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Garko homers twice as Indians play spoiler

Sep 27, 2008 - 5:33 AM By Gene Chamberlain PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Ryan Garko kept the Chicago White Sox reeling in the American League Central race Friday with his first career grand slam and first multi-home run effort, leading the Cleveland Indians to an 11-8 victory.

Garko's fifth-inning grand slam off D. J. Carrasco widened Cleveland's lead to 9-4 two batters after Shin-Soo Choo's two-run single chased White Sox starter John Danks (11-9) and gave the Indians a 5-4 lead.

Garko finished with three hits, including a solo blast leading off the fourth against Danks, and Ben Francisco hit a solo homer in the first as Cleveland came back from a 4-2 deficit to end a three-game losing streak and deal Chicago its fourth straight defeat.

"I've really gotten back to what got me here," Garko said. "My approach is spraying it all over the field and staying inside the baseball and driving the baseball to all fields. I was a little pull happy early in the year."

The loss kept the White Sox (86-73) from regaining the AL Central lead they had lost Thursday, when Minnesota completed a three-game series sweep. The Twins (87-73) still lead the division by one-half game despite losing, 8-1, on Friday at home to Kansas City.

Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen laid most of the blame on the pitching staff.

"I didn't think it was a baseball game," Guillen said. "I think it was a pitching parade.

"When the manager and the pitching coach go out there seven times in five innings, it's not a good indication. I think those guys out there (pitching) should be a little bit embarrassed about themselves. I was. I was to the point where I didn't even want to go to the mound because I didn't want to have the fans see me go out there once again."

Guillen said he even got to the point where he begged reliever Octavio Dotel to get batters out after Danks and four subsequent relievers had combined to walk six, hit two batters, throw two wild pitches, balk and give up three home runs.

"What did we throw, like 300 pitches?" White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski asked rhetorically. "It wasn't very good."

Cleveland lefthander Scott Lewis (4-0) got the win despite being tagged for three home runs and surrendering a 2-0 lead during a four-run rally by Chicago in the second.

Paul Konerko hit his 19th home run leading off the frame. After an error by shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, A.J. Pierzynski hit a two-run blast to right off Lewis.

Brian Anderson's slow groundout drove in Nick Swisher, who had reached on another miscue by Cabrera.

Lewis, who allowed six runs - four earned - six hits and a walk with five strikeouts, gave up a single by Anderson in the fifth before Jermaine Dye's 33rd home run reduced the deficit to 9-6.

Danks yielded seven runs and seven hits in four-plus innings, walking one while striking out five.

Chicago scored a run in the seventh on Konerko's double off Rafael Betancourt and another in the eighth on pinch hitter DeWayne Wise's two-out single off Jensen Lewis to pull within 11-8. But with two on and two outs, Lewis induced a flyout by Dye to end the inning.

"We fought back. Yes we did," Guillen said. "And I feel proud because we really fought back. Did we fight all the way through it? Yes. Did our offense go out there and do what they're supposed to do? Yes.

"But it's getting old. To win the game you've got to put it all together, pitching well, score some runs."

Lewis tossed a scoreless ninth for his 13th save.