The Chicago White Sox made a tweak to their lineup Saturday, flipping Andrew Benintendi to the top of the order and moving Tim Anderson to No. 2.
They only got two times through the lineup together — Anderson exited in the fourth inning with right shoulder soreness.
Zach Remillard stepped in as part of the changes after Anderson left and came through with three hits in his major-league debut to lead the Sox to a 4-3 victory in 11 innings in front of 45,188 at T-Mobile Park.
Remillard tied the game with an RBI single in the ninth. He put the Sox ahead with a two-out RBI single in the 11th.
“I don’t think you can fully put it into words,” Remillard said. “Where this journey started and what you dream of is exactly what happened today.”
Manager Pedro Grifol called it “the best win of the year for us.”
“This was a resilient, gutsy win,” he said.
Grifol said he was not surprised with Remillard’s day.
“He’s a winner, he’s a baseball player, I saw it all spring,” Grifol said. “And he didn’t disappoint today.”
He came in after Anderson exited in the fourth.
“I think he did it pregame, out there stretching and throwing,” Grifol said. “He toughed it out for three innings. Just kept getting tighter and tighter. The evaluations are good. We’ll see how he wakes up tomorrow.”
Anderson walked in the third and was doubled up when Luis Robert Jr. popped out in foul territory to first baseman Ty France. Anderson was going with the pitch. He had a conversation with Grifol and the training staff before the bottom of the third and remained in the game.
When the Sox returned to the field for the bottom of the fourth, Elvis Andrus made the move to shortstop from second and Remillard took over at second. The Sox said Anderson is day to day.
It has been a rough trip for the Sox injury-wise, with third baseman Yoán Moncada (lower back inflammation) and starter Mike Clevinger (right biceps inflammation) going on the injured list.
It had been a tough trip result-wise, with losses in three of the first four games.
Remillard helped flip that. He walked in his first plate appearance in the fifth and collected his first hit on a bunt single in the seventh. Then came the RBI singles in the ninth and 11th.
“I got something up and away and was able to serve it into right field for the base hit,” he said of the go-ahead single.
It also was productive day at the plate for Benintendi, who had a season-high four hits and a walk. He doubled in the third, singled and scored in the fifth and singled again in the seventh and 11th.
“Leading off you want to get on base and create havoc,” Benintendi said. “It’s a good day.”
After hitting four solo homers Thursday against the Los Angeles Dodgers and two more in Friday’s series opener against the Mariners at T-Mobile Park, the Sox made the lineup change looking to have more runners on for the heart of the order.
“(Benintendi’s) got a high on-base, (Anderson) uses that (opposite) side of the field really really well,” Grifol said before the game. “The idea is for (Benintendi) to be on base, (Anderson) to use that side, us to go first to third and get the big guys up with men in scoring position and men on the bases.”
Benintendi has a .347 on-base percentage. Anderson, who has hit over .300 each of the past four seasons, is batting .250 in a year disrupted by an IL stint April 11-May 2 because of a sprained left knee.
“I just think the injury in Minnesota has really affected him,” Grifol said before the game. “It sent him into a mechanical changes without him even knowing. When you’re wearing a brace and you’ve never worn a brace, your body’s doing something different because you’re wearing it. You take it off and your body continues to do those things. You try to find yourself.
“There’s a lot of things that have played into it. But the cool thing about baseball is we’ve got 92 games left, he hits at the top of the order, he has about 350-400 plate appearances left. I’m completely confident he’s going to turn this thing around and have a really good year.”
It was the first time Anderson didn’t start a game as a leadoff hitter since the 2019 season.
“If there was a lineup change, that means it was received good,” Grifol said. “It’s a collaboration type of thing. It’s not a dictatorship. I want guys comfortable playing the game.
“Doesn’t mean we won’t do things when they’re a little bit uncomfortable, but these guys want to win. Whatever it takes to win baseball games, they’re on board.”
That meant a spectacular debut for Remillard.
“The amount of gratitude I have and how exciting it is to have my family here, it’s a moment I will never forget for the rest of my life,” he said.
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