Chicago White Sox outshine cross-town rivals Chicago Cubs 6-4: MLB Update
The Chicago White Sox won the cross-town battle as they came from behind to defeat the Chicago Cubs by 6-4 in an epic game of baseball at the Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois, on July 1, 2011
It was the seventh inning genius that made the difference for the Chicago White Sox in the game that was otherwise dominated by the Cubs. The White Sox came from two runs behind to impose a two-run lead on the Cubs and then restricted them from scoring in
the last three innings of the game.
Juan Pierre and Brent Morel added one run each for the White Sox in the top of the first inning to get things underway.
It was the Cubs who dominated the game thereon, adding four runs and not allowing their opposite number to score.
The Cubs opened their scoring in the second inning with Carlos Pena, adding to his increasing number of runs this season. Pena has already scored 39 runs in this season with the second half of the season yet to play. Kosuke Fukudome and Darwin Barney then
helped the Cubs to a one-run lead, both adding runs in the third inning.
With 3-2 up, Aramis Ramirez came to the plate for the Cubs. His presence this time was somewhat special. Batting at 299 career home-runs to his name, Ramirez unleashed his arms and explicitly ran with joy as he saw the ball fly out of the park to complete
his 300 home-runs. His slugging percentage of .497 explains his hitting power and the capacity crowd at the Wrigley Field experienced it. The game against the cross-town rivals was the perfect stage for this hit.
With a comfortable two-run lead in the bag, complacency got the better of the Cubs. Randy Wells pitched casually at the top of the seventh inning and the White Sox quickly cashed in on this. Alexei Ramirez hammered the ball for a massive 387-foot home-run,
before A.J. Pierzynski scored to bring the score level at 4-4. Alex Rios and Adam Dunn did not let the momentum break and added two more runs in the same inning to register a two-run lead.
Wells wasted his hard-work he had done in the first six innings. He ended with an ERA of 6.59 and gave away six runs in 6.1 innings. He could have won this game but unfortunately ended on the opposite side, losing his third game for the season.
Edwin Jackson held on to consistency to achieve success. He was duly awarded with one in the end. He now has five wins for the season.
Brian Burney and Jesse Crain were brilliant at the mound, both holding games. Sergio Santos was given the task to close the innings and he did it in style, pitching eight deliveries and managing all strike. He saved his 18th game of the season.
The two teams will meet up again on Saturday, July 2 in what can be expected to a thriller.
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