Dylan Cease continued to baffle Detroit hitters, Yasmani Grandal had a two-run homer and the visiting Chicago White Sox downed the Tigers 5-2 on Saturday afternoon.
Cease (1-0), who entered with an 8-0 record and 2.10 ERA in nine career starts against the Tigers, tossed five-plus innings and gave up one run on two hits while striking out eight. Aaron Bummer collected the save after allowing two baserunners.
Jose Abreu had two hits and scored two runs, while Eloy Jimenez drove in two runs. Josh Harrison and Luis Robert each had two hits and scored a run for Chicago.
Detroit starter Casey Mize (0-1) gave up four runs on seven hits in five-plus innings. Jeimer Candelario supplied an RBI double.
White Sox outfielder A.J. Pollock departed in the third inning with right hamstring tightness. He was injured running to first base.
The White Sox scored two runs in the first inning. Luis Robert singled with one out and Abreu followed with a double. With two out, Jimenez smacked a single off the glove of shortstop Javy Baez to bring in both runners.
Harrison led off the fifth with a triple but was left stranded. Mize retired the next three batters on a strikeout, short fly ball and groundout.
The Tigers threatened in the bottom of the frame. Eric Haase and Spencer Torkelson walked with one out. Cease then struck out Akil Baddoo before Robbie Grossman lined out to first.
Chicago made it 4-0 in the top of the sixth. Abreu led off with a single and Grandal then blasted Mize’s 1-1 pitch over the right-field fence.
Detroit got those runs back in the bottom of the inning. Cease departed after Austin Meadows’ leadoff single. Renaldo Lopez then allowed a Baez single and Candelario’s RBI double. Baez was thrown out at the plate trying to score on a wild pitch. Candelario later scored on Jonathan Schoop’s fielder’s choice grounder.
Andrew Vaughn’s RBI single extended the White Sox’s lead to 5-2 in the seventh. He knocked in Harrison, who led off with a double.
–Field Level Media