The Chicago White Sox have been given a lot by the signing of Elvis Andrus. He came in not long after Tim Anderson went down with an injury. Since then, he has been a significant upgrade as an Anderson replacement over guys like Leury Garcia and Lenyn Sosa.
Anderson’s initial diagnosis was a recovery time of 4-6 weeks. Well, we are not at the six-week mark and we aren’t sure when Anderson is going to be back. His return could very well depend on this series with the Cleveland Guardians.
It sounds like Tim Anderson doesn’t want to go to AAA Charlotte for a rehab stint. It does sound like Miguel Cairo wants that to be the case so we will have to see who wins that battle. Either way, his return could be sometime this week.
However, there seems to be a plan in place for when he is back. Miguel Cairo told the media before game one that Anderson’s return is still unknown but Andrus will begin taking ground balls at second base. That seems to be the plan for when Anderson gets back to playing shortstop.
No return date yet for Tim Anderson but Miguel Cairo says that Elvis Andrus will start taking grounders at second base.
— Chuck Garfien (@ChuckGarfien) September 20, 2022
Tim Anderson said his preference is to avoid heading out to Charlotte for rehab assignment, but that it’s undecided. He does hope to return to action this week. Miguel Cairo said similarly, though he seemed more in favor of a rehab stint. Elvis Andrus is going to take reps at 2B.
— James Fegan (@JRFegan) September 20, 2022
The White Sox has a plan for Elvis Andrus when Tim Anderson comes back.
It is a smart decision by the White Sox. Out of Anderson and Andrus, Elvis seems like the one better suited for a position switch. He is also less a part of the future than Anderson so getting Tim back in his spot is important.
If Elvis can be okay at second while maintaining his hot bat, the White Sox will be very happy with this situation. There is no doubt that Andrus is a better option at second than Leury Garcia, Josh Harrison, Lenyn Sosa, and Romy Gonzalez.
Anderson is a big part of the 2022 Chicago White Sox and will be huge for the organization in the future. Getting him back is great news as he is an All-Star caliber player. It is also important to make sure that they don’t disrupt anything when he comes back.
Elvis is a good and smart enough player to allow all of this to happen though. If he can hit lower in the order and play second base when this Tim Anderson return happens, the White Sox will benefit. First, let’s see them get a big series win over the Cleveland Guardians.