The Chicago White Sox just took a gut punch!

Martin Perez, who is possibly their steadiest starter so far this season, ended up leaving Friday’s game at Fenway after three innings and 52 pitches. Fans were left reeling with questions because something didn’t look right. And sure enough, it wasn’t. Perez felt left forearm soreness and made the call himself to avoid anything worse from happening.

Perez later told reporters, “I feel sore. I was just trying to be smart. We have to wait for the MRI tomorrow.” The MRI, though, didn’t bring any good news for him and the team!

The White Sox has now placed the lefty on a 15-day IL because of an inflammation in his throwing elbow. This is a huge setback for the team, which is already walking on thin ice. Martin Perez was brought in with a $5 million deal to bring that veteran energy and leadership to a team filled with youngsters. And he was going strong and has posted a 3.15 ERA over the last 20 innings. Plus, Perez’s first three starts were great—just three earned runs in total. But three steps forward, and now multiple steps back is the reality.

Friday was not a good day for him, and he went four runs, five hits, two walks, and not even a single strikeout. Now with him sidelined, Jared Shuster has been called up by the team from Triple-A Charlotte. The 26-year-old has been going hot there, with a 1.59 ERA and with 15 strikeouts in 11.1 innings. Not so bad for a player who hasn’t gotten many chances to prove himself. At 6 foot 3, though, he brings in size and potential, and now he gets the shot at the bigs. Perez being sidelined is a tough pill to swallow for the Chicago White Sox, no doubt. Because at the end of the day, he has been their calm in the storm.

Now they will have a dark cloudy question mark looming over their heads. The hope right now is that the issue is not long-term. But for a 33-year-old pitcher, inflammation is not something so easily overcome. Meanwhile, Chicago has some hope with another prospect bringing in the heat.

Edgar Quero wastes no time to make impact for Chicago White Sox

The White Sox don’t just have Jared Shuster to be excited about. There is another player, and it’s Edgar Quero. The 22-year-old catcher delivered a silver lining for the team this Friday. The catcher ranked no. 6 in the White Sox system, stepped up for his second at-bat in the ninth. With two outs and not much left to fight for, he gave fans and maybe even Jerry Reinsdorf something to at least cheer about.

Quero didn’t beat around the bush. On the very first pitch, a 95.5 mph heater from Boston’s Josh Winckowski. Quero reached out and drove it the other way around. The ball touched the left field line, rolled, and just like that, he was standing on second with a huge glee plastered on his face. His first big league hit, and it was spotless. He was called just a day before, and it took just 6 plate appearances for Quero to make that impact. But really, it’s not surprising given his Triple-A Charlotte record is great, with a .333 average and .444 OBP. MLB even ranks him as the no. 62 prospects in all of baseball.

But he didn’t reach here suddenly; it has been four years in the making. Quero is a Cuban native and was signed by Angeles when he was just 16 years old. Then the White Sox picked him up in a trade last July, and since then he has been slowly and steadily climbing the stairs. Right now the offense is stuck, and his switch-hitting bat sure brings hope to the team. The White Sox really could use all the spark they would need.

What do you think of the newbies in the lineup? Let us know!