SAN FRANCISCO — Fans stood and screamed “Let’s go, Giants” as Korey Lee fell behind in the count 0-2 with the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth inning Wednesday at Oracle Park.
The Chicago White Sox catcher took two sweepers from reliever Spencer Bivens that were quite outside to even the count.
He then got a sinker over the heart of the plate and drove it back up the middle for a two-run single.
The hit broke a tie, and the Sox added two more runs on a Lenyn Sosa single to beat the Giants 6-2 in front of 28,375.
“Looking at the notes and scouting report and having a plan and talking to (hitting coach) Marcus (Thames), got a good pitch to hit and hit it up the middle,” Lee said. “Good things happen when you trust your plan.”
The four-run ninth helped the Sox (31-97) avoid a sweep, but they lost their 14th consecutive series. Their last series win came June 28-30 at home against the Colorado Rockies.
Garrett Crochet allowed two runs on four hits with four strikeouts and one walk in four innings as the Sox continued to monitor his workload — he threw 57 pitches.
“Last start (Friday in Houston) was (55) pitches, this one 57,” Crochet said. “I’d like to think my workload capacity is built up higher but I understand this is uncharted territory. We’re preparing for the future. This is part of it.”
Relievers Chad Kuhl, Justin Anderson, Fraser Ellard and John Brebbia combined to allow two hits in five scoreless innings.
Ellard, who struck out two in a perfect eighth, earned the first win of his big-league career.
“Really happy for the team,” Ellard said. “Glad I can play a small part in that.”
Here are three takeaways from the series.
1. ‘Similar situation, different result’ for Lee.
Lee batted with runners at second and third with two outs in the ninth inning of Monday’s series opener. The Sox trailed by two runs.
He lined out to center fielder Grant McCray to end the 5-3 loss.
Lee came up in another big ninth-inning spot Wednesday.
“Kind of felt like I was there two days ago, brought back the memories,” he said.
This time, Lee lined the single back up the middle for the go-ahead hit.
“That was one of my favorites this year,” Lee said of the hit. “There have been a lot of memories, but that was one we can build off as a team, as an individual. Dugout full of great guys and I’m just trying to come through for them.”
Interim manager Grady Sizemore called it a “great at-bat.”
“If you go back to the first game of this series when he had a chance in the ninth there, had a great at-bat and just came up short,” Sizemore said. “And fast forward all the way to here, and see him come up big, just really happy for him.”
2. Ellard displayed aggressiveness in the eighth.
Ellard surrendered two walks and a single in two-thirds of an inning in Tuesday’s 4-1 loss. He had a conversation with pitching coach Ethan Katz on Wednesday morning. The subject — aggressiveness.
“Especially coming out of the bullpen, your job is to get in, get out,” Ellard said. “And so being aggressive, making those guys hit the ball and put it on my terms. ‘Hey, can you hit this?’ That’s the key.”
The Giants did not have much success hitting Ellard in the eighth inning Wednesday. Entering with the score tied at 2, he struck out McCray and Tyler Fitzgerald. Dominic Fletcher tracked down Mark Canha’s fly to right to end the inning.
When the Sox broke loose for the four in the ninth, Ellard was in position for his first big-league win. This was his seventh appearance since joining the team from Triple-A Charlotte on July 30.
“He’s got a good arm, a live arm coming from the left side and I’m going to try to get him in there as much as I can and get him feeling comfortable,” Sizemore said. “We’re going to use him in big spots, he’s going to be really big for us moving forward.”
3. The Sox ended the trip on a good note.
Road wins have been tough to come by for the Sox, but they did manage to go 2-4 on the trip. They lost two of three in Houston and likewise in San Francisco.
The Sox are 13-53 on the road this season. The .197 road winning percentage would be the lowest in franchise history (.279 in 1903).
Three of the four losses on the trip were by three runs or fewer. They ended it on a good note, winning for the third time this season when tied through eight innings (3-12).
“I just like the way the guys are playing, we’re fighting, in these games, they’re not giving up,” Sizemore said. “It was nice to come out on top tonight.”
