Floyd close to unhittable
Show your passion. Show your swagger.
It's no longer just a catchy marketing slogan.
It's also life with the new-and-improved Gavin Floyd, the talented 25-year-old right-hander who will give the White Sox plenty of reason to flash their swagger and be passionate about their chances with more outings like the one he had Saturday.
It certainly wasn't the most pleasant day -- a steady rain from the opening pitch to the final out, 39-degree temperatures and winds gusting to 19 mph -- but none of that mattered to an announced 29,649 at U.S. Cellular Field.
Floyd made those conditions seem like a balmy 85 degrees and sunny to everyone except the Detroit Tigers, coming within five outs of a no-hitter in the 7-0 victory.
Edgar Renteria broke up Floyd's bid with a line-drive single to right in the eighth. Despite the nasty weather, which a couple of White Sox players compared to Game 2 of the 2005 World Series, Floyd overcame a wild start to finish with 4 strikeouts and 4 walks in the best outing by far of the 25-year-old's career.
"I couldn't care less about the no-hitter," said Floyd, who realized he still had one in the fifth inning when he heard a fan say something about it. "I was just trying to throw strikes and get people out."
After a Dontrelle Willis-esque first four innings -- 4 walks and 0 hits -- Floyd found his command and retired 12 straight. He fanned ex-Cub Jacque Jones on a 3-2 pitch to start the eighth, then Renteria laced a 1-1 fastball that fell in front of Jermaine Dye.
"Sometimes you tip your hat," catcher A.J. Pierzynski said. "Renteria is such a tough out."
Manager Ozzie Guillen removed Floyd after Renteria's hit on Floyd's 107th pitch. Scott Linebrink faced one batter, inducing Ivan Rodriguez into a 1-6-3 double play to end the eighth inning.
Floyd was bidding to become the first White Sox to throw a no-hitter since Mark Buehrle on April 18 last year. Three previous times, once in high school and twice in the minor leagues, Floyd flirted with a no-hitter, and all three times he wound up losing both the no-hitter and the game.
The White Sox ended any chance of that with a 6-run eighth.
"It was great to see this kid pitch the way he pitched," Guillen said. "He has confidence and believes in himself. He's always had good stuff."
Detroit's Justin Verlander nearly matched Floyd, giving up just 2 hits through 7 innings. One of them was Orlando Cabrera's first home run in a White Sox uniform, a third-inning shot that turned out to be all the offense Floyd would need.
Like most no-hit bids, Floyd's featured a couple of solid defensive plays. Carlos Quentin crashed into the left-field wall to rob Magglio Ordonez of an extra-base RBI in the first inning, and third baseman Joe Crede dove to his left to deny a hit.
Floyd walked two straight in the third, then watched the next batter Placido Polanco swing at the first pitch and hit into a 6-4-3 double play, one of three the Sox turned.
"That double play was huge for him -- confidence-wise," said Pierzynski, who noted Floyd was "effectively wild."
Floyd showed the stuff that made him the No. 4 overall pick in the 2001 draft -- the same draft that saw Joe Mauer go No. 1 to the Twins, Mark Prior No. 2 to the Cubs and Mark Teixeira right after Floyd at No. 5 to Texas.
He's 2-0 this year, both wins coming over Detroit.
He also has his manager and teammates hoping to share the credit for Floyd finally turning the corner and harnessing his talent into a quality major-league pitcher.
"It's still early, 2 starts, but he has a different demeanor," Pierzynski said. "I thought he grew as the game went on. He pitched unbelievable."
White Sox 7, Tigers 0
At the plate: Orlando Cabrera hit his first home run with the White Sox, a low line drive that stayed just inside the left-field foul pole. He later was hit in the head by a Justin Verlander pitch in the eighth but stayed in the game. "He said he was fine," manager Ozzie Guillen said. "It was kind of scary, especially with Verlander pitching." After getting just 2 hits through 7 innings, the White Sox came alive with 4 hits and 6 runs in the eighth. A.J. Pierzynski (2-for-4) and Juan Uribe delivered the big blows, both with 2-run singles.
On the mound: Gavin Floyd threw a no-hitter through 71/3 innings. He walked four and had 4 strikeouts while throwing 64 of 107 pitches for strikes. Scott Linebrink and Bobby Jenks closed out the White Sox' first shutout.
-- John Lemon