White Sox reinstate reliever Garrett Crochet from 10-day IL; center fielder Luis Robert will not need surgery on his strained hip flexor

KANSAS CITY, MO. — Chicago White Sox reliever Garrett Crochet wanted to nip any potential issues “in the bud.”

“Catch play following the (April 25 relief) outing (against the Texas Rangers), I felt like there might have been something there that I wanted to kind of nip in the bud, something that was going on in my back,” Crochet said Friday.

The Sox placed Crochet on the injured list April 29, retroactive to April 26, with an upper back strain. He was reinstated before Friday’s game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.

“I was able to strengthen my back back up and feel good playing catch and go off the mound a few times this past week, so ready to go,” Crochet said.

In more injury news, center fielder Luis Robert will not require surgery for the Grade 3 strain of his right hip flexor. Robert suffered the injury while reaching on an infield single in the first inning Sunday against the Cleveland Indians.

According to the Sox statement, “after consultations with a number of specialists, it was determined rest and rehabilitation would be the appropriate course of action for a full recovery.”

An update on his progress will be provided in approximately eight weeks.

“My understanding in being around different injuries over the years, if you can avoid surgery, that’s a plus,” Sox manager Tony La Russa said. “So I think it is a real healthy sign for Luis. And what’s good for Luis is good for us. I do believe that that’s good news.”

La Russa was also “really excited” to have Crochet back in the mix.

“It’s a big weapon,” La Russa said.

Crochet is 0-2 with a 1.00 ERA, eight strikeouts and one hold in eight relief appearances. He is concentrating on cutting down on his walks — he has surrendered five in nine innings.

“I feel like that’s the thing that I’m focused on right now, just because I’m a huge competitor, so I’m out there competing and when you’re walking guys, it’s almost like you gave in,” Crochet said.

Crochet had the chance to work on smoothing his delivery during his stint on the injured list.

“It was actually very beneficial being able to do that,” Crochet said. “Being on the IL, nobody wants to be there, but being there and not having to worry about going into a game, just being able to get the mound work midseason I felt was awesome. I feel like it helped me nip a lot of things in the bud.”

In Friday’s corresponding move, the Sox optioned pitcher Alex McRae to Triple-A Charlotte. McRae pitched a scoreless inning and struck out one in his season debut Tuesday in Cincinnati.