*Photo from NBC Sports*
Houston leads series 2-1
The Chicago White Sox needed a win to stay alive. In front of their home fans, which Liam Hendriks called the blackout, they got it done. Yasmani Grandal homered, Leury Garcia homered, and the White Sox defeated the Houston Astros 12-6 on Sunday night.
The win gets the White Sox back in the series, as they now trail 2-1 instead of being eliminated via a sweep. The home crowd on the South Side of Chicago was behind them all the way, all 4 hours and 27 minutes of game time, which was likely a factor in the team hanging tough and sticking it through.
Grandal said of the win that "This place was rocking tonight. I haven't seen it, these fans are incredible, so the fact that everybody was here, it was great. All blacked out. It was awesome. Hopefully we'll have it tomorrow again, and, you know, keep rocking."
In the first inning, the White Sox took a 1-0 lead on an RBI single from Eloy Jimenez. In the second inning, the Astros answered right back, taking a 3-1 lead on a two run double from Kyle Tucker and an RBI single from Jake Meyers. In the top of the 3rd, Tucker hit a two run home run to left field to make it 5-1. In the bottom of the 3rd, Grandal cranked a two run home run of his own, and Garcia added a go ahead 3 run home run, giving the White Sox a 6-5 lead.
In the top of the 4th, Alex Bregman re-tied it with an RBI single, knotting it at 6-6. In the bottom half, Jose Abreu hit an RBI single, Jimenez hit an RBI single, and Luis Robert scored on a fielders choice to make it 9-6 White Sox. In the 8th inning, RBI doubles from Garcia and Andrew Vaughn, plus an RBI single from Tim Anderson, made it 12-6 in favor of the White Sox.
White Sox manager Tony La Russa said of the win that "The guys were, ‘Hey, we got a lot of game. A lot of game. We're going to keep playing. We're going to play nine.' They're going to play nine. That's the way they are. It's really a tough-minded bunch, and sometimes you get rewarded with a comeback like that, but it's just the way we've been."
Michael Kopech picked up the win for the White Sox, delivering 2 1/3 innings of relief after Dylan Cease was pulled early. Kopech allowed 3 runs on 4 hits and one walk while striking out 5 hitters. Cease lasted just 1 2/3 innings, allowing 3 runs in his start. After that, Ryan Tepera followed with two shutout innings, along with scoreless appearances from Aaron Bummer, Craig Kimbrel, and Hendriks.
Yimi Garcia got tagged with the loss for the Astros, lasting just 1/3 of an inning while allowing 4 runs on 4 hits, getting his only out via the strikeout. Rookie Luis Garcia lasted 2 2/3 innings in his start, allowing 5 runs on 5 hits while walking 3 hitters. Zack Greinke, Cristian Javier, Ryne Stanek, and Brooks Raley pitched in relief.
Astros catcher Martin Maldonado said of the loss that "We've been there before. It's not the first time we lost a game. I think last year we lost the third game against the Oakland A's, so I think we're going to go out there and play hard like we always do. I don't think that's changed the outcome of our mentality going into tomorrow's game."
Game 4, originally scheduled for Monday afternoon, was rained out, and will instead be played on Tuesday. Carlos Rodon will get the start for the White Sox, while game one starter Lance McCullers Jr will go on regular rest for the Astros.
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