The White Sox announced Wednesday that third baseman Yoán Moncada was placed on the 10-day injured list due to a left adductor strain. In a corresponding move, outfielder Oscar Colás was activated. The big news here, though, is that Moncada is expected to be out for three to six months. More to the point: His season might be over.
The adductor muscles are those in and around the hip and Moncada had been said to be playing through hip and groin issues the last several days before he collapse on the basepaths during Tuesday's game and had to be helped off the field.
Moncada, 28, was hitting .282/.364/.410 (124 OPS+) with three doubles and a triple so far in 11 games this season. There's a $25 million club option on his contract that obviously won't be picked up next year, so he's set to hit free agency once this season concludes. Coming off two down and injury-plagued seasons, this doesn't bode well for Moncada moving into the offseason.
He's now had injuries to his shins, hamstrings, hips, a knee and his back over the years. He appeared in 149 games in 2018, 132 in 2019, 144 in 2021, but also just 104 in 2022 and 92 last year.
For the White Sox, the news doesn't get much better. They've started the season 2-9 and have already lost star center fielder Luis Robert for a while with a hip flexor injury, not to mention the injury to slugger Eloy Jiménez. Yes, they are undergoing a rebuild, but at least Jiménez and Moncada could have built up some decent trade value with good seasons while Robert is likely a franchise centerpiece who has once again had development stunted by injury.
Moncada came to the White Sox as a consensus top-five prospect, the centerpiece in the trade that sent Chris Sale to the Red Sox in 2016. He showed some flashes of his immense upside early and then broke through in 2019, hitting .315/.367/.548 (140 OPS+) with 34 doubles, five triples, 25 homers, 79 RBI, 83 runs, 10 stolen bases and 5.2 WAR. He produced 4.0 WAR in 2021, but dropped to 0.9 in 2022 and 0.7 last season. Injuries have been an issue, as have strikeouts and a general lack of consistent improvement at the plate.
He'll turn 29 this season and it looks like he won't be traded and will then head to free agency with intriguing upside, albeit with an incredibly inconsistent resume that is littered with injuries.
