Derek Holland pitched six effective innings, Yolmer Sanchez homered and the Chicago White Sox beat the sloppy Minnesota Twins 5-1 on Thursday night.
Holland (7-13) bounced back nicely from a string of bad outings, yielding one run and three hits in just his second win in two months. The left-hander had allowed 20 runs and 20 hits in 11 innings over his previous five appearances.
Chicago had dropped six of eight before welcoming Minnesota to town for a five-game series. It was a prime opportunity for the contending Twins (65-62) to strengthen their playoff positioning, but the last-place White Sox (50-76) won three times.
Minnesota, which began the day with a half-game lead in the race for the second AL wild card, lost 4-3 on Wednesday night on Tim Anderson’s game-ending RBI single. Pitcher Jose Berrios (11-6) and first baseman Mitch Garver each committed a costly error in the series finale, and the Twins’ lineup was shut down by Holland and three relievers.
