Moncada shows improvement with 3rd straight multihit game

CHICAGO -- Imagine trying to play Major League Baseball at a high level with intense pain from your back radiating into your glute and down your leg.

Or think about going through normal everyday actions with that type of discomfort. Welcome to Yoán Moncada’s world for most of the 2023 season.

The White Sox third baseman is finally feeling better, and it’s showing on the field. He homered as part of a third-straight multihit effort during a 3-2 loss to the Brewers on Saturday night at Guaranteed Rate Field.

That projected 430-foot blast, according to Statcast, came against Brandon Woodruff in the sixth and marked Moncada's first home run since June 8 at Yankee Stadium. It ended his homer-less drought at 85 plate appearances.

“I had a couple months where I wasn't able to put the ball in the air,” said Moncada through interpreter Billy Russo. “It's good to see that now."

“He feels pretty good so he’s able to get back to what his mechanics really look like, and you’ve seen it,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “The last few days he’s been able to pull a baseball.”

This season started strong for the 28-year-old, being named to the All World Baseball Classic team after slashing .435/.519/.739 over six games for Team Cuba. Moncada continued that success with a .400/.419/.733 slash line over the first seven games of the regular season.

Then, the back issues popped up during a swing in Pittsburgh the weekend of April 7, and he wasn’t the same. In fact, there was a time where surgery seemed more of a possibility than a return to the field.

Moncada missed from June 14 to July 24. Even when he was on the field, Moncada tried to compensate for the pain and developed bad habits mechanics-wise -- primarily swinging from the right side but also from the left. With the pain gone and through extensive work in the batting cages, Moncada seems to have found his rhythm.

“What happened in that time that I was dealing with the pain, I created a bad habit because I was trying to protect that area,” Moncada said. “I didn't want to feel that pain when I was swinging.

“Now, there are times where I feel like my mechanics are right. But there are times where I don't feel on time, or I'm in that rhythm that I'm used to when I'm in full swing. That's part of the process now. That's what I'm trying to find right now. There are games where I feel good and there are games where I'm struggling a little bit. I'm fighting. It's a battle every day."

Featuring a 107.5 mph exit velocity, Moncada’s fourth home run of the season gave the White Sox a 2-0 lead. Jesse Scholtens had been dominant through six innings, and even when he got in trouble in the seventh, Grifol gave him the chance to work free.

Part of the reason came from setup men such as Aaron Bummer and Jimmy Lambert being unavailable, but Scholtens had earned the opportunity. He hung a 1-2 curve to Tyrone Taylor, and Taylor ripped a game-tying two-run double to left-center field. William Contreras’ single off Bryan Shaw scored Taylor with the winning run, handing the loss to Scholtens (1-5) and dropping the White Sox to 47-71.

“Felt good. [Catcher Yasmani Grandal] and I had a pretty good gameplan going,” Scholtens said. “Unfortunately in that last inning, didn’t execute. Started out with a walk, backed up a slider and obviously hung a curveball. That’s kind of all that stands out right now.”

“Sometimes guys like these, all they need is a consistent opportunity and he’s getting it right now,” Grifol said. “This is a good time for him to show everyone that he can pitch in this league. Right now he’s doing a damn good job of it.”

These next six weeks also are a good time for a healthy Moncada to remind people of his vast on-field capabilities.

"I've been working a lot in the cage, on mechanics and hitting pitchers,” Moncada said. “In my at-bats, I'm just trying to be as early as I can and be ready for the pitch to hit."

“There was some loud contact coming out of his bat,” Grifol said. “That is nice to see.”