White Sox 9, Rangers 2: Sale K's 13 as Sox cruise to win

Yesterday's game was over early on. Today's was too. Only this time it was the White Sox doing the hunting as they evened up the series at a game apiece. The Sox batted around in the second inning and scored six runs in the frame. Chris Sale had it on cruise control from then on.

Rangers starter Nick Martinez drilled Avisail Garcia to lead off the frame. Alexei Ramirez and Gordon Beckham both followed with singles to load the bases with nobody out. After Tyler Flowers grabbed some bench, Carlos Sanchez blooped a single to left to score Garcia and Ramirez. After a passed ball, Adam Eaton hit a liner to left that got over the head of Jake Smolinski to make it 4-0 Sox. After Melky Cabrera struck out, Jose Abreu smoked a two-run shot to make it 6-0.

The Sox tacked on another one in the fourth when after an Adam Eaton walk and his second stolen base (he moved into third on a bad throw by Rangers catcher Carlos Corporan), Abreu singled sharply to left to bring him home. Tyler Flowers would add two more to the Sox tab with a two-run homer in the seventh to score Gordon Beckham.

That offensive outburst was way more than Sale needed as he was dominating the Rangers all night long. Sale went seven innings, giving up three hits, two walks and struck out 13. As is customary, the Rangers threatened in the first when Delino DeShields had an infield single and Shin-Soo Choo walked. Elvis Andrus struck out and Mitch Moreland grounded into a double play to end the frame.

In the third, Sale found himself in another small jam after DeShields hit a one-out double and Choo walked, but he got Andrus and Moreland to end that threat as well.

After that Choo walk, Sale didn't allow another baserunner as he retired the final 14 batters he saw.

The Rangers added a run in the eighth when Zach Duke walked Mitch Moreland with the bases loaded, but he stopped the bleeding when he struck out Adam Rosales. Joey Gallo hit his second homer in as many days when he took Duke yard in the ninth for a solo job, but that was all the Rangers could muster after they blew their wad scoring 15 runs yesterday.

Tomorrow, Carlos Rodon will face Yovani Gallardo to decide the series and the road trip.

• It was a smorgasbord of extra base hits for the White Sox with five. Adam Eaton, Adam LaRoche and Flowers all doubled with Abreu (9) and Flowers (3) leaving the yard.
• Gordon Beckham his now hitting .284 after another two-hit performance.
• Sale came up and in on a pitch to walk Shin-Soo Choo, and Choo took exception as he barked at Sale on his way down to first.
• Rangers starter Nick Martinez entered the game 4-1 with a 2.03 ERA, but those numbers took a hit after giving up seven earned runs over 3 1/3.