SEATTLE (AP) Jose Abreu and Eloy Jimenez hit solo home runs, Yoan Moncada drove in four runs and the Chicago White Sox beat the Seattle Mariners 9-7 on Friday night.
The top half of Chicago’s lineup dominated early in the game as the White Sox snapped a two-game losing streak. The Nos. 1 through 5 batters each reached base safely twice in the first four innings with Moncada getting three hits in that span.
Moncada’s run-scoring triple and Adam Engel’s solo home run put the White Sox up 5-3 and chased starter Yusei Kikuchi (6-10) with two outs in the third. Moncada then cleared the bases with a double for an 8-3 lead after reliever Wade LeBlanc loaded them on two hits and a walk to start the fourth inning.
Tim Anderson continued his run at the batting title as well. The shortstop was 2 for 5 in the game with a double and an RBI single, and improved his average to .334.
The Mariners have lost eight of their last 10.
Kikuchi gave up a solo home run to Abreu in the first. His teammates, however, took advantage of two walks and a wild pitch with one out from Dylan Covey to build a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the inning. But Kikuchi reached 60 pitches on Engel’s third-inning home run and was done for the night.
Josh Osich (3-0) pitched 2 1/3 innings for the win. He struck out three and allowed three hits.
Shed Long’s two-run single in the fourth and Daniel Vogelbach’s two-run pinch-hit double in the eighth made it 8-7. But Jimenez padded the lead with his 27th homer in the ninth and Alex Colome pitched the final 1 1/3 innings for his sixth save.
The White Sox stopped rookie Kyle Lewis’ run at the record books, holding him without a home run. Lewis was the second player in major league history to hit homers in each of his first three games. He did have a hit and an RBI, extending that streak into the fourth game of his career.
RECORD 67
It looks like the Mariners may finally be done after using a major league record 67 players so far this season. Manager Scott Servais said he did not expect the team to call up any more players in September and everyone on the current roster has played.
Seattle broke Texas’ record of 64 players used in 2014 earlier this week. The Mariners also now hold the record for pitchers used in a season with 42 (Texas, 40, 2014). Servais said while the team expected some turnover in what’s been called a step-back year, they didn’t expect so much. He thinks the change to the injury list rules have pushed roster numbers higher and higher.
”The shorter (injured) list stint has brought on a lot of it,” Servais said. ”It’s easier to put guys down for 10 days. . Medicine’s a lot better, science is a lot better. When you see stuff coming on, you try to get ahead of it by just shutting it down before it gets out of control.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Mariners: OF Mitch Haniger remains shut down while recovering from a back injury suffered while rehabbing from testicle surgery. Haniger had hoped to be back on the field by now, but his return looks less and less likely this season. ”Certainly the clock’s ticking,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. . OF/DH Domingo Santana (elbow) is throwing 150 to 200 feet on the side and could return to the outfield for a few games toward the end of September. ”I don’t think we’re looking for him to air guys out at home plate from right field, but hit the cutoff man,” Servais said. ”I definitely want to get him back out there. He’s been working hard to get that arm back in shape.” . SS J.P. Crawford (hamstring) returned to the lineup
UP NEXT
White Sox: RHP Dylan Cease (3-7, 6.53 ERA) has pitched at least 5.0 innings in each of his five starts on the road. This will be his first appearance against the Mariners.
Mariners: RHP Felix Hernandez (1-6, 6.96) returns to the mound for the first time since allowing 11 runs (seven earned) over two innings in a 21-1 loss to Houston on Sept. 8.
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