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Anderson's walk-off single gives White Sox split of doubleheader

Apr 27, 2008 - 4:08 AM By Gene Chamberlain PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

CHICAGO (Ticker) - Little-used Chicago White Sox outfielder Brian Anderson picked a good time to drive in his first runs in over two years.

Anderson hit a walk-off single in the ninth inning to help the White Sox earn a split of a day-night doubleheader with a 6-5 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday night.

Anderson had a run-scoring double in the second before belting a bases-loaded 3-2 pitch from Randor Bierd (0-1) to left field in the ninth.

Anderson had been handed the starting White Sox center field job in 2006 but flopped and then spent almost all of 2007 in the minors or on the disabled list before barely making the team out of spring training.

Now, Anderson has gotten a chance to play due to the absence of Jermaine Dye, who suffered a strained left groin on Thursday.

"It's not something I'm used to," Anderson said of his reserve role. "But if that's what they need me for, then so be it. I'll be there when they need me and continue to do that and, hopefully, one day get back to starting."

Nick Swisher homered for the White Sox, who squandered a three-run lead after dropping the first game, 5-1.

"I was kind of not too happy about the way we were after the (first) game," Guillen said. "We were flat in the dugout and flat in the clubhouse and, in the second game, we pumped up a little bit, but all a sudden we gave up the lead."

Closer Bobby Jenks (2-0) got the win after escaping a bases-loaded jam in the top of the ninth. Jenks got Kevin Millar to hit into a force at the plate and Aubrey Huff to ground back to the mound.

The Orioles rallied from a 5-2 deficit, starting with Millar's sixth-inning solo home run off starter Mark Buehrle. Baltimore struck for two more runs seventh inning off reliever Boone Logan.

Brian Roberts had an RBI triple and Melvin Mora followed with an RBI double to tie the game at 5-5 in the seventh.

"We're not going to give away at-bats," Orioles manager Dave Trembley said after his team nearly pulled off its 10th comeback win of the season. "We're going to play hard and do what we can do to get ourselves back into games."

"The way we had the lead and then gave it up, for us to battle back, it's one of those things. It just shows the character of this team," Buehrle said.

Baltimore took the early lead as Ramon Hernandez hit a two-run double to right in the second.

The White Sox tied it at 2-2 in the bottom half of the frame on Anderson's RBI double and an RBI groundout by Pablo Ozuna.

Konerko regained the lead for the White Sox in the third when Torres bobbled the relay throw following Carlos Quentin's double.

Swisher, mired in a 2-for-24 slump, chased Baltimore starter Steve Trachsel with a two-run homer in the fourth to give Chicago a 5-2 lead.

Buehrle allowed three runs and three hits in six innings. The lefthander struck out five and walked two. Buehrle was not scheduled to start, but he told Guillen not to waste reliever Nick Masset with a spot start.

"I told them there's no reason to waste Masset and kind of mess up our bullpen for the next couple days to come when I felt good," he said. "So, I kept on pushing and pushing and it worked."

Buehrle's counterpart, Trachsel, allowed five runs - four earned - and five hits in three frames.