Hamilton sacrifices face on Little League HR

CLEVELAND -- Billy Hamilton has used his glove, legs and bat to help the White Sox gain victories during the 2021 season.

During the second inning of Tuesday's 6-5 loss to the Indians, batting against Shane Bieber at Progressive Field, Hamilton used two of the three to push the White Sox in front against the reigning American League Cy Young.

With runners on first and second, two outs and the White Sox trailing, 2-0, Hamilton ripped a 1-0 fastball to right-center for a 377-foot double that fell just short of being a three-run homer. The double scored Jake Lamb and Zack Collins ahead of him, and when the relay throw went home to try to nab Collins, Hamilton raced to third.

That throw got away from catcher Austin Hedges by a few feet, and Hamilton raced the rest of the way around, just beating the throw to Bieber covering. Hamilton looked momentarily injured as he slid headfirst into home as the go-ahead run, but he stayed in the game. He last homered from the left side in 2018 with the Reds but homered twice from the right side this past weekend in the series against Baltimore.

"It's typical of how he's been playing," White Sox manager Tony La Russa said. "I'm sure he's had a career full of things like that, but we're seeing it ourselves. He gets the big hit, never stops running and he saw an opening there and he just made a run.

"Reminded me of Rickey [Henderson]. Sometimes I call it 'Rickey runs,' you make a run that nobody else makes unless you've got that extra gear. He stuck his nose right in the dirt? Got some cuts, but he's playing at a very high level and it's really fun to watch."