CHICAGO (CBS) — One day has passed since some of blockbuster trades for both the Cubs and White Sox.
Of course, one of the many Cubs deals brought all-star closer Craig Kimbrel to the South Side, setting up either Kimbrel or Liam Hendriks to be maybe the best set-up man in baseball.
Hendriks, who like Kimbrel was an All-Star this season, closed out the White Sox’ wild win Friday night. It was a game that had Jose Abreu getting hit in the head and Manager Tony La Russa fired up.
La Russa will have some decisions ahead, but seemingly good ones – when to use Kimbrel and Hendriks, and will one of them be locked in as the closer?
“I just know that the day that they’re both available, we’ll be real clear, you know, if we have the lead, who pitches eighth and who pitches ninth,” La Russa said. “It’s not going to be a quarterback controversy. It’s not going to be a closer controversy. It’s just going to be, let’s get the outs and let’s get a win, and let’s keep going forward.”
“There’s a lot of talent, and a lot of guys that can get the job done, and I see a lot of wins in this team’s future for the rest of the year – so there’s going to be a lot of guys needed to lock games down and close games out, and I think every single one of us is going to be a part of that,” Kimbrel said.