Vaughn OK, back in lineup after injury scare

HOUSTON -- Andrew Vaughn sported a bruise under his left eye but was back in the White Sox lineup Saturday after the left fielder got hit in the face Friday on a one-hop throw from Astros right fielder Chas McCormick.

Vaughn was able to beat the throw for a double in the sixth but left the game in the eighth.

“I just turned, and [the ball] smoked me [on] the cheek,” said Vaughn prior to Saturday’s contest. “I didn’t think it was much. I think the adrenaline was pumping a little bit. I got back in, went back out -- the ball got a little bit blurry when I was playing catch, because it started swelling up. I could see [the swelling] underneath.

“It was watering and was swelling up. I was talking to the doc, and after any change you start seeing down below, it was just a little freaky. There was a headache, but it’s fine now. I was just icing it and keeping the swelling down.”

Playing against Houston has given Vaughn more experience in left field, handling the wall in front of the Crawford Boxes during his first year at this position. He also reunited with Houston manager Dusty Baker, whose son, Darren, was a teammate of Vaughn’s at the University of California, Berkeley during the 2018 and '19 collegiate seasons.

“He actually wasn’t coaching at the time, so he was with us on a lot of road trips. Just a phenomenal human being,” said Vaughn of Baker. “I don’t think a lot of people realize he played for 18-some-odd years. He’s probably been in the game longer than anybody on the field right now.

“His presence was always there. He was always in the stands. He traveled with us a lot. He was just being a dad, which I could see. Wanted to watch his kid play, which was cool for everybody to have him there. He’s just a normal guy, a dad watching his kid play.”

Pierzynski on present similarities to 2005

A.J. Pierzynski, in Houston to broadcast the White Sox game against the Astros with Adam Amin on FOX, sees similarities between the 2005 World Series championship squad, for which he was the starting catcher, and the 2021 White Sox. It’s especially true within the pitching staffs.

“Absolutely. We really had six kinds of starters that year. We had [Brandon] McCarthy for when they had to give [Orlando Hernández] a rest,” Pierzynski said. “But the top four in [Jose] Contreras, [Jon] Garland, Freddy [Garcia] and [Mark] Buehrle -- just every fifth day, [they] were out there, and they gave you a quality start and a chance to win.

“We stuck in positions, and they did what they were supposed to do. That’s what makes teams special. I see that on this team. Starting with [Liam] Hendriks at the back end, everyone is filling in before him. [Lance] Lynn, [Lucas] Giolito, Carlos Rodón has been amazing this year. It’s just been good to watch. [Dylan] Cease is coming along. I know he had a rough one the first night here. Other than that, he’s been really solid. Whoever they put out there has been good, and that’s what you look for in a championship team.”

La Russa feeling good

As the halfway point of the 2021 season approaches, manager Tony La Russa feels good overall and feels better about his team.

"The mindset was here when I got here,” La Russa said. “They're ready to practice every day. They're ready to play exhibition games. There isn't anything I introduced here they didn't know they needed to do.

“What I'm impressed [by] is they're actually doing it. The club has really got their act together, head and heart, and you just don't want to take it for granted. It isn't automatic. You've just got to keep doing it.”

Third to first

• Jake Burger, the White Sox No. 12 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, made his second career start at second base for Triple-A Charlotte Saturday night.

• Yoelqui Cespedes made his White Sox Minor League debut Saturday night for High-A Winston-Salem. The No. 2 White Sox prospect started at designated hitter.

He said it

“I thought I had a chance at it. I was booking it. Tried to jump while I was running at full speed. Just out of my reach and couldn’t muster enough [strength] to get off the ground. I tried as hard as I could. It was a tough one.”
-- Vaughn, on trying to grab Eric Haase’s seventh-inning double to left field last Sunday at Comerica Park to break up Rodón’s no-hitter