The White Sox’s bullpen was hit by the injury bug on Saturday. The team placed left-hander Jace Fry on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to Sept. 3) with back spasms, purchased the contract of right-hander Alex McRae from the Schaumburg, Ill., alternate training site and transferred left-hander Aaron Bummer to the 45-day injured list.

Fry was one of Chicago’s three lefty relievers -- Bernardo Flores Jr. and Ross Detwiler are the others -- and was on a hot streak before going down with the injury. He didn’t allow a run in his last 8 1/3 innings (nine games). The Sox expect him to return to action before the season ends, however.

McRae, 27, was signed by the White Sox as a free agent on Jan. 8, after splitting the 2019 season between Pittsburgh and its Triple-A affiliate, Indianapolis. He went 0-4 with an 8.78 ERA (26 ER in 26 2/3 IP) and 19 strikeouts in 11 appearances (two starts) over three stints with the Pirates, while going 7-8 with a 5.20 ERA (66 ER in 114 1/3 IP) and 101 strikeouts in 22 starts with Indianapolis. McRae will wear uniform No. 64.

Bummer has been on the injured list since Aug. 8 because of a left biceps strain. Before the injury, he was a productive pitcher out of the bullpen, allowing one earned run in 7 1/3 innings. Manager Rick Renteria is optimistic that Bummer will be back on the mound before the season ends as well.

“It doesn’t change the schedule that he was on. He is still on his throwing program,” Renteria said. “We are still expecting him.”

Rodón has setback
Left-hander Carlos Rodón (left shoulder soreness) was scheduled to throw 60 pitches in Schaumburg on Friday, but the session was postponed because Rodón was dealing with back issues, according to Renteria.

Rodón started the season in the rotation, appearing in two games and allowing six earned runs in 5 2/3 innings.

“He ended up not feeling so good, so we had to modify his schedule and we will revisit it once we see how he is feeling, probably today or tomorrow. His back was a little uncomfortable,” Renteria said.

Giving back on gameday
For the fifth consecutive year, MLB and its clubs raised awareness for childhood cancer during all games on Saturday for a special league-wide day in home ballparks. MLB’s “Childhood Cancer Awareness Day,” held during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month in collaboration with Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), combined a visual and ceremonial demonstration of support for the cause with outreach to local hospitals treating young patients in their communities. Childhood cancer is the leading cause of death by disease among children in the United States and Canada.

All White Sox on-field personnel, including players, coaches, and umpires wore gold ribbon decals and wristbands during the game against the Royals. In addition to donating Starlight hospital gowns to a local children’s hospital, the White Sox Volunteer Corps, a group of more than 5,000 White Sox fans united in service, will make cards for families and patients staying at the Ronald McDonald Houses throughout Chicago. The team also will share a dedicated video playlist on White Sox digital platforms to celebrate wonderful stories of young fans who are fighting pediatric cancer.

Childhood cancer awareness efforts in previous seasons have included special pediatric cancer awareness batting-practice T-shirts, online campaigns to empower fans to hold fundraisers for pediatric cancer research and donations to local children’s hospitals. MLB and its clubs have supported the fight against cancer through a variety of initiatives for many years. As Stand Up To Cancer’s founding donor, Major League Baseball has pledged more than $50 million to SU2C’s collaborative cancer research programs, providing invaluable support. Launched in 2013, the work of the Stand Up To Cancer/St. Baldrick’s Foundation Pediatric Cancer Dream Team has helped to develop new immunotherapy approaches and contributed to the development of two new treatments for difficult-to-treat pediatric leukemias that have been approved by the FDA. MLB has recognized SU2C at its jewel events since the '09 World Series.