The White Sox collected their first spring win of the season Thursday, defeating the Cleveland Guardians, 4-2.
The victory came at a price, however, as left fielder Andrew Benintendi will miss four to six weeks with a non-displaced fracture in his right hand. The veteran was struck with a pitch from Cleveland left-hander Logan Allen in the bottom of the first inning.
The injury comes exactly four weeks before the season opener on March 27, so we should not expect to see Benintendi back in the lineup by then. Mid-April is probably a more realistic timeline.
Earlier this month, I noted that the Sox outfield was pretty much set, with Luis Robert Jr., Benintendi, Austin Slater, Mike Tauchman and Michael A. Taylor all in camp on major league contracts.
The injury gods had other ideas, and now there's a spot open. Dominic Fletcher and Oscar Colas are the other two outfielders on the 40-man roster, so one would assume that opportunity will knock for one of them.
If I'm being honest, I've seen about enough of Colas. I've watched three of the six spring games, and I've already seen the 26-year-old Cuban make two egregious defensive miscues -- including one where a fly ball smacked him right in the face.
Fletcher, 27, played 72 games with the Sox last season, and he demonstrated that he cannot hit. He batted just .206/.252/.256 with one home run, only eight doubles and 17 RBIs. That said, Fletcher has shown that he is a plus defender at corner outfield spots, and he can stand in center field in a pinch (although Taylor is best suited to back up Robert Jr. in that role.)
When choosing a backup outfielder, I prefer the guy who can catch the ball, so I'll take Fletcher over Colas.
If you're wondering about free agent outfielders, Alex Verdugo, Aaron Hicks, Robbie Grossman, Adam Duvall and David Peralta are all still out there.
Verdugo, 29, is the only one of that group younger than age 35. He batted .233/.291/.356 with the New York Yankees last season. That doesn't wow anyone, and it seems unlikely that Sox ownership will open the wallet to raise the floor of the team to compensate for a short-term injury.
Fletcher or Colas it shall likely be.
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