White Sox 7, Tigers 1: Lucas Giolito impresses

The situation is bases loaded, two outs, and your rookie pitcher has already thrown six scoreless innings inching closer to 100 pitches. White Sox manager Rick Renteria visits the mound with the bullpen ready to replace his rookie pitcher, Lucas Giolito. Instead, by looking into Giolito's eyes, Renteria decides to let the youngster work himself out of the jam. Up to bat for Detroit is the light-hitting shortstop, Jose Iglesias.

First pitch to Iglesias, and it's crushed down the left field line for a grand slam.

As the Tigers base runners make their way to home plate, fans finally saw a replay the fly ball. Sure enough, Iglesias grand slam was a thunderous strike one sailing foul a good foot and a half after the umpire review. Instead of completing his second start allowing four runs in 6.2 innings, Giolito came back to win the battle inducing a 6-3 ground out to end the threat and his day with seven scoreless innings.

Unlike his last start where Giolito never found his feel with the breaking pitches, both the curve and slider were on display today. Detroit could only muster three hits off Giolito for the afternoon. In the second inning, Mike Mahtook hit a two-out triple to add pressure but wouldn't score as John Hicks grounded out to Tim Anderson.

In the third inning, JaCoby Jones led off with a single. He would be erased off the base path's as catcher Kevan Smith threw Jones out attempting to steal second. Two innings later, Hicks was hit by a pitch, but that was followed up by Jones striking out and Iglesias popped out to first base.

That's all the offense Detroit could generate against Giolito.

To help support the rookie's stellar afternoon, the majority of the White Sox offense came in the third inning against Matt Boyd. Yolmer Sanchez led off with a single and would score on Tim Anderson's double, his 20th of 2017. Anderson would make his way across home plate thanks to Tyler Saladino's RBI single. Avisail Garcia would keep the rally alive with a two-out single setting the table for Matt Davidson.

After a brief mound visit, Boyd took Davidson to a full count. On the seventh pitch, Davidson smashed a three-run homer to right field, his 23rd of 2017 and first since July 31st.

Giolito kept the five run cushion, but reliever Jake Petricka allowed a home run to Ian Kinsler to lead off the eighth inning. Fortunately, Petricka kept the damage limited to the solo shot as in the bottom half the White Sox extended their lead to six. Jose Abreu and Avisail Garcia went back-to-back with singles to left field. Abreu would eventually score off Kevan Smith's sacrifice fly, and Avi scored on Yolmer Sanchez's single, his third hit of the afternoon.

Gregory Infante closed out the game pitching a scoreless ninth inning. Closing a good week for the White Sox who won five out of eight games against AL Central rivals Minnesota and Detroit.

Record: 52-77 | Box Score