Sox will take offense wherever they can
When the White Sox busted out of the gates with 7 wins in their first 11 games this season, the offense was being set up to near perfection by leadoff man Juan Pierre and No. 2 hitter Gordon Beckham.
When the back end of the bullpen proceeded to pull the plug on the quick start with 3 blown saves, Pierre cooled way off and Beckham was eventually relocated to the bottom of the lineup.
The needed spark at the top is still little more than a flicker, but the Sox aren’t going to be picky about where the offense is coming from.
With 18 losses in 22 games heading into Saturday night’s meeting with the Mariners at Seattle, the White Sox were looking here, there and everywhere for some life.
They found it — at the bottom.
Filling the 7-9 slots in the order, Alex Rios, Beckham and Brent Morel all emerged from lengthy slides while lifting the Sox to a 6-0 win at Safeco Field.
The trio was a combined 10-for-12, with Rios leading the way at 4-for-4. That raised the center fielder’s batting average from .178 to .205.
Beckham (3-for-4) went from .211 to .230 and Morel (3-for-4) improved from .187 to .215.
Pierre and new No. 2 hitter Alexei Ramirez still need to get it going, as do Adam Dunn and A.J. Pierzynski, but the White Sox desperately needed a win Saturday, so who cares if the bottom of the order keyed the 17-hit attack?
For Sox fans, it had to be nice to see another quality pitching effort finally rewarded.
Gavin Floyd was brilliant against Seattle while working 8 innings and allowing 3 hits.
Who cares if the Mariners’ offense features Milton Bradley (.206) in the No. 3 hole and is again one of the worst in baseball?
The White Sox have to beat bad teams like this if they hope to keep this season from becoming a complete disaster.
The pitching is fine, especially the rotation. And the Sox’ defense has gotten expectedly better after making 15 errors in the first 14 games of the season.
A big concern did come came out of Saturday’s win.
First baseman Paul Konerko, who is tied for the American League RBI lead (27) with Toronto’s Adam Lind, appeared to hurt his left wrist in the third inning while making an error on an Ichiro Suzuki grounder. Konerko was reportedly taken for X-rays after the game.
Jake Peavy rejoined the White Sox before the game and he’s expected to make his first start of the season Wednesday against the Angels at Anaheim, Calif. Few players in the game are more rah-rah than Peavy, so his addition should provide a boost.
“I do want to bring some enthusiasm, some fire, some passion,” Peavy told reporters. “I certainly think the ballclub could use a shot in the arm. I’m not promising anything, by any means, but I can promise you this, we’re going to compete on that day.”
sgregor@dailyherald.com