Phew: Scary collision might not keep Yoan Moncada out long

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Though he initially feared the worst after a hard crash, Yoan Moncada suspects he won’t miss more than two or three days with a right knee contusion.

The White Sox second baseman wore a large ice pack early Tuesday before declaring he felt much better than the night before when he and Willy Garcia left Monday’s contest early following a violent collision in the outfield. Garcia landed on the seven-day disabled list with a concussion but also reported feeling better. Despite losing two players to injury, the White Sox feel pretty fortunate given how uncertain everything looked at the outset.

“I was very concerned about the knee because I was in a lot of pain,” Moncada said through an interpreter. “But once they brought me in here, they told me it was nothing serious, and I (felt) relieved.

“I just thought it was something more serious. I didn’t think anything specific, but I thought it was more serious. But once the doctor gave me the X-ray and they told me it was nothing serious, I was really relieved.

“It was above the knee. It was on the muscle, not in the bone. ... That’s why I’m kind of sore right now.

“The treatment is just ice and doing some squats. But I think in two or three days I will be ready to play a game.”

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White Sox manager Rick Renteria is perhaps even more optimistic than Moncada, the top prospect in baseball. He described Moncada as day-to-day and is holding out hope he could perhaps play Wednesday. Garcia will continue to undergo concussion protocol after Moncada’s knee squarely hit him in the head.

“We are all relieved that Yoan is fine, and we are all relieved that Willy is also recovering,” Renteria said. “(Garcia) took the brunt of the blow there. Obviously, that’s a pretty strong hit to him and we’ll continue to monitor him.”

The White Sox are also without center fielder Adam Engel on Tuesday. Engel was sore after he collided with a fence post while trying to track down a Josh Donaldson home run. Engel managed to stay in the game but was understandably sore.

“(Engel) said he felt good,” Renteria said. “I know he took a pretty good jolt. He’s another one I think today is a good day to give him a little blow. I’m sure they all want to be available, but we will take it as it comes.”

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