Leury Garcia’s two-out, two-strike single in the top of the ninth inning scored the only run of the game as the Chicago White Sox beat the San Francisco Giants 1-0 on Friday in the opener of a three-game interleague series.
White Sox right-hander Lance Lynn and Giants righty Alex Cobb engaged in a pitchers’ duel. However, they were long gone before Gavin Sheets reached base with one out in the ninth when San Francisco closer Camilo Doval (2-4) dropped Brandon Belt’s throw while covering first base.
Doval struck out Yoan Moncada, and he appeared to get out of the inning when A.J. Pollock hit a two-hopper toward third baseman Jason Vosler. The ball hit third base, though, causing Vosler to have to lurch to field it, and he threw late to first.
Garcia followed with his single to right, with pinch runner Adam Haseley barely beating right fielder Mike Yastrzemski’s throw to the plate with a nice slide.
Kendall Graveman worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth for his fourth save, locking down a first career win for rookie Tanner Banks (1-0), who pitched a scoreless eighth despite allowing two walks.
The shutout was the White Sox’s eighth of the season. The Giants, who were out-hit 6-3, were blanked for just the fourth time.
Cobb was the first to leave the scoreless game, having blanked the White Sox on three hits over five innings. He walked one and struck out three.
Chicago’s best shot at scoring off Cobb came in the fifth when Pollock and Garcia singled consecutively with one out. But Cobb got Reese McGuire to fly out and Tim Anderson to ground out to kill the threat.
Lynn carried his shutout through six innings, also giving up just three hits. He walked two and fanned five.
The Giants loaded the bases in the first inning after the first two batters were retired, as Belt singled in between walks to Wilmer Flores and Yastrzemski. Lynn struck out Tommy La Stella to end the inning.
Pollock and Garcia had two hits each for the White Sox, who improved to 2-2 on a six-game trip.
Donovan Walton had the only extra-base hit, a double, for the Giants, who fell to 2-4 on their eight-game homestand.
–Field Level Media
