CLEVELAND — Elvis Andrus broke a tie in the ninth inning with a two-run single through the middle of the infield against closer Emmanual Clase, and the White Sox cashed in on two throwing errors by third baseman Brayan Rocchio with two outs in the ninth to defeat the Guardians 5-3 Sunday at Progressive Field.
The result gave the Sox (45-68) their second straight victory and a series win over the Guardians, whom they fought with the night before.
Andrus, playing shortstop and leading off in Tim Anderson’s spot — Anderson sat out after losing a fight to Jose Ramirez and getting ejected in a 7-4 win Saturday — Andrus also doubled twice, made a throwing error that gave the Guardians a run and made an exceptional play for the first out of the ninth. Andrus and Luis Robert Jr. hit balls against the wall in the first inning, one for a double and the latter for a triple, and a sacrifice fly from Eloy Jimenez followed for a 2-0 lead against Guardians starter Xzavion Curry.
Robert’s drive hit the top of the high wall in center for a triple, a day after he clubbed his 30th homer in a fight-marred 7-4 Sox victory. Robert also crashed against the center field wall to rob Kole Calhoun of extra bases in the sixth.
“What happened yesterday didn’t really matter today,” Robert said through a translator of a bench-clearing brawl Saturday. “The importance of this win is that we won the series.”
Jesse Scholtens, getting an opportunity to claim a spot in the 2024 starting rotation, had his second quality start of the road trip, allowing three runs (two earned) on six hits and one one walk over six innings. Scholtens, a 29-year-old rookie, had 13 swings and misses and struck out six, lowering his ERA to 3.06.
“What happened yesterday happened,” Scholtens said. “We have each other’s back no matter what happens. We united around that. You saw the fight in the offense. It reassures us that we’re all in this together.”
Right-hander Lane Ramsey retired all four batters he faced in relief, getting two groundouts and two pop-ups in his major league debut.
Jimmy Lambert allowed a leadoff single to Ramirez — who advanced to second on an error by right fielder Oscar Colas — but retired the next three batters in the ninth to record the save.
Zavala to injured list, Carlos Perez recalled
Catcher Seby Zavala landed on the 10-day injured list with a strained left oblique, and catcher Carlos Perez was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte.
“We don’t think it’s too serious, but it’s definitely enough to bring Carlos in,” manager Pedro Grifol said. “Hopefully it starts getting better quickly and we can get him back.”
Yasmani Grandal, in the final year of his contract, caught Sunday. But Perez, who was around but didn’t play a lot when three catchers were being carried, could get more looks this time.
“As an organization we need to see him play,” Grifol said.
A friend in Touki
Touki Toussaint, slated to start against the Yankees Tuesday, has become somewhat close to Anderson since Toussaint was claimed off waivers from the Guardians. Toussaint was one of the Sox players holding Anderson back after Anderson fought with Jose Ramirez Saturday.
“He’s my boy, I’ve got his back,” Toussaint said. “Not even baseball, just as a person. We’ve had a relationship since 2020. It’s ‘you go, I go.’ ’’
