Ross stuns White Sox with walk-off blast

Share

BOSTON --- Cody Ross stunned the White Sox again on Thursday night.

One game after he blasted a pair of three-run homers, Ross hit a game-winning three-run shot off Addison Reed in the ninth inning to deliver a 3-1 victory for the Red Sox in front of 38,413 at Fenway Park.

Ross homered with one out off Reed, who entered after Matt Thornton gave up two singles. The loss dropped the White Sox to 3-4 on their 10-game road trip and decreased the teams lead in the American League Central to 1 1 2 games over the Detroit Tigers. The White Sox open a three-game series at Detroit on Friday.

With Carl Crawford up and Adrian Gonzalez due up third, White Sox manager Robin Ventura went to Thornton to start the ninth inning.

Crawford singled but Thornton appeared to get a double play out of Dustin Pedroia. The throw by Eduardo Escobar skipped however and Gordon Beckham only got the force as he retrieved the ball. Gonzalez followed with a single and Reed was summoned. Ross homered on a 2-1 pitch over the Green Monster.

The loss also took away a victory from Jose Quintana, who pitched eight scoreless innings and out of two critical jams.

An invitee to spring training who had to pitch his way onto the 40-man roster, Quintana was on cruise control until the seventh inning.

He retired 19 of the first 20 hitters he had faced. But with one out, Pedroia singled to right and Gonzalez singled to left. Ross followed with a single to left, but third-base coach Jerry Royster elected to hold Pedroia at third rather than test the arm of White Sox left fielder Dayan Viciedo.

Will Middlebrooks and Quintana then battled for eight pitches until the rookie left-hander induced an inning-ending double play with the aid of a nifty play by shortstop Alexei Ramirez. Though he was falling, Ramirez retrieved the ball on a short-hop and flipped to second base to start the play.

Quintana -- who allowed five hits and walked none in eight innings -- sailed through the games first six innings.

He wasnt afraid to go inside and the Red Sox were aggressive. Though Quintana pitched to contact, it worked as he set down 18 of the first 19 batters he faced.

Even after Quintana allowed a two-out triple in the third inning, he battled back to strikeout Jacoby Ellsbury on three pitches to end the threat.

The White Sox were without Kevin Youkilis, who missed the game with a tight left hamstring.

The rest of their lineup couldnt muster up much against Clay Buchholz.

Buchholz only got into trouble once in eight innings. Adam Dunn led off with a walk and scooted all the way to third on a single to right by Paul Konerko, who finished 2-for-4. Alex Rios then lined one deep to right field for a sacrifice fly to provide the contests lone run.

Buchholz allowed a run and six hits in eight innings.

Beckham nearly drove in a run in the White Sox ninth, but his hit to right with Viciedo aboard bounced over the fence for a ground-rule double.

Contact Us