true to an extent, the Rox are currently at fifth place in the NL West with a 19-22 record.

Some more injury scenarios to keep an eye on…

Brewers outfielder Hunter Renfroe exited yesterday’s game due to hamstring discomfort after scoring from first base on a double and is headed for an MRI to determine the extent of any damage he may have suffered, tweets MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. Acquired in the offseason trade that saw the Brewers dump Jackie Bradley Jr.’s contract on the Red Sox — Milwaukee also sent a pair of prospects to Boston in the deal — Renfroe is out to a solid .266/.303/.503 start this season. His nine homers place him in a three-way tie for the team lead alongside Rowdy Tellez and Willy Adames. However, like Renfroe, Adames is currently sidelined; the Brewers placed him on the 10-day injured list last week, owing to a high ankle sprain. If Renfroe is to join Adames on the injured list, that’ll mean 29% of the Brewers’ home runs are sitting out at a time when the team has generally been struggling to score runs. Milwaukee ranks seventh in the Majors with 195 runs (4.6 per game), but they’re averaging just 3.5 runs per contest over their past 10 games.
Right-hander Lance Lynn has yet to make his 2022 debut with the White Sox after undergoing spring knee surgery, but he’ll throw to live hitters for the second time in his rehab process today, as noted by MLB.com’s Betelhem Ashame. Lynn, who also faced hitters this past Friday, inked a two-year, $38MM extension with the Sox last summer just prior to the trade deadline. The 35-year-old Lynn had a career year with the South Siders in 2021, pitching to a 2.69 ERA in 157 innings over the life of 28 starts, and he’s posted a terrific 3.26 ERA in 449 1/3 frames dating back to 2020.

White Sox Transfer Lance Lynn To 60-Day IL, Activate Lucas Giolito

By Steve Adams | May 18, 2022 at 12:26pm CDT

The White Sox announced Wednesday that they’ve reinstated righty Lucas Giolito from the Covid-related injured list and opened a spot on the 40-man by transferring righty Lance Lynn to the 60-day injured list. It’s a procedural move that doesn’t impact Lynn’s timetable; he’s eligible to be activated on June 6, as the “60-day” minimum window is retroactive to his original IL placement — not today’s transfer.

Giolito was placed on the Covid list just last week but will return in a matter of days. The brief stint on the IL pushed back his start by a few days, as he’ll be taking the hill for the first time since May 10 when he does so in a few hours against the Royals. Giolito also missed 12 days earlier this season due to an abdominal strain, but he’s been characteristically excellent when on the active roster. In five starts (26 2/3 innings), he’s pitched to a 2.70 ERA with a 35.2% strikeout rate and an 8.6% walk rate. Dating back to his 2019 breakout campaign, Giolito has been Chicago’s most consistent starter, turning in 454 1/3 frames of 3.43 ERA ball and thrice receiving down-ballot Cy Young votes.

Lynn, 35, left his final Spring Training start with knee discomfort, and subsequent evaluations revealed a torn tendon that required surgical repair. He’s yet to embark on a minor league rehab assignment and isn’t even slated to face live hitters for the first time until Friday, so he wasn’t likely to return prior to June 6 anyhow. Assuming all goes well with his live batting practice session and his handful of minor league rehab outings, an early or mid-June return seems realistic.

The Sox inked Lynn to a two-year, $38MM extension with a third-year club option last July. He’d been set to reach the open market following the 2021 campaign and likely would’ve been positioned as one of the market’s top veteran arms, but he opted for the security of a new multi-year deal with a win-now club that’s just a few hours from his hometown in Indiana. Over the past three seasons, Lynn carries a 3.26 ERA with a 27.5% strikeout rate and a 6.9% walk rate in 449 1/3 frames.

With Giolito now back and Lynn perhaps not terribly far behind, the White Sox’ rotation is approaching full strength for the first time this season. They’ll have some decisions to make, barring further injuries, as Giolito and Lynn will join a starting mix that also includes Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech, Dallas Keuchel, Vince Velasquez and Johnny Cueto, who blanked Kansas City over seven frames in an outstanding ChiSox debut this week. Of that group, Keuchel and Velasquez have struggled considerably, though Keuchel’s $18MM salary may earn him some additional leash. Kopech, meanwhile, could have his innings carefully monitored as he embarks on his first full season as a big league starter.

Lance Lynn To Undergo Knee Surgery, Will Be Shut Down For Four Weeks

By Mark Polishuk | April 3, 2022 at 6:34pm CDT

White Sox ace Lance Lynn will undergo surgery this week to repair a small tear in his right knee tendon, Sox GM Rick Hahn told reporters (including MLB.com’s Scott Merkin). Lynn will be sidelined for approximately four weeks before he can throw off a mound again, so the right-hander might not be back until roughly late May, given the recovery period and then a ramp-up period.

The injury seemingly took place last night, when Lynn was in visible pain after throwing a pitch during his final Cactus League start. Lynn immediately left the game and was moving gingerly on his right leg.

There’s no easy way to replace a pitcher of Lynn’s caliber, though the White Sox have Reynaldo Lopez and Vince Velasquez as swingmen in their bullpen, plus Jimmy Lambert and non-roster invite Wes Benjamin in the minors. For now, it seems like Velasquez or Lopez will join Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel, Dylan Cease, and Michael Kopech in Chicago’s rotation.

Given Keuchel’s struggles last season and Kopech’s lack of starting experience, there were already question marks about the amount of starting pitching depth the White Sox had on hand even prior to Lynn’s injury. The Sox focused much of their offseason shopping on upgrading the bullpen as a way of improving the pitching staff overall, yet even the relief corps has been shortened in recent days, as Craig Kimbrel was traded to the Dodgers and Garrett Crochet (also a potential candidate to move into the rotation at some point this year) was lost for the season due to Tommy John surgery. Carlos Rodon was a big part of the White Sox staff last season, of course, but the southpaw left in free agency to sign with the Giants.

With this in mind, Hahn told ESPN’s Jesse Rogers and other media that “we may need to add at some point” from outside the organization. More will be known once Lynn’s timeline becomes a bit clearer, though Hahn is optimistic that Lynn will be fully recovered when he does return to action. Hahn said that Lynn’s injury was similar to Yasmani Grandal’s tendon tear in his left knee, which cost the catcher close to two months of the 2021 season before he was able to get back into the field.

Lynn posted a 2.69 ERA, 27.5% strikeout rate, and 7.0% walk rate over 157 innings last season, his first in Chicago after the White Sox acquired him in an offseason trade from the Rangers. Lynn finished third in AL Cy Young voting, marking the third consecutive year that the veteran righty has finished in the top six of Cy Young balloting.

Lance Lynn Leaves Game With Right Knee Discomfort

By Mark Polishuk | April 2, 2022 at 10:24pm CDT

White Sox starter Lance Lynn left his final Spring Training start with what the team announced as right knee discomfort. During the fourth inning, Lynn looked to be in obvious pain after throwing a pitch, gingerly moving with a slight limp as he walked back to the dugout.

More will be known about Lynn’s status after he receives treatment and testing, though the issue could very well be related to the right knee injury that sidelined Lynn late last season. Lynn only spent the 10-day minimum on the injured list, but White Sox GM Rick Hahn said in November that Lynn underwent 3-4 weeks of rehab on his right knee once the season was over.

At first glance, it certainly looks as though Lynn’s readiness for the Opening Day roster could be in jeopardy. Losing Lynn for any amount of time would be a notable blow to Chicago’s rotation, particularly since the pitching staff as a whole already lost Garrett Crochet (to Tommy John surgery) and Craig Kimbrel (in a trade to the Dodgers) within the last 48 hours.

Swingmen Reynaldo Lopez and Vince Velasquez were involved in the bullpen picture, though at least one of the two hurlers will likely step into the rotation if Lynn’s injury requires an IL trip. Velasquez was signed to a one-year, $3MM deal in March to provide some added pitching depth, though surely the White Sox weren’t planning on having to utilize this depth quite so soon.

Lynn has finished in the top six of AL Cy Young voting in each of the past three seasons, and his third-place finish in 2021 was his highest placement yet. The right-hander’s first year in Chicago saw him post a 2.69 ERA, 27.5% strikeout rate, and 7.0% walk rate over 157 innings. 2021 was the last season of the three-year, $30MM deal Lynn signed with the Rangers during the 2018-19 offseason, but the White Sox moved to sign Lynn to a contract extension last July. Lynn is now set to receive $38MM in guaranteed money in 2022-23, and the Sox hold an $18MM club option his services for 2024.

Load More Posts

Show all

Headlines

Lance Lynn

Navigation

MLBTR INFO

Connect