AMERICAN LEAGUE
Chris Davis interrupted his frustrating season with a pinch-hit, three-run homer in the ninth inning to give the Baltimore Orioles a 6-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Monday.
Davis was excluded from the starting lineup after batting just .130 in his previous 14 starts. Called upon by manager Buck Showalter with runners on first and second and one out in the ninth, Davis launched a 3-2 pitch from Ronald Belisario (3-4) into the seats in right field.
Photo: Joy R. Absalon-USA Today
Davis, who led the majors in home runs and RBIs last year, started the game in the dugout with a .216 batting average and 78 strikeouts in 218 at-bats.
Adam Jones and Caleb Joseph also homered for the Orioles, who trailed 4-2 in the eighth, before rallying to hand the White Sox their fifth straight defeat.
Brad Brach (1-0) pitched two hitless innings for Baltimore.
Jose Abreu hit his 22nd homer and drove in three runs for Chicago, who went one for 11 with runners in scoring position.
White Sox starter Chris Sale gave up a career-high 11 hits in six innings, but was poised to earn his seventh win after leaving with a 3-2 lead. The left-hander walked one, hit a batter and had a season-low three strikeouts.
Chicago trailed 2-1 until Abreu led off the sixth with a drive over the wall in center. Dayan Viciedo followed with a double and Conor Gillaspie chased Orioles starter Chen Wei-yin of taiwan with a run-scoring double.
An RBI double by Abreu made it 4-2 in the seventh. Abreu, a rookie, ranks third in the American League in home runs and his 60 RBIs is tied for third.
Joseph hit his second homer in two games, a solo shot off Zach Putnam, in the eighth. The drive capped the rookie’s first career three-hit game.
That set the stage for Davis’ 13th home run. He hit 53 last year.
Baltimore went up 2-0 in the first inning when Steve Pearce walked and Jones followed with a drive to center that bounced off the top of the wall, only the fifth home run allowed by Sale this season.
Chicago got a run back in the third. Adam Eaton reached on an infield hit, Gordon Beckham doubled and Abreu hit a run-scoring ground-out.
In the bottom half, Sale struck out Delmon Young and J.J. Hardy after the Orioles put runners on the corners with one out. One inning later, Baltimore loaded the bases with one out, before Pearce hit a short fly and Jones struck out.
The trend continued in the fifth, when three straight singles filled the bases with no outs. After Manny Machado hit into a force at the plate, Jonathan Schoop bounced into a 4-6-3 double play.
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