Manager Ozzie Guillen says he has Jon Garland penciled in as the White Sox’s No. 3 starter but wouldn’t rule out flip-flopping him with left-hander Scott Schoeneweis if the situation warrants.
It might be necessary in the opening week of the season. Instead of starting the first game of a four-game series against the Yankees at Yankee Stadium, the Sox are planning to use Garland in Game 2 of the series Friday and Schoeneweis Thursday.
Mark Buehrle is to pitch the season opener in Kansas City on Monday, April 5, and his next turn would in Saturday’s Game 3 in New York. If Garland were to pitch the Thursday game–third in the rotation–the Sox would have left-handers throwing back-to-back, a situation they would like to avoid.
If he pitches the Thursday game, Schoeneweis will work in what should be a World Series-like atmosphere: Alex Rodriguez’s first home game as a Yankee.
Whoever wins the fifth starter’s job will pitch Sunday in the final game of the series.
Those intricate plans were almost shredded Friday when Garland was hit below the right elbow by a ball off the bat of Ross Gload. Garland’s arm is bruised, but he shouldn’t miss any throwing. He wasn’t scheduled to throw the next two days anyway.
“Getting hit in your throwing arm–what’s worse than that?” Garland said. “That’s your [career].”
The way the rotation appears to be setting up, Esteban Loaiza would not face the Yankees in the regular season. The Sox and Yankees will not meet again after a three-game series in Chicago April 20-22, a series in which Loaiza’s turn isn’t scheduled to come up. Loaiza was 2-0 with a 2.08 ERA against the Yankees last season.
If the rotation follows the current plan, Loaiza would pitch the second game in Kansas City, the home opener April 13 against the Royals with an extra day of rest and then Sunday, April 18 in Tampa.
Off days on April 6 and 12 make figuring out the rotation a bit complicated. Either Garland or Schoeneweis is going to have his second start delayed.
If Schoeneweis pitches the first game in New York, his second start would be the home opener, for which Loaiza is scheduled. If Garland pitches the Friday game, his second start would be April 14. Buehrle’s third start would be the final game of the Kansas City series April 15.
Friday was the second straight day on which a front-line player was struck by a ball. On Thursday, Paul Konerko was hit above his left elbow with a pitch from fifth-starter candidate Jason Grilli.
“They got one of us yesterday, we got one of them today,” Konerko said.
Konerko said he wasn’t limited in any way Friday. He took about 100 swings in batting practice and said the only time he felt any pain in the arm was when he had to catch high throws at first during fielding practice.
“Once you get by the swelling and the range of motion stuff, usually you’re home free,” Konerko said.
Buehrle, Loaiza, Garland, Neal Cotts and Dan Wright all will pitch during Monday’s intrasquad game. The first three will throw three innings each, 15 pitches an inning, with Cotts and Wright throwing two innings.
Relievers Cliff Politte, Shingo Takatsu, Kelly Wunsch, Mike Jackson and Billy Koch are scheduled to throw one inning each.
