Furious rally ends White Sox skid: 'The morale booster we need'

CHICAGO -- The streak is over.

And if the White Sox were going to end a 10-game losing streak, then they might as well do it with dramatic excitement, as they did during their 12-9 victory over the Rays at a rainy Guaranteed Rate Field on Sunday afternoon.

The White Sox trailed 9-5 going into the bottom of the ninth, watching a 4-2 lead evaporate as the Rays (23-6) scored five in the eighth and two in the ninth. Yes, more consternation and more teeth-gnashing were on their way.

Manager Pedro Grifol’s crew instead scored seven times in its last at-bat against relievers Jalen Beeks and Garrett Cleavinger, using five two-strike hits to turn the downright unlikely into a raucous celebration. Andrew Vaughn delivered the deciding shot with a three-run home run to left off a 2-2 Cleavinger slider.

“I blacked out,” said Vaughn of his first walk-off hit. “I honestly don’t remember running the bases. That was a lot of fight. That was awesome. One of the most gritty baseball games I’ve seen in a long time.”

“That was almost more beneficial for us as a club than if we went out there and put up 12 in the first,” said White Sox starting pitcher Mike Clevinger, who struck out eight over five innings. “That’s the morale booster we need.”

This ninth-inning rally started innocently enough, when Romy González flied out to center. Eloy Jiménez got things going with a single to left -- his fourth single of the game -- before Yasmani Grandal got hit by a pitch, Jake Burger doubled and Oscar Colás hit a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to 9-7.

Elvis Andrus’ single chopped the lead to one, and Lenyn Sosa, who figures to return to Triple-A Charlotte when Tim Anderson and Hanser Alberto join the team from injury rehab Tuesday, kept the inning alive with a ground single to right. Adam Haseley, who matched a career high with four hits, singled to center to tie the game.

It all set the stage for Vaughn.

“No doubt,” said Vaughn of knowing the ball was gone on impact. “I knew.”

“I didn't want to leave it up, and I thought I got it down enough,” Cleavinger said. “He went down and got it. Credit to him for putting a good swing on it.”

Those ninth-inning heroics finished off a season-high 18 hits. They also marked the White Sox biggest ninth-inning comeback since Sept. 7, 2007, when they trailed 10-4 before scoring six in the ninth vs. Minnesota and winning in extra innings. It marked their biggest ninth-inning comeback without going to extras since April 28, 2004, when they trailed 8-4 before scoring five in the ninth vs. Cleveland.

“Sometimes, hits are contagious,” Haseley said. “Seems like that last inning, everybody that got up to the plate was putting in a good at-bat. Everyone was just feeding off each other, trying to keep the line moving, and good things happened."

“We had some heartbreak losses against them,” said Grifol, whose team finished 1-6 vs. the Rays. “Baseball is a crazy game, and today was an example. But that clubhouse was jumping, and it was something we needed.”

While Sunday’s performance certainly was a memorable one, it still couldn’t wash away Chicago’s 8-21 showing during April. The White Sox finished 0-8-1 in series play and 4-9 at home, and they never won back-to-back games.

Reynaldo López, who had been used in high-leverage relief opportunities during the first month, also left Sunday’s game after allowing three runs in one-third of an inning due to right biceps fatigue and the possibility of a dead arm setting in. There’s a long road back for the White Sox to relevance, let alone contention, as they open a three-game set on Tuesday night with the Twins, who lead them by nine games in the American League Central.

Maybe Sunday’s comeback can start Chicago on the right path.

“Yeah, that felt like a huge weight off our shoulders,” Vaughn said.

“Going into the off-day and starting a new series, it's huge,” Haseley said. “Especially against a team like that. You know they're one of the best in baseball. It shows that we can fight and hang with them."

“A roller-coaster,” a smiling Clevinger said. “It was the highest of highs to the lowest of lows back to the highest of highs. It was a fun game. Definitely the most fun game of the season.”