Sale, White Sox bounce back to beat Blue Jays

The Chicago White Sox's clubhouse was understandably numb following Saturday's 10-8 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays.

According to Elias, the Sox became the first team in major-league history to lose a game when hitting at least 6 more home runs than their opponent.

The White Sox hit 7 solo homers in the setback to the Jays, and they also gained the dubious distinction of being one of only three teams in history to go deep seven times in a loss.

The Sox were in a state of shock, without a doubt, but there was some optimism as well, given Chris Sale was starting against the Jays on Sunday.

"He's one of the best in the game," Toronto manager John Gibbons said after Sale sparked the White Sox to a 5-2 victory at U.S. Cellular Field. "It's obvious when you watch him pitch."

Yes, it is.

"He's the best," Sox manager Robin Ventura said when asked if Sale is the American League's top starter. "You can say I'm biased or not, he's still the best."

It's hard to argue with Gibbons or Ventura.

Increasing his major-league leading win total to 13 and lowering his ERA to 2.79, Sale pitched 8 innings and allowed 2 runs on 5 hits while walking two and striking out seven.

The 27-year-old ace had a 3-hit shutout after the seventh inning before Troy Tulowitzki and Junior Lake hit solo home runs in the eighth.

Over his last 3 starts - all wins - Sale (13-2) has allowed 6 earned runs on 15 hits in 22 innings to go with 23 strikeouts and 4 walks.

"I feel good," he said. "There's no doubt about that. (Dioner) Navarro and (Alex) Avila, those guys have really just kind of carried me through these games. They know what's working on a certain day and they know what fingers to put down in the right situation."

Sale cruised through much of the game by simply altering his fastball.

"Today, he was pretty much flawless," Avila said after catching Sale. "He had really good command today with all of his pitches working in and out. He changed speeds really well with his fastball today along with the great command. He was throwing strikes, a lot of strikes, and he did a great job."

Even with the home run off Sale, Tulowitzki agreed with Avila.

"With Sale, if you don't attack early you're going to be behind in the count," the Blue Jays' shortstop said. "He was just pumping strikes. It's unfortunate that we made a lot of first-pitch outs or two-pitch outs because he was able to work deep into the game. But that's the way you've got to attack him because he was able to pound strikes.

"You see his fastball range anywhere from 88 to 98 (mph). He mixes and matches. Being able to take speed off his fastball, really, I think makes him able to go longer in games. He's a different pitcher than what he was."

Sale thinks the White Sox are a different team after winning their second straight series. Before taking two of three from Toronto, they won three of four against the Red Sox at Boston.

"It's huge," Sale said. "You look at the teams we went up against, too, Boston and Toronto, those are two of the best in the league. I don't look at stats or this or that, but just judging by what I hear on TV they are as good as they get.

"This is what we needed. Stuff like this is what makes you turn the corner. We've been listening to some music lately and it's been fun."