7 runs + 7 Straight Wins = 1st Place

Paul Konerko’s hit streak was put to bed but the rest of the Sox bats were certainly awake, sending home 7 runs on the night. Philip Humber had a somewhat shaky start but kept the Rays in check and lead the Sox to their 7th straight win and a nice spot at the top of the AL Central.

White Sox: 7
Rays: 2

At the outset, it seemed that Philip Humber would not last long. He wasn’t giving up runs but the Rays were hitting the ball hard. On the other side, the Sox appeared to be in store for a long evening as James Shields had pale hose hitters looking uncomfortable. When Hideki Matsui took Humber deep in his second at bat of 2012, it was easy to get the feeling that the Sox would no longer be riding a win streak when they woke up Wednesday morning.

Then came the 6th inning. An Adam Dunn walk got the party started and what followed were 4 singles and a double that created a carousel of baserunners that, once halted, would be responsible for 5 Sox runs. Dayan Viciedo would put another run on the board in the 8th with his 11th HR of the year. Unfortunately Paul Konerko has temporarily cooled, striking out 3 times and grounding into a double play for an 0-4. As they say, new streak starts tomorrow.

When all was said and done, Philip Humber had turned in a better than quality outing. He allowed hits to all but 2 batters in the Tampa Bay lineup but spread them out well enough to have gone through his 7 innings only giving up the 2 runs suffered from Matsui’s blast.

Plus: I went on and on over the weekend about how much I love the long ball. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t pleased to see the Sox put a big crooked number on the board as a result of plain old hit clusters. It’s not the first time it’s happened this season but the 6th stood out as a bunch of hitters going up to the plate and not trying to overdo it. Occasionally see ball hit ball is enough.

Minus: Sad to see Konerko’s streak die. It’s for the greater good as it’s one less thing for the media to badger him about as he continues being his productive self in relative peace.

Source: