Swisher sends White Sox to win

[August 06, 2008]  CHICAGO (AP) -- Nick Swisher hit a three-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the 14th inning Tuesday night as the Chicago White Sox rallied for four runs off Joel Zumaya and beat the Detroit Tigers 10-8.

Detroit had taken an 8-6 lead in the top of the inning when Placido Polanco hit his second homer of the game, a two-run shot off Matt Thornton.

But Detroit's bullpen woes continued. Zumaya (0-1) gave up a single to Orlando Cabrera and a double to Carlos Quentin. When Tigers' shortstop Edgar Renteria fumbled Jermaine Dye's grounder for an error, Cabrera scored and the lead was down to one.

After Jim Thome struck out for the second out, Swisher homered into the right-center field seats. Swisher had entered the game in the 11th after Paul Konerko had been removed for a pinch-runner in the 10th.

Adam Russell (4-0) worked two-thirds of an inning in the 14th for the win.

Ken Griffey Jr. made his home debut with the White Sox after being acquired in a trade from the Reds last week and went 1-for-6 with three strikeouts. He was also unable to cut off a liner to right center by Polanco that went for a triple in Detroit's four-run fifth that built the 6-1 lead.

After that flurry, the Tigers went eight innings without scoring before Polanco -- a career .325 hitter against the White Sox -- delivered his fourth career multihomer game. He also hit a two-run homer in the first inning of the four-hour, 58-minute game.

Chicago was without manager Ozzie Guillen, who began serving a two-game suspension for making contact with umpire Tim Timmons and his comments Sunday after the Royals and White Sox had a melee in Kansas City.

The Tigers, who lost their fifth straight, blew a 6-1 lead.

The White Sox's Alexei Ramirez greeted reliever Kyle Farnsworth with a two-out homer in the bottom of the eighth to tie the game at 6-6.

Chicago used its power to get back in the game as Konerko hit a two-run homer in the sixth and Quentin connected on his AL-leading 29th homer in the seventh.

The Tigers turned three double plays early behind Nate Robertson, who failed for the eighth straight start to get his seventh win. In five-plus innings, he allowed four runs and nine hits, including Konerko's 11th homer in the sixth.

Quentin's two-out solo shot off reliever Aquilino Lopez in the seventh made it 6-5. The ball just got over the wall with Tigers' left fielder Ryan Raburn just missing a leaping catch.

Polanco hit a two-run homer after a leadoff walk by Curtis Granderson in the first against Gavin Floyd. Chicago got a run back in the third on an RBI grounder by A.J. Pierzynski but Detroit drove out Gavin Floyd in the fifth.

Granderson homered after a leadoff double by Renteria in the fifth. After Polanco's triple, Carlos Guillen followed with an RBI single to finish Floyd, who gave up eight hits and five runs in four-plus innings. Raburn, who had four hits, later delivered an RBI single for a 6-1 lead.

Notes: Detroit relievers are just 22-for-42 on save situations. ... Raburn's four hits matched a career high. ... Bench coach Joey Cora was in charge of the White Sox in Guillen's absence.

[Associated Press; By RICK GANO]

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.