Ramirez's homer in 10th lifts White Sox over A's

Posted August 14, 2009 11:00 pm

Scot Gregor

It's been an eventful season for Alexei Ramirez.

The White Sox' 27-year-old shortstop was benched earlier in the year when his bat went cold, he was later chided by manager Ozzie Guillen for his poor defense and attitude, and Ramirez missed the first week of August with a sprained right ankle.

But the talent has always been there, and it's been coming out on the Sox' West Coast road trip.

On Tuesday night, the White Sox were down 1-0 in the ninth inning at Seattle before Ramirez hit a 3-run homer off Mariners closer David Aardsma to decide the outcome.

Ramirez stepped up again Friday night, hitting a solo homer in the 10th inning to lift the Sox to an 8-7 win at Oakland.

"When he starts swinging the bat, this kid can carry the ballclub," manager Ozzie Guillen told reporters after the game. "This kid can do a lot of good things. He's swinging the bat great right now and he got a big hit for us."

The Sox were able to keep pace against the first-place Detroit Tigers, and they remained 21/2 games behind in the AL Central.

For as good as Ramirez was with the bat late in the game, that's how bad White Sox starter Jose Contreras was in the fourth and fifth innings.

The Sox jumped out to a 6-0 lead after two innings, with Jermaine Dye driving in 3 with a pair of singles and backup catcher Ramon Castro adding a 2-run homer off Oakland starter Brett Anderson.

It looked like the White Sox were going to shake off Wednesday night's tough 1-0 loss in 14 innings at Seattle, but Contreras wilted again and the Sox' defense was right there with him.

"Jose didn't pitch good," Guillen said. "And the defense helped him to not pitch good. As a pitcher, you have to overcome that. He was cruising along and all of the sudden, everything went south."

The A's roared back with 5 runs on 4 hits in the fourth inning, which also included a hit batter and error on Alex Rios, who started in center field.

Mark Ellis' 3-run double was the big blow.

The A's scored 2 more runs in the fifth while knocking Contreras out of the game. The right-hander allowed 7 runs (6 earned) on 8 hits in 41/3 innings.

Scot Gregor's game tracker White Sox 8, A's 7 Friday's grade: B. The Sox almost squandered a 6-0 lead, but the bullpen bailed out starting pitcher Jose Contreras, and Alexei Ramirez decided the outcome with a solo home run leading off the ninth inning. Mr. Clutch: The White Sox are 2-2 on their West Coast trip, and Alexei Ramirez deserves most of the credit. Before Friday night's heroics, Ramirez hit a 3-run homer in the ninth inning at Seattle on Tuesday night to lift the Sox to a 3-1 win. Mr. Concern: Jose Contreras had another bad outing vs. Oakland, allowing 6 earned runs on 8 hits in 41/3 innings. Over his last 6 starts, Contreras has allowed 24 earned runs on 35 hits in 281/3 innings.