Rodon fans 10, White Sox hand Twins 103rd loss
CHICAGO – Carlos Rodon struck out 10, including the first seven batters he faced and Tim Anderson and Melky Cabrera each had three hits and two RBIs as the Chicago White Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 7-3 on Friday night at U.S. Cellular Field.
Rodon matched an American League and White Sox record with his seven-strikeout streak, which was snapped when Logan Schafer doubled with one out in the third inning. Rodon (9-10) allowed only one hit over five shutout innings before the Twins touched the left-hander up for three runs (two earned) in the sixth inning.
Rodon scattered three hits over six innings and walked three to go along with his 10 strikeouts -- the fourth time he reached double figures in strikeouts in his career.
Anderson helped pace the White Sox offense with his three hits and finished a double shy of hitting for the cycle.
The Twins, who got an RBI single from Jorge Polanco and a run-scoring sacrifice fly from Miguel Sano in the sixth inning – lost their franchise-worst 103rd game of the season with the loss.
The White Sox led 5-0 after three innings and chased Twins' starter Tyler Duffey after only two-plus innings.
The White Sox scored three times in the third on a two-run home run by Tim Anderson and a Jose Abreu RBI double, which scored Cabrera, who followed up Anderson's homer with a double.
Omar Narvaez pushed the lead to 6-0 with his first career home run on the first pitch the White Sox catcher saw from Twins' reliever Pat Dean in the fourth inning. Cabrera's RBI single -- his third straight hit -- in the fourth gave the White Sox a 7-0 lead.
The White Sox jumped on Duffey early. Anderson tripled before Cabrera produced a RBI double and then scored on a Duffey wild pitch. Duffey exited after failing to record an out in the third inning. He allowed five runs on six innings while striking out four in his abbreviated appearance.
NOTES: Twins' 2B Brian Dozier returned to the lineup Friday after being given the day off Thursday by manager Paul Molitor, who said Friday that a day away could help Dozier mentally. Suzuki had one hit in his last 30 plate appearances entering Friday. ... C Kurt Suzuki was not in the starting lineup again Friday as he continues to work through "taking a beating." Molitor said if Suzuki does play this weekend, it would likely be in a pinch-hitting or designated hitting role. ... White Sox 2B Tyler Saladino has a herniated disk on the right side of his back, which has kept him out of the White Sox lineup. Saladino will not require surgery as of yet. "We are obviously keeping an eye on it every day," said Saladino, who has not played since Sept. 21 and has missed 10 of the White Sox' last 12 games.