GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: CLEVELAND (85-60) at CHI WHITE SOX (61-84)

AL: CLEVELAND at CHI WHITE SOX

<div class="pre">AL AT CHI WHITE SOX - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY GRADY SIZEMORE SCORED JASON MICHAELS.
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, G SIZEMORE ON FIRST, 2 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: CLEVELAND 4
CHI WHITE SOX 7 TOP, 9TH

DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: A CABRERA (.311, 1-FOR-4)</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at CHI WHITE SOX

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CLEVELAND 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 4 10 1
CHI WHITE SOX 0 1 0 1 3 0 2 0 x 7 11 1 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: CLE - JAKE WESTBROOK, CLIFF LEE (7TH), TOM MASTNY (8TH) AND VICTOR
MARTINEZ

CHA - JAVIER VAZQUEZ, BOONE LOGAN (7TH), EHREN
WASSERMANN (8TH), BOBBY JENKS (9TH) AND A.J. PIERZYNSKI

HOME RUNS: CLE - NONE

CHA - JUAN URIBE (19) OFF JAKE WESTBROOK IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
JIM THOME (27) OFF JAKE WESTBROOK IN THE 4TH, 0 ON
PAUL KONERKO (29) OFF CLIFF LEE IN THE 7TH, 1 ON</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at CHI WHITE SOX

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CLEVELAND 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 4 10 1
CHI WHITE SOX 0 1 0 1 3 0 2 0 x 7 11 1 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: CLE - JAKE WESTBROOK, CLIFF LEE (7TH), TOM MASTNY (8TH) AND VICTOR
MARTINEZ

CHA - JAVIER VAZQUEZ, BOONE LOGAN (7TH), EHREN
WASSERMANN (8TH), BOBBY JENKS (9TH) AND A.J. PIERZYNSKI


WP - JAVIER VAZQUEZ (12-8)
LP - JAKE WESTBROOK (5-9)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: CLE - NONE

CHA - JUAN URIBE (19) OFF JAKE WESTBROOK IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
JIM THOME (27) OFF JAKE WESTBROOK IN THE 4TH, 0 ON
PAUL KONERKO (29) OFF CLIFF LEE IN THE 7TH, 1 ON


TIME: 2:54 ATT: 23,537

PROBABLES: LAA - BARTOLO COLON (6-6, 6.72)
CHA - JOSE CONTRERAS (8-16, 5.91)

PROBABLES: KAN - BRIAN BANNISTER (12-8, 3.46)
CLE - C.C. SABATHIA (17-7, 3.15)</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at CHI WHITE SOX

<div class="pre">CLEVELAND (4) VS CHI WHITE SOX (7) - FINAL

CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
G Sizemore cf 3 1 1 1 1 2 0 .277
A Cabrera ss 5 0 1 0 0 1 2 .308
R Garko 1b 4 0 2 0 0 1 2 .295
V Martinez c 3 0 1 1 1 0 1 .307
F Gutierrez rf 4 1 1 0 0 2 4 .274
K Lofton lf 4 0 0 0 0 1 3 .297
C Blake 3b 4 1 2 1 0 1 0 .267
T Nixon dh 2 0 0 0 0 2 2 .255
a-J Michaels ph-dh 2 1 1 0 0 1 1 .269
J Barfield 2b 3 0 1 1 0 1 1 .246
b-C Gomez ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .309

Totals 35 4 10 4 2 13 17

a-struck out looking for T Nixon in the 7th; b-struck out swinging for J
Barfield in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - F Gutierrez (12, J Vazquez); C Blake (34, J Vazquez). RBI - J
Barfield (50), C Blake (67), V Martinez (102), G Sizemore (74). 2-out RBI - J
Barfield, G Sizemore. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - K Lofton 1, J
Barfield 1, F Gutierrez 1, A Cabrera 1. Team LOB - 7.

BASERUNNING: CS - K Lofton (7, 3rd base by J Vazquez/A Pierzynski), J
Barfield (4, 2nd base by J Vazquez/A Pierzynski).

FIELDING: E - J Barfield (15, ground ball). DP: 1 (A Cabrera-R Garko).


CHI WHITE SOX ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
S Podsednik cf-lf 5 1 1 0 0 3 1 .260
J Fields lf 3 1 0 0 1 1 0 .229
J Owens cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .246
J Thome dh 4 2 3 3 0 0 1 .273
P Konerko 1b 4 1 3 3 0 0 1 .263
A Pierzynski c 4 0 1 0 0 0 3 .268
J Uribe ss 4 1 2 1 0 0 3 .230
D Erstad rf 4 0 0 0 0 1 3 .253
A Gonzalez 3b 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .192
D Richar 2b 3 1 1 0 1 1 0 .214

Totals 35 7 11 7 2 7 12

BATTING: HR - J Uribe (19, 2nd inning off J Westbrook 0 on, 1 Out), J Thome
(27, 4th inning off J Westbrook 0 on, 0 Out), P Konerko (29, 7th inning off C
Lee 1 on, 2 Out). RBI - J Uribe (59), J Thome 3 (83), P Konerko 3 (81). 2-out
RBI - P Konerko 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - J Uribe 1, D
Erstad 1. GIDP - S Podsednik. Team LOB - 6.

FIELDING: E - J Fields (10, fly ball). DP: 2 (J Vazquez-A Gonzalez, A
Pierzynski-A Gonzalez).


----------------------------------------------------
CLEVELAND - 010 000 111 -- 4
CHI WHITE SOX - 010 130 20x -- 7
----------------------------------------------------

CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era
J Westbrook (L, 5-9) 6 7 5 4 1 5 2 4.38
C Lee 1 4 2 2 0 2 1 6.53
T Mastny 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 4.38

CHI WHITE SOX ip h r er bb so hr era
J Vazquez (W, 12-8) 6 1/3 6 2 1 1 9 0 3.90
B Logan (H, 11) 1 2 1 1 1 1 0 4.89
E Wassermann (H, 7) 2/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.61
B Jenks 1 2 1 1 0 2 0 2.95

WP - J Vazquez, B Jenks. HBP - G Sizemore (by J Vazquez). Pitches-strikes: J
Westbrook 102-66; C Lee 26-19; T Mastny 9-4; J Vazquez 116-76; B Logan 25-17; E
Wassermann 11-7; B Jenks 15-11. Ground balls-fly balls: J Westbrook 5-9; C Lee
1-0; T Mastny 2-1; J Vazquez 1-6; B Logan 0-2; E Wassermann 1-0; B Jenks 1-0.
Batters faced: J Westbrook 27; C Lee 7; T Mastny 3; J Vazquez 25; B Logan 6; E
Wassermann 2; B Jenks 5.

UMPIRES: HP--Gerry Davis. 1B--Brian Gorman. 2B--Paul Nauert. 3B--Rob Drake.

T--2:54. Att--23,537.
Weather: 63 degrees, sunny. Wind: 5 mph, left to
right.</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at CHI WHITE SOX

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
CLEVELAND 4
CHI WHITE SOX 7 FINAL</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at CHI WHITE SOX

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CLEVELAND (4) AT CHI WHITE SOX (7) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CLEVELAND 2ND: K Lofton safe at first on error by left fielder J Fields.
C Blake singled to right, K Lofton to second. T Nixon struck out swinging.
K Lofton caught stealing third, catcher to third, C Blake to second
advancing on play. J Barfield singled to right, C Blake scored. J Barfield

caught stealing second, catcher to shortstop. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 1 Error)

CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 0.

CHI WHITE SOX 2ND: A Pierzynski flied out to center. J Uribe homered to
left. D Erstad grounded out to second. A Gonzalez struck out swinging.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 1.

CHI WHITE SOX 4TH: J Thome homered to right. P Konerko singled to center.
A Pierzynski popped out to shortstop. J Uribe flied out to center.
D Erstad grounded out to shortstop. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 1,
CHI WHITE SOX 2.

CHI WHITE SOX 5TH: A Gonzalez lined out to third. D Richar singled to
center. S Podsednik singled to left, D Richar to second. J Fields
reached on fielder's choice to second, D Richar to third, S Podsednik safe
at second on error by second baseman J Barfield. J Thome singled to right,
Richar and S Podsednik scored, J Fields to third. P Konerko singled to
left, J Fields scored, J Thome to second. A Pierzynski flied out to left.
J Uribe grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, P Konerko out at
second. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Error) CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 5.

CLEVELAND 7TH: F Gutierrez doubled to deep center. F Gutierrez to third on
wild pitch by J Vazquez. K Lofton flied out to left. C Blake doubled to deep
left, F Gutierrez scored. B Logan relieved J Vazquez. J Michaels hit for
T Nixon. J Michaels struck out looking. J Barfield flied out to right. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 2, CHI WHITE SOX 5.

CHI WHITE SOX 7TH: C Lee relieved J Westbrook. S Podsednik struck out
swinging. J Fields grounded out to shortstop. J Thome singled to right
center. P Konerko homered to left, J Thome scored. A Pierzynski singled to
shallow left. J Uribe reached on infield single to pitcher, A Pierzynski to
second. D Erstad struck out looking. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 2,
CHI WHITE SOX 7.

CLEVELAND 8TH: S Podsednik in left field. J Owens in center field.
G Sizemore walked. A Cabrera flied out to right. R Garko singled to left
center, G Sizemore to third. V Martinez singled to left center, G Sizemore
scored, R Garko to second. E Wassermann relieved B Logan. F Gutierrez struck
out swinging. K Lofton grounded out to shortstop. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 3, CHI WHITE SOX 7.

CLEVELAND 9TH: B Jenks relieved E Wassermann. C Blake grounded out to
shortstop. J Michaels singled to center. C Gomez hit for J Barfield.
J Michaels to second on wild pitch by B Jenks. C Gomez struck out swinging.
G Sizemore singled to left, J Michaels scored. G Sizemore to second on
fielder's indifference. A Cabrera struck out looking. (1 Run, 2 Hits,
0 Errors) CLEVELAND 4, CHI WHITE SOX 7.</div>

 

AL: CLEVELAND at CHI WHITE SOX

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CLEVELAND (4) AT CHI WHITE SOX (7) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cleveland Starting Lineups -- G Sizemore CF, A Cabrera SS, R Garko 1B,
V Martinez C, F Gutierrez RF, K Lofton LF, C Blake 3B, T Nixon DH, J Barfield 2B,
J Westbrook RHP.

Chi White Sox Starting Lineups -- S Podsednik CF, J Fields LF, J Thome DH,
P Konerko 1B, A Pierzynski C, J Uribe SS, D Erstad RF, A Gonzalez 3B, D Richar 2B,
J Vazquez RHP.

Umpires -- Gerry Davis (HP), Brian Gorman (1B), Paul Nauert (2B), Rob Drake (3B).

Gametime Weather: 63 degrees, Sunny, wind left to right at 5 mph.


CLEVELAND 1ST: G Sizemore hit by pitch. A Cabrera singled to center,
G Sizemore to third. R Garko lined into double play, pitcher to third,
G Sizemore doubled off third. V Martinez walked, A Cabrera to second.
F Gutierrez fouled out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 0,
CHI WHITE SOX 0.

CHI WHITE SOX 1ST: S Podsednik struck out looking. J Fields walked.
J Thome flied out to right. P Konerko popped out to shortstop. (0 Runs,
0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 0, CHI WHITE SOX 0.

CLEVELAND 2ND: K Lofton safe at first on error by left fielder J Fields.
C Blake singled to right, K Lofton to second. T Nixon struck out swinging.
K Lofton caught stealing third, catcher to third, C Blake to second
advancing on play. J Barfield singled to right, C Blake scored. J Barfield

caught stealing second, catcher to shortstop. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 1 Error)

CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 0.

CHI WHITE SOX 2ND: A Pierzynski flied out to center. J Uribe homered to
left. D Erstad grounded out to second. A Gonzalez struck out swinging.
(1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 1.

CLEVELAND 3RD: G Sizemore struck out swinging. A Cabrera flied out to
center. R Garko struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 1,
CHI WHITE SOX 1.

CHI WHITE SOX 3RD: D Richar struck out looking. S Podsednik struck out
swinging. J Fields struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 1.

CLEVELAND 4TH: V Martinez flied out to left. F Gutierrez struck out
swinging. K Lofton struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 1.

CHI WHITE SOX 4TH: J Thome homered to right. P Konerko singled to center.
A Pierzynski popped out to shortstop. J Uribe flied out to center. D Erstad
grounded out to shortstop. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 1,
CHI WHITE SOX 2.

CLEVELAND 5TH: C Blake struck out swinging. T Nixon struck out looking.
J Barfield struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 1,
CHI WHITE SOX 2.

CHI WHITE SOX 5TH: A Gonzalez lined out to third. D Richar singled to
center. S Podsednik singled to left, D Richar to second. J Fields
reached on fielder's choice to second, D Richar to third, S Podsednik safe
at second on error by second baseman J Barfield. J Thome singled to right,
Richar and S Podsednik scored, J Fields to third. P Konerko singled to
left, J Fields scored, J Thome to second. A Pierzynski flied out to left.
J Uribe grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, P Konerko out at
second. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Error) CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 5.

CLEVELAND 6TH: G Sizemore struck out looking. A Cabrera grounded out to
second. R Garko singled to center. V Martinez popped out to shortstop.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 1, CHI WHITE SOX 5.

CHI WHITE SOX 6TH: D Erstad grounded out to first. A Gonzalez flied out to
right. D Richar flied out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 1,
CHI WHITE SOX 5.

CLEVELAND 7TH: F Gutierrez doubled to deep center. F Gutierrez to third on
wild pitch by J Vazquez. K Lofton flied out to left. C Blake doubled to deep
left, F Gutierrez scored. B Logan relieved J Vazquez. J Michaels hit for
T Nixon. J Michaels struck out looking. J Barfield flied out to right. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 2, CHI WHITE SOX 5.

CHI WHITE SOX 7TH: C Lee relieved J Westbrook. S Podsednik struck out
swinging. J Fields grounded out to shortstop. J Thome singled to right
center. P Konerko homered to left, J Thome scored. A Pierzynski singled to
shallow left. J Uribe reached on infield single to pitcher, A Pierzynski to
second. D Erstad struck out looking. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 2,
CHI WHITE SOX 7.

CLEVELAND 8TH: S Podsednik in left field. J Owens in center field.
G Sizemore walked. A Cabrera flied out to right. R Garko singled to left
center, G Sizemore to third. V Martinez singled to left center, G Sizemore
scored, R Garko to second. E Wassermann relieved B Logan. F Gutierrez struck
out swinging. K Lofton grounded out to shortstop. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
CLEVELAND 3, CHI WHITE SOX 7.

CHI WHITE SOX 8TH: T Mastny relieved C Lee. A Gonzalez flied out to center.
D Richar walked. S Podsednik grounded into double play, shortstop to first,
D Richar out at second.(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CLEVELAND 3, CHI WHITE SOX 7.

CLEVELAND 9TH: B Jenks relieved E Wassermann. C Blake grounded out to
shortstop. J Michaels singled to center. C Gomez hit for J Barfield.
J Michaels to second on wild pitch by B Jenks. C Gomez struck out swinging.
G Sizemore singled to left, J Michaels scored. G Sizemore to second on
fielder's indifference. A Cabrera struck out looking. (1 Run, 2 Hits,
0 Errors) CLEVELAND 4, CHI WHITE SOX 7.</div>

 

Thome hits 499th homer as White Sox edge streaking Indians

<h3>CHI WHITE SOX 7, CLEVELAND 4</h3>CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Jim Thome handed the Cleveland Indians arare loss. In the process, he moved closer to an impressivemilestone.


Thome blasted his 499th career homer and Javier Vazquez pitchedinto the seventh inning as the Chicago White Sox snapped athree-game losing streak Wednesday with a 7-4 victory over thered-hot Indians.


Juan Uribe and Paul Konerko also homered for Chicago, whichsalvaged the finale of this three-game series to secure just itsseventh win in 18 contests against Cleveland this season. TheWhite Sox have lost five of the six series against the Indians.

The White Sox also gave manager Ozzie Guillen his first victorysince signing a multi-year contract extension through 2012 onTuesday.


With the loss, Cleveland (85-61) fell to six games ahead of theDetroit Tigers (79-67) for first place in the American LeagueCentral Division. The Tigers host the Texas Rangers laterWednesday night.


It has been a scorching second half for the Indians, who are20-7 since August 15 and have won 14 of their last 20 roadgames.


But on Wednesday, the Indians could not deal with the37-year-old Thome, who blasted his 27th homer of the season -leaving him one short of the exclusive 500-homer club. His shotoff Cleveland starter Jake Westbrook (5-9) snapped a 1-1 tie inthe fourth inning.


Thome added a two-run single in the fifth to make it 4-1.Konerko followed with a run-scoring hit of his own to give theWhite Sox a four-run cushion and cap the scoring in the frame.

Vazquez (12-8) allowed two runs and six hits in 6 1/3 inningswhile striking out nine and walking one. The righthander threw116 pitches to snap a three-game personal losing streak.

Boone Logan got the final two outs in the seventh and the firstout of the eighth. Ehren Wassermann closed out the eighth to setup Bobby Jenks, who worked the ninth in a non-save situation.

Cleveland's Josh Barfield opened the scoring with an RBI singlein the second, but Uribe evened the score with his solo blast inthe bottom of the frame.


Casey Blake cut Cleveland's deficit to 5-2 with an RBI double inthe seventh. Konerko then blasted a two-run homer in thebottom of the inning to give the White Sox a five-run advantage.

Victor Martinez and Grady Sizemore added RBI singles to providethe final margin.


Westbrook allowed five runs and seven hits in six innings whilestriking out five and walking one for the Indians.

 

Thome hits 499th homer as White Sox edge streaking Indians

<h3>CHI WHITE SOX 7, CLEVELAND 4</h3>CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Jim Thome handed the Cleveland Indians arare loss. In the process, he moved closer to an impressivemilestone.


Thome blasted his 499th career homer and Javier Vazquez pitchedinto the seventh inning as the Chicago White Sox snapped athree-game losing streak Wednesday with a 7-4 victory over thered-hot Indians.


Juan Uribe and Paul Konerko also homered for Chicago, whichsalvaged the finale of this three-game series to secure just itsseventh win in 18 contests against Cleveland this season. TheWhite Sox have lost five of the six series against the Indians.

The White Sox also gave manager Ozzie Guillen his first victorysince signing a multi-year contract extension through 2012 onTuesday.


With the loss, Cleveland (85-61) fell to six games ahead of theDetroit Tigers (79-67) for first place in the American LeagueCentral Division. The Tigers host the Texas Rangers laterWednesday night.


It has been a scorching second half for the Indians, who are20-7 since August 15 and have won 14 of their last 20 roadgames.


"It was a tough road trip in tough cities," Cleveland managerEric Wedge said. "Even today (the players) took it all the wayto the end. They played hard."


But on Wednesday, the Indians could not deal with the37-year-old Thome, who blasted his 27th homer of the season -leaving him one short of the exclusive 500-homer club. His shotoff Cleveland starter Jake Westbrook (5-9) snapped a 1-1 tie inthe fourth inning.


"Well, the fans are getting into it, you can feel the excitementin the dugout. The guys are getting excited, it's just a matterof going out and try not to think about it, but it's reallytough," Thome said. "I was trying to get a pitch to drive.There's a lot of emotion, and that's what makes this tough todo. Trying to control the emotions and being ready to hit."

Thome added a two-run single in the fifth to make it 4-1.Konerko followed with a run-scoring hit of his own to give theWhite Sox a four-run cushion and cap the scoring in the frame.

Vazquez (12-8) allowed two runs and six hits in 6 1/3 inningswhile striking out nine and walking one. The righthander threw116 pitches to snap a three-game personal losing streak.

"My first two innings I threw a lot of pitches and fell behindin the count a lot, after that I think I was more aggressivewith hitting the strike zone a little better and things workedout for me after that," Vazquez said.


Boone Logan got the final two outs in the seventh and the firstout of the eighth. Ehren Wassermann closed out the eighth to setup Bobby Jenks, who worked the ninth in a non-save situation.

Cleveland's Josh Barfield opened the scoring with an RBI singlein the second, but Uribe evened the score with his solo blast inthe bottom of the frame.


"He's swinging the bat pretty good. I think he doesn't know howgood he is. He can go out there and do some damage," Guillensaid. "Your not going to see guys hit 20 home runs the lastthree or four years as a shortstop."


Casey Blake cut Cleveland's deficit to 5-2 with an RBI double inthe seventh. Konerko then blasted a two-run homer in thebottom of the inning to give the White Sox a five-run advantage.

Victor Martinez and Grady Sizemore added RBI singles to providethe final margin.


Westbrook allowed five runs and seven hits in six innings whilestriking out five and walking one for the Indians.

 

Thome hits 499th homer as White Sox edge streaking Indians

<h3>CHI WHITE SOX 7, CLEVELAND 4</h3>CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Jim Thome handed the Cleveland Indians arare loss. In the process, he moved closer to an impressivemilestone.


Thome blasted his 499th career homer and Javier Vazquez pitchedinto the seventh inning as the Chicago White Sox snapped athree-game losing streak Wednesday with a 7-4 victory over thered-hot Indians.


Juan Uribe and Paul Konerko also homered for Chicago, whichsalvaged the finale of this three-game series to secure just itsseventh win in 18 contests against Cleveland this season. TheWhite Sox have lost five of the six series against the Indians.

The White Sox also gave manager Ozzie Guillen his first victorysince signing a multi-year contract extension through 2012 onTuesday.


With the loss, Cleveland (85-61) fell to 5 1/2 games ahead of theDetroit Tigers (80-67) for first place in the American LeagueCentral Division.


It has been a scorching second half for the Indians, who are20-7 since August 15 and have won 14 of their last 20 roadgames.


"It was a tough road trip in tough cities," Cleveland managerEric Wedge said. "Even today (the players) took it all the wayto the end. They played hard."


But on Wednesday, the Indians could not deal with the37-year-old Thome, who blasted his 27th homer of the season -leaving him one short of the exclusive 500-homer club. His shotoff Cleveland starter Jake Westbrook (5-9) snapped a 1-1 tie inthe fourth inning.


"Well, the fans are getting into it, you can feel the excitementin the dugout. The guys are getting excited, it's just a matterof going out and try not to think about it, but it's reallytough," Thome said. "I was trying to get a pitch to drive.There's a lot of emotion, and that's what makes this tough todo. Trying to control the emotions and being ready to hit."

Thome added a two-run single in the fifth to make it 4-1.Konerko followed with a run-scoring hit of his own to give theWhite Sox a four-run cushion and cap the scoring in the frame.

Vazquez (12-8) allowed two runs and six hits in 6 1/3 inningswhile striking out nine and walking one. The righthander threw116 pitches to snap a three-game personal losing streak.

"My first two innings I threw a lot of pitches and fell behindin the count a lot, after that I think I was more aggressivewith hitting the strike zone a little better and things workedout for me after that," Vazquez said.


Boone Logan got the final two outs in the seventh and the firstout of the eighth. Ehren Wassermann closed out the eighth to setup Bobby Jenks, who worked the ninth in a non-save situation.

Cleveland's Josh Barfield opened the scoring with an RBI singlein the second, but Uribe evened the score with his solo blast inthe bottom of the frame.


"He's swinging the bat pretty good. I think he doesn't know howgood he is. He can go out there and do some damage," Guillensaid. "Your not going to see guys hit 20 home runs the lastthree or four years as a shortstop."


Casey Blake cut Cleveland's deficit to 5-2 with an RBI double inthe seventh. Konerko then blasted a two-run homer in thebottom of the inning to give the White Sox a five-run advantage.

Victor Martinez and Grady Sizemore added RBI singles to providethe final margin.


Westbrook allowed five runs and seven hits in six innings whilestriking out five and walking one for the Indians.