(Sports Network) - The Chicago White Sox were able to pad their lead atop the
American League Central standings with a win over the Detroit Tigers.
Now all they have to do is put together back-to-back wins.
Chicago will resume an important four-game series versus the Tigers on Tuesday
and hasn't posted consecutive victories since a six-game winning streak from
Aug. 20-26. The White Sox have alternated wins and losses over their last
eight games and recorded an easy 6-1 win over Detroit last night.
Alex Rios, A.J. Pierzynski and Gordon Beckham all homered and Jose Quintana
benefited from the support. Quintana struck out seven and allowed one run in 7
2/3 innings.
"This was big for us," Beckham said. "We really needed to win the first one."
Kevin Youkilis rejoined the White Sox after missing the last three games due
to the birth of his son, and went 0-for-4. White Sox slugger Adam Dunn has
missed four straight and six of nine games with a strained right oblique
muscle, and is day-to-day.
"He has [had an MRI]. It's not clean, there's something there, but it's up to
the player and how [he] heals," Chicago manager Robin Ventura told the team's
website. "[White Sox head athletic trainer Herm Schneider] has got him in
there doing stuff and everybody heals differently. So whenever he's healthy,
he'll go."
The White Sox are three games ahead of Detroit for division bragging rights
and 4-3 on a 10-game homestand. They have won 11 of their last 14 home games,
and have homered 31 times in the past 16 games at U.S. Cellular Field.
Jake Peavy hopes to get some home run support when he takes the mound tonight
and ended a five-game winless streak (0-3) in last Wednesday's 6-2 win over
Minnesota. He allowed one run in six innings to even his 2012 record at 10-10
in 27 starts with a 3.22 earned run average.
Peavy, the 2007 NL Cy Young Award winner, lost at Detroit on Aug. 31 and gave
up six runs in six innings of a 7-4 loss. The right-hander is 3-4 with a 4.81
ERA in 10 career starts against the Tigers.
Detroit had won seven in a row and 10-of-14 meetings with Chicago until last
night's loss in the series opener.
Rick Porcello was reached for four runs -- three earned -- in 5 1/3 innings to
absorb the loss, while Jhonny Peralta had the lone RBI for the Tigers, who
have lost four straight overall and nine of 13 games.
"We had a pretty good ballgame going on until I gave up the home runs,"
Porcello said.
Detroit is 0-4 on a 10-game road trip and will also visit Cleveland on the
trek. The Tigers will send Doug Fister to the mound tonight and he is 7-2 in
his previous nine decisions following a dreadful start (1-6).
Fister held the Indians to a run and four hits in seven innings of a 7-1 win
last Wednesday to even his record at 8-8 in 21 starts to go along with a 3.54
earned run average. The right-hander is winless in five career starts against
the White Sox, going 0-2 with a 3.52 ERA, and is 3-5 in 10 road assignments.
The Tigers have a 30-23 record this season against division foes.
The Sports Network