Twins 4, White Sox 3: Pinch-hitter Chris Herrmann hit a one-out single in the ninth inning to score pinch-runner Doug Bernier as host Minnesota rallied from a three-run deficit to continue its mastery of Chicago this season.
The Twins put runners on first and second with none out against Ramon Troncoso (1-4) before Clete Thomas' sacrifice attempt failed. Bernier replaced lead runner Chris Colabello at second base and raced home with the winning run when Herrmann singled to right field.
Trevor Plouffe went 2-for-4 with a solo homer while Josh Willingham and Justin Morneau each added an RBI for Minnesota, which has won seven of eight against the White Sox and improved to 10-3 in the season series.
Jared Burton (2-6) picked up the win after tossing a scoreless top of the ninth.
Chicago built a 3-0 lead, scoring twice in the first inning on an RBI single by Adam Dunn and a sacrifice fly by Paul Konerko and adding a run in the third as Alexei Ramirez lifted another sacrifice fly. Minnesota battled back with single runs in the fifth and sixth before Morneau plated Joe Mauer with a base hit in the eighth.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Twins starter Mike Pelfrey allowed three runs and seven hits over 6 1/3 innings, while Chicago's Andre Rienzo remained in search of his first career victory despite yielding just two runs - one earned - and four hits over six frames. ... The White Sox dropped to 15-36 against American League Central rivals. ... Pelfrey has not been victorious since July 6, a span of seven starts.
Chi. White Sox | Minnesota | |
Andre Rienzo | Player | Mike Pelfrey |
No Decision | W/L | No Decision |
6.0 | IP | 6.1 |
2 | Strikeouts | 4 |
4 | Hits | 7 |
1.50 | ERA | 4.26 |
Chi. White Sox | Minnesota | |
Paul Konerko | Player | Trevor Plouffe |
2 | Hits | 2 |
1 | RBI | 1 |
0 | HR | 1 |
3 | TB | 5 |
.667 | Avg | .500 |
Team | Hits | HR | TB | Avg | LOB | K | RBI | BB | SB | Errors |
Chi. White Sox | 9 | 0 | 10 | .265 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Minnesota | 9 | 1 | 14 | .265 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 |