Gattis' 11th-inning blast carries Astros past White Sox
CHICAGO -- Evan Gattis drilled a two-run home run off Matt Albers in the 11th inning, leading the Houston Astros to a 6-5 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night at U.S. Cellular Field.
Gattis, the Astros' designated hitter, was recalled from the minor leagues earlier in the day with the hope of adding some offensive punch to a struggling lineup. He went 2-for-4, and his homer made it 6-4, a cushion the Astros needed for the win.
The White Sox scored a run in the bottom of the 11th on a double by Adam Eaton, but Tony Sipp struck out Alex Avila to end the game and record his first save of the season.
Tyler White went 3-for-4 with a pair of solo home runs for Houston, which lost its previous two games and three of the first four on a seven-game road trip.
Albers (1-3) took the loss for Chicago, which has dropped three straight games and five of its past six.
Tyler Saladino had a double and two RBIs to lead the White Sox, who also got a solo home run from Jose Abreu.
In the 11th, George Springer led off with a single and stole second with two outs. White Sox manager Robin Ventura thought his catcher, Avila, was interfered with on the attempt to throw Springer out, which would've ended the inning, but the call wasn't made. Gattis homered in the next at-bat.
Houston (16-24) broke a 3-3 tie in the eighth with a run sparked by White's third hit, a leadoff double off Chicago's Zach Putnam. Rookie Tony Kemp replaced White as a pinch runner and scored on Jose Altuve's sacrifice fly to put the Astros up 4-3.
Chicago (24-15) countered with a run in the ninth to tie it 4-4 off closer Luke Gregerson, who blew his third save in 11 opportunities. Austin Jackson led off with a double, moved to third on a bunt single by Carlos Sanchez and scored on Saladino's sacrifice fly.
Struggling Astros ace Dallas Keuchel, the American League's reigning Cy Young winner, took a no-decision after allowing three runs in 6 1/3 innings. Chicago starter Carlos Rodon also got a no-decision after allowing three runs (two earned) in six innings.
Houston took a 2-0 lead off Rodon with solo runs in the second and fourth innings.
A leadoff single by Gattis and an error by White Sox third baseman Saladino led to the first run, which Gattis scored on a two-out single to left by Jason Castro in the second. White's sixth homer of the season, and first of the game, accounted for the second run, a solo shot off Rodon with two outs in the fourth.
Abreu countered with a solo homer in the bottom of the fourth off Keuchel to get the White Sox on the scoreboard with their first hit and baserunner.
That opened the door against Keuchel. Chicago took a 3-2 lead in the fifth against the Astros' struggling ace, who allowed two more runs on four consecutive two-out hits. The rally started on back-to-back doubles by Dioner Navarro and Saladino, the White Sox's eighth and ninth hitters.
The lead didn't last long thanks to White, who hit his second homer of the game off Rodon with one out in the sixth to tie it 3-3.
NOTES: White Sox 3B Todd Frazier didn't start because of an illness. Frazier hadn't missed a start in Chicago's first 38 games. ... The Astros placed CF Carlos Gomez (bruised left rib cage) on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to May 16. ... Houston had a slew of other roster moves Monday and Tuesday. On Monday, they brought up INF Tony Kemp and designated C Erik Kratz for assignment. On Tuesday, they designated RHP Asher Wojciechowski for assignment and recalled two players from the minors: 3B Colin Moran from the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies and C/DH Evan Gattis from the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks. Gattis started at DH. Astros manager A.J. Hinch said Gattis and Moran will each start Wednesday, and Gattis will catch the series finale Thursday. ... Houston INF Marwin Gonzalez started at third base despite a sore foot.