No, they had no idea what was on the scoreboard. That`s what they said.
”I was playing,” said Carlton Fisk.
”I was worrying too much about the hitter,” said Alex Fernandez.
”I was 0 for 3,” said Frank Thomas, whose two-run double in the eighth inning powered the White Sox past the Texas Rangers 3-2 Wednesday night-and made him 1 for 4.
Only Lance Johnson gave it away.
”I`m sure everybody took a little sneak-peek up there,” Johnson said.
What everybody saw-at least most of the players and a good portion of the 31,227 on hand-was the Twins having already lost and the A`s on their way when the Sox began the eighth trailing Jose Guzman and the Rangers 2-1.
Guzman (10-10) struck out Fisk to open the inning, then did the same to Dale Sveum.
But Steve Sax singled, and Tim Raines` hit put Sox on first and third for Thomas.
Toby Harrah, the Texas manager, switched to Jeff Russell.
”He was all right,” Harrah said of his starter. ”With Thomas and
(George) Bell coming to bat, I wanted a fresh arm out there.”
The fresh arm got ahead of Thomas with a quick strike.
”He threw a great first pitch,” said Thomas, ”a breaking ball that really knocked me off the plate.
”So I played a little game right there. I said, `I know he`s going to shoot that fastball away,` and he did.”
And Thomas went with it. The ball smacked halfway up the fence in right-center, both runners scored, and the Sox won for the 16th time in 21 games.
”We`re playing good baseball right now,” Thomas said.
Fernandez (5-7) pitched good baseball Wednesday night. He went eight innings and made one significant mistake-a home run ball to Monty Fariss in the fifth that broke what then was a 1-1 tie.
The Rangers had taken a 1-0 lead in the third. Jeff Frye singled with one out, a hit by Mario Diaz got him to third, and Jeff Huson scored him with a flyball that Raines caught in foul territory.
It was a nice running catch-but generated a question: With the man on third, should he have let it go? No way, said Gene Lamont.
”I try to preach, `Stay out of big innings,` ” said Lamont. ”Tim did the right thing.”
Bell tied it in the fourth with his 19th homer, and it was crushed. The ball finally landed halfway up the seats in left, computer-measured at 423 feet.
”That was another lucky shot, man,” Bell said. ”That`s all.”
But Fariss, a 1988 first-round draft choice still waiting to happen, put Texas back up with his homer, his third of the season. That was it off Fernandez, who won for only the second time since June 1.
”That was probably as good a game as Alex has pitched,” Lamont said.
”Whatever he says is cool,” said Fernandez. ”I just felt I had control of all my pitches tonight, commandwise.”
Lamont nonetheless brought in Scott Radinsky for the ninth, and Rafael Palmeiro greeted him with a single to the opposite field. Ruben Sierra, the next hitter, then sent Johnson to the track to haul in his drive.
”My heart skipped a few times,” said Fernandez, who watched from the dugout. The final two outs were routine, as Radinsky earned his 13th save and the Sox won for the 12th time in their last 13 home games.
Something interesting is going on here. It`s been going on for a while now.
”We`re playing good,” Fisk said. ”That`s what`s going on. We`re playing good.”
”We`re not out of this thing yet,” said Johnson. ”A lot can happen.”
Not out of it? Well, at eight games back, they`re closer than they`ve been since right before the All-Star break.
”You know it`s going to be tough to catch up,” said Lamont, ”so you don`t want to blow a chance when you do have a chance.”
Yes, the manager saw the scoreboard.
”I`m not going to lie,” Lamont said. ”I know what`s going on.”
It`s going good.
