LDN - Sports

Rodon fans 10, White Sox hand Twins 103rd loss

[October 01, 2016] CHICAGO -- Carlos Rodon knows when he's effectively throwing strikes on a regular basis, good things are bound to happen.

And from the get-go Friday night, the Chicago White Sox left-hander didn't miss the strike zone much.

Rodon struck out 10, including the first seven batters he faced and Tim Anderson and Melky Cabrera each had three hits and two RBIs as the White Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 7-3 on Friday night at U.S. Cellular Field.

Rodon matched an American League and White Sox record with his seven-strikeout streak, which was snapped when Logan Schafer doubled with one out in the third inning. Rodon (9-10) allowed only one hit over five shutout innings before the Twins touched the left-hander up for three runs (two earned) in the sixth inning.

"You get a little rhythm going," said Rodon, who scattered three hits over six innings and walked three to go along with his 10 strikeouts -- the fourth time he reached double figures in strikeouts in his career.

Manager Robin Ventura certainly liked the rhythm Rodon found early.

"This was some electric stuff coming out," Ventura said. "He has that. He has the capability to go out and do that."

The White Sox led 5-0 after three innings and chased Twins' starter Tyler Duffey after only two-plus frames.

The White Sox scored three times in the third on a two-run homer by Anderson and Jose Abreu's RBI double which scored Cabrera, who followed up Anderson's homer with a double.

Anderson finished 3-for-5 and was a double shy of the cycle.

"He's electric." Rodon said of Anderson. "Just watching him develop over this few months here, it's been incredible."

Duffey, who Twins' manager Paul Molitor said was frustrated early, appeared to be miffed by the way Anderson watched his home run leave the ballpark.

"I mean, (Anderson) backpedaled out of the box. Stood there and enjoyed it," Duffey said. "It's just one of those things. It's one thing to hit a homer. I gave up a 500-foot homer to Nelson Cruz and he jogs around the bases. It's one of those things. It's baseball. Don't give them up if you don't like it."

Omar Narvaez pushed the lead to 6-0 with his first career home run on the first pitch the White Sox catcher saw from Twins' reliever Pat Dean in the fourth inning. Cabrera's RBI single -- his third straight hit -- in the fourth gave the White Sox a 7-0 lead.

The Twins, who got an RBI single from Jorge Polanco and a run-scoring sacrifice fly from Miguel Sano in the sixth inning -- lost their franchise-worst 103rd game of the season.

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White Sox left fielder Melky Cabrera (53) hits an RBI double scoring shortstop Tim Anderson (12) (not pictured) against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning at U.S. Cellular Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

"(The milestone loss) is what it is," Molitor said. "You kind of get what you deserve.

"We didn't do a lot offensively. Rodon was real good obviously -- the strikeouts to start the game were impressive."

As good as Rodon was, Duffey (9-12) struggled in his abbreviated outing and was hurt by an Anderson triple in the first inning that should have been tracked down by center fielder Byron Buxton.

Cabrera then produced a RBI double and scored on Duffey's wild pitch. Duffey exited after failing to record an out in the third inning. He allowed five runs on six innings while striking out four.

Rodon experienced such struggles this season before finishing with back-to-back victories that he believes should give him a strong foundation heading into next season.

"You're going to take lumps, you're going to give lumps, it's all a learning process," Rodon said, repeating a lesson he learned from White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper. "Eventually at the end of the day, hopefully you'll turn into something great."

NOTES: Twins' 2B Brian Dozier returned to the lineup Friday after being given the day off Thursday by manager Paul Molitor, who said Friday that a day away could help Dozier mentally. Dozier had one hit in his last 30 plate appearances before going 1-for-4 with a run scored and two strikeouts Friday. ... C Kurt Suzuki was not in the starting lineup again Friday as he continues to work through "taking a beating." Molitor said if Suzuki does play this weekend, it would likely be in a pinch-hitting or designated hitting role. ... White Sox 2B Tyler Saladino has a herniated disk on the right side of his back, which has kept him out of the White Sox lineup. Saladino will not require surgery as of yet. "We are obviously keeping an eye on it every day," said Saladino, who has not played since Sept. 21 and has missed 10 of the White Sox' last 12 games.

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