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Byrd shuts down White Sox to continue roll

Sep 2, 2007 - 3:24 AM CLEVELAND (Ticker) -- Paul Byrd made it look easy.

Byrd pitched his second shutout - a four-hitter - of the season as the Cleveland Indians posted a 7-0 victory over the slumping Chicago White Sox on Saturday night.

Travis Hafner, Casey Blake and Kelly Shoppach each had two RBI as the Indians stretched their winning streak to a season-high eight games and improved to 6-0 on their seven game homestand. It is the longest winning streak for the Tribe since June 10-19, 2005 when Cleveland won nine games.

The win maintained Cleveland's 5 1/2 game lead over the Detroit Tigers in the American League Central. The Indians were tied with the Tigers for first on August 15 but have gone 13-3 since to open their biggest lead of the season.

"I think we have a nice thing going," Byrd said. "It's a nice feeling to come to the ballpark everyday expecting to win."

Byrd won for the fourth time in as many starts and has now won seven of his last eight decisions. The 14 wins in a season are the third highest total in Byrd's 11-year career.

"I threw a lot of changeups to righthanders and got some very high fly balls," Byrd said. "It was a nice for me. It was a night where that pitch was on."

Byrd didn't allow a runner in scoring position until the ninth, when he loaded the bases with one out before striking out Jim Thome and retiring Paul Konerko on a flyout.

"He really reached down deep in that last inning," Indians manager Eric Wedge said. "That's what it was all about right there. He made some good pitchers to some very good hitters and I was happy to see him do it."

The veteran righthander faced the minimum through seven innings and didn't throw more than 16 pitches in an inning. He finished the night with only two walks and three strikeouts. At one point through five innings, Byrd had thrown only 51 pitches - only nine for balls.

"Byrd threw the ball outstanding," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "I have seen him in the past and that was the best I have ever seen him. He didn't get behind and made us swing early in the count."

"(Byrd's) command of his fastball is his best pitch," said Shoppach, who is Byrd's personal catcher. "He also had a good changeup. That's his whole deal, to keep hitters off balance make them miss hit the ball."

Leading 1-0, Cleveland scored twice in the fourth on a Franklin Gutierrez solo home run and Blake's RBI single. Gutierrez lined a shot over the wall in right-center off of Javier Vazquez for his 10th home run.

Kenny Lofton followed Gutierrez's home run with a double down the left field line and came around to score on Blake's single through the whole at short.

Blake added another RBI single in the sixth giving the Indians and Travis Hafner hit an RBI double in the seventh.

"(Blake) getting some big hits for us and he did it again tonight," Indians manager Eric Wedge said.

Shoppach capped the Tribe's scoring with a two-run blast in the eighth off of reliever Ryan Bukvich.

Vazquez (11-8), who was coming off his worst start of the season against Boston, allowed four runs on eight hits in six innings. He struck out six and walked one.

"Right now it seems like we are going out there with no emotion," Vazquez said. "When you are struggling like this (as a team), everything goes wrong."

The month of September started like the month of August ended for Chicago. The White Sox were coming off their worst month since June of 1987. Chicago finished the month off August with a 9-20 record, worst in the majors.

"A good percentage of people in baseball are in same situation we are," Guillen said. "Only a few teams are in pennant races."

The loss also extended the White Sox's losing streak to five games and Chicago has now lost 11 in a row on the road.

"I think I have said it all," Guillen said. "The only thing I can say is to keep your head up and keep competing."

The Indians manufactured a run to take a 1-0 lead in the third. Kelly Shoppach led off the inning with a walk and went to second on a walk to Grady Sizemore. Asdrubal Cabrera dropped down a sacrifice bunt to set up Hafner's RBI grounder.