A rare stellar effort by Javier Vazquez couldn’t save the White Sox Tuesday night as Boston rookie pitcher Kason Gabbard threw seven shutout innings in a 1-0 Red Sox win. The White Sox also lost ground in the A.L. wild card race to the Twins, who rolled the Devil Rays 8-0 in Tampa.
Coco Crisp’s fourth inning RBI was all the Red Sox needed. Perhaps motivated by the return of David Ortiz from a heart ailment, Boston played inspired ball and kept the A.L. wild card within reach. They are now six games out. The White Sox are 1.5 games off the pace.
Jermaine Dye’s back spasms continued to keep him on the bench. It couldn’t come at a worse time for the White Sox, who managed just four hits against no-name Gabbard Tuesday night.
Two other key White Sox, Mark Buehrle and Bobby Jenks, are also on the mend. Buehrle’s still on schedule to make his Thursday start against the Indians. Jenks is a little more uncertain with soreness in his hip. Doctors say it was only a matter of time for Jenks.
“Each hip is supporting about 200 lbs.,” said team doctor Stephen Oliver. “No human hip is designed to take that much abuse. Maybe if he’d push himself away from the clubhouse buffet we wouldn’t be having this discussion.”
Number of the Night: 3
Games the White Sox need to win in their next four to keep the season meaningful.
