BOSTON -- Thomas Pomeranz continues to be the poster boy for consistency over the past few months, posting his seventh quality start over his past 10 starts in Saturday night's 4-1 Red Sox win over the White Sox at Fenway Park.
The Boston lefty served up a home run to Tim Anderson on the second pitch of the game, but got locked in after and systematically shut down the White Sox over the next 6 1/3 innings.
Over his past 10 starts, Pomeranz is 5-0 with a 2.24 ERA, which has helped the Red Sox take a three-game lead atop the American League East.
"Those are hard to replace," manager John Farrell said of Pomeranz's consistent starts. "I think any time you get a guy going to the mound every fifth day and pitching as effectively as Drew is, low runs allowed ... I thought tonight he had a very good curveball, and the way [catcher Christian Vazquez] blocked numerous curveballs, he threw that pitch with a lot of confidence. He was able to put away a number of hitters with it, get back in counts. A couple of times with two outs, a couple of men on base, he was able to make a pitch to record the final out. He's throwing the ball extremely well. He feels good physically and another quality start on his part."
Pomeranz echoed his skipper's sentiment about the curveball, stating that it was, "probably the best it's been all year."
The left-hander struck out eight and scattered seven hits, walking one in the process.
Chicago was able to collect one hit in each of the first five innings, but the leadoff home run aside, Pomeranz was highly effective in keeping runners from advancing past second.
"It's all about not letting it snowball into something else," he said. "Give up the homer, get rid of it and worry about the next guy. I just tried to settle down."
In earning his 11th win, the third-most in the AL, Pomeranz matched his career high, which he reached last season between San Diego and Boston.
The 6-foot-6 southpaw credits his current run to his team backing him with run support as well as his ability to harness his entire arsenal.
"My pitches have been really consistent and my control with them has been consistent for the most part," Pomeranz said. "Tonight, my curveball came back and was really good tonight, which is something I don't think I've had most times out. But it showed up tonight, so I just kept throwing it."