CHICAGO — Luis Robert did it all in Tuesday’s home opener for the Chicago White Sox.
He made a splendid leaping catch to save a run in the third inning against the Seattle Mariners. He broke a tie with a line-drive home run in the sixth. And he stole two bases on the way to scoring an insurance run in the eighth as the Sox beat the Mariners, 3-2, in front of a sellout crowd of 36,948 at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Reynaldo López struck out two in 1 2/3 scoreless relief innings for the victory as the Sox won their third straight.
The Mariners struck first with a solo homer by Eugenio Suárez with one out in the second against Sox starter Vince Velasquez.
The Mariners threatened in the third as Velasquez issued consecutive one-out walks. Jesse Winker hit a long fly to center, and Robert raced back, jumped and caught the ball as he crashed into the wall. Mitch Haniger popped out to shortstop Tim Anderson to end the inning.
Mariners starter Matt Brash retired the first seven hitters in his big league debut, striking out Robert and José Abreu in the first.
Second baseman Josh Harrison became the first Sox baserunner, reaching on a walk with one out in the third. Catcher Reese McGuire followed with a single to right.
With runners on the corners, Tim Anderson grounded to shortstop J.P. Crawford. Instead of a possible inning-ending double play, Crawford couldn’t field the ball cleanly and everyone was safe. Harrison scored on the play to tie the game.
Velasquez allowed one run on two hits with two strikeouts and three walks in four innings.
The Mariners had runners on first and second with two outs in the fifth when López replaced Bennett Sousa. López struck out Haniger to keep the game tied.
Robert put the Sox ahead with his first home run of the season. It went an estimated 408 feet and had an exit velocity of 110.4 mph, according to MLB Statcast.
Manager Tony La Russa has described Robert as a “six-tool” player.
“I’m not sure how you describe the sixth, but he has one more than the five-tool guys,” La Russa said during spring training.
Robert’s skills have been on full display in the first four games.
He has at least one hit in every game. He had two hits, including an RBI double, in Friday’s opener in Detroit. He singled twice and scored Saturday and had a single and two runs Sunday.
Robert walked and stole second and third in the eighth inning Tuesday, giving him four steals on the season.
The Sox outfield came through again in the seventh when Eloy Jiménez made a nice leaping catch near the left-field wall to rob Luis Torrens. López tipped his cap in appreciation.
Aaron Bummer replaced López and got around two walks with two strikeouts in the seventh. Kendall Graveman struck out one in a scoreless eighth.
Robert’s two stolen bases came in handy in the bottom of the inning. With one out and runners on the corners, Jiménez grounded to short. The Mariners got the force at second, but Jiménez beat the throw to first. Robert scored on the play, stretching the lead to 3-1.
Sox closer Liam Hendriks allowed a run on three hits but struck out three in the ninth for his first save.
