White Sox 8, Giants 1: Carson Fulmer outpitches Madison Bumgarner

Carson Fulmer had already picked up his first major league win, but he merely benefited from a rain delay cutting Carlos Rodon’s short after four innings with a 3-1 lead.

Today, he picked up the first win he actually earned. He outpitched Madison Bumgarner, holding the Giants to one run over six innings while striking out nine. The White Sox offense erased the solo homer in the top of the second with a five-run bottom, and Fulmer never jeopardized it.

For the second straight game, Jose Abreu starred even amid a well-rounded offensive attack. He followed up his cycle with a fine encore, hitting his 30th and 31st homers and driving in three.

His first homer effectively sealed the game. The White Sox greeted Bumgarner with three straight hits in the second inning — singles by Kevan Smith and Rymer Liriano, and an RBI double by Yolmer Sanchez, which scored two when Mac Williamson’s throw home ended up halfway toward third base. After an Adam Engel strikeout, Tim Anderson shot a single through the left side to score Sanchez, giving the Sox a 3-1 lead.

Yoan Moncada popped out, but Abreu kept the inning alive by keeping an at-bat live. He fell behind 1-2, fouled off a pair of two-strike pitches, watched a cutter down and in for ball two, then stayed back on a curve and poked it over the center field fence for a two-run shot.

That gave Fulmer all the runs he needed. His first two innings were all about the three true outcomes: six strikeouts, two walks, and a Jarrett Parker solo homer in the middle of it. His fastball was the only pitch he could come close to commanding, but it had enough life to get swinging strikes.

Fulmer then walked Denard Span to start the third, but he settled into a conventional mode afterward. He used the lead to go after the Giants, and they couldn’t punish him. He finished his day retiring 12 of the last 14 he faced — singles, not walks the exceptions — and kept his pitch count under 100 for six innings despite an inefficient start.

The Sox offense didn’t take it for granted, tacking on three single runs. Avisail Garcia scored from first on a Matt Davidson double after two outs in the fifth, Yolmer Sanchez tripled and scored via #WILDPITCHOFFENSE in the sixth, and Abreu hit a thunderous blast on a get-me-over full-count slider in the seventh.

Anderson also had an entertaining day. He pantsed Bumgarner for two singles, a double and two stolen bases, and the double might’ve been a triple. He tested his luck on a ball that got hung up along the left field side wall, and he was called out. The White Sox challenged the play, and while replays showed his hand possibly getting to the base before the tag, there wasn’t a conclusive angle.

Engel was the only Sox who didn’t partake in the action, going 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

By winning the series, the White Sox slipped ahead of the Giants in the standings and below in the draft order. They’re now 1½ games better/worse than the Giants, and 2½ games better/worse than the Phillies.

Record: 56-86 | Box score