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Sosa sparks huge second inning for Rangers in easy win

Sep 10, 2007 - 2:03 AM ARLINGTON, Texas (Ticker) -- Whatever moisture was left behind by the rain early in the game was dried up by the heat generated by the Texas Rangers' offense shortly thereafter.

Sammy Sosa had two hits - including a three-run homer - in an eight-run second inning as the Rangers blasted the Oakland Athletics, 12-9, on Sunday.

The game was delayed twice, 16 minutes before the start of the contest and 73 minutes in the top of the second. However, once the game was resumed after the second delay, Texas quickly put the contest out of reach.

In the bottom of the second, Sosa led off the frame with a string of four consecutive singles, including RBI singles by Jason Botts and Nelson Cruz off Athletics starter Lenny DiNardo (8-9) to make the score 2-0. After Gerald Laird sacrificed and Jarrod Saltalamacchia grounded out to third, Ian Kinsler walked to load the bases.

"I was just going up looking for a good pitch," Sosa said. "He threw me a sinker inside and I was able to get a good swing on it."

Jerry Hairston, Jr. followed with another walk to push across another run and moved to third when Michael Young reached on a throwing error by Oakland shortstop Donnie Murphy. The play allowed two runs to score to increase the lead to 5-0 before Sosa belted the second pitch he saw from reliever Colby Lewis over the fence in left-center for a three-run home run.

The 442-foot shot by Sosa was only the 12th home run to reach the second deck in the history of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

Sosa, who had his first three-hit game since June 26 and finished with four RBI, hit an RBI single in the sixth to extend the lead to 9-3.

"Sosa is an absolute RBI machine," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "He smells them when they're on base and then he picks them up."

The Rangers needed all the offense they could muster early on as Oakland stormed back with five runs - but only one earned - in the seventh due to a couple errors by Young and catcher Gerald Laird to trim the lead to 9-8.

However, Texas put the game out of reach in the bottom half of the inning when Hairston hit a two-run single and Young followed with his own run-scoring single to increase the lead to 12-8.

"Sometimes, you've got to win ugly and tonight, we won ugly," Washington said. "When they put up those five runs in the seventh, I was proud of the way we answered (back). That's just the way this team has been playing ball lately."

Bill White (1-0) allowed a run and two hits in the fifth and sixth innings to get his first major league win.

Nick Swisher homered twice and Mark Ellis had three hits and three RBI for the A's, who lost for the eighth time in their last nine road contests.