MILWAUKEE — Thursday’s off day came at a good time for the Chicago White Sox.
“It’s needed, but it’s not, ‘OK, this is the fix,’” manager Pedro Grifol said Friday afternoon at American Family Field.
The Sox entered Friday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers on a season-high eight-game losing streak. They’ve dropped 12 of their last 13.
“The fix is we’ve got to make improvements every day,” Grifol said. “That’s what we talked about today as a staff and we’ll continue to do that every day, find wins within losses, find areas of improvement, fix them and try to continue to get better.”
The Sox headed to Milwaukee after their first winless homestand of at least seven games in franchise history, going 0-4 against the Baltimore Orioles and 0-3 against the Toronto Blue Jays.
They came into Friday’s game with the worst record in franchise history through 57 games at 15-42.
Expanding on the staff’s need to get creative, Grifol said, “This game can get you in a routine where you’re doing the same thing every single day. And we have to find ways to change it up and find ways to execute a fundamental, whether it’s an at-bat, whether it’s a pitch, whether it’s a cutoff and relay — whatever it is — find ways of doing it different ways if the way we’re doing it’s not working.
“This game’s all about creativity. There’s a part of the game that is routine, but there’s a huge part of it that you’ve got to find different ways of doing the same thing, because everybody clicks to a different language, to a different terminology. So as a staff, we’ve got to find ways of expressing ourselves differently if what we’re doing is not working.”
Here’s a look back at May and a look ahead to June.
1. Bryan Ramos provided a glimpse of the future.
Bryan Ramos made an impact upon arriving from Double A on May 4, going 9-for-32 (.281) with two doubles and two RBIs in his first 10 major-league games.
The third baseman then went on the injured list with a left quad strain and struggled when he returned, going 0-for-14 before being optioned to Triple-A Charlotte on Thursday.
“We gave him a nice opportunity here to come and feel what it’s about at this level,” Grifol said. “Have a little success, face a little adversity and understand the speed of the game up here and go back to your development we feel you need and put yourself in position to come back here later on in the year.
“He understands things he needs to do. He understands the pace of this game up here. He was in a really good spot, the last thing he said to us was ‘I’ll be back soon.’”
Column: A day in the life with the Chicago White Sox, from F.A.S.T. to L.A.S.T.
In the corresponding move Friday, the Sox recalled Lenyn Sosa from Charlotte.
“It gives Sosa a chance to come up here and try to put together what he does in Triple A, try to do it here as well, because he’s a really good player at Triple A,” Grifol said.
Sosa is slashing .284/.355/.627 with five doubles, six home runs and 14 RBIs with the Knights.
“I know it’s a different level, and there’s a lot of things different here but Sosa puts up some really good numbers there so come up here and get a chance to do it,” Grifol said.
2. Garrett Crochet and Erick Fedde have been the consistent parts of a shuffling rotation.
Garrett Crochet gets plenty out of following Erick Fedde in the team’s rotation.
“All of us as starters are pretty close, but him and I worked out together this offseason, so we just have — I feel — like that added level to our bond,” Crochet told the Tribune. “When we’re going back-to-back, it’s exciting. I feel like in my mind, we’re just giving the other team no room to breathe.”
Crochet had a remarkable May, going 4-1 with a 0.93 ERA and 38 strikeouts in five starts. He’s slated to start Saturday.
Fedde was on the mound for Friday’s series opener. He was 2-1 with a 3.03 ERA in his first five starts of May.
The Sox have had some shuffling in the rotation — in part because of injury, with Jake Woodford filling in when Mike Clevinger went on the IL Tuesday. And Nick Nastrini has received an extended look after the Sox designated Brad Keller for assignment.
Nastrini is Sunday’s scheduled starter.
3. Offensive help could be on the way soon.
After a day off, Luis Robert Jr. returned to playing center field for Charlotte on Friday. The plan is for him to play in the outfield Friday and Saturday, and DH on Sunday for the Knights.
“And then we’ll reevaluate where he is,” Grifol said. “We have a day off on Monday, (the Knights) have a day off on Monday, and we’ll see if he can join us or not.
“It all depends on what happens (Friday), what happens (Saturday); he’s going back-to-back. He’s going to DH on Sunday. So we’ll see. Right now, he’s not day to day, but he’s weekend to day.”
Robert went 1-for-7 with a home run in his first two games with Charlotte as he makes his way back from a right hip flexor strain.
“He’s on a really good track,” Grifol said. “He actually feels really good.”
The Sox need help offensively. They entered Friday last in the majors in several offensive categories, including runs (161), average (.214), home runs (39), on-base percentage (.276) and slugging percentage (.329).
