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ARLINGTON, Texas -- One pitch. That's what got Justin Grimm on Thursday night.

Named the American League Rookie of the Month for the Texas Rangers earlier in the day, Grimm was looking the part, mowing down Chicago White Sox hitters through five innings. Three White Sox hitters, and one pitch, ultimately handed him a 3-1 loss.

Grimm had retired 10 batters in a row until the top of the sixth. He had two outs in the inning before he gave up singles to Conor Gillaspie and Alexei Ramirez. Grimm then threw a first-pitch curveball to White Sox catcher Tyler Flowers and the pitch stayed up. Flowers hammered into the right-field seats for a three-run home run and a 3-1 lead.

"That's all it takes is one," Grimm said. "He capitalized on it and it stayed eye level and he put a swing on it. Unfortunately it didn't end up in my favor. I wouldn't take it back. It's the pitch I wanted to throw. I threw it with conviction."

Grimm was surprised Flowers swung at the pitch.

"I went and looked at the replay," Grimm said. "It was eye level. It definitely would have been a ball. He was probably looking breaking ball in that situation."

Grimm dominated the White Sox for most of the night, except for a career-high four walks. He also tied a career-best nine strikeouts as his fastball and sinker were working all night. He just missed out on his third straight win.

"I'm pleased with the performance," Grimm said. "It was just one bad pitch."

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Third baseman Adrian Beltre produced the Texas Rangers' only run in a 3-1 loss Thursday night to the Chicago White Sox.

In his eyes, and for the team, that's not enough. Beltre, who had a home run in his first at-bat, stranded four runners in his final two at-bats, both crucial misses as the Rangers lost a series for the the first time this season.

For the second time this week, Beltre hit a home run -- this one to start the second inning for a 1-0 lead -- that seemingly was the moment to get him rolling. But it's not that time yet.

Beltre batted with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the sixth. The White Sox had just taken the lead on a two-out, three-run home run homer by catcher Tyler Flowers off Justin Grimm. The Rangers' rookie pitcher had been steaming along before three hits in the inning, the last one on a hanging curve ball out of the strike zone.

Beltre had a chance to immediately get the runs back. But White Sox reliever Matt Lindstrom was able to get ahead of him on two sliders. Lindstrom threw him another one and jammed Beltre. He hit a roller out to third baseman Conor Gillaspie that he turned for a rally-killing double play.

"It was a backdoor slider," Beltre said. "Instead of breaking away it broke in. I was hoping it was going to kind of hang but instead of hanging it backed up on me. I was a little late and I hit a ground ball."

Fate dealt Beltre another chance to turn the game in the bottom of the eighth. Pinch hitter Leonys Martin led off with a single, and after two fly balls outs, Lance Berkman walked to put the tying runs on base. Beltre again came up with a chance to tie the game or give the Rangers the lead, but he struck out on a 72-mph curve ball by Jesse Crain.

That left Beltre at 4-for-34 with runners in scoring position this season. He batted .287 with runners in scoring position last season.

"He's just missing pitches," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "That's it."

For his part, Beltre refuses to get down on himself. But he wants to do better for his teammates.

"I'm not frustrated, but I'm the kind of guy, I like to produce," Beltre said. "I'm here to produce. Obviously it's not happening. I'm not frustrated, but of course I want to do better. The team is relying on me right now. I'm getting in a lot of situations where I should be producing and doing a lot better, and I'm not doing that."

His night started splendidly when he hammered a cutter from White Sox starter Hector Santiago into the left-field seats. Beltre said he hates cold weather but wasn't bothered by the 43-degree game time temperature.

It was another moment -- just like his two-run homer on Tuesday -- when it looked like he was ready to break out. Beltre still believes he is.

"I hope," Beltre said. "That's what I want to think. I felt better today, though I missed two clutch at-bats in key situations that I didn't come through. I saw the ball better today. I feel a little better. Hopefully tomorrow I'll improve."

Washington, not surprisingly, is standing by one of his best players.

"He's going to be a run producer," Washington said. "I know he is. We scored one run tonight, and he got it for us. I can tell you this, what you see right now you won't see as we go through the season. That's a guarantee."

ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Texas Rangers' offense struggled on a cold night and starter Justin Grimm missed with one pitch as The Chicago White Sox won 3-1 at frigid Rangers Ballpark to hand Texas its first series loss of the season.

Offense flails: The Rangers had three hits, one Adrian Beltre's home run in the second inning. They were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position with Beltre failing to come through in the first two situations. The Rangers had the tying runs on base in the ninth inning and Mitch Moreland struck out on three pitches and Leonys Martin fanned to end the game.

One pitch costs Grimm: Justin Grimm, earlier awarded American League Rookie of the Month, dominated the White Sox for most of the night, except for four walks. He was in cruise control until the top of the sixth before he gave up singles to Conor Gillaspie and Alexei Ramirez and a three-run home run on a curve ball that didn't bite enough to catcher Tyler Flowers, his fourth of the year. Grimm tied a career-high nine strikeouts and had retired 10 in a row before Gillaspie's hit.

Beltre's latest miss: Beltre accounted for the Rangers only run with a solo shot to start the second inning. But it was a big miss with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the sixth that stood out in this game. Beltre got down in the count and fisted a ground ball to third base for an inning-ending double play. He also had the tying runs on base in the bottom of the eighth and struck out on a 72-mph curve ball by Ranger nemesis Jesse Crain. Beltre is 4-for-34 with runners in scoring position.

Clean shave works: Left-handed reliever Michael Kirkman is clean shaven after allowing runs in four of his past six appearances. He faced one batter Thursday night in the seventh inning, Adam Dunn, and struck the slugger out on three pitches.

Dog night: There were 689 canines in attendance for Dog Night at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. Overall attendance was 31,199 for a game that had a game time attendance of 43 degrees, the third coldest start in ballpark history.

Up next: The Rangers open a three-game series against the team with baseball's best record, the Boston Red Sox. Left-hander Derek Holland (1-2, 3.38 ERA) will face Red Sox left-hander Felix Doubront (3-0, 4.24) at 7:05 p.m. on Channel 21 and ESPN-FM 103.3 and 1540-AM.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association announced a combined $100,000 donation to the POINTWEST Bank Fund on Thursday to assist victims of the April 17 fertilizer plant fire and explosion in West, Texas. The explosion claimed the lives of 15 and injured more than 200.

The funds will support individuals and families who have been affected by the tragedy, either by loss of life or home. The funds will be distributed by POINTWEST Bank and claims evaluated by St. Mary’s Church of the Assumption, both based in West.

The Rangers organized a number of relief efforts at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington on their previous homestand, including collections of essential items and cash as well as holding a blood drive. Fans and the Rangers Baseball Foundation have donated thousands of dollars in gift cards and $40,000 in cash for victims and residents of West.

Major League Baseball will encourage fans to donate to POINTWEST Bank Fund throughout all national telecasts on FOX, ESPN, TBS, and MLB Network and will promote the charity with signage behind home plate. MLB.com, TexasRangers.com and MLBPlayers.com also will be promoting the Fund and accepting donations online.

“Major League Baseball is proud to support the people of West, Texas during their community’s difficult time of need,” Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig said. “Major League Baseball, our 30 Clubs, MLB Advanced Media and MLB Network offer its sincere condolences to all the individuals and the families affected by this tragedy, and we hope that our industry’s contribution will assist in the community’s recovery.”

For more information, please visit MLBCommunity.org.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Left-handed pitcher Martin Perez will begin a rehab assignment Monday at Double-A Frisco, and right-hander Colby Lewis could start his next week.

PODCAST
Randy Galloway, Matt Mosley and Mark Friedman discuss the latest with the Rangers, including their loss last night and Ron Washington's decision to leave Nick Tepesch in the game. Listen

Lewis, a key contributor to the Rangers' rotation during their 2010 and '11 World Series runs, will throw again in extended spring training in Surprise, Ariz. on Saturday as he continues to come back from surgery to repair a flexor tendon in his right elbow last July. If all goes well, Lewis could begin his rehab assignment next Thursday, possibly for Triple-A Round Rock at Las Vegas.

Perez, recovering from a broken left wrist, made six starts for the Rangers last year. He had a 3.00 ERA in two outings this spring before getting hit by a line drive in a game against Seattle.

Both pitchers could return to the Rangers by the end of May, bolstering a Rangers pitching staff that entered Thursday third in the AL with a 3.30 ERA.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Jeff Baker was back in the starting lineup Thursday after the Chicago White Sox scratched right-hander Jake Peavy and replaced him with left-hander Hector Santiago.

PODCAST
ESPN senior MLB analyst Buster Olney joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss the Rangers' strong start, Matt Harrison's additional back surgery and much more. Listen

For now, if a left-hander is starting against the Rangers, expect Baker to be in left field or at first base. He has played himself into a starting role against lefties, batting .444 (8-for-18) against southpaws with three home runs and five RBIs. Baker has homered in two straight games for the fifth time in his career.

"If he keeps swinging the bat the way he's swinging, then of course," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "You can expect it. That's what he's here for."

Baker has been the surprise for the Rangers' offense, helping to balance out a lineup stacked at the bottom with left-handed hitters. His emergence allowed Washington to use Baker for two starts at first base while Mitch Moreland was struggling against lefties.

Moreland is hitting everything how -- .batting .395 for his last 10 games -- while it's left fielder David Murphy that has slumped against righties and lefties, hitting .174 for the season. Murphy sat for a third straight game Thursday, unusual for a regular in Washington's lineup. Murphy was scheduled to start and Baker to sit if Peavy wasn't scratched before the game due to back spasms.

PODCAST
Randy Galloway, Matt Mosley and Mark Friedman discuss the latest with the Rangers, including their loss last night and Ron Washington's decision to leave Nick Tepesch in the game. Listen

Washington said he will find a spot for Baker against lefties, not just in place of Murphy.

"It's not a platoon," Washington said. "(Baker) is going to play. Right now we've hit a string of left-handers and he's swinging the bat. So is Moreland."

Baker, who isn't yet 100 percent after suffering a bruised knee last week on a sliding catch in Anaheim, was replaced for defense after the sixth inning of Wednesday's 5-2 loss. The game was tied 2-2 at the time and Washington subbed in Murphy for defensive purposes with Baker not slated to bat again until the eighth inning.

Baker said he felt fine to stay in the game. "I'm progressing well," he said. "I'm good. I'm going to be ready to play when I get the chance."

Other Rangers notes for Thursday:

Frasor aims for comfort: Reliever Jason Frasor has six consecutive shutout innings over eight appearances. More importantly, he hasn't been scored on in his last three outings at Rangers Ballpark.

Frasor, signed as a free agent in January, had a career 8.24 ERA in 21 games in Arlington, mostly with Toronto, before arriving in Texas. He retired all four batters he faced in Wednesday's 5-2 loss, getting two strikeouts.

"It's a good thing," Frasor said. "Honestly I don't know that I've ever felt comfortable pitching in this stadium, but I hope the more I get out there that I'll be comfortable. I felt good."

Olt needs more tests: Triple-A infielder Mike Olt will see an eye specialist next after an eye doctor he saw didn't see anything out of the ordinary. The Rangers are in the process of setting up an appointment with the a specialist. Olt, who is batting .139, informed the club he was having vision issues earlier this week.

Pierzynski was ready: Washington wanted to get catcher A.J. Pierzynski (sore oblique) an at-bat Wednesday night as a pinch hitter in the ninth inning to get some swings heading into Thursday's start. He especially wanted Pierzynski to hit as the tying run down 5-2 with a chance to tie the game with a three-run home run.

That didn't happen, but it explains why Pierzynski was at the plate when he was hit on the elbow by a pitch by White Sox closer Addison Reed.

"He was ready to go so even if we had tied the game up he could have caught," Washington said.

Rangers announce 2013 grant program: The Rangers Baseball Foundation announced details of its 2013 grant program designed to assist youth baseball and softball programs in the club's five-state broadcasting region.

It's the second consecutive year for the project. Starting Thursday, the Rangers Foundation began accepting proposals for grant from non-profit organizations that specifically support youth baseball or softball in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico and Arkansas.

The Foundation awarded seven grants in 2012: Paris Breakfast Optimist Club, Boys and Girls Clubs of Denison, East Wilco Challenger Sports, Battiest Baseball Team sponsored by Battiest Public School, RBI Austin, Arlington Girls Softball Association and Azle Little League.

The Rangers are assisted by the team’s broadcasting partners, Fox Sports Southwest, TXA21, and ESPN 103.3 FM and the Rangers ESPN Radio Network in promoting the grant program.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Justin Grimm, who will start for the Rangers in less then four hours against the Chicago White Sox, has been named American League Rookie of the Month.

PODCAST
ESPN senior MLB analyst Buster Olney joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss the Rangers' strong start, Matt Harrison's additional back surgery and much more. Listen

Grimm was 2-0 with a 1.59 ERA for three starts in April and had 15 strikeouts and four walks in 17 innings. Opponents batted .239 against him and were 1-for-19 with runners in scoring position.

Grimm enters Thursday's start coming off a win against Minnesota last Friday in which he went seven innings and allowed five hits and no walks.

The 24-year-old Georgia Bulldogs product beat out fellow rookie starter Nick Tepesch, who was 2-1 with a 2.53 ERA for April.

Grimm is the fourth Ranger to win the AL Rookie of the Month since it was started in 2003. He joins Gerald Laird, Neftali Feliz and Yu Darvish, who won the award last April.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Jake Peavy has been scratched for Thursday night's start against the Rangers because of back spasms, so the Rangers will see left-hander Hector Santiago instead.

PODCAST
ESPN senior MLB analyst Buster Olney joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss the Rangers' strong start, Matt Harrison's additional back surgery and much more. Listen

It means the Rangers will face a left-handed starter for the third straight game. How this will impact the Rangers' lineup remains to be seen. David Murphy is supposed to start Thursday, but he has sat the last two nights with a left-handed starter going for the White Sox. It's also currently 46 degrees, which means the cold weather could impact designated hitter Lance Berkman and his sore knee and maybe catcher A.J. Pierzynski and his sore oblique (which he said was much improved after a pinch-hit appearance in Wednesday's game).

Santiago, a 23-year-old from Newark, N.J., is 0-1 with a 2.51 ERA in seven appearances. He will be making his first start of the season and fifth of his career. He appeared twice against the Rangers in 2012 and allowed a hit and no runs in two innings. Ian Kinsler had the lone hit out of seven Rangers' at-bats.

The 31-year-old Peavy is 3-1 with a 3.38 ERA for the season. He won his most recent start last Friday against Tampa Bay. But the two-time All-Star hasn't had great success against the Rangers, so Peavy being scratched might not be that big of a break.

Here are the lineups for Thursday's game:

RANGERS
2B Ian Kinsler
SS Elvis Andrus
DH Lance Berkman
3B Adrian Beltre
RF Nelson Cruz
C A.J. Pierzynski
LF Jeff Baker
1B Mitch Moreland
CF Craig Gentry
SP Justin Grimm

WHITE SOX
LF Alejandro De Aza
2B Jeff Keppinger
RF Alex Rios
1B Adam Dunn
DH Paul Konerko
3B Conor Gillaspie
SS Alexei Ramirez
C Tyler Flowers
CF Dewayne Wise
SP Hector Santiago

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Texas Rangers catcher Geovany Soto stood in front of his locker after a 5-2 loss to the Chicago White Sox and owned up to a mistake that was costly in Wednesday night's loss.

PODCAST
Randy Galloway, Matt Mosley and Glenn "Stretch" Smith discuss the first month of the 2013 season for the Rangers. Listen

Soto misjudged a line drive off the bat of Ian Kinsler with one out and the bases loaded with the Rangers trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the second. Mitch Moreland came home from third with the tying run, but Soto also should have scored from second base on a ball that caromed off the top of the out-of-town scoreboard in left field.

The Rangers didn't score any more runs in the inning and missed out on a chance to gain momentum against one of the American League's toughest pitchers, White Sox left-hander Chris Sale.

"I read the ball badly," Soto said. "I just thought he hit it with top spin when he hit the ball. I thought it was going to come up short and [Alejandro De Aza] was going to make a catch on the warning track, but it wasn't that way.

"I should have been halfway between the base line and see the result of the play and go accordingly. Even if he catches it, I'm still in scoring position. But he didn't. I should have scored on that play."

Sale was able to settle in and retire 10 straight Rangers after Kinsler's long single. Sale went seven innings, matching his season high with seven strikeouts. The Rangers didn't get another runner in scoring position against him.

The Rangers missed out on a chance to pick up Soto after his baserunning error. Elvis Andrus struck out after a nine-pitch faceoff with Sale, failing to score a runner at third with one out to give the Rangers the lead. Lance Berkman grounded into a fielder's choice to end the rally.

"We still had the bases loaded and one out," Soto said. "We could have capitalized. But definitely a running mistake on my part. That didn't help."

Soto did an admirable job of guiding rookie starter Nick Tepesch through a tough beginning when he allowed a run each in the first two innings to fall behind 2-0. Soto and Tepesch went away from his fastball and relied heavily on his slider and sinker as he threw four scoreless innings from the third to the sixth.

The White Sox finally got to Tepesch with two home runs in the top of the seventh. White Sox third baseman Conor Gillaspie led off the inning by belting a 1-0 change-up into the Rangers' bullpen in left-center field for a 3-2 lead. Tepesch later hung a slider that De Aza hit for a two-run home run for key insurance runs with two outs in the inning.

"He just left it up a little bit," Soto said. "He pitched with his heart. He pitched with poise, and you can see that. Just one pitch. That's how games go."

ARLINGTON, Texas -- A.J. Pierzynski and Addison Reed were battery mates last year, starting catcher and closer for the Chicago White Sox.

PODCAST
Randy Galloway, Matt Mosley and Mark Friedman discuss the latest with the Rangers, including their loss last night and Ron Washington's decision to leave Nick Tepesch in the game. Listen

On Wednesday, Reed, still the White Sox's closer, went inside on his former teammate Pierzynski in the bottom of the ninth and hit the Texas Rangers catcher on the elbow. Pierzynski, who had missed the first 17 innings of the series because of a sore oblique muscle, got drilled with two outs and nobody on and the White Sox leading 5-2.

Chicago held on to win by that score. Was there any foul play by the White Sox?

"I'm sure they were trying to pitch me inside and it just got away," Pierzynski said. "There were two outs and we were down by three runs."

Reed said after the game that's exactly what happened.

“I was trying to throw inside and it happened to hit him,’’ said Reed, who worked a scoreless ninth for his ninth save. “Was I trying to hit him? Absolutely not.’’

Reed said he enjoyed throwing to Pierzynski when he was the White Sox catcher.

“I grew up a Sox fan rooting for him,’’ Reed said. “I have nothing at all against him.’’

Pierzynski said he didn't know of any ill will between him and the 24-year old Reed, who broke through with the White Sox last year to record 29 saves.

""Not that I know of," said Pierzynski, who last year had 27 home runs in one of his best seasons with the White Sox. "I always got along fine with him."

White Sox manager Robin Ventura said with a three-run lead against the powerful Rangers lineup, “we’re not trying to put anybody on base. You saw what happened. Thirty seconds later, they had the tying run at the plate.

“There was no message sent.’’

ARLINGTON, Texas -- It's not necessarily a decision that cost the Rangers a game Wednesday night. But it's one that manager Ron Washington even second-guessed -- make that triple-guessed -- after a 5-2 loss to the Chicago White Sox.

PODCAST
Randy Galloway, Matt Mosley and Mark Friedman discuss the latest with the Rangers, including their loss last night and Ron Washington's decision to leave Nick Tepesch in the game. Listen

Washington had reliever Joseph Ortiz ready in the bullpen for a lefty-lefty matchup with Alejandro De Aza with a runner on first and two outs and the Rangers trailing 3-2 in the top of the seventh. Starter Nick Tepesch had given up the lead on a leadoff home run by White Sox third baseman Conor Gillaspie and was at 103 pitches.

But Washington stuck with his rookie right-handed starter and Tepesch gave up a two-run home run to put the Rangers down 5-2 and make it more difficult for the offense to make a comeback.

"Bad decision by me," Washington said. "I stayed with Tepesch one batter too long. I should have brought in Ortiz and I didn't. I'll take the blame for that one."

Washington said he actually second-guessed himself. His intention was to go get Tepesch and bring in Ortiz to face De Aza. But Washington changed his mind and decided to give Tepesch a chance to get out of the inning.

"It didn't work," Washington said. "So it's a bad decision on my part."

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Nick Tepesch allowed two home runs in the top of the seventh as the Chicago White Sox snapped a 2-2 tie and beat the Texas Rangers 5-2 on Wednesday night at Rangers Ballpark.

Rough seventh for Tepesch: For the second straight start, rookie Nick Tepesch had a rough seventh inning. He allowed two home runs with the game tied at two. White Sox third baseman Conor Gillaspie led off the inning with a 384-foot home run to right-center field. With two outs, leadoff hitter Alejandro De Aza smacked a two-run home run to right field for a 5-2 lead. Tepesch had allowed two home runs in 27⅓ innings before Wednesday's seventh inning.

Too long with Nick?: Rangers manager Ron Washington stuck with Tepesch after Gillaspie's tiebreaking home run even though the right-hander was around 100 pitches. The White Sox made the Rangers pay with De Aza's two-out homer for a three-run lead.

Eighth-inning threat crumbles: The Rangers hadn't scored against White Sox reliever Jesse Crain in 27⅓ innings before Wednesday night. They had one of their best shots at him after Elvis Andrus and Lance Berkman led off with singles. But Adrian Beltre continued his struggles with a fly out to center but did move Andrus to third. Nelson Cruz struck out on a high fastball. Sox left-handed reliever Matt Thornton came in and got David Murphy to ground out back to the pitcher.

Baserunning gaffe: The Rangers should have scored more in the bottom of the second. With the bases loaded, Ian Kinsler just missed a grand slam, as his line drive to left field hit off the top of the wall. The Rangers scored just one run because Geovany Soto didn't score from second base.

Beltre scuffles: Beltre, who had a two-run home run in his last at-bat Tuesday night, failed to get a hit with a runner at second base and two outs in the first inning. Beltre is four for his past 31 with runners in scoring position.

Frasor improving: Reliever Jason Frasor retired all four batters he faced with two strikeouts. Frasor hasn't allowed a run in his past six innings.

Up next: The Rangers and White Sox wrap up their three-game series Thursday night when rookie right-hander Justin Grimm (2-0, 1.59 ERA) takes on veteran right-hander Jake Peavy (3-1, 3.38 ERA) at 7:05 p.m. on Fox Sports Southwest and ESPN 103.3-FM and 1540-AM.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Lance Berkman will eventually play first base in a game this season. The question of whether he'll play there next week under National League rules in Chicago and Milwaukee is still a mystery.

Rangers manager Ron Washington said Wednesday that Berkman needs repetition at first base -- taking ground balls -- to prepare. But Washington also has said he's comfortable putting Berkman in the lineup at first base without him getting work there.

"He needs some repetition. We have to start getting him out there," said Washington, who added he hopes to get Berkman out for infield work soon. "You could put Berkman out there whether he's had repetition or not. I'm going to find out if he wants to play out there, and if he says he wants to play out there, I'm going to put him out there. You'd like to get some repetition before you put somebody into a position."

Berkman said Wednesday while it would help to take ground balls, it wouldn't be the same as being at first base in a real game. "The speed of the game is the real deal," Berkman said.

The Rangers will have to give up the designated hitter for Monday's makeup game at the Cubs and Tuesday and Wednesday at Milwaukee. Cold weather could also be an issue, though Milwaukee's Miller Park does have a roof to provide climate control.

Another issue could be taking Mitch Moreland's bat out of the lineup to make room for Berkman at first. Moreland is currently the Rangers' hottest hitter, batting .429 with six RBIs in his last nine games.

Other notes:

Pierzynski out again: Catcher A.J. Pierzynski, out Tuesday and Wednesday with a sore oblique, is an extra scout when it comes to his former team, the White Sox, after spending eight years with them. While Pierzynski sat by Washington for much of the game on the bench, the catcher wasn't offering up nuggets of information about his former team.

"He's was talking about anything and everything," Washington said. "Half of the stuff I couldn't understand."

Pierzynski said before Wednesday's game that the bruising in the area around his right oblique has improved and that he expects to play Thursday. Pierznyski took batting practice in the cages before the game.

Andrus is OK: Elvis Andrus is back in the lineup Wednesday after fouling a ball off his calf in the fifth inning of Tuesday's game. His calf stiffened up enough to where he couldn't move well to his left, which explains why Ian Kinsler was able to go all the way behind second base for a ground ball and get on out that brought on a full salute from Washington.

Kinsler said after the game that Andrus would usually be able to get to the ball.

"I don't usually foul the ball off my leg," Andrus said. "I've never had one like that."

Moreland in, Murphy out: Moreland was back in the lineup while David Murphy sat Wednesday. Jeff Baker was in left field to get his right-handed bat in the lineup against White Sox left-hander Chris Sale.

It's the first time either Murphy or Moreland have been out of the lineup for consecutive days. Moreland had three hits against White Sox lefty Jose Quintana and reached base all four plate appearances, giving Washington further reason to keep him in Wednesday's lineup.

"Logic would suggest that," Washington said. Murphy will play in left field Thursday against White Sox right-hander Jake Peavy, the manager said.

Washington will reach quicker: Murphy will be a defensive replacement for Baker in the eighth inning if the Rangers have a lead in a close game Wednesday night.

Washington said he should have put Murphy in the game in eighth inning of Tuesday's 10-6 victory. Baker, still nursing a knee injury, had a ball fall into front of him in the eighth inning. Baker bruised his right knee making a sliding catch in the left-corner in Anaheim last Tuesday. He's still not 100 percent, he said after Tuesday's game.

"It took a toll on him," Washington said. "He's fine. I have to make my defensive replacement earlier."

No update on Olt: Daniels said the Rangers didn't have an update on Triple-A infielder Mike Olt, who reported vision issues to club earlier this week. Olt, batting .139 for 72 at-bats, saw doctors Tuesday.

A.J. Pierzynski, who missed Tuesday's series opener against the White Sox because of an issue with his right oblique muscle, is out again tonight. Geovany Soto will be behind the plate catching Nick Tepesch, who is coming off a win last Thursday against the Twins. Chris Sale is on the mound for the White Sox. Here are the lineups:

RANGERS

Ian Kinsler 2B
Elvis Andrus SS
Lance Berkman DH
Adrian Beltre 3B
Nelson Cruz RF
Jeff Baker LF
Mitch Moreland 1B
Geovany Soto C
Craig Gentry CF

WHITE SOX

Alejandro De Aza LF
Jeff Keppinger 2B
Alex Rios RF
Adam Dunn DH
Paul Konerko 1B
Conor Gillaspie 3B
Alexei Ramirez SS
Tyler Flowers C
Dewayne Wise CF

Wednesday night's Rangers-White Sox game features a pair of 24-year-old pitchers: Rangers up-and-coming rookie Nick Tepesch and White Sox standout left-hander Chris Sale. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. on FSSW and ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM (1540 AM in Spanish).

Tepesch (2-1. 2.53): Tepesch, maybe the best story of the first month of the season, makes his fifth career start. ... He picked up his second win Thursday at Minnesota, taking a shutout into the seventh inning. He allowed one run in 6⅔ innings and didn't walk anyone as the Rangers held on for a 2-1 victory. Tepesch retired the first 12 batters in order. He gave up a hit to three of the last four batters he faced, including a solo home run by Josh Willingham. ... It was Tepesch's first start since being hit on the right wrist/forearm area by a line drive against Seattle, knocking him out of the game in the second inning. ... Tepesch is getting it done with ground balls. He has recorded 39 ground-ball outs against 15 fly outs for a 72.2 ground ball percentage. ... He also hasn't been walking anyone and will look to build on a 19⅓ consecutive innings streak without a base on balls. ... He is 1-0 with a 1.00 ERA and just six hits allowed in two home starts.

Sale (2-2, 4.09 ERA): Sale, one of the top young pitchers in baseball, makes his sixth start of the season. ... He won his last outing against Tampa Bay, allowing two runs on four hits in seven innings. He had seven strikeouts and four walks. ... Sale has pitched at least seven innings in four of his five starts. ... He has a 3.20 ERA since the start of the 2012 season, the fifth-lowest mark in the American League. ... Sale is 2-1 with a 3.71 ERA in six games, including two starts, against the Rangers. ... He won his previous start at Texas, allowing five runs and six hits in 6⅓ innings ... He is 1-0 with a 7.04 ERA in three appearances at Rangers Ballpark. ... His fastball velocity averages 92.2 mph this season ... He also throws a slider and a changeup.

Hitters: Tepesch faces the White Sox for the first time in his career. Adrian Beltre (4-for-8) and Nelson Cruz (3-for-6, 1 HR, 3 RBIs) have had success against Sale.