Contreras solid, White Sox sweep Royals

By Mark Gonzales | Tribune reporter

12:31 AM CDT, June 6, 2008

The White Sox heard all winter and spring about the Tigers' upgrades and the Indians' status as the defending American League Central champion.

But the Twins never left manager Ozzie Guillen's mind.

After completing a three-game sweep of the Royals on Thursday night, the Sox have a chance to put more distance between themselves and the pesky Twins when they open a four-game series at U.S. Cellular Field on Friday night.

"I don't want to put my foot in my mouth," Guillen said after Jose Contreras pitched seven innings of four-hit ball to beat the Royals 6-2. "I always respect every team. But for some reason, the Minnesota Twins always find a way to beat you. And like I said earlier, this is a big series. Not the big series of the year, but it's going to be a big series for us.

"They're behind us and we have to keep them there or get a bigger lead. Hopefully, we can do that. Nothing depends on this series but, obviously, it's important for both teams to get a bigger lead or shorter lead."

So far, the Sox are 3-0 in a stretch of nine consecutive games against division opponents.

They are 17-8 in AL Central play, compared to Minnesota's 18-9 mark against division foes.

The Sox expanded their lead to 21/2 games over Minnesota by stringing together four hits and two walks during a four-run second off Gil Meche (3-8).

Jim Thome hit his second home run in as many games, an opposite-field solo shot that landed in the left-field bullpen in the seventh. Thome's homer was his 12th of the season and the 519th of his career.

"It's great," Guillen said of the momentum the Sox have built recently. "Believe me, you can see the difference in the dugout. It seems like everyone is attacking the pitch, putting good swings on the ball. When we need a big hit, you see [ Orlando] Cabrera getting a big two-out base hit to right field. And [ Alexei] Ramirez did the same thing, and Thome hit a home run. Everything came together. We had good at-bats. And every day, it has to be someone different."

The Royals lost their 11th straight road game, one shy of the franchise record, and have dropped 15 of 17 overall.

The Sox hope to regain the services of third baseman Joe Crede, who was relieved that X-rays showed his right wrist wasn't broken after fielding David DeJesus' hard grounder in the 12th inning of Wednesday's 15-inning victory.

"It's pretty sore right now but it's definitely not as bad as it was, or as bad as we anticipated," Crede said. "I'll definitely be in there [Friday]."

The four-run second was plenty of support for Contreras, who retired 15 of the final 17 batters he faced.

"When you have a four-run lead, it is easier to pitch and get more comfortable," said Contreras (6-3), who won his fourth consecutive decision while improving to 9-4 lifetime against Kansas City.

Contreras has limited opponents to five hits or fewer in five consecutive starts.

Contreras is 4-0 with a 1.50 ERA in his last six starts and he has held the opposition to one run in seven of his 12 starts, including Thursday night's effort. Nick Masset allowed the other run.

"I think the confidence level went up another notch," Guillen said.

mgonzales@tribune.com