Sox skid reaches seven; Ozzie remains calm

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen watched his team lose again but kept his cool.

“I’m not angry,” Guillen said after the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Sox 4-1 at Tropicana Field on Wednesday night. “If I think we are not fighting, then everyone know me. Then I will say something. But right now, that ball is not bouncing our way. A few inches away to score a couple of runs and they catch the ball. I’m not going to take any credit away from those guys. They are playing well, great defense.”

Guillen shook up his batting order, dropping struggling slugger Adam Dunn from third to fifth. It helped Dunn a little, as the left-handed hitting designated hitter lined out hard and doubled.

Dunn showed signs of getting his swing back. He walked his first time up, lined out to right field and doubled to left center against Rays starter Wade Davis.

“We’ve gotten frustrated and we’re not very good right now,” hitting coach Greg Walker said. “We’re making terrible decisions, swinging at everything they throw, swinging at pitchers’ pitches. If you don’t swing at strikes you’re not going to hit.”

The Sox trailed 4-1 through six innings. John Jaso hit a two-run homer in the second against starter Phil Humber.

“I felt like I had good stuff tonight but didn’t make good pitches at the right time,” said Humber, whose value as a fifth starter increases with each Jake Peavy setback. “That was definitely the difference in the ballgame. Tip your cap to him. A good at-bat.”

Carlos Quentin moved up to third in Guillen’s lineup. He hit his fourth home run leading off the sixth inning.

“Obviously nobody thought we’d be in this position,” said catcher A.J. Pierzynski, who was ejected by plate umpire Brian Knight for griping about ball-strike calls after he grounded out in the sixth inning. “But you got to find a way to battle through it. This team does not quit. This team is not down. We’re still fighting and want to win. You look at Ozzie, and he’s been positive through this whole thing. You’re going to have ups and downs and just got to find a way [Thursday] to win.”