Four-run 11th gets White Sox past Indians

Baseball Betting Lines

08/30/2010 - Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brent Lillibridge hit the tie-breaking home run in a four-run top of the 11th as Chicago coughed up a late lead only to come back to beat Cleveland, 10-6, to begin a three-game series.

Lillibridge, filling in for the injured Gordon Beckham, who left the game in the seventh inning after being hit by a pitch on the right hand, lofted his long ball just over the high wall in left field to help the White Sox move to within four games of idle Minnesota in the AL Central.

Alex Rios went 5-for-6 with a homer and four RBI and missed hitting for the cycle by a triple while Paul Konerko went 2-for-4 with three RBI and three walks for Chicago, which won for just a third time in its last nine road contests.

Scott Linebrink (2-1) earned the win with two scoreless relief innings.

Rafael Perez (4-1) took the loss after allowing the decisive runs on four hits and a walk in less than a full inning of work for the Tribe, who dropped a second straight after a three-game win streak.

The southpaw retired the first two hitters in the 11th before Lillibridge poked his first home run since June 9 to put the visitors ahead to stay.

Juan Pierre walked and scored when Omar Vizquel doubled to right. The veteran infielder then stole third and crossed the plate when Rios doubled to center to match a career-best with his fifth hit of the night. Konerko then singled to center to score Rios to push the lead to four and knock Perez out of the game.

The hosts rallied for three runs off closer Bobby Jenks, who suffered his fourth blown save, to tie the game in the home ninth.

Shin-Soo Choo walked to start the inning, moved up on defensive indifference and scored when Shelley Duncan looped a single to left to make it 6-4. Travis Hafner then sliced his third double of the night to left to push Duncan to third base. Luis Valbuena, who replaced Laynce Nix after his seventh inning ejection for arguing balls and strikes, chopped a grounder to second base that Lillibridge barehanded and threw wildly past first as both runners scored to tie the game.

Valbuena also advanced to second then moved to third on a ground out by Jason Donald but was stranded when pinch-hitter Trevor Crowe bounced out to end the frame.

Chris Perez worked out of two jams in the tenth by getting Rios to ground into a double play with runners at first and second and nobody out and A.J. Pierzynski to fly out with the bases loaded to end the inning.

Cleveland trailed 5-0 but got back in the game in the home fourth when Hafner doubled and scored when Nix followed with a home run to left.

The Indians crept within two in the fifth when Asdrubal Cabrera led off with an infield hit, moved to second on a one-out single by Duncan and scored on Hafner's second two-base hit of the game. The Indians had the sacks full with two outs but Donald fanned to end the frame.

Indians starter Mitch Talbot was roughed up for five runs on 10 hits and three walks while striking out two and was followed to the hill by Justin Germano, who retired the first two batters in the sixth before Rios crushed a solo home run to left-center to extend the visitors' lead to 6-3. It was the first earned run allowed by the right-hander in 17 1/3 innings this season since his return to the big leagues on July 30.

Vizquel and Rios put together consecutive one-out singles in the first in front of Konerko, who doubled to drive in both runners.

Two singles and a walk with two outs loaded the bases for the Tribe in the bottom of the frame but Sox starter Mark Buehrle worked out of trouble by getting Nix to foul out.

Alexei Ramirez singled to start the second and scored when Mark Kotsay doubled down the right-field line. Beckham followed with a single to get Kotsay to third before Pierre was hit by a pitch to load the bases.

After Vizquel fouled out, Rios looped a two-run single to right to push the lead to 5-0.

Buerhle lasted six innings during which he allowed three runs on eight hits and a trio of walks along with five strikeouts.

Game Notes

The White Sox were awarded outfielder Manny Ramirez from the Los Angeles Dodgers on a waiver claim Monday and he is expected to join the team Tuesday. Beckham left the game in the seventh inning after getting hit in the right hand by a Frank Herrmann pitch...Konerko played in his 1,743rd game for the White Sox to tie his manager Guillen for fifth place on the franchise's all- time list...He has hit safely in 11 straight...Vizquel went 2-for-6 and has 820 career hits at Progressive Field, the most of any player...Rios had his third career five-hit game...Talbot had won each of his first three turns over Chicago this season...Indians' first baseman Matt LaPorta sat out the game with a strained left hip that he re-injured while batting in the fourth inning of Sunday's game...He had surgery on the same hip in October...Cleveland has lost 15 of its last 22 home games.