‘It’s My Opening Day’: Josh Rojas Excited To Join White Sox After Injury
CHICAGO – Josh Rojas had to wait longer than most for Opening Day.
After suffering a toe injury in spring training, Rojas began the season on the injured list. But the versatile infielder has worked his way back, and the White Sox activated him ahead of Sunday’s series finale against the Houston Astros.
Rojas is eager to make his season debut after a long wait.
“I felt like I was out forever. I'm ready to go. I'm excited,” Rojas said before Sunday’s game. “It's my Opening Day, so try to get on the board early with a hit and go from there."
"Still a little sore, but I think it's going to be one of those things that lingers around for a little bit. But it's good enough to go, and I can do everything full speed, so that's what I was kind of waiting for."
As he covered third base in a spring training game on April 15, Colorado Rockies center fielder Brenton Doyle slid and rolled over Rojas’ foot, causing a big toe fracture and an avulsion fracture in a second toe.
Rojas was wearing newer, lighter cleats with a thin layer of leather on top that made him feel more athletic and mobile, though they weren’t as helpful in protecting him from injury.
“When he slid into my feet, it kind of just crunched all my toes together and kind of squished the shoe,” Rojas said. “… It was kind of like a hot, burning pain in my feet.”
Now in his seventh MLB season, Rojas is used to fouling balls off his toe. He prides himself on being able to play through small issues like that. But when the pain didn’t go away the next inning, he figured something was wrong.
Initially, Rojas wasn’t sure how long he’d be out, but it wound up costing him 33 games of the MLB regular season.
“Three days out, I was trying to get out there and take ground balls and I was pushing it pretty heavy,” Rojas said. “But yeah, it just started – it hurt in every other place. I started to feel it in my ankle, my knee, just really trying to baby it and stay off of it. Then I got to the point where I realized I'm not going to be any help to the team out there playing 25%, 30%. So it was better just to wait until the toe felt good enough that I could do everything full speed."
Rojas estimated he played in 10 games in the Arizona Complex League as a designated hitter. He then began a rehab assignment Tuesday with Triple-A Charlotte, where played three games and split time at shortstop, second base and third base. He went 1-for-12 with a double, an RBI, one walk and three strikeouts.
He tried out toe and ankle tape, as well as harder shoe insoles, during his rehab assignment. But it wasn’t comfortable and he felt OK without it, so he’s no longer wearing those items. For Sunday’s game, Rojas is going back to the bulkier, high-top shoe model with more protection, which he wore last year.
Rojas said a lot of his game relies on being athletic, so he wanted to make sure he could make plays in the hole, field the ball up the middle at shortstop, beat out infield singles and run the bases at full speed. He checked those boxes about a week ago and felt he was ready to come back.
The White Sox use Catapult, a sports analytics company, to track various performance metrics. Rojas used it to test his sprinting ability, another sign he was good to return.
“The Catapult said it was back, so yeah, it feels good,” Rojas said. “I still feel it a little bit in running. It's not like the uncomfortableness is all the way gone. There's still a little swelling in there. But the Catapult says I'm running full speed, so maybe once the pain goes all the way I'll be a little faster. So we'll see."
Rojas is starting at third base Sunday for the White Sox, but he figures to move around the diamond. He has a career-high 282 appearances at third base in his MLB career, but he's also played at least 43 games at second base, shortstop, left field and right field.
With the Mariners in 2024, Rojas was worth 2.2 wins above replacement as he hit eight home runs, drove in 31 runs, stole 10 bases and hit .225 with a .641 OPS. His most productive season came with the Diamondbacks in 2022, when he totaled nine home runs, 56 RBI, 23 stolen bases and 3.1 WAR in 510 at-bats, good for a .269 batting average and a .739 OPS.
White Sox hitting coach Marcus Thames hopes Rojas can help a lineup that ranks 24th in runs scored entering Sunday’s game.
"Energy, a little bit more energy. Some experience, too,” Thames said. “He's got more at-bats than a lot of our guys. Just get him healthy, and hopefully he can help spark us a little bit."
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Jack Ankony is the beat writer for “Chicago White Sox on SI.” He has been with the Sports Illustrated network since 2022. He graduated from Indiana University's Media School with a degree in journalism in 2022. Follow Jack on Twitter @ankony_jack