White Sox 12, Tigers 3: Nonstop offense

The Chicago White Sox started quickly on offense, with a three-run first inning, and never looked back. With three (!!!) triples and an Andrew Vaughn home run, the hitters cranked out 12 runs on 17 hits, and cruised to an easy victory over the rival Detroit Tigers.

Detroit’s Joey Wentz continued to struggle, giving up five runs in four innings before getting removed from the game.

Lance Lynn also had an inauspicious start to the game, having to pitch around several defensive miscues in the first inning to get out of a bases-loaded jam while allowing only one run. He similarly had to throw a lot of pitches in the second before finally settling down, cruising well into the sixth inning before the wheels started to fall off again thanks to a Hanser Alberto error and a few questionable calls by home plate umpire Alan Porter.

Despite the frustrated cursing that bookended Lynn’s start, the Sox bats made his life much easier than it could’ve been, given his five walks. The Sox bats were relentless, with every starter getting a hit except for Luis Robert Jr. Tim Anderson got back on track, going 4-for-5 at the top of the order, and Clint Frazier continued to provide reasons he should stick around, going 2-for-5 with a triple.

For the Tigers, Lynn did just enough to prevent them from ever making things close. Once the game was out of hand, the White Sox bullpen dominance continued, with Keynan Middleton, Reynaldo López, and Jimmy Lambert all throwing scoreless innings.

With the victory, the Sox are now 5 1⁄2 games out of first, with a 22-31 record. Lynn has improved his record to 4-5 with a nearly respectable 5.83 ERA. Wentz takes the loss, and drops to 1-5 with a 7.83 ERA.

The White Sox and Tigers face off again tomorrow for a midday game, with Jesse Scholtens (0-2, 2.25 ERA) facing Michael Lorenzen and his glorious mane (2-2, 4.08 ERA).