In what could be the final disabled list stint of the season, the White Sox placed Zach Putnam on the 15-day DL retroactive to Thursday with a strained right groin.
In his place, they reinstated Daniel Webb, who completed a rehab assignment in Charlotte after going on the disabled list himself with what was described as "a mild right back strain."
Putnam had been trying to work through the groin injury over the last week, as he tweaked it while warming up in the Aug. 22 game against Seattle. His appearance on Wednesday was his first since Aug. 19, and while he threw only eight of 16 pitches for strikes and walked the leadoff man, he did complete a full inning with a strikeout.
Nevertheless, the injury must be serious to warrant the move, as a milder strain could have been waited out. With an off day on Monday, the Sox only had to endure two games between now and when rosters expand on Sept. 1. Instead, by putting Putnam on the DL, he won't be available until Sept. 11.
Recent reliever usage probably factors into this, too. After using Matt Albers and Dan Jennings to cover the final three innings of Friday's game, the Sox could use somebody to help out on the lower rungs on the leverage ladder.