Noesi Helps White Sox Edge Mariners 1-0
CHICAGO (AP) — Hector Noesi pitched five-hit ball into the seventh inning for his first win in a month, leading the Chicago White Sox to a 1-0 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday.
Noesi (3-6) struck out five and walked two in 6 2-3 innings, a crisp performance against one of his former teams. The right-hander pitched for Seattle for parts of three seasons before he was cut in April.
Chicago finished with just two hits after it had four in Saturday's 3-2 loss in 14 innings. But Conor Gillaspie scored on a wild pitch in the first and Noesi combined with two relievers on a five-hitter.
Eric Surkamp got Robinson Cano to fly out with the bases loaded for the final out of the seventh, and Jake Petricka pitched two innings for his third save in four chances. The solid relief work came one day after the White Sox blew a 2-0 lead in the ninth inning.
Seattle right-hander Taijuan Walker (1-1) lasted just four innings in his second start of the season. The 21-year-old Walker, one of baseball's top pitching prospects, struggled with his control in his first loss in five major league appearances.
The White Sox used Walker's wildness to grab the lead in the first. Gillaspie walked with two outs, advanced to third on Jose Abreu's single and scored when Walker threw his first of two wild pitches on ball four to Adam Dunn.
Walker then got Alexei Ramirez to bounce into a fielder's choice, ending the threat. The White Sox left a runner in scoring position in each of the first five innings.
Walker allowed two hits and struck out three while throwing 83 pitches on a warm, humid day. He tossed six innings in a 10-4 victory at Houston last Monday in his season debut.
Dustin Ackley and Brad Miller had two hits apiece for the Mariners, who had won five of six.
Gillaspie also walked in the third before he left with a bruised right knee after he was hit by a pitch from Dominic Leone in the fifth inning. Gillaspie took a few shaky steps toward first before he was replaced by pinch-runner Leury Garcia.
Second base umpire Dana DeMuth also departed in the fifth after colliding with White Sox second baseman Gordon Beckham. The game continued with three umpires.
NOTES: Seattle ace Felix Hernandez will make his next start Friday against AL West-leading Oakland. Hernandez's next turn was slated for Thursday, but manager Lloyd McClendon said he wanted his best pitcher going up against the A's. McClendon also said he isn't sure yet who will start Thursday against Minnesota. ... Mariners CF James Jones got the day off. Endy Chavez started in center. ... Petricka has a string of eight consecutive scoreless appearances. "His progression and his rise through the bullpen's been pretty impressive," manager Robin Ventura said. ... Seattle returns home to face Minnesota in the opener of a four-game series Monday night. Mariners RHP Hisashi Iwakuma (6-4, 3.33 ERA) and RHP Kevin Correia (4-10, 4.95) are slated to pitch the first game. ... The White Sox begin a four-game set at Boston on Monday night. RHP Scott Carroll (2-5, 5.05 ERA) takes on Red Sox RHP Clay Buchholz (3-4, 6.22) in the series opener.
(© 2014by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.)
