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Sosa homers in return to Chicago; Rangers win

Apr 18, 2007 - 6:02 AM CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Chicago fans got to see Sammy Sosa hop again, but this time it was not in a Cubs uniform.

A former Chicago Cubs' star, Sosa smacked a three-run homer in his first game in Chicago in three years, as the Texas Rangers coasted to an 8-1 victory over Sosa's original team, the Chicago White Sox.

It was the 591st career homer for Sosa, who broke into the baseball in 1989 with Chicago before heading to the Rangers and then the Cubs. Robinson Tejada (2-1) pitched seven impressive innings, limiting the White Sox to just one run.

Sosa was in a unfamiliar position when, with Kenny Lofton on second after a double, the White Sox intentionally walked Mark Teixeira to get to the righthanded slugger.

"It felt great," said Sosa, who went 2-for-4 with his third blast of the season and was booed in every at-bat.

"Today was an exciting day, (I haven't) been in Chicago for three years. They walked Teixeira to get to me, and I got the job done."

"It couldn't have been a better result for the whole Texas Rangers team," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "Robbie (Tejada) did a good job of pitching-wise. It was nice for Sammy; the fans certainly weren't giving him a (good) reception. It was nice that he did something to help us win."

After Sosa drilled a fastball from reliever Mike MacDougal into the right-center field seats, he threw up both arms and hopped out of the batter's box to round the bases as the Rangers took an 8-1 lead.

Sosa, who is just nine homers shy of 600 for his career, hit 60 three straight seasons with the Cubs and thrilled fans with his home run chase with Mark McGwire in 1998.

"Today I came here and didn't know what to expect," Sosa said. "Being out for a year and having the opportunity to come here and have a good game, I am very satisfied.

"I wasn't paying attention to the fans, (otherwise) they'll control everything. I just try to be focused on what I need to do for my next at-bat, with concentration and patience. This is part of business, and I have no problem with that."

Ian Kinsler, who took home American League Player of the Week honors, continued to hammer the baseball, hitting a three-run homer in the seventh - his seventh of the season - that gave the Rangers a 5-1 lead.

"I was lucky enough to get a good part of the bat on the ball," Kinsler said of his home run. "I don't know why the ball's been going out of the park, but it's been fun. The more pitches I can see in a single at-bat, the more comfortable I become. That's basically my goal, and the results are pretty good right now."

Jim Thome drove in Chicago's only run with his third homer of the year in the fourth off Tejada, who yielded just three hits in seven innings with three strikeouts and four walks.

"I tried to stay in the game, and not do too much," Tejada said. "Nothing is easy in baseball, you need to work at it. That's what I did today."

Antonio Otsuka and Ron Mahay each threw a scoreless inning to close out the game.

Brad Wilkerson hit his second homer of the season in the fifth for Texas, which has won three in a row.

Jon Garland (0-1) was tagged for five run and five hits in seven innings for the White Sox, who have lost three straight.

"We're in an offensive struggle right now," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "We have to change our approach and do something about it. We have to swing the bats better as a group."