Sox get what they deserve
In major-league baseball, you often get what you deserve.
There are times when a team can play sloppy defense and win, overcome poor base running or get past passed balls and wild pitches.
For the most part, however, the game is going to get you.
And it got the White Sox on Tuesday night. Baseball got them good.
Fortunate to be a mere strike away from beating the Blue Jays and extending their winning streak to four, fate finally caught up to the Sox.
Making his fourth appearance in as many days, White Sox closer Addison Reed got ahead of Toronto slugger Jose Bautista 1-2 with two outs in the ninth inning.
It looked like a 5-4 win was in the bag, but Bautista crushed Reed's next pitch, a hanging slider, over the left-field fence to tie the game, and the Jays took advantage of more bad play from the Sox to win it in the 10th inning, 7-5.
Give the White Sox some credit — or blame the Blue Jays — for at least making it interesting.
The suddenly hot Adam Dunn came to the plate with two on and two outs in the bottom of the 10th and grounded out to end it.
In the second inning, Dunn hit his fourth home run in his last four games.
A 3-run homer by third baseman Conor Gillaspie in the fourth put the Sox in front 5-2, but a string of mistakes came back to haunt them.
“It was one of those where we kept shooting ourselves in the foot,” manager Robin Ventura said. “Any time you lose like that, it doesn't feel good. You come down and you get the last strike, especially the way it went earlier, it's one of those for (Reed), he's human and it's going to happen.
“You figure it's going to happen eventually but you just never like it when it happens. He should have had a bigger cushion that that. That's the way it goes.”
Let's review all the miscues:
ŸThe White Sox made 3 errors, 1 each by shortstop Alexei Ramirez, Gillaspie and catcher Tyler Flowers.
ŸFlowers had another passed ball, No. 7, which ties him for the American League lead with Toronto's J.P. Arbencibia.
ŸNew reliever Ramon Troncoso uncorked a wild pitch in the 10th inning that allowed a run to score.
ŸOn the bases, Alejandro De Aza was picked off, Dayan Viciedo and Gordon Beckham where thrown out trying to take extra bases and Ramirez was doubled off second on Dunn's lineout.
“Our offense did a good job of keeping us in the game,” Flowers said. “Pitching kept us in it. We just kind of found a way to lose again.”
For whatever reasons, the Sox have been unable to rattle off extended stretches of clean baseball. Tuesday was yet another example.
“It's been worse than that,” Ventura said. “Again, you do that and you still have a chance to win the game. We'll address it and come back tomorrow.”
Odds are good Reed won't pitch Wednesday night given his recent heavy workload. But the right-hander wasn't making excuses after blowing his second save in 21 tries this season.
“I felt great out there,” Reed said. “One bad pitch, and the next thing you know, tie ballgame. Everything felt good. One mistake.”