Mariners 2, White Sox 0: Solo shots spoil John Danks' night

When John Danks and Taijuan Walker squared off in Seattle this past Sunday, Danks fell early, Walker crumbled later, and the Mariners held on for the victory in an 8-6 slobberknocker.

This time, Danks limited the damage to two solo homers over six innings in a respectable showing. It just happened to be two runs too many, as Walker, Carson Smith and Tom Wilhelmsen combined for a four-hit shutout.

Kyle Seager broke the tie leading off the sixth. Geovany Soto called for a fastball away to the lefty hitter, Danks hit the wrong side of the plate, and Seager turned on it for a no-doubter to right. Danks came within a pitch of limiting the damage to a single run, but with two outs and a full count, Franklin Gutierrez jumped on a fastball that wasn't in enough and hit it over the bullpen in left to make it 2-0.

That's where the score stayed, as a pair of hits by Melky Cabrera (one double) and Alexei Ramirez accounted for the only hits, and an Adam LaRoche walk the only other baserunner.

LaRoche's walk helped set up the White Sox' best threat of the night. His plate appearance was interrupted by a hip injury to Walker, which ended his start one out into the seventh. Smith came in and issued ball four to put runners on first and second, and Smith deflected Alexei Ramirez's comebacker for an infield single to load the bases with just one out.

J.B. Shuck then came off the bench to pinch-hit for Geovany Soto and took the first pitch out of the zone. Alas, he bounced the next pitch to the drawn-in Seager at third base, who fired home to start a 5-2-3 double play to end the inning.

Otherwise, the Sox lineup was held in check. The Ramirez and Shuck at-bats accounted for two of their three at-bats with runners in scoring position on the day, and they only stranded four runners.

Danks and the Sox bullpen had to work harder for their nice night of work. Danks induced a double-play ball from Robinson Cano to escape a first-inning jam, worked around a pair of singles to start the second, and a Soto pickoff erased Logon Morrison's leadoff double in the fifth. Danks finished his night with the two runs over six innings on seven hits and no walks. He struck out five.

Matt Albers left the bases loaded in a scoreless seventh, and Dan Jennings stranded a couple of baserunners in the eighth. All in all, the White Sox held the Mariners hitless in 11 chances with runners in scoring position. Normally that should be good enough to win. Instead, the White Sox were shut out for the second time in three games.

Record: 60-67 | Box score | Play-by-play | Highlights