CHICAGO _ Beware the reverse lock.
It's always lurking at a baseball stadium, and to the delight of White Sox fans it arrived shortly after Danny Farquhar on Friday night at Guaranteed Rate Field.
The Milwaukee Brewers have the best bullpen and the best defense in the majors based on various metrics. The Sox are on track to set a franchise record for losses, a distinction that requires no advanced analytics. But Farquhar's ceremonial first pitch _ delivered just six weeks after he suffered a life-threatening brain hemorrhage in the dugout during an April 20 game against the Astros _ apparently set the right tone for Rick Renteria's team in an 8-3 win in the opener of a three-game interleague series.
The Sox broke open a 3-3 tie with a sixth-inning rally after chasing starter Chase Anderson, with Tim Anderson's vicious liner off Matt Albers the biggest blow. It bounced away from left fielder Christian Yelich, allowing two runs to score and Anderson to reach third.
But that misplay wasn't as bad as one by third baseman Travis Shaw in another three-run inning, the third. His wild throw to first allowed Trayce Thompson to reach base, leading to an unearned run.
Hector Santiago, who had lasted five-plus innings in each of his last three starts, didn't make it out of the fourth as the Sox fell into an early hole. The Brewers took the lead on a two-run Ryan Braun homer in the first, and then added a run on a Hernan Perez sacrifice fly in the third for a 3-0 lead.
The Sox struck back with a three-run third that started at the bottom of the order. Adam Engel started the rally with a leadoff double, and Charlie Tilson followed with an RBI single. He stole second and scored on Shaw's throwing error, which put Thompson in position to score on Yoan Moncada's single.
The Brewers' best relievers, Corey Knebel and Josh Hader, were left watching from the bullpen when the Sox scored five runs off the middle men _ former Sox relievers Boone Logan, Albers and Dan Jennings _ in the sixth and seventh innings.
����
(Rogers is a freelance reporter for the Chicago Tribune.)
