LDN - Sports

Santana pitches Twins past White Sox

[April 10, 2017] CHICAGO -- A nail-bleeder punctuated a nail-biter for the Minnesota Twins on Sunday afternoon.

Pitching through a cracked, bleeding fingernail on his throwing hand, Twins closer Matt Kintzler mitigated eighth-inning trouble to post a four-out save and close out Minnesota's 4-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox.

"It was bleeding, but he said he was fine, and he kind of threw better than he did prior to that," Twins manager Paul Molitor said.

Whatever works.

Right-hander Ervin Santana pitched six innings of two-hit ball before yielding to a shaky but resilient bullpen as Minnesota (5-1) continued a hot start and won the rubber game of the series. Jorge Polanco finished 2-for-4 with a solo home run.

Miguel Sano added a two-run homer as part of a two-hit day.

"I think everyone, we've had some really good at-bats," said Twins designated hitter Robbie Grossman, who added two hits. "There haven't been too many wasted at-bats, and we keep the line moving."

Chicago (2-3) threatened immediately after Santana left the game with a 2-0 lead but was unable to score after Avisail Garcia and Yolmer Sanchez hit consecutive one-out singles in the seventh.

In the eighth, the White Sox scored just once after loading the bases with one out. Kintzler hit Garcia with a pitch upon entering the game, marking the first inherited runner to score against the Twins this season. He escaped further trouble, however, getting his third save after Taylor Rogers, Ryan Pressly and Matt Belisle relieved Santana (2-0).

The White Sox left 10 runners on base, struggling to capitalize on three hits, three walks and a hit-by-pitch against the Minnesota relief corps.

"Keep it short and sweet," Chicago shortstop Tim Anderson said. "Just keep playing on."

Santana (2-0) walked two and struck out four on 87 pitches while lowering his season ERA to 0.69. He allowed only a single to Cody Asche in the second inning and a single to Jose Abreu in the sixth.

Informed that Molitor had suggested "he makes it look easy sometimes," Santana grinned and assured otherwise after winning his first two starts for the first time in his career.

"It looks easy from the outside," Santana said, "but it's a lot of work, a lot of preparation and a lot of focus."

White Sox left-hander Jose Quintana (0-2) limited the Twins to two earned runs and five hits in 6 1/3 innings.

After a breezy, seven-pitch first inning, Quintana struggled with his efficiency in spots. He retired eight Twins in a row before surrendering a home run to Polanco. He walked one and struck out seven.

"Today was better with the fastball command, a lot of strikeouts, especially with the fastball," Quintana said. "That's good. That is what I want."

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Twins starting pitcher Ervin Santana pitches against the Chicago White Sox during the first inning at Guaranteed Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

Quintana also said he has found increased confidence in his changeup but struggled with his breaking ball late in counts.

He added that he does not feel extra pressure after ascending to the role of staff ace in 2017 following the offseason trade of fellow lefty Chris Sale.

"I don't try to pay attention, so no,' Quintana said. "We try to take care of (the) pitcher, every night and day in our rotation. I just try to do my job every time."

Minnesota took a 1-0 lead in the third when Joe Mauer smacked a line-drive single to center field with two outs. The hit scored Grossman, who reached on a ground-rule double one batter earlier before advancing to third base on a passed ball during Mauer's at-bat.

Polanco increased Minnesota's lead to 2-0 with a solo home run to left leading off the seventh inning. Sano drove a two-run homer to center in the eighth. Both long balls came with two strikes.

The White Sox scored their lone run on Garcia's run-scoring hit-by-pitch in the eighth. None of the club's hits went for extra bases. Chicago batted .125 with runners in scoring position while stranding 22 runners in the three-game series.

The Twins, meanwhile, are off to their best start since also opening the 2010 season with the same 5-1 mark.

"We're just trying to do everything new can to try to win games," Santana said. "We play better now. We have a lot of good defense, a lot of good offense right now. So we just have to keep it up and don't worry about the past."

NOTES: The Twins have won seven of their past 11 games against the White Sox. ... White Sox 2B Yolmer Sanchez made his first start of the season Sunday after pinch-running Saturday in his season debut. Sanchez made 33 appearances, including 31 starts, with the White Sox in 2016, splitting time with Triple-A Charlotte. ... White Sox LF Melky Cabrera batted leadoff for the first time this season. Cabrera hit third in Chicago's first four games but moved up in the order when regular leadoff man Tyler Saladino got the day off.

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