Chicago, IL - Paul Konerko hit a two-run home run and drove in three as the Chicago White Sox downed the Detroit Tigers, 5-3, in the first game of a day/night doubleheader at U.S. Cellular Field.
Jim Thome went 3-for-3 with two runs scored while Josh Fields added a solo home run for the White Sox, who snapped a four-game losing streak.
Javier Vazquez (8-5) won his fifth straight decision as he gave up just three runs on four hits with a walk and eight strikeouts in eight innings of work.
Curtis Granderson hit a solo home run and scored twice while Ivan Rodriguez added a solo shot for the Tigers, who had won two of three coming into the contest.
Jeremy Bonderman (10-2) got the loss as he gave up five runs on eight hits in seven innings of action.
With the score tied heading into the bottom of the sixth, Chicago grabbed a 5-3 lead. Thome led off the frame with a single and Konerko followed with a shot over the left field wall for his 22nd home run of the season.
Vazquez worked a perfect seventh and eighth inning while Bobby Jenks retired the Tigers in order in the ninth to pick up his 27th save of the season.
Detroit jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first as Magglio Ordonez hit into a ground out that plated Granderson, who had led off the inning with a double.
The White Sox, though, took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the first. With runners at second and third and one out, Konerko grounded out to score Alex Cintron. A.J. Pierzynski followed with a double down the right field line to score Thome.
Rodriguez, though, tied the game with a swing of the bat as he led off the fifth by putting the ball into the left field stands for his ninth home run of the season.
The White Sox again took the lead in the bottom of the fifth as Fields led off the frame with a homer, but Detroit responded with the long ball again in the sixth as Granderson hit a leadoff home run to make it a 3-3 contest.
Game Notes
Prior to the game, the White Sox removed outfielder Scott Podsednik from the 15-day disabled list and recalled him from his rehabilitation assignment at Triple-A Charlotte and placed outfielder Luis Terrero on the 15-day disabled list…Chicago outhit Detroit, 9-4…Attendance was 30,569.
