Arlington, TX – Conor Gillaspie broke a tie game with a solo homer in the seventh inning and the Chicago White Sox took the middle test of a three-game series with the Texas Rangers, 5-2, to snap a three-game skid.
Alejandro De Aza tacked on a two-run homer after Gillaspie's blast to back a strong start from Chris Sale (3-2), who remained perfect against the AL West by scattering six hits and two runs over seven innings of work.
Rangers rookie Nick Tepesch (2-2) took the loss after allowing five runs on eight hits in 6 2/3 frames. Jeff Baker hit a solo homer and Ian Kinsler went 3-for-5 with an RBI in Texas' third loss in four games.
Gillaspie lifted Tepesch's sinking changeup over the wall in right-center to break a 2-2 tie, and later in the seventh, with a runner on first, De Aza turned on a payoff pitch and deposited it into the right-field seats for a 5-2 cushion.
"I made a few bad pitches, but that's part of the game," Tepesch said. "You learn from those mistakes."
Matt Thornton stranded runners on the corners in the home eighth, and Addison Reed earned his ninth save of the season with a scoreless ninth. Reed plunked pinch-hitter A.J. Pierzynski with two outs and surrendered a single to Kinsler before striking out Elvis Andrus to end the game.
"Everybody did their part," Reed said. "Hopefully this starts us rolling."
In the first inning, Alex Rios singled past a diving Adrian Beltre at third to plate De Aza, and the White Sox were searching for more with the bases loaded and no outs in the second.
Tepesch, though, limited the damage to Tyler Flowers' run-scoring double-play ball, and the Rangers tied it in the bottom half.
Baker took Sale over the left-field wall for his second homer in as many games, and Kinsler hit a long single off the left-field fence with the bases loaded to knock in Mitch Moreland.
Game Notes
Sale improved to 8-0 with a 3.12 ERA in his career against AL West opponents ... Chicago has at least one home run in 10 straight games ... Pierzynski, who played eight seasons for the White Sox, has not been in the starting lineup this series as he is dealing with an oblique injury ... The Rangers have yet to lose a series this season and will look to continue that trend when Justin Grimm starts Thursday's rubber match opposite Jake Peavy.
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