ESPN

CHICAGO -- The Detroit Tigers should have defeated the Chicago White Sox on Monday.

The White Sox should have defeated the Tigers on Tuesday.

Neither scenario happened.

The Tigers knocked out White Sox starter John Danks after three innings and blew a 5-2 lead on Monday to lose 7-5. The White Sox squandered a 6-0 lead after five innings and fell to the Tigers 10-8 on Tuesday.

Welcome to the 2012 American League Central.

It’s a division where nothing seems to make sense, and nearly everyone seems capable of winning or losing.
Let’s count the ways the American League Central is unique so far:

It’s the only division where not a single team has a winning record at home.

It’s the only division where not a single team has scored more runs than it has allowed. The Cleveland Indians lead the division and has allowed 10 more runs than it has scored. The White Sox have been the best differential at minus-1.

It’s the only division which doesn’t have a winning record against left-handed starting pitchers.

It’s the only American League division with five players in the top 11 in batting average.

It’s the only American League division with five players in the top 11 in ERA.

It’s the only division to have the best team in one-run games and the worst team. The Indians are 8-1 in one-run games, and the White Sox are 2-6.

It’s the only division where a team hasn’t scored 160 runs yet. The Indians and Tigers have each scored 157 runs. In comparison, every team in the American League East has scored 160-plus runs.

It’s the worst division in extra-innings games. The division is 3-9 in extra innings.

It’s the only division in baseball where the first-place team doesn’t currently have the greatest percentage of making the playoffs, according to ESPN. The Tigers have a 46.5 percent chance followed by the White Sox (35.2) and the Indians (31.8). The Indians have a two-game lead on the Tigers and 3.5-game lead on the White Sox.

A quick look at the Chicago White Sox's 5-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians in 10 innings at Progressive Field on Tuesday night.

How it happened: Paul Konerko led off the White Sox 10th with a single to left and two batters later Alex Rios tripled to drive home pinch runner Brent Lillibridge. Rios then scored on an Alexei Ramirez groundout. Sox starter John Danks sailed through the first seven innings before the Indians finally broke through with three runs in the eighth. The Indians Carlos Santana delivered the game-tying two-RBI hit off reliever Chris Sale. The White Sox had taken a quick lead in the first when Konkero and A.J. Pierzynski each drove in a run. Pierzynski added another RBI in the seventh.

What it means: The White Sox snapped a three-game losing streak and finally got another solid outing from a starter. Danks had allowed 13 runs combined in his previous two starts.

Outside the box: It was the White Sox’s first extra-inning victory of the year. They were 0-2 in extra innings entering Tuesday’s game.

Up next: In Wednesday’s finale of the four-game set, the White Sox’s Jake Peavy (3-1, 1.99 ERA) will face the Indians’ Jeanmar Gomez (2-1, 2.82 ERA) in a 6:05 CT start.

A quick look at the Chicago White Sox's 3-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers on Sunday at Comerica Park.

How it happened: All four runs scored came on solo home runs, three by the Tigers and one by Adam Dunn. Dylan Axelrod's first start got off to a rocky beginning as he gave up a leadoff homer to Austin Jackson. Prince Fielder also homered off Axelrod in the third. Axelrod threw 99 pitches in 4 1/3 innings, giving up six hits and two walks while striking out four. Tigers starter Rick Porcello went 6 1/3 innings, allowing four hits but just one run on Dunn’s ninth homer of the season in the first inning. Dunn has five homers in the last seven games. Andy Dirks finished the scoring with a solo homer off Hector Santiago.

What it means: The White Sox failed to get back to .500, losing their fourth straight series since sweeping the Seattle Mariners April 20-22.

Outside the box: Dayan Viciedo left the game in the top of the seventh with an apparent right elbow injury. He was hit by a pitch.

Up next: The White Sox head to Cleveland for a day-night doubleheader against the Indians at Progressive Field. Game 1 starts at 12:05 CT and Game 2 is at 6:05 CT. Chicago manager Robin Ventura said that the White Sox will bring up Lefty Eric Stults from the minors to start the second game. Stults (0-0) will face Josh Tomlin (1-2). Phil Humber (1-1) will face Zach McAllister (0-0) in the opener.

Information from the Associated Press contributed to this report.

DETROIT -- A day after losing to Detroit on a ninth-inning homer, Adam Dunn and the Chicago White Sox returned the favor.

Dunn hit a two-run shot deep into the right-field seats off Jose Valverde in the ninth Saturday and Chicago went on to beat the Tigers 3-2.

Detroit defeated the White Sox 5-4 on Friday night when Jhonny Peralta hit a two-run shot with one out in the ninth. There was also one out when Dunn hit his 422-foot drive off Valverde (2-1).

"We needed to win this game today," Dunn said. "I definitely didn't want to chase anything -- just got a pitch that I could get in the air and it happened to go out."

Nate Jones (1-0) got the win and Addison Reed came on to strike out Austin Jackson with runners on second and third for the final out. It was Reed's first career save.

Detroit's Delmon Young went hitless in his first game back from a seven-day suspension following his April 27 arrest in New York.

It was Valverde's second blown save of the season. He was perfect in 49 chances in 2011.

"Last year is over," Valverde said. "The closer, everybody knows, it's not easy. One pitch can be the game, like it was today. Adam Dunn got it."

Dunn endured a horrendous 2011 season, his first with the White Sox. After hitting at least 38 homers for seven straight years, he managed only 11 last season to go along with a .159 batting average.

He's back to his productive self so far in 2012, hitting .250 with eight homers.

"It's good," Dunn said. "This is kind of what I expect to do."

Paul Konerko also went deep for Chicago.

The Tigers scratched out their two runs in the second on RBI singles by Andy Dirks and Jackson.

The White Sox trailed 2-0 before Konerko's solo shot in the seventh. Alejandro De Aza started the ninth with a single and a stolen base. He was sacrificed to third and Dunn -- always a strikeout risk -- made solid contact to put Chicago ahead.

Jones had pitched the bottom of the eighth, and Hector Santiago came on to try to close it out, but a walk and a double put Chicago's slim lead in jeopardy. Reed, who hasn't allowed a run this season, got the best of Jackson to preserve the win.

Gavin Floyd allowed two runs and seven hits in seven innings for the White Sox.

Floyd was unlucky in the second, allowing an RBI single to Dirks on a slow grounder that slipped between third baseman Brent Morel and shortstop Alexei Ramirez.

Jackson's run-scoring hit actually deflected off Morel and past Ramirez, who looked as though he might have been in position to keep the ball at least in the infield and prevent the runner on second from scoring.

"You just kind of stay positive and continue to try to make pitches," Floyd said. "Got the ball on the ground, and it seemed like they were just missing guys."

Floyd retired 12 in a row starting in the third. In his last three starts, he's allowed four runs in 21 innings.

Detroit's Max Scherzer yielded a run and four hits in seven innings. He struck out nine without a walk. Showing none of the control trouble that plagued him in a seven-walk performance last weekend against the Yankees, Scherzer retired the first 11 White Sox before Dunn lined a single to right.

Chicago's second hit nearly ended Scherzer's outing. In the fifth, A.J. Pierzynski's line drive up the middle hit Scherzer's right foot during the pitcher's follow through. The right-hander picked up the ball and threw wildly to first, and the play went for an infield single and an error, with Pierzynski ending up on second.

Scherzer stayed in the game and got out of the inning on a flyout and two strikeouts. He allowed a single to De Aza in the sixth -- then promptly picked him off first. Konerko broke up the shutout an inning later with a homer to left.

Young was reinstated from the restricted list Friday after his suspension, but he didn't play that night. He received mostly cheers and a few scattered boos from the home crowd for his first plate appearance.

A quick look at the Chicago White Sox's 3-2 comeback win over the Detroit Tigers on Saturday at Comerica Park.

How it happened: Adam Dunn's two-run homer in the ninth inning gave the White Sox their first lead of the game. Closer Hector Santiago ran into trouble in the bottom of the ninth, giving up a walk to Jhonny Peralta and a two-out, two-run double to Ryan Raburn. Addison Reed relieved Santiago and recorded the final out, striking out Austin Jackson for the save. Paul Konerko hit his sixth homer of the year, a solo shot, in the seventh. Gavin Floyd threw seven strong innings for the White Sox, allowing only two runs in the second inning. Floyd scattered seven hits and struck out six. Dunn and Alejandro De Aza each had two hits.

What it means: The White Sox evened the series with the Tigers at one apiece and improved to 6-4 against AL Central teams this season.

Outside the box score: The White Sox snapped a five-game losing streak at Comerica Park.

Up next: The Sox and Tigers conclude their series on Sunday at 12:05 CT. The probable starters are Dylan Axelrod (0-0, 2.70 ERA) for the Sox and Rick Porcello (2-2, 5.64 ERA) for the Tigers.

It might be a little early to start handing out All-Star ballots, but Chicago White Sox starter Chris Sale is certainly opening up some eyes around the American League. Sale won his third game of the season on Tuesday, allowing just one run in six innings in a 7-2 victory over Cleveland.

The young left-hander was more excited about teammate Gordon Beckham's breakout three-hit game than his third win of the season.

“That was probably the [most fun] part of the game tonight watching Gordon go off,” Sale said. “He was taking good at-bats, taking good swings. Yeah, I think we got him back.”

Before the game manager Robin Ventura confirmed his belief in both Beckham and third baseman Brent Morel, who have been slumping with the bat since the season began. Ventura did say that at some point both needed to begin producing in order to remain starters.

“He swung it well,” Ventura said. “That’s just a part of believing in himself and that he keeps working at it. It’s just nice to see that it does pay off and that he hasn’t gone down that path of not believing in himself.”

Beckham not only hit his first home run of the season, he broke out of an 0-for-10 slump and doubled his RBI output from two to four. Beckham pointed to a good at-bat on Saturday night that may have jump started his offensive outburst on Tuesday.

“I battled in that at-bat,” Beckham said. “I didn’t feel great and knew that the game was on the line and did not give in, so that definitely was a good at-bat.”

A.J. Pierzynski started the White Sox scoring with his fifth home run of the season in the second inning of off Indians starter Ubaldo Jimenez. Much like his teammates, Pierzynski was excited for Beckham.

“April is over and he and Albert Pujois went homer-less in April,” Pierzynski joked. “It was nice to see him get his first one out of the way. That should help him relax and use the whole field.”

With a record of 12-11 the Sox are in a three-way tie for first place in the AL Central with the Tigers and the Indians.

A quick look at the Chicago White Sox's 7-2 win over the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday night at U.S. Cellular Field.

How it happened: Thanks to an error-filled third inning the White Sox were able to put up four runs in support of starter Chris Sale. Gordon Beckham had his best offensive night of the season, leading off the third inning with his first home run of the season of off Cleveland starting pitcher Ulbaldo Jimenez and finishing with three hits. The Sox got a break on an infield popup that was lost in the smoke from the exploding score board that had blown into the infield. They scored three more runs on an error, two walks and a fielder’s choice. A.J. Pierzynski continues to have great at-bats, hitting his fifth home run of the season with one out in the second inning.

What it means: The White Sox moved into a first place tie with Cleveland and Detroit after another masterful outing by Sale, who is 2-0 against the Indians in 2012. Beckham had his first three-hit game of the year and doubled his RBI output from two to four. Beckham was in an 0-10 slump before hitting his home run.

Outside the box:The White Sox are now 5-1 against the American League Central after going 32-40 in their division during 2011. Both Beckham and Brent Morel started to hit after manager Robin Ventura said that both players needed to improve their performance soon.

Up next: Right-hander Phil Humber (1-1, 4.66) and Cleveland right-hander Josh Tomlin (1-2 5.48) are the starting pitchers for Wednesday’s 7:10 start at U.S. Cellular Field.

Most baseball experts were ready to hand the AL Central championship to the Detroit Tigers in spring training, but Chicago White Sox captain Paul Konerko believes that his team can play with Detroit.

“The key for us is that we came out of the gate with a really good approach on how to attack every day and guys have bought in to it,” Konerko said.

Although the White Sox entered Friday’s game against the Boston Red Sox on a three-game losing streak, Chicago has stayed with the Tigers in the standings. Nonetheless, Konerko warns that any letdown in effort could be an obstacle for this young group.

“That’s the challenge,” Konerko said, “It can be easy to come in and not do the stuff we have been doing as the season wears on. It’s also easy to start thinking big thoughts that we are ‘in it’ now. That’s not how we are going to be successful.”

The White Sox added their fifth bullpen pitcher who has spent less than 50 days in the major leagues when Dylan Axelrod was called up from the minors to replace the injured Jesse Crain. Youth movement or not, Konerko, who hit his 400th career home run in Oakland this week, feels this team has plenty of talent to stay the course of a long season.

“There is a plan and the coaches are on board setting up the plan for those [young] guys,” he said. “Even when we are blown out all these guys can feel like they had put an honest day of work in and then you come back the next day ready to fight again.”

Konerko has certainly done his share of the heavy lifting, hitting .372 with five home runs and 15 RBIs entering Friday.

CHICAGO -- After four straight wins, all over Central Division foes (including two in a row against the favored Detroit Tigers), go ahead and be cautiously optimistic about the Chicago White Sox's start to the season. But don’t hold your breath for any extra reassurance coming out of the team’s clubhouse.

Leave it to veteran Paul Konerko to bring perspective to the Sox’s early success.

“The start is two months of the season, so that's a long way away,” Konerko said. “But I think we're doing it right, we're going about it right. We're taking it inning by inning. We're not really thinking too many big things out there. The thoughts are small, and I think that's a good thing. We're just trying to get through. It's the way it should be. We're not putting any added pressure on anything, but at the same time everybody's got a job to do and have taken upon themselves to do it right. I think most teams this time of year are doing it right, and certainly we are. But as we get into the season here, it starts to get into that grind, that starts to be the test and we got to make sure we're up for that.”

With Saturday’s 5-1 victory the Sox have won two of three series to begin the season and are a win away from matching last season’s longest win streak. The Sox went 5-13 against Detroit last season, the most losses to the Tigers since division play began in 1969.

“It’s nice to start off that way,” Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “It is April, though. But it’s better than losing those games and trying to say it’s still a long season and we hope that doesn’t carry. But for right now, I like the feel of the team and the way they come every day prepared to play and that’s the most important thing for me. It’s nice to be 4-0 in your own division, but it’s more important for me how we are approaching it day in and day out.”

Ventura said before the game that he’s liked each player’s approach so far, which is why he said it’s too early to raise any cause for concern regarding individual performances. Two Sox players who struggled mightily last season, Adam Dunn and Gordon Beckham, have already totaled 21 strikeouts through seven games. Beckham struck out once on Saturday and Dunn fanned twice, although he also crushed an RBI double to right-center field in the sixth. Dunn has continued to hit in the No. 3 spot and, except for one game, Beckham has hit ninth, so not until that changes will Ventura have much more to say about them.

And for what it’s worth, Sox players seem to appreciate Ventura’s approach.

“We all know him, he's a little more laid back than most but he's jumped on us a few times when we need to be jumped,” catcher Tyler Flowers said. “You don't feel much pressure with him. You go up there and you succeed, pat on the back. You don't succeed, still a pat on the back. You can tell he still trusts in you no matter what happens.”

CHICAGO -- Here’s a quick look at the Chicago White Sox's 5-1 win over the Detroit Tigers on Saturday at U.S. Cellular Field.

How it happened: Gavin Floyd rebounded against the defending AL Central champion Detroit Tigers, throwing six scoreless innings for his first win of the season. Floyd out-dueled rookie Adam Wilk, who took the loss after scattering two runs on three hits in five innings. He left the game with a left shoulder contusion. Shortstop Alexei Ramirez got the Sox on the board with a solo home run in the second inning, his second of the season. Catcher Tyler Flowers, starting in place of A.J. Pierzynski, hit his first homer of the season, also a solo shot, in the fifth. Adam Dunn drove in Brent Morel with a hard double to right-center field in the sixth. Detroit right fielder Brennan Boesch ruined the shutout with a home run in the eighth off of reliever Jesse Crain. Paul Konerko hit his 397th career home run in the eighth, breaking a tie with Joe Carter to place him 51st on the all-time home run list.

What it means: The Sox won their fourth straight game and second in a row over the Central Division favorites.

Outside the box: Prior to the game, manager Robin Ventura said it’s too early to express concerns over any players’ early season struggles. Gordon Beckham struck out for the 10th time this season on Saturday while Dunn recorded his 11th strikeout. “It’s going to be a while,” said Ventura, who didn’t single out any one player. “It’s more of their approach than it is what the numbers are. I like what I see and what they bring and so it’ll be a while.”

Up next: Chris Sale (1-0) takes the mound against Detroit right-hander Rick Porcello (0-0) in the final game of the series at 1:10 p.m. CT Sunday.

CHICAGO -- Since we’re here on the South Side, the home of unvarnished opinions and un-ironic mustaches, you have to lead with the bad.

So here’s the bad: Gordon Beckham needs a treasure map to get to first base. He struck out three times on Friday and now has nine Ks in 20 at-bats. The new Adam Dunn racked up the Camo Sombrero: where you get credit for working really hard in a four-strikeout game. Even the grounds crew had a bad day. Miguel Cabrera won an argument that the batter’s box was improperly placed and the Sox had to call in a new one from the bullpen. The coffee maker is already out of order in the pressbox and the scoreboard misspelled “struck out” as “stuck out.” That is ironic since it’ll be using that phrase A LOT this season.

But forget all that noise. The White Sox beat the Tigers 5-2 in their home opener and, for a day, you could forget the carryover problems from 2011’s train wreck and just “appreciate the game,” as the Sox’s marketing department has opined.

Read the entire column.

Maybe Chicago White Sox starter Jake Peavy wasn’t trying to take a subtle jab at former manager Ozzie Guillen, however people listening to Friday’s winning pitcher might have heard it that way.

After the game Peavy praised the Cuban connection of Alexei Ramirez and Dayan Viciedo, who helped stop Detroit Tigers rallies with great defensive plays late in the 5-2 win.

“It was a good day for the Cubans,” Peavy said. “We are liking the Cubans on our side of town. These guys were awesome today. The play by Alexei and the play by Dayan saved the game for us. It was a great team effort today.”

Peavy was dominant through six innings, allowing just one hit before giving up a two-run home run to Delmon Young in the seventh. The offense did just enough to support the starter, who won his first game of the season in front of 38,626 happy Sox fans.


Team captain Paul Konerko likes what Peavy has featured so far this spring.

“The thing I notice about him from a hitter’s standpoint is he has a little more jump on his fastball,” Konerko said. “He might not be throwing 95 or 96 mph anymore, but you can get a lot of hitters out in this league with 92 or 93 and nasty breaking stuff like Jake has.”

Viciedo, who struggled through an awful spring on both offense and defense, hit a home run in the fifth inning to break on top in a scoreless game and made a leaping catch with two runners in scoring position to prevent a big inning for the Tigers in the seventh.

“This is something we practiced hard on throughout spring training, working very hard on our defense,” Viciedo said via a team translator . “Between our pitching, defense and offense it is all coming together.”

The White Sox have now won three straight and, more importantly, the wins came against division rivals. The team has not had a winning season in the American League Central since 2008.

CLEVELAND -- A quick look at the Chicago White Sox's 4-2 win over the Cleveland Indians on Monday at Progressive Field.

How it happened: The Sox put three runs on the board in the first inning, courtesy of two home runs . Alejandro De Aza led off the game with his first career home run to start a game. A.J. Pierzynski's two-run blast also came off of Indians starter Josh Tomlin. However, the evening belonged to Chris Sale, who made his first professional start after spending the 2011 season in the bullpen.The 23-year-old left-hander did not allow his first run or second hit of the game until the sixth inning. Sale went 6 2/3 innings and threw 100 pitches.

What it means: The Sox are off to a good start in their division, where they play 20 of their first 37 games. The starting staff has given up just 12 runs in the first four games of the season. The South siders are now 2-2 on the road trip.

Outside the box: The team was silent in front of media members about former manager Ozzie Guillen’s predicament after he praised Fidel Castro in a magazine interview. Off the record, they were mostly surprised that things would blow up so early in Miami. Third baseman Brent Morel broke an 0-10 start to the season with an RBI single in the fifth inning. Morel had struck out six times in those 10 at-bats.

Up next: Right-hander Philip Humber makes his 2012 debut on Tuesday as he faces Indians right-hander Jeanmar Gomez.

DALLAS -- Many Chicago White Sox fans might have been ready to move on from Ozzie Guillen, but elsewhere in the American League Central not everybody was happy to see him go.

Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire took the news hard and not just because his team was able to give Guillen’s White Sox fits over the years.

“I'm going to miss him because he's entertainment for me,” Gardenhire said. “I enjoy the heck out of him. I love the way he goes about his business. I love the way he manages. He keeps it entertaining, and baseball is supposed to be played that way.

“For me, you know, I get my opportunity seems like 19 times and now nothing, so that kind of stinks for me, because I enjoy the heck out of him.”

Gardenhire is happy for Robin Ventura, who he knows from his days as a third base coach when Ventura was playing.

“I know Robin pretty well,” Gardenhire said. “He's a baseball guy. He's a great player, and he'll be fine as a manager, I'm sure.”

The Twins and White Sox are usually among the American League Central favorites, but that won’t be the case in 2012.

“I think you have to look and see how it finishes out here and who was what [on their rosters],” Gardenhire said. “We’ll know more when we get to spring training. As we saw last year, the health of your team makes a big difference.

“But Detroit, obviously, they thumped a lot of people. They have a pretty good baseball team, and I don’t think they have done anything to hurt themselves so far. They’re probably going to add. So you look at Detroit as the best team in our division and everybody is going to try to catch them.”

Chicago White Sox starter John Danks was thrilled to end his season on a high note. Danks went 7 1/3 innings on Saturday, giving up only three runs while striking out eight and walking one in the Sox’s 6-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

With an uncertain future facing many in the Sox organization -- players, manager, and front office execs alike -- Danks hopes this team can be brought back intact and have another chance to live up to expectations.

“Trust me, if this same group of guys comes back next year -- which, who knows what happens -- I'm gonna be just as optimistic as I was [entering] this year,” Danks said. “I thought we were the team to beat. Obviously, Detroit played better than us all year. If we have the same team next year, I like our chances. I really do. This year is just a case of us underperforming for whatever reason. My hope is that we get another shot at it next year. We'll see what happens this offseason.”

“We’ll see” is right, as there are numerous questions heading into this offseason. There have been rumblings that manager Ozzie Guillen may not return or that general manager Kenny Williams could be relieved of his duties. Veteran starter Mark Buehrle and left fielder Juan Pierre are both free agents. Pierre isn’t expected to return and many would be surprised if Buehrle doesn’t move on as well.

The White Sox have multiple players with high-salaried contracts who have underperformed, namely Adam Dunn, Alex Rios and Jake Peavy. It’s unlikely that they’ll be able to unload one of those overpriced players, which could lead to one or both of Carlos Quentin and Danks being moved in the offseason. Both Quentin and Danks are arbitration eligible and looking to get raises.

Danks, who started the season 0-8, before finishing at 8-12, felt he pitched better than his record indicates. Guillen agreed, saying that Danks was great both on and off the field.

“When you coach this kid or manage him or you’re his teammate, you appreciate his effort every time he’s out there,” Guillen said. “It doesn’t matter if he’s good or bad, he gives you what he has with no complaints. He fights like the way people should be fighting.”

The struggles weren’t easy, but in the long run Danks believes he’ll be a better pitcher having suffered through it.

“I never once felt sorry for myself or whatever. It is what it is,” Danks said. “I feel like, if nothing else, I know I can take anything this game is going to throw at me. There were a couple times where it was pretty miserable early on this year. I'm gonna go home, I'm gonna get ready and hopefully have the kind of year next that I'd hoped to have this year. I know I'm capable of it, I just have to do it now.”