Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) – Chris Sale had eight strikeouts in his
season debut, Adam LaRoche and Gordon Beckham homered and the Chicago White
Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 6-2 on Sunday in the rubber match of a three-game
series.
Sale (1-0) started the season on the disabled list after breaking a bone in
his right foot while unloading his truck during spring training. The Chicago
ace gave up one run, five hits and a walk in six innings and threw 72 of his
98 pitches for strikes, improving to 4-0 in his last five starts against the
Twins.
Beckham hit a two-run homer and LaRoche had a solo shot and two RBI.
Minnesota’s Phil Hughes (0-2) surrendered three runs, eight hits and no
walks and struck out four to lose a second consecutive start to open the
season.
The White Sox took a 2-0 lead in the first inning with five consecutive hits
off Hughes. The first four were singles — LaRoche’s knocked in a run — and
Alexei Ramirez finished the flurry with a double for one of his two RBI.
Doubles by Eduardo Nunez and Danny Santana in the third produced Minnesota’s
first run but LaRoche got it back for Chicago when he hit his second homer of
the season on Hughes’ first pitch in the bottom of the inning.
The Twins pulled within a run in the eighth when Torii Hunter followed singles
by Brian Dozier and Joe Mauer with an RBI fielder’s choice, but Beckham’s
blast highlighted a three-run bottom of the inning to make it 6-2.
Game Notes
The White Sox outhit the Twins 12-7 … Minnesota will play its home opener on
Monday against Kansas City … Chicago goes on the road to face Cleveland on
Tuesday.
