Dayan Viciedo shook off his slump – for one night at least – and helped the White Sox rally twice from three-run deficits to overtake the Detroit Tigers.Viciedo, the Sox No. 8 hitter, and the two batters on either side of him in the lineup, Alexei Ramirez and Brent Morel, all entered the game hitting under .200 – and all three delivered Monday night in a 7-5 victory.
“I don’t feel there is any pressure. Collectively we help each other out. We’re a young squad and we’ll have our ups and downs,” Viciedo said after hitting a homer and a go-ahead, bases-loaded single during a career-high four RBI night. “We’re confident and we pick each other up.”
Adam Dunn also homered, his 12th of the season, allowing him to surpass his total from last season in the White Sox’s 36th game of 2012.Dunn’s two-run homer came after the Tigers scored three in the first against shaky White Sox starter John Danks, who lasted only three innings in his shortest outing of the season, allowing nine hits and five runs.
“Spot them three runs early and it’s nice to get a couple in the first,” said Dunn, who struck out three times after his homer.”There are some good things going but a lot of bad things for me right now,” Dunn added. “Hopefully we can get those cleaned up and keep producing.”
Zach Stewart (1-1) earned the win, allowing only one hit over three scoreless innings.Hector Santiago relieved Stewart in the seventh and retired three straight with two runners on. Matt Thornton pitched the eighth and Addison Reed gave up a single and walk in the ninth before getting his third save in as many chances. White Sox relievers allowed three hits in six shutout innings.Detroit finished with 13 runners left on.
“We had an opportunity to really break the game open,” manager Jim Leyland said. “We weren’t able to do that, but we did swing the bats much better tonight.”
Trailing 5-4, the White Sox loaded the bases with one out in the sixth against reliever Luke Putkonen (0-2). Alex Rios and A.J. Pierzynski singled before a walk to Ramirez, who also had two hits.Viciedo followed with a two-run single to center to put the White Sox ahead. Brent Morel, who came in batting .182 and appeared ready to bunt two pitches earlier, then lined an RBI single to left for a 7-5 lead.
“You get Morel and Viciedo having the nights they had, you like seeing that. I like the way we are going about it and offensively it has been a little slow the last couple of days, but nobody is laying down,” Robin Ventura said.
Tigers starter Drew Smyly allowed five hits and four runs in five innings, including Dunn’s two-run shot in the first.During Detroit’s quick start, Andy Dirks walked, Miguel Cabrera singled and Prince Fielder hit a two-run double when Alejandro De Aza appeared to misjudge his line drive and the ball went over his head. Delmon Young followed with another double over De Aza’s head and the Tigers were up 3-0.But one out after a single by De Aza in the bottom half of the first, Dunn lifted his homer to deep right.Danks gave it right back in the third, surrendering three singles and then walking Jhonny Peralta with the bases loaded to make it 4-2 before Gerald Laird’s sacrifice fly put the Tigers back up by three.
“It’s on me. Physically I feel great,” said Danks, whose ERA was inflated to 6.46. “I’ve just got to go out there and do it. Definitely winning the ball game takes the sting out of it. That’s definitely the ultimate goal is to win ballgames and we’re happy to do that.”
Viciedo, in a 1-for-17 slump at the time, connected on his fourth homer in the fifth, a two-run blast that made it 5-4.
NOTES—Leyland came out to argue with third base umpire Gerry Davis in the second after a shot down the third base line by Cabrera was ruled foul. Replays showed the ball may have been fair and would have scored at least one run since Austin Jackson had doubled earlier in the inning past third before Andy Dirks was hit with a pitch. … Dunn’s homer was his first off a lefty since Aug. 6, 2010, when he hit a pair off the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw while he was with the Nationals. Dunn batted .064 (6 for 94) against lefties last season with just one extra base hit, a double. … Detroit’s Max Scherzer (2-3, 5.73 ERA) pitches against Jake Peavy (4-1, 1.89) in the finale of the brief two-game series. It will be the finale of a nine-game road swing for the Tigers, who are 3-5 on the trip.