Lind’s walk-off homer extends White Sox skid to five

SHARE Lind’s walk-off homer extends White Sox skid to five
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White Sox pitcher Chris Sale, right, talks with pitching coach Don Cooper, left, after Sale threw eight shutout innings against the Seattle Mariners, giving up one hit, in a baseball game, Monday, July 18, 2016, in Seattle. White Sox’ David Robertson blew the save in the ninth inning, giving up a walk-off home run to Seattle Mariners’ Adam Lind, and the Mariners beat the White sox 4-3. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

SEATTLE — The White Sox are at a crossroads, and they badly needed to halt a four-game losing streak Monday night.

It looked like a lock after Chris Sale threw eight innings of scoreless one-hit ball and left with a three-run lead after eight innings. But it turned into another moment of dread for closer David Robertson and these up-and-down – and mostly down of late – Sox, who lost to the Seattle Mariners 4-3 on pinch hitter Adam Lind’s three-run walkoff homer that extended their skid to five.

“You can only do so much,’’ said Sale, who threw 100 pitches but was showing some signs of losing it when he hit two batters in the seventh and walked two in the eighth. He said he tried to make a case for pitching the ninth.

“Do I like it [coming out]? No. Do I get it, yeah,” he said. “I understand where they’re [manager Robin Ventura and pitching coach Don Cooper] coming from. It’s a long season. Maybe I go out there and my pitch count gets over 120, so you never know. It is what it is and you move on.

“That’s why we love this game. Another one tomorrow. Be ready.’’

The Sox fell to 45-47 and are skidding in the wrong direction as the Aug. 1 trade deadline approaches. Even the even-keeled Ventura agreed that there was a sense of urgency in this three-game series against the Seattle Mariners.

“Yeah, there is because you come out in the second half and play like that for three days,’’ Ventura said before the game. “And you have [Chris Sale] going today. You need to make the move at some point.’’

Ventura said afterward he took Sale out because his ace appeared to be losing his sharpness somewhat. He struck out six, walked three and allowed only a single in the first inning to to Franklin Gutierrez.

“Tough. He pitched a great game,’’ Ventura said. “He had done his job. We scored enough, Robby was fresh and they ended up getting to him.’’

“He did what an ace does,’’ Robertson said. “And I just went in there and blew it. Gave up hits and walked guys, didn’t get the job done. It was pathetic on my part.’’

Robertson, who blew a 7-1 lead to the Royals on May 28, gave up a single and a walk before striking out Dae-Ho Lee for the second out of the ninth. Corey Seager then singled in a run, and Lind homered to right-center field.

“It was supposed to be a cutter away,’’ Robertson said. “It just had too much of the plate.’’

Robertson was pitching for the first time since July 6 but wouldn’t use the layoff as an excuse. Sale was attempting to become the major leagues’ first 15-game winner.

<em>(AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)</em>

(AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

Sale, working on nine days rest not counting his inning at the All-Star Game Tuesday, received a three-run cushion on Tim Anderson’s homer into the left field upper deck in the first inning and Todd Frazier’s two-run shot to center against lefty Wade LeBlanc, his 26th, and breezed through eight innings.

Sale, who lowered his ERA to 3.18 while his record held at 14-3, came in with a 5-3 record and 5.56 ERA over his last nine starts.

“Coop and even Thiggy [bullpen coach Bobby Thigpen] had a good side session in Anaheim,” Sale said. “We saw some bad habits getting created, found out what they were and actually fixed them so I felt a lot better, in the last couple of outings actually.”

Robertson (0-2), who has three blown saves, saw his ERA climb to 4.14.

“I felt for the most part like I hd pretty good command of everything,” Robertson said. “I just didn’t make enough quality pitches. I’m missing by a few inches here and there, not getting a call and the next thing you know the game is over.

“I just pitched like crap and ended up screwing Sale out of a win. The whole team of a win. We deserved this one and I screwed it up and I have to go home and try to get some sleep and get ready for tomorrow.”

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