Luis Robert Kept Out of White Sox Lineup Sunday After He Was Benched for Not Hustling

As the Chicago White Sox took the field for their series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays at Guaranteed Rate Field Sunday, there was one noteworthy subtraction from the club's everyday lineup. Starting center fielder Luis Robert rode the pine Sunday, one day after he was benched for lightly jogging on a soft groundball that he may have beaten out, had he been running full speed ahead.

As the Chicago White Sox took the field for their series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays at Guaranteed Rate Field Sunday, there was one noteworthy subtraction from the club's everyday lineup.

Everyday center fielder Luis Robert rode the pine Sunday, one day after he was benched for lightly jogging on a soft groundball that he may have beaten out, had he been running full speed ahead.

In the bottom of the first inning in a scoreless game, Robert was very lackadaisical. He was giving off body language of a player that was injured or one that had simply quit on his team. It's still April.  

With his club sliding and quickly falling out of contention in the American League Central, rookie manager Pedro Grifol was quick to act, placing Robert on the bench, with Oscar Colas taking his place in the lineup and Adam Haseley sliding over into center field. Haseley received the start in center Sunday, with Robert hitting the bench.

The White Sox would go on to lose 12-3 Saturday, dropping their tenth straight game. Chicago is now tied with the Kansas City Royals for the worst record in the AL Central, entering play Sunday at 7-21. Only the Oakland Athletics have a worse record in Major League Baseball.

The White Sox hoped with a new manager that they'd be back in the postseason in 2023. Now, they find themselves 14 games below .500 and nine games back of first place. The club is in serious danger of entirely falling out of contention before the start of May.

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