DETROIT — The Chicago White Sox scored twice off Tigers' closer Gregory Soto in the top of the 11th inning and evened the three-game series with a 4-3 win at Comerica Park Saturday night.
After Soto couldn't field a bunt by Elvis Andrus (it was scored a base hit), Yoan Moncada ripped a single to left scoring the free runner.
Andrus and Moncada then executed a double-steal on Soto, which set up a sacrifice fly by Eloy Jimenez.
Pretty anticlimactic ending to what had been a spirited game.
The Tigers had tied the score 2-2 in the bottom of the eighth, with Akil Baddoo manufacturing a run with his legs. Relievers Jose Cisnero and Alex Lange put up zeros in the top of the ninth and 10th innings, but unlike Friday night, they couldn't push across a run.
In the 10th, Chicago closer Liam Hendriks stranded the free runner at third, getting a shallow fly out from Tucker Barnhart and punching out Baddoo.
In the 11th, Javier Báez, who was scratched from the starting lineup with right knee soreness, delivered a two-out, pinch-hit single to make it a one-run game.
But lefty reliever Aaron Bummer got Spencer Torkelson to line out to center.
The win keeps the White Sox five games behind the Central Division-leading Cleveland Guardians in the loss column.
Before the bonus baseball, there was Eduardo Rodriguez and he was in complete control. Until very suddenly he wasn't.
He was in the seventh inning and had allowed just two hits, none since the second inning. He had set down 16 straight hitters, had a 1-0 lead and a fast 0-2 count on Jimenez. Then he drilled him with an misfired sinker.
Working from the stretch for the first time in four-plus innings, Rodriguez lost his rhythm and walked Andrew Vaughn and Yasmani Grandal. Nine of the last 10 pitches he threw were balls.
Just that fast, his night was over. And one batter later — a two-run single by AJ Pollock off reliever Jason Foley — the White Sox had the lead.
The last three hitters aside, this was a significant start for Rodriguez.
The Tigers’ lefty came in having been tagged for 13 earned runs and 22 hits in his last three starts covering 16 innings. He’d all but scrapped his slider. And his change-up, one of his prime assets, had been failing him.
The White Sox, never an easy lineup to navigate for any pitcher, added several degrees of difficulty to the challenge by stacking nine right-handed hitters against him, a strategy that would all but force him to use those two wonky pitches, the slider and change-up.
Challenge accepted.
Rodriguez established his change-up right out of the gate, striking out leadoff hitter Andrus with a beauty and then getting a rollover ground out from Jose Abreu.
When Abreu came back up in the fourth inning, Rodriguez showed something different — he punched him out with a 1-2 slider.
Rodriguez only threw three sliders but got swings and misses on two of them. He got five whiffs on 10 swings at his change-up. With the White Sox having to be mindful of those pitches, his sinker, cutter and four-seam mix became more effective.
He has allowed just two White Sox hitters to reach base and struck out seven before that ill-fated 0-2 sinker to Jimenez. An ending that did not fit the effort.
The Tigers’ hitters were dealing with their own issues against rookie right-hander Davis Martin, who was hastily summoned from Triple-A Charlotte Saturday to fill in for scheduled starter Johnny Cueto, who was ill.
Back in June, he blanked the Tigers over five innings in a relief appearance. He doubled that, throwing five more shutout innings, allowing only a two-out triple to Baddoo.
They finally nicked him in the sixth. Tucker Barnhart led off with a double and with two outs, Victor Reyes delivered a clutch RBI single. Reyes delivered the winning sacrifice fly in the Tigers’ 3-2 win Friday night.
On the season, he is 10 for 28 with 12 RBIs with two outs and runners in scoring position.
The Tigers tied the score in the bottom of the eighth. It was not in any way conventional.
Baddoo, whose triple off Davis came after a 10-pitch at-bat, worked a one-out walk from reliever Kendall Graveman, then stole second base.
Riley Greene then hit a ground ball to the left side of the infield. Baddoo rounded third thinking the ball was going through. Shortstop Andrus made a diving stop and had plenty of time to throw out Baddoo.
Except Andrus' throw was up the line. Single and RBI for Greene, tie ballgame heading to the ninth inning.
