White Sox Drop 3 Of 4 To Orioles
BALTIMORE (AP) — Zach Britton struck out a career-high 10 in eight innings, Taylor Teagarden and Adam Jones homered and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Chicago White Sox 5-3 Thursday for their eighth win in 11 games.
Baltimore took three of four from the AL Central-leading White Sox to complete a 5-1 homestand that started with a two-game sweep of Toronto.
The victory moved the Orioles (72-58) within three games of the idle AL East-leading New York Yankees, who host Baltimore in a three-game series that begins Friday night.
Britton (4-1) gave up one run, seven hits and did not issue a walk. He fanned Dewayne Wise three times and eclipsed his previous single-game career high of seven strikeouts by the fifth inning.
The left-hander allowed hits to five of the first nine batters he faced, but finished by retiring 19 of 21.
After Pedro Strop surrendered two singles in the ninth, Jim Johnson got an out, then gave up a two-run single to Alexei Ramirez before striking out Gordon Beckham for his 41st save.
The game drew a crowd of 10,141, smallest of the season at Camden Yards.
Ramirez went 7 for 13 with five RBIs in the series, but the White Sox finished 2-6 against Baltimore this season. Chicago next travels to Detroit for a showdown between the top two teams in the AL Central.
Rookie Jose Quintana (5-3) allowed five runs and seven hits in 3 2-3 innings, including a stretch where he gave up five straight extra-base hits. He entered with an 0.88 ERA in day games and was 3-0 with a 3.34 ERA in nine road starts.
Teagarden, the backup catcher behind Matt Wieters, came in batting .086 (3 for 35). In addition to his third-inning home run, he also doubled in a run in the fourth to chase Quintana.
Chicago wasted a double by newcomer Jose Lopez in the first inning, then scored only one run on four hits in the second. After A.J. Pierzynski was thrown out at the plate by Jones trying to score from second on a single to center by Ramirez, Beckham hit a two-out RBI single before Wise struck out with runners on the corners.
Quintana opened by getting eight straight outs before Teagarden hit an opposite-field drive to right, the first of five straight two-out extra-base hits by the Orioles. Nick Markakis and J.J. Hardy followed with doubles and Jones hit his career-high 26th home run before Mark Reynolds capped the surge with a double.
Baltimore made it 5-1 in the fourth when Nate McLouth singled and Teagarden doubled to center.
NOTES: LHP Randy Wolf threw on the side in the outfield Thursday, and Orioles manager Buck Showalter said the team will activate the free agent on Friday "if things go well today and the doctors sign off on him. " ... The White Sox purchased the contract of Lopez from Triple-A Charlotte, placed C Tyler Flowers on the paternity list, purchased the contract of C Hector Gimenez from Charlotte, moved RHP Brian Bruney (hip) to the 60-day DL and released RHP Gregory Infante. ... Four of Teagarden's five hits this season are for extra bases — two homers and two doubles. ... Orioles DH Nick Johnson, who went on the DL in late June with a wrist injury, is likely done for the season, Showalter said. ... Chicago outhit Baltimore 10-8. The Orioles improved to 18-48 when getting outhit.
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