CHICAGO – Tristan Peters hit for the seventh cycle in White Sox history on Friday night during a 14-1 White Sox thumping of the Athletics, the same night Munetaka Murakami returned from his 35-game absence.
The White Sox remained the only team in baseball without a losing streak greater than three games and remained tied with Cleveland atop the American League Central.
Peters doubled and singled going into the seventh and then launched a two-run homer during that offensive outburst. He tripled in the same frame to become the first White Sox player to hit for the cycle since Jose Abreu on Sept. 9, 2017, against the Giants. Abreu completed his cycle with a triple, almost falling down as he rounded second.
Per Elias, Peters became the third player in at least the expansion era (since 1961) to complete the cycle by getting two hits in the same inning, joining the Orioles' Felix Pie (seventh inning, Aug. 14, 2009, single and triple) and the Giants' Jim Ray Hart (fifth inning, July 8, 1970, triple and home run).
Sean Burke yielded Tyler Soderstrom’s home run over seven innings, striking out nine without a walk. In Burke’s last 32 innings, covering five starts, he has 42 strikeouts and has walked five with six runs allowed. In his last two starts, Burke has 20 strikeouts and no walks in 13 innings.
A four-run fifth was all the offense the White Sox needed against Aaron Civale, who was Friday’s bulk hurler for the A’s (41-53). Andrew Benintendi doubled home a run, Peters and Sam Antonacci singled home a run each and All-Star Miguel Vargas added a sacrifice fly.
Murakami struck out three times, before doubling home a run in an eight-run seventh. But those misfires were the only shortcomings on the evening for the White Sox, who at 48-45 are guaranteed to go into the All-Star break over .500. And it was a pretty good evening for Murakami, who was named a first-time All-Star and as the final contestant in the Home Run Derby.