Contreras roughed up by D-Backs

CHICAGO -- If Jose Contreras could have thrown the type of game he was having during his pregame warmup session in the bullpen, the White Sox may have had a chance at a victory Monday night.
Unfortunately for Contreras and the Sox (42-21), there was no such luck.

Contreras struggled to find control of his pitches early on and it cost him as the White Sox fell to the Arizona Diamondbacks, 8-1, at U.S. Cellular Field.

"The most frustrating thing was that, in the bullpen, I felt strong and was mixing up my pitches as I usually do," Contreras said through interpreter Ozzie Guillen Jr. "When I was on the mound, I didn't like the mix of the pitches that I had. That wasn't my game plan, and that's why I think I didn't have as much control."

The lack of control hurt Contreras (3-3) in the first as he gave up one run. But it was the second inning when all the wheels came off for the starter.

Contreras gave up six runs in the second off three home runs. The home run trifecta tied an Arizona (34-31) franchise record for home runs in a single inning. Chris Snyder started the outburst with a solo blast and Luis Gonzalez and Troy Glaus went back-to-back with a three-run homer and a solo blast, respectively, to give the Diamondbacks a 7-0 lead.

After such a rough start, there was nothing that Contreras could do but stick it out, with the White Sox bullpen worn thin from being used heavily during the team's just-completed Interleague road trip. Contreras battled, giving up one more long bomb in the fifth to Shawn Green. He allowed a total of nine hits, walking three and striking out four.

The lack of available depth in the bullpen was what made manager Ozzie Guillen not even think of pulling Contreras.

"Not at all," Guillen said of whether he considered going to his bullpen earlier in the game. "I know it's bad managing by Ozzie, but nobody knows my bullpen better than I do. I have too many innings left. I think Contreras did a tremendous job and helped our bullpen to recover."

Guillen used the only two relievers he thought he could use to close out the game. Luis Vizcaino pitched 1 2/3 innings, giving up one hit and striking out one. Shingo Takatsu saw his first action since June 8 at Colorado and lasted 1 1/3 innings.

And though Contreras struggled to get things done on the mound, he received no support from his offense. The team combined for eight hits but stranded five and never really put together a scoring threat.

Although Guillen didn't give him too much credit, part of the reason behind the shutdown was the strong performance by Arizona starter Shawn Estes. Estes recorded his 13th career complete game while giving up only one run on eight hits and striking out five.

The White Sox's lone run came in the fourth inning. Frank Thomas hit a solo home run to center to make it 7-1. The 407-foot blast was Thomas' third of the year.

Thomas would leave the game in the sixth with a cramp in his left thigh after recording his second hit of the night, a single to right field. The Sox also suffered another injury scare in the eighth when Jermaine Dye ran into the right field fence and hurt his wrist. Dye stayed in the game.

Guillen said that although Estes put together a solid performance, having such a big lead so early may have helped him.

"Nothing against him, but it's easy when you go the first two innings with a 7-0 lead," Guillen said. "You will throw strikes and you will make your pitch. He was commanding, he was throwing strikes. He got our hitters out of balance. This kid knows how to pitch, and he took advantage of the lead he had."

The inability of the White Sox to mount a comeback effort seemed a huge shock to the 32,952 on hand to witness the defeat. Although the White Sox have fallen behind early in many games this season, there always seems to be some sort of strong rally that gives the Sox a chance to pull off the improbable victory. But Monday, there was no such shot.

"It's going to happen," Chris Widger said of the team's inability to stay in the game. "Our pitchers have pitched so well that you look at a game like this and people are going to say, 'Is this where they start to go down hill?'

"It's just one start and that loss only counts one time. We'll come back [Tuesday] and [Orlando Hernandez] will go out there and we'll try to get back on track."

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Injuries hit Thomas, Dye

CHICAGO -- As if the 8-1 thumping Arizona handed out to the White Sox Monday wasn't bad enough, they also had to deal briefly with the possible loss of two key players.
Luckily for the South Siders, the news on the injury front was much better than the lopsided run total on the U.S. Cellular Field scoreboard.

Frank Thomas exited the game in the sixth inning after blooping a single to right off Shawn Estes and was replaced by pinch-runner Timo Perez. Thomas had homered one at-bat earlier, leading off the fourth, marking his third of the season and 439th of his career -- breaking a tie with Andre Dawson for sole possession of 30th place in baseball history.

It was Thomas' first start since June 5 against the Indians, a game in which he also went deep, as he was reduced to pinch-hitting duty during a six-game Interleague trip to Colorado and San Diego. Thomas was unavailable for comment almost 45 minutes after the game, going from hot to cold in his treatment process, but a team source said that Thomas merely was suffering from muscle cramps near the top of his left hamstring and just below his left buttocks.

Thomas was listed as day-to-day. In keeping with manager Ozzie Guillen's injury policy, though, his early exit means Thomas would not start Tuesday against Javier Vazquez.

"I think Frank, it was not his foot," Guillen said. "I think his leg, it was cramping. It put me in the situation, I don't know what to do because I'm losing a player right away.

"Hopefully, it's a cramp and he'll be ready for the next couple of days. We'll see what happens. I can't control that. I just hear from him and [athletic trainer Herm Schneider]."

Thomas spoke in San Diego of being at 100 percent, health-wise, mentioning the only problem he had during a week of inactivity was his ankle swelling due to Colorado's high altitude.

Right fielder Jermaine Dye also proclaimed himself to be in good condition, despite having Chris Snyder's drive to right hit off of his left wrist as he tried to make a spectacular catch at the wall.

Dye was wearing a large ice pack on the injured area after the game but said he would be ready to go Tuesday.

"I'm all right," Dye said. "I just bruised my arm a little bit."

The list of injuries being run down during the postgame interview session with Guillen concluded when one of the reporters asked in jest about the condition of Schneider. The athletic trainer was forced to run out of for both of his players' problems, but maybe it was Guillen that should have been checked out.

Schneider easily outran the White Sox manager to examine Dye in the eighth.

"He's embarrassing me in front of all the people running," said Guillen with a laugh. "I was tired. I was not trying to fake it. I was tired."

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Thomas, Everett in the lineup

CHICAGO -- The big question surrounding the White Sox of whether Frank Thomas or Carl Everett would be in the lineup on Monday night with the return of the designated hitter was answered quite easily.
Wanting to get Thomas the opportunity for more at-bats and still keep Everett's hot bat in the lineup, manager Ozzie Guillen decided to start Everett in left field and give Thomas the designated hitter spot.

"The reason I did it is because I want to see what Frank can do for us, how he can help us," Guillen said of his lineup. "Right now, the way I see Carl playing the outfield, it gives me a better chance to put both those guys in the lineup. I'm going to try to give Frank the most at-bats I can."

After the six-game road trip to National League parks where Thomas only got a total of three at-bats, Guillen is planning to use the slugger a lot more this week to see what he can bring to the club while playing on a more consistent basis.

In his three appearances as a pinch-hitter on the trip, Thomas went 1-for-2 with a home run and a strikeout. Not being able to play consistently after making his return was not easy for Thomas and something that he hopes won't become a trend.

"It was a tough week, because I'd start feeling like something was clicking and then I had to sit down those days -- it was tough," Thomas said. "But this team's winning and I've just got to do my part when called upon."

Guillen said that the likelihood of the two both playing on the same day is not very great and he will take a wait-and-see approach on what will happen in the future.

"Today you will see it but tomorrow I don't know," Guillen said about having both in the lineup. "I'm not going to promise anybody how often I am going to play them because as I promise the thing, I put myself in a tough position."

Having to tell either Everett or Thomas to sit down will not be an easy thing for a manager to do, but Guillen said that communication is a key. He tries to make sure that his players know the night before if they will be in the lineup.

"You have to respect the players, especially a guy like Frank, who has been here so many years," Guillen said. "I hope he respects our decision but it's not just Frank, it's everybody. I think everybody knows I am a real players' manager. I am going to stick up for my players every day. I'm going to fight for them but my job is to put the best guy I think should be there in the lineup every single day."

Bullpen questions: The White Sox bullpen was called on for quite a bit of action during the team's six-game road trip and not having Damaso Marte available for the fifth straight day had Guillen a bit concerned.

The lefty has not been available since he left Wednesday night's game against the Rockies, and missing an extra arm in the bullpen for so many days was beginning to look like a huge issue.

There had been questions of the whether the Sox would put Marte on the disabled list, but after a side session Monday, pitching coach Don Cooper is confident the southpaw will be ready to go this week.

"Everything went well," Cooper said of the throwing session. "He felt good before, during and after. [Tuesday] is going to be the key, but I am not anticipating anything but good stuff tomorrow. It's a pretty good bet that he's going to be available for us tomorrow."

Hearing that must have been good news to Guillen, who was a tad concerned about having only one left-hander to go to in the late innings. Although Neal Cotts has done well in his previous outings, Guillen is worried about burning the young hurler out too early in the season.

"I cannot go there right now without lefties because we only have one right now and the one we have right now is throwing the ball real well," Guillen said. "I don't want to use this kid like I did last year and all of a sudden he runs out of gas. Hopefully, Marte is getting ready for the next couple days."

New look leadoff: The lineup for the Sox took on a bit of a different look Monday night with Aaron Rowand making his first start in the leadoff slot this season.

With Everett getting the start for Scott Podsednik in left field and Pablo Ozuna, one of Guillen's other "speed" guys, not starting, Guillen found himself in a bit of a dilemma as to who should get things started for the Sox.

"I need a speed guy up front at the top of the lineup, that's the only reason I did it," Guillen said of Rowand's spot in the order. "I try to find a space for him to hit and all of a sudden it's the No. 7 spot. I'd rather have him hit in the top of the lineup and make things happen."

Home sweet home: Monday night's game marked the beginning of a 14-day, 12-game home stand for the White Sox, their longest of the season.

The team has a 19-8 record at home so far this season and should be happy to be enjoying those comforts for a little while longer.

But for Guillen, the relaxation of being home isn't exactly a welcome sight, not at least with the attention that he gets from the media.

"It's great because we playing good baseball here," Guillen said. "It's not good for me because I have to deal with [the media] everyday. At least I get a couple of days off on the road. (laughs)."

Down on the farm: Leo Daigle continued his hot hitting streak on Sunday, going 2-for-3 with his 20th home run of the year in Class A Winston Salem's 4-2 victory over Wilmington. Daigle has now hit home runs in four straight games with a total of six bombs in that stretch.

Right-hander Bobby Jenks picked up save No. 15 in Game 2 of a doubleheader for Double-A Birmingham. Jenks held on for the 1-0 victory, as Birmingham made it a sweep after winning Game 1, 8-3. Joe Borchard hit his 10th home run of the year but it was not enough to help Triple-A Charlotte ,as the team fell, 10-4, to Norfolk.

On deck: Orlando Hernandez's winning streak is on the line Tuesday as the right-hander attempts to win his seventh in a row in the middle game against the Diamondbacks. Hernandez has been quite successful in Interleague games, going 7-2 with a 3.40 ERA in 12 appearances.

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

El Duque knocked out early in loss

CHICAGO -- The tone in Ozzie Guillen's voice sitting at the podium after Tuesday night's game said it all.
Although his team has only lost two games in a row, for Guillen and everyone else it seemed more like 20, as the White Sox were handed their second straight thorough defeat at the hands of the Arizona Diamondbacks, 10-4, at U.S. Cellular Field.

"It feels like we've lost 20 games, but it's not," Guillen said. "The way we perform, the way we are pitching, the way we were playing was not good, so a little slap in the face is not bad at all. The last two games we really just have not pitched good."

Guillen wasn't lying when he said that the pitching was lacking in the first two games of the series against Arizona. The White Sox have relied on quality starts from their rotation all year and that hasn't happened in the club's two straight losses.

One night after Jose Contreras gave up eight runs in six innings, Orlando Hernandez (7-2) only lasted 4 2/3 innings, allowing six runs off eight hits, walking three and striking out three. The loss was Hernandez's first since April 14 against Cleveland.

Hernandez could not say much but shake his head at his performance. The right-hander has not quite been the same since his shortened outing before he was put on the disabled list. In his last start, he picked up a win in Colorado, despite giving up four runs in six innings.

When asked what he thought was different in his most recent performance, El Duque could only lament his lack of strong outings recently.

"I think the last start was no good, too," Hernandez said. "The last four starts, to give up four runs or more in the game is no good. I don't know. Today was just no good."

For Guillen, he knows the White Sox have gotten used to strong starts every time from their starter, but acknowledges that these rough outings are going to happen.

"We've been getting spoiled by the pitching staff all year," Guillen said. "The best thing we've been doing all year is pitching, and we haven't done it the past two nights.

"The rough pitching, it's going to happen. It's a long year, hopefully it happens sooner and not later."

Though the White Sox starters have struggled, facing a potent offense like the Diamondbacks doesn't make it any easier. The past two nights Arizona's offense has put up 24 hits, 18 runs, and six home runs.

The D-Backs may not have been hot coming into the series, but first baseman Paul Konerko said it should be no surprise that Arizona is putting up the numbers when you look at the strength in their lineup.

"There are a lot of All-Stars in a row right there and if all of them are clicking like they are right now, it's going to be tough," Konerko said. "That's basically it. They took over that game offensively and didn't look back."

The Diamondbacks started the scoring run when they got to Hernandez in the fourth. Troy Glaus led off with a solo homer to bring Arizona within one, 2-1. Royce Clayton would hit a two-run double later in the inning to give the Diamondbacks their first lead, 3-2.

Arizona added three more runs off Hernandez in the fifth. Chad Tracey led off the inning with a double and was brought home by a Glaus single for a 4-3 lead. Shawn Green hit a 371-foot home run, his ninth, to score two runs and put Arizona up 6-3.

That strong offensive output early may have helped starter Javier Vazquez to feel a little more comfortable. Vazquez delivered the team's second straight quality start.

Vazquez navigated eight innings, giving up three runs on seven hits, striking out a season-high 10 and walking one. Vazquez's dominating performance came one night after Shawn Estes pitched a complete-game gem.

Arizona's two wins in the three-game series marks the first time this season that the Sox have lost a home series. Though it may seem that the White Sox offense is in a slump, getting defeated pretty handily two days in a row, even Guillen had to acknowledge that the production is not much different than the beginning of the year.

"It's a funny thing, we used to get four hits, five hits and we won," Guillen said. "Now we get seven, eight hits and we lose."

The loss also cut the White Sox's lead in the American League Central to four games, as the Twins pulled off a 4-3 win over the San Francisco Giants. While the team is paying some attention to what is going on with the Twins, Konerko was quick to point out that this race is not going to be won between the teams any time soon.

"This is going to go down to the end," Konerko said of the division race. "I expect that, and I hope this team does. It would be nice to walk away with the division, be up by 10 games two months from now, but realistically it's not going to happen. We just have to make sure we keep doing our job."

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

White Sox sign off on Broadway deal

CHICAGO -- The description provided by Lance Broadway to the Chicago media in regards to what should be expected when he is on the mound was succinct and to the point. That explanation mirrored the length of time it took for the first-round pick and the White Sox to reach contractual terms.
Broadway, the 15th overall pick in the 2005 First-Year Player Draft, signed on the dotted line Monday, receiving a $1.57 million signing bonus. Broadway made it clear during a conference call after his somewhat surprising selection that he would quickly be in the fold with the White Sox, and proved to be a man of his word.

"That's exactly what happened," said Broadway of the quick negotiating period, handled by Ryan Ware, his representative. "Things went well. Things went smoothly. It's what I expected.

"You can't get better unless you are playing, and if you are not signed, you are not playing. Baseball is my dream, and you have to play baseball to be able to achieve your dream."

The 6-foot-4 right-hander, who played one season at Texas Christian University after pitching two seasons at the NAIA level for Dallas Baptist, mentioned that the first-round contracts being slotted based on the deals for previously drafted players certainly sped up the process. He also pointed out that clubs are truly taking a stand on how far they are willing to go with a rigid first-rounder, and that nobody really wins during a prolonged negotiating period.

It's Broadway that clearly won in this particular situation. Broadway was considered by many to be a late first-round or early second-round selection during much of the time leading up to last week's draft, but his value skyrocketed in the final few weeks. That period included a complete-game victory for Broadway over Stanford in the NCAA Regionals.

Duane Shaffer, the team's senior director of player personnel, stated previously that Broadway was the team's target for the past two months, with his value simply being confirmed by others within the organization. Broadway has a fastball clocked between 88-92 mph, not exactly the classic first-round capabilities for a pitcher.

But Broadway also had a 15-1 record for the Horned Frogs as a junior, leading all NCAA Division I pitchers in victories, while setting a school record for wins and strikeouts at 151. He posted a 1.62 ERA and five complete games in 19 trips to the mound, leading the White Sox to believe that his collegiate numbers would translate favorably at the Major League level.

"They felt he was the guy that was more than likely going to be in professional ball what he is as an amateur," said White Sox general manager Ken Williams of Broadway's selection. "There are other guys out there that people talk about, some that people felt maybe had better fastballs here or more zip on some of their pitches.

"But in terms of consistency, getting here quickly and entrenching himself in a god spot in the rotation, we decided he was the guy," Williams added.

Broadway expects to join Class A Winston-Salem at some point this weekend and move right into the Minor League experience. He doesn't expect any extra pressure to fall upon him from being a first-round pick, and has already talked to a few friends who play professionally about the entire experience.

A stint in the Northwoods League last summer, playing for the Wisconsin Woodchucks, gave Broadway his own first-hand knowledge of pitching as part of a five-man rotation and frequent travel. Once he starts with the Warthogs, though, Broadway knows it all comes down to making pitches.

"All I can say is I would like to make it to the Major Leagues as soon as possible," Broadway said. "They won't put me out there until I'm ready. I want to go out there and pitch the best I can and I expect to hopefully be there soon.

"There's no timeframe there. I'll be up [in the big leagues] when I'm ready. I expect to pitch well. I believe I have the ability and mental capacity to do it. But it will take innings and repetition to get that done."

As for Broadway's repertoire, he described it Monday as throwing a "fastball, curve, changeup and strikes." That description wasn't exactly on display Monday night, when Broadway threw out the first pitch prior to the Arizona game.

His toss, which resembled an eephus pitch, one-hopped Mark Buehrle behind the plate. Nerves could be blamed for that situation. Then again, very few first-round picks are judged solely on their first pitch.

"It was great walking out there, but the throw really didn't turn out too good," said Broadway with a laugh. "But no, it was great. The guys have shown me a great time. I love Chicago already."

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Thomas forced to cut back

CHICAGO -- Frank Thomas sat in the White Sox dugout on Tuesday with a big smile on his face and laughed as he talked about the cramp that took him out in the sixth inning of Monday night's game.
Thomas didn't feel the injury itself was funny, but learning what he will have to do to keep it from occurring again is what had Big Hurt shaking his head.

White Sox head athletic trainer Herm Schneider said that Thomas will have to change his routine a little to help aid in not cramping up, like not lifting before games and cutting down on the amount of coffee he drinks. The change in the lifting schedule was nothing big for Thomas, but the coffee part is what had him worried.

"I don't know if I can kill that habit," Thomas said with a laugh. "I love coffee. I'm a Starbucks regular and I drink coffee when I get to the ballpark. I like to stay hyper and keep myself motivated. That's the way I do things."

While Thomas joked about his coffee habit, the slugger knows that he will have to change some things in his routine after having to leave a game for the second time this season with muscle tightness.

On Monday, Thomas left the game in the sixth after recording his second hit of the night, a single to right field. The cramp actually started to affect Thomas when he hit his third home run of the season in the fourth inning. Rounding second on the home run, Thomas felt the back of his left thigh tighten up. Thomas had to leave the game in his season debut against the Angels at home on May 30 with a strained right hip flexor.

Schneider said that, for Thomas, sometimes it takes these type of setbacks to realize that he has to change his routine.

"Frank has a tendency not to listen until the horse is out of the barn," Schneider said. "When the horse is out of the barn, then he happens to listen."

Though he may not listen until after the fact, Schneider said that he knows Thomas will listen now and he should be just fine. Thomas' legs are still not 100 percent due to the ankle injury, and Schneider said that he will not be able to get his legs back fully until after the season.

Thomas said he was most frustrated knowing that he wouldn't be able to play on Tuesday due to Guillen's rule of players not playing the next day after leaving a game with an injury. He feels though that once he gets into a consistent rhythm of playing, he should be able to avoid smaller injuries like the cramps and hip flexor pull.

"I've had so much inactivity over the last year," Thomas said. "I'm killing myself in the weight room overdoing things. [Monday], I had a big workout before the game in the afternoon and got myself dehydrated last night.

"What happened to me last night was a wake-up call to me that I have to stop doing some of this."

Not such a welcome return: Ross Gload was back in the White Sox clubhouse on Tuesday but not in the capacity that he had hoped.

He flew into Chicago on Tuesday morning to see Schneider and get an MRI exam on his left shoulder. Gload reinjured the shoulder a week ago Sunday when he was making a double-play throw in the first inning of a game for Triple-A Charlotte.

"I took infield on Sunday and then had a double-play ball in the first inning that I just didn't think about or just kind of made a good throw," Gload said of the injury. "I felt the exact pain I had had."

The timetable for Gload's return is now very uncertain as Schneider said that this is a setback where they will have to go back to the "drawing board." The doctor was not yet available at game time to look at the MRI results to determine what the next step will be in the process.

Gload had taken part in 12 games for Charlotte. He hit .364 during his time with the team, including two home runs and no errors. Before reinjuring the shoulder, Gload felt he was close to making a return to the team. Now, Gload will just have to sit back and watch the success continue for his teammates, something that has made all the setbacks even more frustrating for him.

"I think a week ago I started saying the White Sox won last night instead of we won, so it's frustrating to that point," Gload said. "Right now I have nothing to do with anything here.

"I was probably 80-85 percent a couple of days before I reinjured it. I felt I was almost through it and then just the one throw."

Problem solved: Guillen won't have to worry about giving his lefties in the bullpen more work as Damaso Marte was available Tuesday.

Schneider said that Marte's arm was a bit tired, and he tweaked it during the game at Colorado on June 8. Marte had not had that feeling before and Scheneider said the club took extra precautions because of that.

"He's not used to having that and it scared him a little," Schneider said. "So we gave him a few days off with treatment and medication. He's ready to go now."

Long ball bonanza: The return of warm weather to Chicago meant the return of another common sight to U.S. Cellular Field -- the home run.

Jose Contreras gave up four home runs in his six innings of work and though before Monday's game Guillen said he wasn't worried about his pitching staff giving up as many home runs as last year, he made sure to reiterate his lack of concern on Tuesday.

"Last year, it was home runs by people that weren't supposed to hit home runs," Guillen said of the 127 home runs given up to opponents last season. "Last night, those guys that hit the home runs are supposed to hit them.

Down on the farm: Darren Blakely went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI for Double-A Birmingham, but it wasn't enough to carry the Barons in a 5-4 loss to Tennessee. Class A Winston-Salem defeated Frederick, 12-4, with the help again of Leo Daigle's hot bat. Daigle went 3-for-4 with a home run, his 21st of the year, and two RBIs. Triple-A Charlotte had Monday off.

On deck: Jon Garland became the first American League pitcher to win 10 games in his last start with a victory over the San Diego Padres at PETCO Park. Garland will face off against Arizona's Russ Ortiz.

The right-hander has not had a great deal of success in Interleague Play in his career, going 5-8 with a 4.86 ERA, but has one of the lowest ERAs in the league at home this season with a 2.39 ERA at U.S. Cellular Field.

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Big sixth inning carries White Sox

CHICAGO -- For a supposed "small ball" team, the White Sox certainly didn't show the look of one on Wednesday night, tallying 10 runs in the sixth inning to help snap a two-game slide.
Those 10 runs would be the key to prohibiting a series sweep by Arizona, as the White Sox would take a 12-6 come-from-behind victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in front of 24,499 at U.S. Cellular Field.

Though not many people would have predicted such a high-scoring inning for the Sox, no one seemed to be more surprised by the offensive output than manager Ozzie Guillen.

Seeing his team put together the most runs the club has managed to string together in an inning since April 18, 2000, when the White Sox scored 11 in the fourth inning at Seattle, was something that Guillen didn't expect nor had witnessed before.

"I don't remember one like that," Guillen said. "Not to take any credit away from my hitting coach or my hitters, but I didn't think we would score that many runs in one inning with the team we have."

Built around speed and doing the little things to help score runs, the White Sox (43-22) looked a little out of place blasting three home runs and stringing together an offensive explosion that encompassed 13 batters.

It seemed like every little thing that could go right for the Sox in the sixth did.

Including a little help from Arizona shortstop Royce Clayton. Clayton made miscues on back-to-back plays after the Sox had already scored two runs off a Frank Thomas solo home run to center and a Jermaine Dye RBI single to make it cut the White Sox deficit to 6-4.

A.J. Pierzynski hit a sharp grounder up the middle to Clayton and though Clayton was able to make the grab, his throw to second sailed down right-field line.

That miscue allowed Aaron Rowand to score and bring the Sox within one.

Still with only one out in the game, Joe Crede followed with another grounder to Clayton that he fielded easily. Clayton had the option of throwing to home to get Dye or to first but couldn't pull the trigger to make a play, with the tying run crossing the plate and Crede reaching first safely.

"That's not a play that you see happen very often with any shortstop, especially Royce," Paul Konerko said of Clayton's freeze. "He's the best shortstop I've ever played with, no one is close to him.

"The wetness with the ball had something to do with it. I know he wanted to come up firing right away, he's not going to say that, but he didn't have a good grip on it."

It was after the two Clayton mistakes that the Sox did the most of the scoring damage. Juan Uribe hit a three-run bomb to left-center to put Chicago up, 9-6.

Two more Sox would get on base though before Konerko hit his 17th home run of the year, another three-run blast, to put the game away.

Despite the amount of runs that scored following Clayton's miscues, Konerko said that he didn't feel that those were what ultimately cost Arizona the game.

"The way things were going that inning, the way they were throwing it, that wasn't going to be the difference in the game," Konerko said. "I think we were going to score some runs with how well we were swinging it."

Those big swings were much needed after Jon Garland had a start that he would just as soon forget.

Garland started off well, but with the game tied at 1 heading into the fifth, he gave up five runs to allow Arizona to take a 6-1 lead. Garland (11-2) worked six innings, giving up six runs off six hits, walking three and striking out four.

The victory was Garland's 11th and though he is the first American League pitcher to reach that number, he felt like luck played a bit in that happening.

"I probably shouldn't have been [the AL's first 11-game winner]," Garland said. "It works out to my advantage. The guys came up big with the bats and were hitting the ball well."

The game was a huge momentum swing for the team. Not only did it prevent a series sweep by Arizona, something that has not happened to Chicago this season, but it also aided Chicago in the American League Central standings.

With a Minnesota loss to the Giants on Wednesday night, the Sox were able to pick up a game and put them five games ahead of the Twins in the division race.

The showing of such a strong offense after two poorly played games to start the series against Arizona was a welcome sight for Guillen, but he does not plan to change the way that the team operates.

"We didn't play well the last couple days, all of a sudden down by six runs, five runs to have this comeback, you should feel proud of your players," Guillen said.

"It would be easy to say, 'Now, let's hit 20 out of the park every night.' But we have to continue to play the way we've played all year."

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

DHs handling split so far

CHICAGO -- The stress level for manager Ozzie Guillen increased a few more notches on Wednesday afternoon as he was asked about the possibility of trading one of his two designated hitters.
Guillen said that there are no plans at the time, but that doesn't mean it won't happen.

"You want me to say we're going to trade somebody?" Guillen said. "We might trade somebody. I don't know.

"Right now, we're not trying to trade anyone. It's how Carl [Everett] and Frank [Thomas] handle the situation. If they help me get it to the right situation for the team, this is a team that expects to win. I think we should win this thing, I think we have a chance to win it. It's not going to (happen by) pleasing players."

Guillen has made it well known that he will try to put the best lineup he sees fit out on the field every day. Having two strong candidates at the designated hitter position like Everett and Thomas does not make Guillen's job an easy one. For Guillen, it's been the most difficult situation that he's had to deal with as a manager.

"This is going to be the toughest challenge for me in my short managing career," Guillen said. " I've got two guys who are swinging the bat well, but on the other hand, I have to see Frank, what and how Frank can do for us."

Thomas got the start at designated hitter on Wednesday night, but that spot is never guaranteed for more than one day. Everett hit his ninth home run of the year on Tuesday in his start at DH. Everett's home run numbers and 41 RBIs have already surpassed his total of last year (seven and 35).

Everett has also shown his ability to be available in the outfield, but Guillen said that it's difficult to find him time there when he relies so much on Scott Podsednik, Jermaine Dye and Aaron Rowand in different aspects of the game.

The best part of the entire situation for Guillen has been the way the two sluggers have handled the situation.

"Right now, they're handling it real well," Guillen said. "How long it's going to be, I don't know. But they know I try to do the best for my team."

Positive results: Ross Gload couldn't help but smile on Wednesday after learning the results of the MRI taken on his left shoulder.

Gload suffered a tear in the shoulder and felt that he may have reinjured it during a start for Triple-A Charlotte on June 8. The MRI he had on Tuesday revealed positive news in that there are no new tears and the original tear has healed pretty well.

"I went home and was pretty down, well, not real encouraged," Gload said. "I wasn't looking for good news, but today I came in and got good news. I did more rehab and stuff in there today than I expected and felt real good on everything I did. That's a positive right now."

No new tears means that Gload can begin a more aggressive approach to his rehabilitation. He said that he did free-motion activities in the pool on Wednesday and resumed hitting. Throwing is still out of the question until at least a few more days.

While it's frustrating not to be able to do everything, he is trying to look for the positives.

"I've been in Herm [Schneider]'s training room since the second week of Spring Training on pretty much the same area, so it's pretty frustrating," Gload said of the injury. "On the other hand, I'm pretty positive today that it's not going to be as long and hopefully we'll be through it soon."

Have a little faith: The rumors may be the strongest when it comes to the situation of Thomas and Everett, but sports talk radio in Chicago has also been calling for a trade of third baseman Joe Crede.

Crede has struggled at the plate this season, hitting .224 with eight home runs and 19 RBIs. It's been his defensive play though that Guillen has counted on the most in helping the White Sox get off to the best record in Major League Baseball.

Even though Crede has not produced the numbers that some may have been expecting, it doesn't mean that Guillen has given up on his third baseman. Guillen scoffed a bit at the thought of GM Ken Williams trading Crede for another infielder.

"I'd like to know what he can bring here," Guillen said of the trade thoughts. "There aren't too many Joe Credes out there. Believe me, there's not. I want Joe on my team as long as I'm manager because he's great. He's great to have in the ballpark and in the clubhouse. I wish for him, not for us but for him, that he has the breakout year we think he can."

Mr. Do It All: White Sox hitters may not be on a hot streak but that isn't the case throughout the organization. Leo Daigle, a first baseman for Class A Winston-Salem, has been on a hot streak for the past few weeks, including hitting for the cycle Tuesday night.

Daigle went 5-for-6 in the Warthog's 21-12 victory over Frederick with two singles, a double, triple, home run, six RBIs and five runs scored.

If there were a Triple Crown award for the Carolina League, Daigle would be in line to win it as he leads the league in home runs (22), hits (94), and RBI (73).

On deck: After a day off Thursday, the Los Angeles Dodgers come to the South Side for a three-game series at U.S. Cellular Field. Mark Buehrle will make his 14th start of the season on Friday night, squaring off against D.J. Houlton.

Buehrle has lasted at least six innings in 41 straight starts, the longest streak by a Sox pitcher since Jack McDowell's 48 in a row from July 4, 1992, to Sept. 6, 1993.

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com

White Sox turn on the power

CHICAGO -- It wasn't exactly pitching or defense, but the Chicago White Sox definitely showed you something Wednesday night.
It was a combination of power and persistence, a blend of three-run shots and resilience that turned a bad night into a heartening event.

You find out something about teams not when they are cruising, but during the bad times. The first 2 1/2 games of this Interleague series against the Arizona Diamondbacks qualified as the worst of times for the White Sox this season.

They had been outscored, 18-4, the first two nights, losing the first two games of a three-game series for the first time this year. Nothing was working for the Sox. Wednesday night, through 4 1/2 innings, it looked like the bad-news trifecta. The Sox were down, 6-1, and Jon Garland was turning from newly emerged ace to Victim No. 3 of the D-Backs attack.

But part of the new deal on the South Side goes beyond a reliance on pitching, speed and defense. It is the basic belief that this team can win, regardless of circumstances. The White Sox, and anybody else who will listen, get a daily dose of this from manager Ozzie Guillen.

And after 65 games, with the White Sox still with baseball's best record at 43-22, this can no longer be considered so much managerial smoke being blown.

Shortly after reaching the Interleague depths Wednesday night, the White Sox not only changed directions, but exploded this entire contest. They scored 10 runs in the sixth inning, with three home runs, Frank Thomas opening the festivities with a solo shot, Juan Uribe and Paul Konerko following with three-run homers. They turned a 6-2 deficit into a 12-6 victory.

It may be true that the Sox were aided by two uncharacteristic fielding gaffes by D-Backs shortstop Royce Clayton. But the point is that this Chicago team appeared to be truly determined to immediately turn this thing around. And it had the necessary tools to turn this determination into production.

"I feel so proud of these kids, what they did," Guillen said. "They didn't play good the last two days. Having this comeback you should feel good about your players. They never give up. They keep pushing.

"It feels good to win a game like this after you play so poorly the last two days."

The explosion of power was a bit out of character for the Sox, but it was on the scoreboard so it must have been real. "A lot of people think we don't have enough power, but you saw what we did with men on base," Guillen noted.

What did it all mean? This wasn't a typical White Sox victory, but the standings only ask how many, not how. The 2005 White Sox are now tied for the best 65-game start in franchise history with a couple of much older versions, the 1917 and 1954 clubs.

Garland was the beneficiary of the outburst, becoming the first 11-game winner in the American League this season. It wasn't his finest hour, but there have been plenty of times this season when he had to be at the top of his form to win.

All in all, this performance reflected what Guillen has been consistently saying about the nature of his club. There have been suggestions that the Sox need to obtain another hitter to stay at this level. Maybe not.

"I truly believe that with what we have we can do the job," Guillen said. "It's up to the players. My coaching staff will not panic. We have a lot of confidence in what we have. I think we don't need anything right now. It's up to them (the players) how far we're going to get.

"We're going to hit a lot of bumps in the road. Hopefully, we get those bumps out of the way and we keep playing."

Guillen had said Tuesday night that the two losses to Arizona were so one-sided that they seemed like 20 losses. But he has a way of keeping this thing in a healthier perspective than the rest of the population.

"I was out on the street walking today," Guillen reported, "and people were saying to me: 'Don't worry, you're going to be back.' I go: 'Wow. We only lost two games.' "

Those two games, as bad as they were, will now look like mere bumps in the road because the White Sox had enough of the right stuff to not only avoid a sweep, but to turn a looming catastrophe into a morale-building triumph.

The trick for this team would be to keep the attitude, without turning to the 10-run, three-home run inning as a basic plan of attack.

Even the relentlessly optimistic Guillen had a cautionary word in that direction at the close of festivities Wednesday night. "We got to continue to play the way we played all year long," the manager said.

True enough. The White Sox will win with their newfound reliance on pitching, defense and speed, the old baseball virtues that have become new again on the South Side. They will not win by regularly outslugging people. But the thing was, on this Interleague evening, when they really needed an impressive outburst of power, they managed to find it.

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Struggling McCarthy stays confident

CHICAGO -- Brandon McCarthy looks back on his trips to the mound during the 2005 season and thinks immediately of one name: Curt Schilling.
Don Cooper, the White Sox esteemed pitching coach, talks of the young phenom's efforts this season and adds another name to the equation: Jon Garland.

Whatever the comparison, there's no denying two clear-cut facts where McCarthy is concerned. The right-hander has struggled for Triple-A Charlotte since his last Major League start against Texas on May 27, but both the White Sox and McCarthy haven't lost an ounce of confidence in the pitcher's development.

"One thing about McCarthy is that nothing fazed him," Cooper said. "He continued to attack. He didn't back off. He didn't cower in the corner. He kept trying to make more pitches. We weren't going to get any higher with our thoughts for Brandon or lose any belief in him through a tough outing or two. His time is to come in the future."

"It has actually given me more confidence that he can come and handle this situation," added White Sox general manager Ken Williams. "I think he will be one of the rare guys who has some success right off the bat."

The legend of McCarthy has been growing with each high-level performance over the past couple of seasons. The right-hander finished 17-6 with a 3.14 ERA between 27 starts for Class A Kannapolis (15 starts), Class A Winston-Salem (eight) and Double-A Birmingham (four) during a breakout 2004 campaign, striking out a Minor League-best 202 while walking a mere 30.

Even with that level of excellence, McCarthy was targeted for a return to Birmingham following a non-roster invite to Spring Training. But the 21-year-old was so dominant in Arizona that he left manager Ozzie Guillen trying to find a place for him on the staff.

It didn't take long for that move to come to fruition. McCarthy replaced an injured Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez for two starts, making his Major League debut on May 22 before 40,000 at Wrigley Field. McCarthy allowed two earned runs on four hits over 5 1/3 innings against the Cubs, striking out six and walking one, but he did not factor in the final decision.

Since that game, though, McCarthy has dealt with prolonged pitching struggles for the first time in his professional career. Five days later in Texas, McCarthy was touched for six runs over five innings, including four home runs, and was sent back to Charlotte following the loss.

McCarthy has started games at Indianapolis (June 3), Louisville (June 8) and this past Tuesday at Norfolk since then, losing all three. He has worked 16 1/3 innings during that stretch, giving up 19 hits and 14 earned runs, as his record for the Knights slipped to 3-7 and his ERA rose to 5.48.

The long ball also has been a problem. McCarthy retired the first 13 hitters at Indianapolis but gave up a game-winning three-run home run two innings later. The deciding three-run home run came in the first inning against Louisville.

Home runs don't bother McCarthy. He points to Schilling, another pitcher who rarely walks hitters and consistently challenges the strike zone, as an example of success despite the long ball. Schilling was taken deep 66 times during the 2001 and 2002 seasons, but he won 45 games over that same stretch.

But for that strategy to work for McCarthy, he has to limit the home runs to solo shots.

"My problem lately is that one guy or two guys have been on base," said McCarthy via telephone from Charlotte. "If it's a solo home run, those are the things I can deal with. I've given those up my whole life.

"When I'm walking a hitter or two and the next guy hits a home run, then that's when it starts to go against you and presents a bigger problem. It hasn't really been an adjustment [since returning to Charlotte], in a sense. I don't know what to call it.

"I wanted to get my mechanics and command back," McCarthy added. "I didn't have my command when I was up with the White Sox or the last couple of starts in Charlotte. I wanted to get to a place where I felt strong and I had that mental sharpness."

In McCarthy's defense, he is pitching for one of the worst teams by record in the International League. One mistake can often lead to a defeat. He's also getting excellent on-the-job training, delivered by many hitters who had short careers in the Majors but extensive time at the Triple-A level.

McCarthy remains a control pitcher, with 81 strikeouts and 18 walks over 11 starts and 64 innings pitched for Charlotte, added to his 10 strikeouts and four walks during two starts with the White Sox. But the hitters clearly are different between the two levels.

In addition to being more talented, Major League hitters are often looking to advance runners, following a situational approach, by taking a pitch that can be driven and going the other way. Minor League hitters jump on a McCarthy fastball around the plate, regardless of the situation.

So, McCarthy has added the term "wildly effective" to his pitching repertoire, maybe wasting a pitch in a hitter's count, changing the eye level and perception, instead of attacking at all instances. In fact, this recent stretch of four starts has been a great learning experience for McCarthy.

Knowledge is what McCarthy should be gaining at this point in his career. As Cooper pointed out, McCarthy was just two years older than Garland when he made his Major League debut and it took Garland four years of .500 pitching to emerge as one of the American League's top hurlers. And McCarthy has yet to receive "his first extended real chance" to contribute for the White Sox, according to Cooper.

Many in the organization believe McCarthy won't see the Minors again once that happens.

"When I start finding success here, it's when I start finding the nuances of hitters down here," McCarthy said. "I hate losing, but I can't beat myself up over bad starts. I have to think about all the positives from going through the struggles and know this different approach will make me better at the next level."

"He sees what this is like up here, so he has to regroup and work on a few different things," Williams added. "When he comes back, he will be even more prepared. It's a common occurrence. I'm not worried in the least about what we have there."

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Hermanson foiled in San Diego

SAN DIEGO -- Dustin Hermanson's run of perfection finally came to a close, a little less than 10 weeks into the 2005 season.
The White Sox closer saved his first 15 opportunities, before allowing two runs in the bottom of the ninth Saturday night, giving the Padres (36-26) a 2-1 victory in front of 41,020 frenzied fans at PETCO Park. The rally snapped a four-game White Sox winning streak on their Interleague road trip and dropped their record to a still amazing 36-2 when leading after eight innings.

Even though Hermanson (0-2) allowed Ramon Hernandez's seventh home run to tie the game and Damian Jackson's bases-loaded single through a drawn-in infield to win it, there wasn't a hint of fingers being pointed at the demonstrative closer. In fact, manager Ozzie Guillen singled out a lack of execution by his offense against Padres' starter Tim Stauffer and a pair of relievers as the ultimate reason for the setback.

"I have no complaints (with Hermanson). This kid has been pitching real well," said Guillen of the rough finish. "It's just part of the game. We didn't lose the game because of that. We lost the game because we had an opportunity to score a couple of runs and we didn't."

It took only two batters for the White Sox (41-20) to score their lone run of the game, as Scott Podsednik beat out an infield grounder to second and Tadahito Iguchi's double to left-center brought home the fleet-footed leadoff hitter with relative ease. Over the next six innings, the White Sox managed just one Iguchi single against Stauffer. The rookie struck out seven over seven and didn't issue a walk.

Both Akinori Otsuka in the eighth and Scott Linebrink (3-1) in the ninth gave the White Sox an opportunity to score, but the South Siders couldn't push a run across. Juan Uribe walked to open the eighth and quickly moved to third on Joe Crede's single to right.

But pitcher Mark Buehrle struck out on a bunt attempt, and Otsuka fanned Podsednik and Iguchi in the old-fashioned manner. Both Otsuka and Iguchi were part of the same Pacific League in Japan but played on competing teams.

Paul Konerko singled with one out in the ninth and was sent home by third-base coach Joey Cora on A.J. Pierzynski's double down the left-field line. Khalil Greene's relay throw was about 10 feet up the line, but Hernandez grabbed the throw and put the tag on a sliding Konerko for what home plate umpire Laz Diaz called the final out.

Guillen briefly argued, but left the field and left the game in Hermanson's hands.

Hermanson induced Ryan Klesko's pop up to third for the first out of the ninth, before working to a full count against Hernandez. The talented Padres catcher launched a split-finger that didn't drop into the left-field stands, a pitch Hermanson knew the result of without even turning around.

"Oh, yeah. I thought it was gone," Hermanson said. "I didn't get the job done. I was focused as could be. They fought off some good pitches, and that's how you win ball games."

His secondary references were to Sean Burroughs bloop single to left and Robert Fick's pinch-hit single to right following the home run, putting runners on first and third with one out. Hermanson intentionally walked pinch-hitter Mark Sweeney to load the bases, and Jackson followed with the game-winner.

It was Jackson's first hit against Hermanson in seven career at-bats. The rally also ruined another sensationally steady effort from Buehrle, who worked at least six innings for the 41st straight start. The left-hander gave up seven hits and one intentional walk over 7 2/3 innings, striking out six.

Yet, he ended up with his fourth straight no-decision and a second possible victory during that run lost in the ninth inning. The White Sox are 2-2 during these past four starts.

Buehrle said that he felt as good as he has in recent memory, with his changeup "coming out of his hand the way it's supposed to feel." The opposition has scored seven earned runs over his last 31 1/3 innings but his cupboard is completely bare.

"It's one of those games," Buehrle said. "Everyone is allowed to have a bad day and today was (Hermanson's) day. He's done the job for us all year, with it being two months or 2 1/2 months in, and it's his first blown save. It's a tough loss, but with Freddy out there tomorrow, I like our chances to win the series."

Dustin Hermanson / P
Born: 12/21/72
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 200 lbs
Bats: R / Throws: R

More info:
Player page
Stats | Splits
Gallery
Team Site | Shop


"Everybody wants to do well, numbers-wise," added reliever Cliff Politte, who struck out Phil Nevin to end the eighth and preserve Buehrle's 1-0 lead. "Buehrle has been lights out all year. It's like he said: He was bummed, but he was more upset that we lost."

The late-inning misery was compounded by Minnesota's 5-3 victory in Los Angeles over the Dodgers, cutting the American League Central lead to 4 1/2 games. Despite the tough loss, the White Sox still have a chance to finish at 5-1 on this road trip.

Hermanson also will have a chance to wipe away the memories from this loss, just as he bounced back nicely after his string of 21 1/3 scoreless innings ended. A closer needs a short memory to succeed.

"Yep, that's what I'm going to have to do," said Hermanson of having a short memory. "Just come back and get ready for tomorrow."

"Nobody is down on him after one game," Politte added of Hermanson. "You will run into bumps in the road every once in a while."

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Rowand right along

SAN DIEGO -- The 13-game hitting streak belonging to Aaron Rowand came to a rather unceremonious end Friday night, with two groundouts, a fly out and a strikeout swinging. But that run really didn't matter to Rowand.
The fact that Rowand's swing has started to round into form holds far greater importance than his second double-digit streak in 2005.

"I don't much care about the streaks," said Rowand, who came into Saturday's contest hitting .287, with four home runs and 25 RBIs. "Thirteen games is nothing.

"God knows, I want as many hits as I can have every night. But if I don't get a hit, I won't be upset in the least that my streak came to an end. It's not about that. It's about winning."

Rowand practices what he preaches. After Friday's 4-2 victory over the Padres, the center fielder was watching video of a rare error he committed in the ninth inning, when he kicked away Ryan Klesko's leadoff single on an aggressive move toward the infield to make the play. The lack of hitting for the night wasn't an issue.

During the last 30 games, Rowand has knocked out 39 hits in 118 at-bats (.331) and raised his average from .235 to .287. He also hit .392 (20-for-51) during the recent 13-game stretch.

But Rowand is a perfectionist. While he fully admits his swing is pretty good right now, Rowand still points to the timing and rhythm of his approach that need to improve in order to catch the ball more out front, get the ball up in the air and drive it on a consistent basis.

If Rowand integrates those changes, he could be looking at this third double-digit hit streak of the year and a solid run at .300. The hitting streak he really wants, though, is one that is a little shorter but more productive.

"The streaks that you like the most are the five- or six-game one, when you get two or three hits every night," said Rowand with a laugh. "I'm still not quite where I want to be. I have good days and bad days.

"I want to get to the point where like last season, even if I didn't get a couple of hits or a hit on that day, all my swings were consistent," Rowand added.

Ready and waiting: With left-hander Shawn Estes on the mound Monday for Arizona, there's a strong possibility that Frank Thomas will return to the starting lineup. The slugging veteran certainly seems ready to get back into action.

Thomas had two at-bats during the first four games of this six-game road trip, taking a called third strike on Tuesday in Denver and hitting a mammoth, ninth-inning home run to center during Wednesday's series finale at Coors Field. His surgically repaired left ankle didn't suffer from the inactivity, but it did swell up in the altitude of Colorado.

"Being there three days, it really swelled up," Thomas said of Denver. "I'm 100 percent, that's all I can tell you.

"It never feels good to come and sit out. But it's part of the National League play, and we've been doing it for years. It's not a big deal. I'll get ready to come back for next week."

There also was confirmation from Thomas on Saturday that he won't be playing first base during the 2005 campaign, not that there would really be a reason for him to take the field following Interleague. But Thomas wants to play another four or five years, and certainly doesn't want to risk re-injuring the ankle.

"If I fracture it again, I'll be done," Thomas said. "I'm not playing first base this year. It's not really a choice, and it's not a wise thing to do. It will take a full year to heal this thing."

Getting defensive: The White Sox pitching staff ranked third in strikeouts in the American League entering Saturday night's contest, with 391 as a team. But none of the hurlers qualify for the top 10 individually, and there really isn't a classic strikeout pitcher on the staff. This same group has allowed the seventh fewest amount of walks in the AL, issuing just 177.

Those facts add up to an increased importance for the South Siders' defense, which has been more than up to the challenge. The team's fielding percentage sits at .984, just a few percentage points behind Texas' league-leading .988 percentage. It's an effort not lost on the White Sox hurlers.

"You're not afraid to let them put the ball in play," said closer Dustin Hermanson of the opposition. "You don't feel like you have to strike everyone out. That's how I like to pitch. I have all the confidence in the world to let the guys put the ball in play and take my chances with the guys on this team."

The defense saved Friday's victory as much as Hermanson did in the ninth inning. Rowand threw Phil Nevin out at third and made a diving catch in center field on Khalil Greene's line drive to save two runs in the seventh, while Joe Crede made two strong plays in the ninth behind Hermanson.

"We don't have too many strikeout pitchers on this team," Hermanson said. "So when you have a defense like this, you have to take advantage."

Down on the farm: All-Star Leo Daigle continued his amazing start to the 2005 season with home runs No. 17 and 18, but it wasn't enough offense to prevent Class A Winston-Salem's 10-8 loss. The first baseman drove in three, giving him 61 RBIs to go with his .345 average. Chris Amador and Robert Valido also went deep for the Warthogs

Josh Fields had four hits, driving in two runs, during Double-A Birmingham's 15-9 loss at Mobile on Friday night. Fields has raised his average from near .200 up to .232. Jerry Owens added three hits and two RBIs, while Ryan Sweeney had two hits and two RBIs as part of the team's 16-hit attack. David Cook launched his 14th home run, in support of Lucas Harrell (3-5), during Class A Kannapolis' 6-3 victory at Charleston. Cook, much like Daigle, will be playing in his respective All-Star Game.

Coming soon: It would be tough for Freddy Garcia to pitch much better than his last trip to the mound Monday in Colorado. The right-hander retired the final 22 hitters he faced at Coors Field, improving to 3-0 with a 2.54 ERA over his last four starts. Garcia is 14-6 with a 2.20 ERA lifetime in Interleague Play.

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Marte plays the waiting game

SAN DIEGO -- The 13-game hitting streak belonging to Aaron Rowand came to a rather unceremonious end Friday night, with two groundouts, a fly out and a strikeout swinging. But that run really didn't matter to Rowand.
The fact that Rowand's swing has started to round into form holds far greater importance than his second double-digit streak in 2005.

"I don't much care about the streaks," said Rowand, who came into Saturday's contest hitting .287, with four home runs and 25 RBIs. "Thirteen games is nothing.

"God knows, I want as many hits as I can have every night. But if I don't get a hit, I won't be upset in the least that my streak came to an end. It's not about that. It's about winning."

Rowand practices what he preaches. After Friday's 4-2 victory over the Padres, the center fielder was watching video of a rare error he committed in the ninth inning, when he kicked away Ryan Klesko's leadoff single on an aggressive move toward the infield to make the play. The lack of hitting for the night wasn't an issue.

During the last 30 games, Rowand has knocked out 39 hits in 118 at-bats (.331) and raised his average from .235 to .287. He also hit .392 (20-for-51) during the recent 13-game stretch.

But Rowand is a perfectionist. While he fully admits his swing is pretty good right now, Rowand still points to the timing and rhythm of his approach that need to improve in order to catch the ball more out front, get the ball up in the air and drive it on a consistent basis.

If Rowand integrates those changes, he could be looking at this third double-digit hit streak of the year and a solid run at .300. The hitting streak he really wants, though, is one that is a little shorter but more productive.

"The streaks that you like the most are the five- or six-game one, when you get two or three hits every night," said Rowand with a laugh. "I'm still not quite where I want to be. I have good days and bad days.

"I want to get to the point where like last season, even if I didn't get a couple of hits or a hit on that day, all my swings were consistent," Rowand added.

Ready and waiting: With left-hander Shawn Estes on the mound Monday for Arizona, there's a strong possibility that Frank Thomas will return to the starting lineup. The slugging veteran certainly seems ready to get back into action.

Thomas had two at-bats during the first four games of this six-game road trip, taking a called third strike on Tuesday in Denver and hitting a mammoth, ninth-inning home run to center during Wednesday's series finale at Coors Field. His surgically repaired left ankle didn't suffer from the inactivity, but it did swell up in the altitude of Colorado.

"Being there three days, it really swelled up," Thomas said of Denver. "I'm 100 percent, that's all I can tell you.

"It never feels good to come and sit out. But it's part of the National League play, and we've been doing it for years. It's not a big deal. I'll get ready to come back for next week."

There also was confirmation from Thomas on Saturday that he won't be playing first base during the 2005 campaign, not that there would really be a reason for him to take the field following Interleague. But Thomas wants to play another four or five years, and certainly doesn't want to risk re-injuring the ankle.

"If I fracture it again, I'll be done," Thomas said. "I'm not playing first base this year. It's not really a choice, and it's not a wise thing to do. It will take a full year to heal this thing."

Getting defensive: The White Sox pitching staff ranked third in strikeouts in the American League entering Saturday night's contest, with 391 as a team. But none of the hurlers qualify for the top 10 individually, and there really isn't a classic strikeout pitcher on the staff. This same group has allowed the seventh fewest amount of walks in the AL, issuing just 177.

Those facts add up to an increased importance for the South Siders' defense, which has been more than up to the challenge. The team's fielding percentage sits at .984, just a few percentage points behind Texas' league-leading .988 percentage. It's an effort not lost on the White Sox hurlers.

"You're not afraid to let them put the ball in play," said closer Dustin Hermanson of the opposition. "You don't feel like you have to strike everyone out. That's how I like to pitch. I have all the confidence in the world to let the guys put the ball in play and take my chances with the guys on this team."

The defense saved Friday's victory as much as Hermanson did in the ninth inning. Rowand threw Phil Nevin out at third and made a diving catch in center field on Khalil Greene's line drive to save two runs in the seventh, while Joe Crede made two strong plays in the ninth behind Hermanson.

"We don't have too many strikeout pitchers on this team," Hermanson said. "So when you have a defense like this, you have to take advantage."

Down on the farm: All-Star Leo Daigle continued his amazing start to the 2005 season with home runs No. 17 and 18, but it wasn't enough offense to prevent Class A Winston-Salem's 10-8 loss. The first baseman drove in three, giving him 61 RBIs to go with his .345 average. Chris Amador and Robert Valido also went deep for the Warthogs

Josh Fields had four hits, driving in two runs, during Double-A Birmingham's 15-9 loss at Mobile on Friday night. Fields has raised his average from near .200 up to .232. Jerry Owens added three hits and two RBIs, while Ryan Sweeney had two hits and two RBIs as part of the team's 16-hit attack. David Cook launched his 14th home run, in support of Lucas Harrell (3-5), during Class A Kannapolis' 6-3 victory at Charleston. Cook, much like Daigle, will be playing in his respective All-Star Game.

Coming soon: It would be tough for Freddy Garcia to pitch much better than his last trip to the mound Monday in Colorado. The right-hander retired the final 22 hitters he faced at Coors Field, improving to 3-0 with a 2.54 ERA over his last four starts. Garcia is 14-6 with a 2.20 ERA lifetime in Interleague Play.

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

Garland back in groove

SAN DIEGO -- White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen took an immediate liking to Petco Park in his first visit Friday night.

The deep dimensions worked in favor of Jon Garland, who didn't yield a hit until the fifth inning and pitched six shutout innings before tiring.


Guillen also thought the spacious outfield would help the Sox's speed, which came in to play when center fielder Aaron Rowand made a diving catch to end a San Diego rally in the seventh.

And the Sox's emphasis on manufacturing runs came through when they scored twice on two-out hits in the second.

That added up to a 4-2 victory that helped Garland become the American League's first 10-game winner.

The Sox (41-19) have won four straight, and this equals their best 60-game start in franchise history.

"Things have been going my way this year, and hopefully it continues," said Garland, who said he hasn't looked ahead to a potential All-Star invitation or a 20-win season.

Garland (10-2) had suffered his only two losses in his past two road starts. He had a 6.92 ERA in those games against Anaheim and Texas.

However, "this park plays well for him," Guillen said.

Garland pitched efficiently through the first six innings. He pitched to the minimum 13 batters until Phil Nevin lined an opposite-field double down the right-field line in the fifth.

"Jon goes back to being big Jon this outing," Guillen said. "… It's fantastic."

There were no signs of trouble until the seventh, and Garland received some timely help after surrendering four consecutive hits, the first a home run by Brian Giles.

Rowand bobbled Carlos Hernandez's single that enticed Phil Nevin to try to advance from second to third.

But Rowand recovered to make an accurate, one-hop throw to third baseman Joe Crede. Umpire Marty Foster called Nevin out, prompting a heated argument from Nevin that eventually resulted in the ejection of San Diego manager Bruce Bochy.

Rowand made an even bigger play after the Padres moved the tying run to second base with two outs.

Khalil Greene hit a line drive to shallow center. But Rowand, sprinting all the way, made a diving catch while landing hard on his left wrist.

"I tell you guys after each start I live and die by defense, and you saw it tonight," Garland said. "Rowand picked me up huge."

Said Rowand: "It's something we made an effort to get better on, and we have. I'm just trying to do my part out there.

"I knew I had a chance to catch that ball."

In the ninth, shortstop Juan Uribe made a long, accurate throw to retire Giles, and Crede made a diving stop to rob Nevin of a hit and help closer Dustin Hermanson notch his 15th save in as many opportunities.


Source: http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/

Padres Rally in 9th to Beat White Sox 2-1

SAN DIEGO - Ramon Hernandez homered with one out in the ninth inning to tie it, and Damian Jackson had a bases-loaded single as the San Diego Padres rallied to beat the Chicago White Sox 2-1 on Saturday night.

The NL West-leading Padres won for just the third time in 10 games, a span in which they've scored just 21 runs.

Hernandez homered to left on a 2-2 pitch from Dustin Hermanson (0-2), who blew his first save in 16 chances. He was trying to preserve a win for left-hander Mark Buehrle, who has four straight no-decisions.

Sean Burroughs followed with a single to left, pinch-hitter Robert Fick singled to right and pinch-hitter Mark Sweeney was intentionally walked to load the bases.

With the infield in, Jackson slapped a single past shortstop Juan Uribe to bring in Burroughs with the winning run.

In the top of the ninth, Paul Konerko was thrown out trying to score from first on A.J. Pierzynski's double.

Scott Linebrink (3-1) pitched the ninth for the win.

Padres rookie Tim Stauffer held baseball's best team to one run on three hits in seven innings.

Buehrle allowed seven hits in 7 2-3 innings, struck out six and walked one.

With a runner on first and two outs in the eighth and right-hander Phil Nevin coming up, Buehrle made way for right-hander Cliff Politte, who struck out Nevin.

Stauffer struck out seven and walked one.

He allowed a run before he got an out in the first. Scott Podsednik beat out an infield single to third and Tadahito Iguchi doubled him home.

Notes:@ Padres leadoff batter Dave Roberts hopes to be able to play Sunday after being sidelined for the fifth straight game with a sore right shoulder. ... Burroughs didn't start because of a stiff neck, but he replaced Geoff Blum starting the top of the sixth.

A service of the Associated Press(AP)

Source: http://www.newstribune.com/