Rookie Gonzalez lifts White Sox to win    

[June 26, 2007]  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- Rookie Andy Gonzalez went 4-for-5 and drove in two runs to help the struggling Chicago White Sox snap a five-game losing streak Monday night with a 5-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Jim Thome, Paul Konerko and Josh Fields also drove in runs for the White Sox, who finished with 12 hits -- two shy of their season high -- after being limited to two runs and two extra-base hits while losing three straight to the crosstown Cubs over the weekend.

Gonzalez had an RBI double and three singles after going 6-for-33 with one RBI in his first 15 games. His run-scoring single off Casey Fossum (5-7) erased a 4-3 deficit in the sixth, but his bid for a perfect night at the plate ended when he struck out in the eighth.

Left-hander John Danks (4-6) allowed four runs and four hits in five innings to win for the time in more than a month. He had been 0-2 with three decisions in five starts since beating Oakland on May 22.

The Chicago bullpen protected a 5-4 lead for the rookie, with Nick Masset, Matt Thornton, Ryan Bukvich and Bobby Jenks each working a scoreless inning. Jenks earned his 19th save in 21 opportunities with a perfect ninth.

Jonny Gomes homered for the fifth time since Tampa Bay recalled him from the minor leagues two weeks ago, hitting a solo shot off Danks in the fourth. Josh Wilson drove in two with a RBI single and sacrifice fly, and Ty Wigginton also had a sacrifice fly for the Devil Rays.

Devil Rays starter J.P. Howell allowed eight hits and three runs in five innings. He left with a 4-3 lead that Fossum relinquished by giving up hits to three of the four batters he faced.

Gonzalez's RBI single off Fossum made it 4-4. Konerko singled off Shawn Camp to drive in a second run charged to Fossum and put the White Sox ahead 5-4.

Notes: Fields, who drew a walk with the bases loaded in the third, has 10 RBIs in his last 11 games. ... White Sox OF Jermaine Dye missed his third straight game because of a strained left quadriceps. Manager Ozzie Guillen said a decision on whether he'll go on the 15-day disabled list probably will be made before this four-game series ends Thursday. ... Dick Bosman is serving as Devil Rays interim pitching coach while Jim Hickey recovers from surgery to repair a detached retina. Hickey is expected to rejoin the team on July 3 in Boston. ... The starting pitchers combined to throw 198 pitches in the first five innings, with Howell throwing 111 and Danks 87.

[Associated Press]