MINNEAPOLIS — The Chicago White Sox have a hole in their rotation with Martín Pérez on the 60-day injured list.
Bryse Wilson is ready to do his part to help, either as a starter or a bulk reliever.
“I’ve done it the last couple years,” Wilson said Tuesday at Target Field, “so (I’m) used to throwing a lot of pitches and looking forward to going out there and giving the team as much length as I can and kind of save the bullpen a bit on this stretch we’re on.”
Wilson’s first opportunity might come Wednesday when the Sox continue their series against the Minnesota Twins. The Sox hadn’t named a starter as of Tuesday afternoon, but manager Will Venable pointed to Wilson as a possible candidate to provide multiple innings one way or the other.
“We’ve asked him to come in some big spots on a shorter outing, and also we know he’s got the capability of pitching multiple innings out of the bullpen and potentially even being a starter for us,” Venable said before Tuesday’s game. “He can get lefties out. He can get righties out. Happy to have him and his flexibility.”
Wilson has a 4.50 ERA with eight strikeouts in nine relief appearances after signing a one-year deal with the Sox during the offseason.
He has pitched more than one inning three times this year, including a season-high three innings April 4 in Detroit. He threw 64 pitches in that appearance.
“I just try to go out there and attack hitters the same way in both roles,” Wilson said. “It’s a little different seeing guys multiple times. For me, it’s just going out and attacking the strike zone and being as efficient as possible.”
Wilson threw two-plus innings 17 times while working out of the bullpen in 2023 for the Milwaukee Brewers. He made nine starts among 34 overall outings last season.
Wilson has 152 career appearances, including 52 starts, during eight big-league seasons with the Atlanta Braves (2018-21), Pittsburgh Pirates (2021-22), Brewers (2023-24) and Sox.
“I think the experience definitely carries over, especially from the last two years,” Wilson said. “Just being ready all the time and being available as often as I can and doing what I need to do to help the team.”
Wilson told the Tribune last week about the benefits he has noticed from a mechanical change.
“I was standing up a little too tall,” he said. “So I wanted to get more into my back hip and get the upper-body posture a little bit more leaned over.
“That put my arm slot and front side in the right spot. Just to be able to make that small adjustment was nice.”
Wilson has displayed command, issuing three walks in 12 innings and none in his last five appearances.
“I feel like I’ve made the mechanical adjustments from earlier in the season when I was scattering the ball a little bit,” he said. “Commanding the baseball really well. I have a pretty good attack plan against lefties and righties. Just continue to execute that and hit some spots and should be in a good spot.”
The Sox are going through their options after transferring Pérez to the 60-day IL on Monday. They said in an update Tuesday that Pérez was diagnosed with a left flexor strain and is undergoing treatment on the muscle.
“He’s continuing to get evaluated,” Venable said. “We’re going to treat him and expect him to pitch later on in the summer.”
Pérez, who exited after three innings Friday in Boston, has a 3.15 ERA in four starts after signing a one-year deal with the Sox in the offseason.
“You’ve just got to keep going,” Wilson said of the mindset the team needs after Pérez’s setback. “Injuries are almost inevitable in this game. Obviously it sucks and we hate it for him, but (we’ve) got a lot more games left in the season. Just got to ‘next guy up’ and keep going.”
Venable said it’s “huge” having multiple pitchers with the flexibility to toss multiple innings out of the bullpen.
“We’ve talked about Bryse Wilson,” he said, “but some of these other guys that can pitch multiple innings — we’ve got (Jared) Shuster here, (Tyler) Gilbert, (Brandon) Eisert. These guys can go multiple innings, obviously (Mike) Vasil.
“So, yeah, we’re going to have to figure out how to piece it together each day, but it really is nice to have multiple guys that can pitch multiple innings.”
Wilson looks forward to the test if he’s called upon.
“The biggest challenge is the difference in attacking hitters when you know you’re going to see them multiple times,” he said. “It’s kind of like setting guys up, the first at-bats. I just try to keep it simple and just go right after guys and be as efficient as possible.”
