David Sandlin is up from Triple-A Charlotte, and the White Sox are using him as a multi-inning relief option after a bullpen that already covered 8 1/3 innings. Will Venable said the move gives the club coverage in the pen tonight, with Grant Taylor not available.
Sandlin’s Starter Background
Sandlin spent most of this season as a starter before the White Sox shifted him into a relief role for this call-up. That matters because the club is not asking for a one-inning stopgap; it is asking for innings, and the change in role points to a short-term need for length rather than a narrow matchup arm.
Venable said, “He’ll be able to give us some coverage in the pen tonight,” and added, “Use Sandlin to bridge Noah [Schultz] and the back end guys, potentially.” That usage path gives the White Sox a way to spread innings across more than one pitcher instead of running the same group back out after a heavy workload.
White Sox Bullpen Strain
The relief group had already taken on 8 1/3 innings in the game, and Chris Murphy later went on the injured list with a flexor strain. That left the White Sox needing another arm for immediate coverage rather than waiting for the next cycle of roster movement.
Venable also said, “I think we still have a number of pieces that we can see, I don't think Grant [Taylor] will be available.” He followed that with, “But we'll have a couple guys that you see at the back end that will be available.” The message was simple: the club had late-inning options, but not enough innings behind them if the game kept stretching.
Workload and Roster Pressure
The strain on the staff comes after the White Sox did not get home from Boston until after 3:00am, and that travel hit sits inside a broader run of roster pressure. Chris Getz said Joey Bart will be out over a month with a left hand fracture, and Joey Bart fractured the fifth metacarpal in his left hand, which has already kept the catching situation fluid.
Getz said, “It’s been an area that has been fluid. It will probably continue to be fluid. Hopefully Kyle and Joey can be back helping this club at some point.” He also said, “There’s different ways to bring value to that position, whether that be on the receiving end, throwing end, calling games.”
For the White Sox, Sandlin’s assignment is not a long-term answer so much as a bridge through a taxed night. If he can handle the innings, the club can protect the back end and avoid asking an already stretched bullpen to cover even more than it already has.
