Rangers walk off with win over White Sox
ARLINGTON -- White Sox rookie Carlos Rodon struck out a career-high 10 over six innings, and Rangers starter Yovani Gallardo matched him pretty much pitch for pitch over six, but neither ultimately figured in the Rangers' 2-1 victory in 11 innings on Thursday night at Globe Life Park.
Shin-Soo Choo singled home the winning run off Dan Jennings, sending home Leonys Martin, who started the 11th with a single. The White Sox were without Zach Putnam, who was unavailable due to a problem with his right thumb, and didn't want to burn closer David Robertson without a lead.
"We were short tonight," said White Sox manager Robin Ventura of his bullpen. "With Robby, if you put him in there, you know you're only going to get him for that inning."
All 10 of Rodon's strikeouts were of the swinging variety, with nine of them coming on sliders. He walked three and allowed five hits. The White Sox scored their run in the fourth on Gordon Beckham's sacrifice fly, with the inning starting with Joey Gallo's fielding error on Avisail Garcia's grounder.
• Rodon sets career high in strikeouts
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Sanchez turns two: The game was on the line in the bottom of the eighth inning with the bases loaded and one out. Hanser Alberto hit a grounder in the hole that Alexei Ramirez fielded and turned into an inning-ending double play. But that play never happens without Sanchez hanging tough at second and turning the twin-killing while taking the force of Martin's slide.
Video: CWS@TEX: Ramirez, Sanchez combine for double play
Quick fifth helps Gallardo: With his pitch count all the way up to 84 to begin the fifth inning -- after a 25-pitch fourth -- Gallardo looked to be headed for an early exit even though he hadn't allowed an earned run. He helped himself and the Rangers' bullpen in the fifth, however, getting three consecutive groundouts on only six total pitches. He made it through the sixth inning for the fourth quality start in his past five outings. He gave up just one unearned run on three hits, striking out four and walking two.
Video: CWS@TEX: Gallardo holds White Sox to unearned run
"I think the first few innings, I was trying to do a little bit too much, trying to make that perfect pitch from the first pitch," Gallardo said. "There were some close pitches -- they were balls, but they weren't swinging. Later on in the game, I just threw the ball over the plate a little bit more, kept it down -- make the guys swing the bat and see what happens."
Just missed it: The White Sox loaded the bases in the first inning against Gallardo but could not score. Adam LaRoche just missed going deep with runners on first and second and then, following a Garcia walk, Ramirez flied out deep to center to end the threat.
Good bunt, bad bunt: Martin led off the second inning with a well-placed bunt single down the first-base line and reached third on Alberto's single. Leadoff man Delino DeShields squared up to try to get Martin home on a suicide squeeze, but he popped up the bunt to second base for the second out of the inning. The Rangers loaded the bases but ultimately got nothing out of it, as Fielder grounded into the shift.
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
With Rodon allowing one run in the first, every White Sox starter has been scored upon during an opening frame this season. The White Sox have been outscored, 46-14, in that first inning, marking the most runs allowed in baseball and the fewest scored.
Melky Cabrera is now 4-for-47 this season hitting from the right side.
QUOTABLE
"We wish we would have gotten this one tonight. It would have put us over the edge of being able to survive, but you survive. We're still going to battle, but it's a tough trip. We saw it coming up, especially when the doubleheader was put in there. But they battled. I'll give them that." -- Ventura, on his team's 5-6 road trip
WHAT'S NEXT
White Sox: Jose Quintana opens the three-game series with the Tigers and the six-game homestand with a 7:10 p.m. CT first pitch on Friday at U.S. Cellular Field. Quintana has made five quality starts over his last seven trips to the mound but has just a 1-5 record during that stretch. He has an 11.00 ERA in two starts against the Tigers this season and a 4.32 ERA at home.
Rangers: Chi Chi Gonzalez makes his second Major League start on Friday in Kansas City at 7:10 p.m. CT. Gonzalez hopes to build on his dazzling debut, in which he threw five no-hit innings, earning the victory over Boston last Saturday. The 23-year-old righty will make his first road appearance and is looking to become the third pitcher in Rangers history to earn the win in his first two starts.
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