Evening Box Score: Sox Slam Tigers To Stay Alive

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Sep 30, 2008 12:22AM

It was bailouts and baseball on the Chicagoist office television today and, thankfully, the baseball brought better news for Chicago.

With their backs to the wall and needing a win to force a one-game playoff with the Minnesota Twins, the Chicago White Sox managed to extend their season yet again by winning a make-up game with the Detroit Tigers 8-2. The game was, coincidentally, delayed by rain for three hours, but that didn't lessen the tension. Sox starter Gavin Floyd pitched a solid six innings, allowing two runs and striking out eight to earn his 17th win of the season.

Jermaine Dye singled in Orlando Cabrera in the first to give the Sox the early lead. The Tigers scraped two runs off of Floyd over the next six innings and the Sox headed into the bottom of the sixth down 2-1. D-Wise walked to start the inning, stole second, and advanced to third on a wild pitch by Tiger reliever Armando Galarraga. After walking Dye, Galarrage threw another wild pitch that allowed Wise to score. But it was rookie Alexei Ramirez who ultimately put the game out of reach when he belted a grand slam later in the inning, his fourth of the year, off of Tigers reliever Gary Glover. The Sox added two more in the eighth, just for good measure.

After the Sox offense provided the runs, the Sox bullpen held the Tigers to secure the win. The Sox, tied for first with the Twins, now welcome the Twins to town tomorrow in Game 163 for a trip to Tampa and a date with the Rays. Tomorrow's game, for which attending fans are being asked to wear black for a "Sox Black Out," will be broadcast on TBS. We'll have a bit more tomorrow morning.