White Sox fall again to Tigers, 6-2
Prince Fielder, Austin Jackson and Torii Hunter homered, and Anibal Sanchez pitched six scoreless innings to help the Detroit Tigers overcome Miguel Cabrera's absence in a 6-2 win over the White Sox on Wednesday night.
Cabrera, the reigning AL MVP and baseball's first Triple Crown winner in 45 years last season, left Monday's game in the bottom of the fifth inning with a left hip flexor injury. He hasn't played since and might sit out Thursday, too, when the Tigers go for a four-game sweep.
Detroit has won four straight and 13 of 21.
Sanchez (8-7) earned his first win since July 6, allowing six hits and striking out five. The right-hander had only allowed five earned runs in his previous two starts, both losses.
John Danks (2-8) lost his second straight start and is winless since July 2. He worked seven innings and gave up six runs and 11 hits — including three home runs. Danks is 4-8 against Detroit.
Danks has yielded 17 homers in 12 starts for Chicago, which dropped to 20 games below .500 for the first time Sept. 26, 2007. The White Sox are a season-high 16 games out of first place.
Detroit, even without Cabrera who is hitting .358 with 31 homers and 96 RBIs, showed plenty of power. Danks matched his season-high by allowing six earned runs.
Fielder gave the Tigers a 3-0 lead in the first with his 17th home run. Hunter reached on a fielder's choice, and Matt Tuiasosopo walked before Fielder hit a 1-0 pitch into deep right-center field for his first homer since July 10.
Danks retired the first two batters in the second before Jackson hooked the first pitch around the foul pole in left to make it 4-0.
Alexei Ramirez's throwing error on Hernan Perez's grounder in the fourth was Chicago's 69th of the season, after the White Sox committed 70 in 2012. Danks got out of the inning by getting Alex Avila to ground to second.
In the fifth, Hunter hit his ninth homer of the season to give Detroit a 5-0 lead. Hunter went 2 for 5, improving to .354 in July.
Detroit added to its lead in the sixth on an RBI single by Avila.
The White Sox avoided a shutout in the seventh on Ramirez's RBI single off Bruce Rondon, bringing in Dayan Viciedo. Viciedo also homered leading off the ninth and had three hits, along with Alejandro De Aza.