CHICAGO — Andrew Benintendi hit a leadoff homer in the ninth inning, and the Chicago White Sox stopped a 16-game home losing streak by edging the Oakland Athletics 7-6 on Saturday night.
Benintendi, Luis Robert Jr., Nicky Lopez, and Lenyn Sosa each had three hits for Chicago, which had dropped four in a row overall. Lopez finished with three RBIs.
“That’s a spot I think that I’ve wanted to always be in,” Benintendi said. “I think anybody in here would, regardless of the year I’m having or anybody in here is having, that’s what you play the game for. It’s exciting.”
The home slide was a franchise record. At 34-115, the White Sox hope to avoid the majors’ post-1900 record for losses — 120 by the 1962 New York Mets in their inaugural season.
Chicago carried a 6-3 lead into the ninth, but Oakland rallied against Justin Anderson. Two runs scored on an error by Sosa at third. Zack Gelof hit a tying RBI single off Gus Varland, but Shea Langeliers was thrown out at the plate by left fielder Zach DeLoach.
Varland (1-0) then escaped the jam by retiring Tyler Soderstrom on a grounder to third before Max Schuemann popped out.
Benintendi closed it out with his 17th homer, a drive to right on a 1-2 slider from Hogan Harris (4-4).
“It’s not over until it’s over,” Benintendi said. “They put good at-bats together. I feel like they’ve got a lot of scrappy hitters that know how to take pitches and know how to get on base, and they did that in the ninth inning. Once (we) got out of that inning… it only takes one swing.”
Gelof and Brent Rooker each had three hits for Oakland, which had won three of four. J.T. Ginn permitted 10 hits and three runs in four innings.
Chicago jumped to an early 3-0 lead. Lopez hit a two-run single in the second, and Gavin Sheets connected for his ninth homer in the third.
Newark native Chris Flexen struck out eight in five scoreless innings for the White Sox. The right-hander allowed six hits and walked two.
Flexen was in good position to get his first win since May 8, but Oakland came back against Chicago’s bullpen.
“We all want him to get that win,” White Sox interim manager Grady Sizemore said. “For him to go out there and give us whatever it was — five or six strong innings — and not get the win is tough. He did a great job today. He threw really well, probably the best I’ve seen him look in a long time.”
Chad Kuhl walked Lawrence Butler with the bases loaded in the sixth, and Rooker’s two-run single tied it at three.
The White Sox responded with three straight runs. Benintendi hit an RBI single in a two-run seventh, and Lopez singled home DeLoach in the eighth.
Athletics: Reinstated C/1B Soderstrom from the 10-day injured list. Soderstrom (left wrist bone bruise) last played on July 9 before starting Saturday, and manager Mark Kotsay said he expects him to get “the bulk of the first base reps” moving forward. INF Armando Alvarez was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas.
LHP JP Sears (11-10, 4.18 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound for Oakland in the series finale Sunday. White Sox RHP Sean Burke (0-0, 0.00) is set to make his first career start and second appearance.
