CHICAGO -- The White Sox had no hits, ace Lucas Giolito out of the game and a three-run deficit as they entered the bottom of the sixth inning of Friday’s series opener against the Tigers.
No problem for one of the best teams in baseball and the best offense in the American League. In fact, the White Sox scored four in the sixth and held on from there in a 4-3 victory at Guaranteed Rate Field to maintain sole possession of first place in the AL Central. Minnesota’s 3-1 victory over the Indians leaves the Twins one game behind and the Indians now 2 1/2 behind the White Sox, whose magic number to clinch a playoff spot dropped to nine.
“This was a big moment,” said White Sox manager Rick Renteria, whose team improved to 28-16. “We needed that comeback that we had, the at-bats they put together and being able to score the runs that we did were obviously huge. Picked us all up.”
Eloy Jiménez's three-run home run to left off Jose Cisnero turned a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 lead. The drive cleared the fence by a few feet on a crisp night when the ball wasn’t carrying, giving Jiménez 12 home runs and 33 RBIs.
Jiménez connected on a 95.5-mph four-seam fastball well up in the zone, per Statcast, after swinging through a 96.3-mph four-seamer in a similar location on the first pitch of the at-bat. He said he thought the ball would land about 10 rows deep upon first contact.
“But it got enough to score three runs,” Jiménez said. "I was looking for a fastball, but that high, it was just a reaction, you know?"
“We are very fortunate in that we have a group of young, talented players who, thankfully, we can see one or the other shine on any given day,” Renteria said. “You are starting to see the talent perform, to execute.”
The sixth inning began with Nomar Mazara drawing a walk from Casey Mize, the Tigers prized rookie, on a close 3-2 pitch. Yolmer Sánchez’s double became the team’s first hit, and Mize was replaced by Cisnero after Nick Madrigal’s run-scoring groundout. After getting ahead with a 1-2 count on Tim Anderson, Cisnero hit the White Sox shortstop in the back with a pitch. This sort of power-packed offense usually makes teams pay, even for a small mistake like that one.
Lucas Giolito battled through 5 2/3 innings and a season-high 114 pitches, especially during the sixth, when the Tigers scored three to end Giolito’s 22-inning scoreless streak at home. The right-hander walked four and fanned seven, pushing his total to 82 strikeouts through 10 starts, the highest strikeout total by any White Sox pitcher through his first 10 appearances of a season. Chris Sale held the previous franchise mark with 79 in 2015.
Giolito nearly escaped the sixth with just one run allowed before Daz Cameron dropped a single down the right-field line to score two with his first Major League hit. His father, Mike, recorded his first Major League hit with the White Sox on August 30, 1995, vs. Detroit. But it didn’t take the White Sox offense long to pick up Giolito.
“While I can be frustrated with my own performance, at the same time, I go back in the clubhouse having full confidence that we’re going to get back into the game,” Giolito said. “I knew that the offense would wake up and pick me up, get us right back in there, and sure enough, they did it very quickly. I think that’s part of a really, really good team, guys picking each other up there.”
“Today wasn't [Giolito's] best day,” Jiménez said, “but we had his back. Today was a really good day for us, and we showed we can do what we're supposed to do every night."
José Abreu’s career-high 22-game hit streak came to an end. He was one of the nine White Sox starters who didn’t have a hit until the game turned in the sixth.
“These guys weren’t too concerned about it, to be honest,” Renteria said. “They were probably less concerned than I was, as much as I trust all of them and feel like they can do a lot. They came in and they basically said, ‘We’ve been here before so let’s get it done.’”