Chicago White Sox: Big roster moves made on Tuesday

The Chicago White Sox are getting more and more ready for the playoffs with each passing day. They are resting some guys up who have little injuries and resting players who could use a break. With a double-digit lead in the division and a magic number in the single digits, you have that luxury. Now, the White Sox made some moves on Tuesday that would be defined as “big”.

We knew that Tim Anderson was coming back thanks to comments made last week by Tony La Russa. However, it is just nice to see it confirmed by the roster transaction. They also reinstated Lucas Giolito from the 10-day IL after a minor hamstring issue. Both of them would have played if it were the playoffs but now they are good to go.

To make room for them, some more moves were made. Andrew Vaughn hit the 10-day IL (retroactive to September 10th) with lower back inflammation. He has had the last few days off because of it so it is good to see him get some extra rest. He has been slumping during this as well so that could be the reason why. Getting the rookie some rest is big as this is his first MLB season playing this many games.

The White Sox also optioned Danny Mendick to Charlotte. That makes it where Anderson could be activated along with Vaughn making room for Giolito. Mendick is a good player but his defensive depth isn’t needed right now. He is an important piece to the organization right now and you haven’t seen the last of him but he shouldn’t be on the playoff roster.

The Chicago White Sox made some important moves ahead of Tuesday’s game.

The surprising move that was made involved Chicago White Sox backup catching. They called Zack Collins back up and sent Seby Zavala down to AAA. With how hot Yasmani Grandal has been, they are both clearly the backup but Zavala has been more impressive than Collins this season. Recently, Zavala has cooled down but the opportunities have slowed down with Grandal’s return as well.

This battle is something to keep an eye on going into the final few weeks. However, the move saves Zack Collins from losing his last option year. If he would have stayed in Charlotte for longer than 21 days, next year’s option would be burned so the move makes perfect sense for the Chicago White Sox. Now we just have to wonder who the backup will be once the playoffs start.

The White Sox have a fun series against the Los Angeles Angels following these moves. Hopefully, everything works out well as they try to get the best playoff seed possible. All of these guys are going to be extremely important in that quest for the World Series.