CINCINNATI — Andrew Benintendi went through drills, including jogging, with the Chicago White Sox training staff in left field at Great American Ball Park a few hours before Wednesday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds.
The outfielder is working his way back from a left calf strain.
“Feeling good,” Benintendi said afterward. “I think yesterday was the first day I could really kind of turn it up a little bit, and felt good this morning waking up. And then felt pretty good today. It feels better than I anticipated.”
Benintendi retroactively went on the 10-day injured list on May 5 after exiting the previous day’s game in the sixth inning with left calf tightness.
“I think it was just kind of a buildup a little bit from a few days prior, and then, yeah, there was almost a stutter-step going to third base (during the May 4 game against the Houston Astros), where I started to feel it a lot more,” Benintendi said. “Enough to where I told a trainer and got out of the game. Glad I did it at that time because I didn’t want to make it worse.”
The trip to the IL has meant missing out on the chance to play this week in front of friends and family members for the Cincinnati native.
“I know they all wish I was out there, which I do too,” Benintendi said. “But, it is what it is.”
Benintendi is slashing .224/.298/.400 with five home runs and 12 RBIs in 24 games. This is his second stint on the IL this season. He was out April 7-17 with a left adductor strain.
“It sucks,” he said of missing more time. “Hitting in general, you’re getting into a rhythm and you’ve got to find that rhythm and these little nagging things have kind of cut me from playing.
“You’ve got to go back through that again and try to find a rhythm again. So hopefully it won’t be long.”
Brooks Baldwin, Josh Rojas and Michael A. Taylor have been among the players filling in at left field with Benintendi out. Rojas started in left field on Tuesday. Baldwin was at the position on Wednesday.
“Guys have stepped up,” manager Will Venable said Wednesday. “We saw a really good stretch there from Brooks where he settled in defensively in left, did a really good job at the plate. Saw Rojas out there, we’ve seen Michael out there more than before. Just a really good job back-filling for (Benintendi), and that’s what it takes.
“You need that second and third layer of depth to perform, and these guys have.”
Benintendi joined fellow Sox outfielders Mike Tauchman and Austin Slater on the road to recovery. Tauchman has been on the IL since April 10 with a right hamstring strain. The Sox retroactively placed Slater on the IL on April 11 with a right knee meniscus tear.
Taylor, Baldwin and Joshua Palacios have been among those aiding in right field. Taylor made a tremendous running catch in right-center during the third inning on Tuesday.
“Michael Taylor just hit his 10 years of service time the other day, made an unbelievable catch, like he was 21 years old again out there,” Sox pitcher Jonathan Cannon said after Tuesday’s game. Taylor is 34. “He’s unbelievable out there.”
Tauchman and Slater are going through rehab assignments with Triple-A Charlotte, meaning more outfield options could be on the way. Slater went 1-for-3 with two walks in his first game on Tuesday against Gwinnett. Tauchman had two hits and one RBI in his first three games during this rehab stint with the Knights.
“They’re both doing really well,” Venable said Tuesday. “I think we have what we have mapped out, which is kind of through the week to go ahead and play. But I think we just acknowledge that we want to be in touch with how these guys are feeling on a day-to-day basis, and so not putting any hard timelines on anything. But they’re both progressing well and feeling good.”
As for Benintendi’s timetable, the left fielder is hoping to be back “soon.”
“Hard to say,” Benintendi said. “If it was up to me, I’d be back right now. There’s obviously a long way to go. There’s certain steps I’ve got to take, so hopefully soon.”
