Jose Abreu hits two homers to lift Chicago White Sox over Blue Jays 5-4

TORONTO – Jose Abreu hit two of the four home runs allowed by knuckleball pitcher R.A. Dickey, and the Chicago White Sox held on to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 on Friday.

The Blue Jays scored two runs in the ninth in a rally that fell just short after they loaded the bases with one out.

Dayan Viciedo and Alexei Ramirez added one homer each for the White Sox (37-44) as left-hander John Danks (7-6) allowed five hits, including two solo home runs, over six innings, to earn the victory.

Edwin Encarnacion and Dioner Navarro homered with two out in the sixth inning as the Blue Jays (45-37) tied the game 2-2. It was the sixth time this season that the Blue Jays have hit back-to-back home runs.

The Blue Jays got another home run in the ninth from Colby Rasmus, who came in as a pinch-hitter.

Dickey (6-7) took the loss despite striking out a season-high nine as he allowed five hits and five runs. The four homers he gave up were his most in a game since 2006 when he allowed six.

The White Sox (37-44) regained the lead in the seventh. Abreu, the White Sox rookie first baseman, led off with his 25th homer of the season and Ramirez followed with his eighth, a two-run shot that followed a walk by designated hitter Adam Dunn.

Left-hander Aaron Loup replaced Dickey to finish the seventh.

White Sox right-hander Ronald Belisario, who was trying for his ninth save, got only one out in the ninth. He gave up a leadoff homer to Rasmus, his 11th of the season. After one-out singles by Munenori Kawasaki and Anthony Gose, left-hander Eric Surkamp came in to face pinch-hitter Adam Lind. The Blue Jays loaded the bases on an error by third baseman Conor Gillaspie.

The White Sox sent in right-hander Jake Petricka, and Jose Reyes forced pinch runner Drew Hutchison with a grounder to short as another run scored. Melky Cabrera ended the game with a grounder to second.

Prior to the fifth inning, Dickey had allowed only one base runner on an error by Reyes. Home runs put the White Sox ahead 2-0 in the fifth as Abreu led off with his 24th of the season and Viciedo hit his seventh two outs later.

The Blue Jays tied it the following inning with the back-to-back blasts from Encarnacion and Navarro.

There was a four-minute delay during the top of the second while White Sox manager Robin Ventura talked to the umpires about some blinking lights on the facade just below the centre-field scoreboard.

With the lights still blinking in the bottom of the second, Toronto’s Steve Tolleson snapped a career-high 0-for-16 drought with a one-out double to left. A possible rally was thwarted after Kawasaki singled to right but made a big turn around the base. He was caught in a rundown between first and second while Tolleson, inching too far down the third-base line, was thrown out by Ramirez.

NOTES: Attendance at Rogers Centre was 24,173. … Rasmus did not start on Friday but homered as a pinch hitter. Gibbons said the planned day off had been discussed a few days earlier. Rasmus missed 33 game with a hamstring injury and returned on June 18. … Brad Glenn, who was called up to the Blue Jays from triple-A Buffalo on Wednesday, made his major-league debut in right field on Friday. …Left-hander Chris Sale (6-1, 2.27 earned-run average) will start Saturday for the White Sox against Toronto rookie right-hander Marcus Stroman (4-2, 4.25).