Well, nobody promised that Jim Fregosi was going to win them all.
Fregosi`s record as White Sox manager dropped to 2-1 Tuesday night when Minnesota Twins` rookie Allan Anderson stopped the Sox 2-1 on three hits for his first big-league victory. The 22-year-old left-hander struck out nine in beating Joel Davis.
The Sox took a 1-0 lead in the fifth on Tim Hulett`s homer, but the Twins scored twice in the seventh when Fregosi yanked Davis and replaced him with Gene Nelson.
The Sox chose an unusual way to avoid scoring in the first. Ozzie Guillen`s double, a passed ball and a walk to Harold Baines put runners on first and third with one out and red-hot Ron Kittle at bat.
Kittle hit what appeared to be a long sacrifice fly to center. Kirby Puckett didn`t even try to throw home. He threw to second and cut down Baines trying to tag up and advance after the catch.
Guillen appeared to have crossed the plate before the out at second, but plate umpire John Shulock ruled otherwise, and the double play ended the inning without a score.
The Twins eased Davis` job the first time through their order. Five of the nine batters swung at first pitches. This produced four outs and a swinging strike. Davis (3-4) needed just 44 pitches to blank the Twins through the first five innings.
Anderson (1-1) was just as tough, fanning four and yielding only one hit
–Guillen`s pop double to right–in his first four innings. He retired 12 batters in a row starting with Kittle`s unusual double play in the first.
Then, with one out in the fifth, Hulett broke up the scoreless game when he drove Anderson`s 3-2 pitch against the 15 mile-an-hour wind and into the lower stands in left. It was Hulett`s fourth home run of the season.
Joel Skinner walked with two out in the fifth, becoming just the third Sox baserunner, but Julio Cruz forced him at second and the score remained 1-0.
Still going for the first pitch, the Twins went up and down on three pitches in the sixth. Randy Bush grounded to short, Kent Hrbek flied deep to Baines and Tom Brunansky flied to left, giving Davis a total of only 47 pitches through six inings.
The Sox launched a mild threat after two were out in the sixth when Baines doubled out of the reach of a diving Puckett in left-center. But Kittle fanned on three pitches, two swinging and the third one called, for Anderson`s fifth strikeout.
In the seventh, the Twins finally began taking some first piches. They scored twice for a 2-1 lead and kayoed Davis.
With one out, Gary Gaetti doubled to left, Kittle making a lunging try for the ball. Mark Salas lined a sharp single to right, and Gaetti barely beat Baines` throw to the plate. Salas took second on the throw and advanced to third on Steve Lombardozzi`s single. At this juncture, Fregosi called on Nelson.
Greg Gagne, who took a long afternoon session of extra batting practice, forced Lombardozzi at second, but his grounder to Guillen wasn`t hit hard enough for a double play, and Salas scored the go-ahead run. Skinner then threw out Gagne trying to steal.
Anderson had to labor for 23 pitches in the seventh, but he struck out the side. After fanning Kittle for the second straight time on a called third strike, Anderson walked Hulett. Then he fanned Walker and Skinner.
