CUBAN MISSILE BLASTS OFF AS CHISOX OUTLAST 'STROS

Carter Homers Twice in Losing Cause

CHICAGO, July 20 (AP) - Alexi Ramirez became the second White Sox player to amass five hits in a single game in the series, leading Chicago to a 9-8 victory in the rubber match over the Houston Astros at U.S. Cellular Field.  The White Sox shortstop's fifth hit was a game-winning two-bagger in the bottom of the 10th inning that drove home Adam Eaton.  Ramirez rapped out three doubles, scored three runs, drove in three and stole a base in an all-around brilliant offensive performance.  Ramirez is the 14th major league player with a five-hit game this season; teammate Adam Dunn accomplished the feat just two days ago against the Astros.

After Houston took a 1-0 lead in the opening frame when Matt Dominguez doubled home Kike Hernandez, Chicago appeared to seize firm control of the contest.  With a great deal of assistance from Houston--the Astros committed five errors in the game, tying a major league season high previously set by three other clubs--the White Sox scored the next six runs of the game, including four in the first inning.  Eaton and Ramirez opened the bottom of the opening frame with consecutive singles and an error on shortstop Marwin Gonzalez loaded the bases with no outs.  After Dunn fanned, Dayan Viciedo lifted a sacrifice fly to score Eaton and a wild pitch uncorked by Houston starter Jared Cosart moved the remaining runners to second and third.  First baseman Jon Singleton booted Alejandro de Aza's grounder, allowing another run to score, and Gordon Beckham's base hit upped the lead to 4-1 before Cosart struck out Adrian Nieto to finally end the inning.

Ramirez singled with one out in the second and stole second base before advancing to third on a fly ball off the bat of Jose Abreu and scoring on Dunn's single to make it 5-1.  In the fourth, Ramirez doubled and scored yet again, this time on Abreu's base hit.  Chicago took a 6-1 lead into the fifth.

But the Astros fought back, and an error was a major bit of assistance to the effort.  White Sox starter Jon Danks made a bad throw to first on a comebacker, allowing Robbie Grossman to reach second leading off the top of the fifth.  A wild pitch advanced Grossman to third and a walk to L.J. Hoes put runners on the corners with no outs.  Danks fanned Gonzalez, but Jose Altuve crushed a Danks breaking ball over the left field wall for a three-run homer, cutting the lead to 6-4.  One out later, Chris Carter belted a Danks offering halfway up the left-center field bleachers to make it a one-run game.  Danks has now allowed a major league high 27 home runs this season.

Chicago got a run back in the sixth when Nieto doubled and, one out later, trotted home on Ramirez's sacrifice fly to the edge of the warning track in left field.

But Houston exploded for three runs in the seventh to reclaim the lead.  Danks retired Hoes to lead off the inning but then was lifted in favor of right-hander Javy Guerra.  It didn't go well for the White Sox.  Gonzalez singled and, after Altuve flied to right for the second out, Hernandez lined a single to the opposite field, chasing Gonzalez to third.  That brought Carter to the plate and, on a 1-0, pitch he drilled his second home run of the game--and 28th of the season--deep into the left field seats.  The three-run shot put the Astros ahead 8-7.

The White Sox tied the game in the eighth and, once again, Ramirez was in the middle of it.  Gordon Beckham led off by reaching on a swinging bunt single.  Nieto and Eaton both struck out but Ramirez drilled a double into the left-center field gap, scoring Beckham all the way from first to knot the game.

Neither team scored in the ninth and Chicago reliever Jake Petricka pitched around a one-out single off the bat of Carlos Corporan to keep Houston off the scoreboard in the top of the tenth.  In the bottom of the frame, Josh Fields retired the first two batters he faced with ease, but Eaton lined the first pitch he saw into right-center for a base hit.  On the very first pitch to the next hitter--Ramirez--Eaton swiped second base.  With the winning run in scoring position and first base open, the Astros held a meeting at the mound, no doubt to discuss the possibility of walking Ramirez.  But with Abreu--the best hitter on the club--standing in the on deck circle, that tactic was dismissed.  As he had all day, Ramirez came through.  He drilled a 2-1 offering from Fields over the head of Hoes in left for the game-winning double, scoring Eaton with ease.

7/20/2014, Hou14-ChA14, U.S. Cellular Field

                       1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10     R  H  E   LOB DP
2014 Astros            1  0  0  0  4  0  3  0  0  0     8  9  5     6  0
2014 White Sox         4  1  0  1  0  1  0  1  0  1     9 13  1     9  2

Astros               AB  R  H BI   AVG    White Sox            AB  R  H BI   AVG
Altuve            2b  4  1  1  3  .361    Eaton             cf  5  2  2  0  .279
Hernandez,E       cf  5  2  2  0  .294    Ramirez,Al        ss  5  3  5  3  .263
Carter            dh  4  2  2  4  .253    Abreu,J           1b  4  1  1  1  .322
Dominguez,M       3b  4  0  1  1  .216    Dunn,A            dh  4  0  1  1  .257
Singleton         1b  5  0  0  0  .167     Garcia,Le        pr  1  0  0  0  .143
Corporan          c   3  0  1  0  .255    Viciedo           rf  4  0  0  1  .226
Grossman          rf  5  1  0  0  .235    Gillaspie         3b  4  1  0  0  .244
Hoes              lf  4  1  0  0  .168    De Aza            lf  3  0  0  0  .224
Gonzalez,Ma       ss  4  1  2  0  .258     Konerko          ph  1  0  0  0  .220
                     38  8  9  8           Sierra           lf  1  0  0  0  .246
                                          Beckham           2b  5  1  3  2  .218
                                          Nieto             c   5  1  1  0  .227
                                                               42  9 13  8

Astros                           INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA
Cosart                           5.0  8  6  2  1  3  97  59  3.98
Zeid                             1.0  1  1  1  0  1  12   8  5.66
Sipp             H 8             0.2  0  0  0  0  1   7   6  3.76
Veras            H 3             0.2  1  1  1  0  2  13   9  2.21
Downs,D          H 6             0.1  0  0  0  0  1   5   3  7.11
Fields           BS 2, L 0-4     2.0  3  1  1  1  3  35  23  2.30
                                 9.2 13  9  5  2 11 169 108 

White Sox                        INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA
Danks,Joh                        6.1  5  5  3  1  3  85  51  5.46
Guerra           BS 1            0.1  3  3  3  1  0  12   5  4.03
Surkamp                          0.1  0  0  0  0  1   6   3  1.23
Thompson,T                       1.2  0  0  0  3  1  31  12  0.00
Petricka         W 2-3           1.1  1  0  0  0  0  14  10  4.89
                                10.0  9  8  6  5  5 148  81 

ChA: Garcia,Le ran for Dunn,A in the 7th
     Konerko batted for De Aza in the 7th
     Sierra inserted at lf in the 8th

E-Singleton, Grossman, Hoes 2, Gonzalez,Ma, Danks,Joh. 2B-Dominguez,M(14), 
Ramirez,Al 3(18), Nieto(5). HR-Altuve(4), Carter 2(28). RBI-Altuve 3(37), 
Carter 4(55), Dominguez,M(40), Ramirez,Al 3(43), Abreu,J(58), Dunn,A(45), 
Viciedo(50), Beckham 2(26). SB-Altuve(31), Eaton(12), Ramirez,Al(11). 
K-Carter, Singleton, Grossman, Hoes, Gonzalez,Ma, Eaton, Abreu,J, Dunn,A, 
Viciedo 2, Nieto 4, Garcia,Le, Konerko. BB-Altuve, Carter, Dominguez,M, 
Corporan, Hoes, Abreu,J, Gillaspie. SH-Eaton. SF-Ramirez,Al, Viciedo. 
HBP-Corporan. HB-Danks,Joh. WP-Cosart, Danks,Joh 2. 
GWRBI: Ramirez,Al
Temperature: 72, Sky: clear, Wind: out to left at 1 MPH.
Attendance: 38,209
Game Time: 3:42