The Chicago White Sox are struggling at the plate, on the mound and in the field.
DETROIT (AP) — The Chicago White Sox are struggling at the plate, on the mound and in the field. Brad Penny and Ryan Raburn took advantage. Penny gave up only one hit, which could’ve been ruled an error, and Raburn drove in three runs to help the Detroit Tigers beat Chicago 9-0 Sunday. "Right now, we’re getting our heads beat in," Juan Pierre said. "A week ago, we might have been the best team in baseball, and right now we might be the worst." The White Sox have lost nine of 10 after starting the season 7-4. "We’re not hitting, we’re not making pitches and we are making blunders in the field," A.J. Pierzynski said. The White Sox have scored just 32 runs in its last 12 games. They didn’t score any for Edwin Jackson (2-2) on a day he really needed the support at the plate and from his teammates on defense. Jackson (2-2) gave up eight runs — seven earned — on 12 hits and four walks over 5 2-3 innings. "Jax just didn’t have a slider at all," Pierzynski said. "It was just spinning up there, and usually it is his best pitch. They got a lot of hits off bad sliders, and that normally never happens." Jackson held the Tigers scoreless through three innings, then they scored five in the fourth thanks in part to some poor defense and three more in the sixth. Jhonny Peralta’s liner to left was mishandled by Pierre, letting two runs score. Alex Avila followed with a triple on a deep fly that faded away from center fielder Alex Rios, allowing two more to score. Brandon Inge scored the final run of the inning on a headfirst slide, beating a throw from shortstop Ramirez on a fielder’s choice. Penny had a no-hit bid broken up on what was ruled an infield single. With one-out in the sixth inning, Brent Morel hit a chopper down the third-base line. Inge backhanded it behind the bag and made a throw in the dirt that first baseman Miguel Cabrera couldn’t field cleanly to attempt a tag on Morel. Official scorer Ron Kleinfelter called it a hit, not an error that would’ve kept the no-hitter intact, after watching the replay. "My decision is based on my understanding and application of ordinary effort," Kleinfelter said 45 minutes after the game. "Based on that, I stand by my call. It was a base hit. Pure and simple." Most of 35,227 fans at Comerica Park booed, but Tigers manager Jim Leyland agreed with Kleinfelter’s decision and Penny didn’t have a problem with it. Chicago’s Juan Pierre, who was standing in the on-deck circle during the play, also thought the scorer got it right. "There’s no way that’s a routine play," Pierre said. "Inge makes a lot of plays look routine, but that doesn’t mean they are, especially since Mo can get down the line." White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said he hopes his players are tired of getting beat. "We need to cut this off right now," Guillen said. "It seems like we are waiting every day to lose the game. It is time to show people how good we are." Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)
About Post Author
