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White Sox try to keep interleague success intact vs. Cubs

Jul 1, 2011 - 3:00 PM (Sports Network) - Interleague play has treated the Chicago White Sox kindly and they will attempt to keep that trend going today in the opener of a three-game series against the crosstown rival Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

The White Sox have won 18 of their past 19 series in interleague play, including nine straight away from home, and won two of three contests in Colorado to kick off a six-game road trip. In Thursday's 6-4 win in 10 innings at Coors Field, Juan Pierre single home A.J. Pierzynski and Gordon Beckham in the top of the 10th and Sergio Santos retired the Rockies in order in the bottom half to preserve the win. It was Santos' 17th save and made a winner out of Jesse Crain, who got the final two outs in the ninth.

"I got the count to 2-0 and knew the bases were loaded so I said to myself I'll take one and then he repeated the same pitch," said Pierre. "I got a good swing on it and was able to drive a couple in."

Jake Peavy started for Chicago and allowed four runs in six innings for the no-decision. Beckham finished 3-for-3 with a home run, two RBI and a pair of runs scored for the White Sox, who have won seven of their last 11 games and sit four games off the lead in the American League Central.

The White Sox are 152-110 all-time in interleague play, going 81-50 as the host and 71-60 on the road. They have hit an MLB-best 352 home runs over that time and are 9-6 against the National League this season. Chicago is 48-21 in interleague action since the 2008 campaign and went 15-3 a season ago.

Edwin Jackson will handle pitching duties for the Pale Hose Friday afternoon and is 0-1 with a 3.90 ERA in his last five starts -- all Chicago losses. He threw seven scoreless innings in a 9-5 loss to Washington last Friday and did not figure into the decision. Jackson is 4-6 with a 4.13 ERA in 15 starts and 2-4 in seven road assignments. The right-hander is winless (0-2) in three career starts against the Cubs, toting an 8.44 ERA in that span.

Jackson is 5-5 with a 4.40 ERA in 18 interleague starts and has won four of his last five decisions in those appearances.

The Cubs won two of three versus San Francisco and recorded their third win in five tries on an eight-game homestand with Thursday's 5-2 win in 13 innings. Darwin Barney had an RBI single and pinch-hitter Geovany Soto was the hero with a three-run homer to win it for the Cubs, who went 11-18 in June and clubbed an NL best 33 homers in the month. Chicago has hit at least one homer in 11 of the past 13 games.

"We never give up," said Soto. "We were down to our last pitch in the 13th inning and you just want to go home and win the game."

Aramis Ramirez, who recorded a pinch-hit, walk-off single in the Cubs' 2-1 victory on Wednesday night, forced extra innings with a game-tying solo home run in the bottom of the ninth. Ramirez has hit five homers and driven in seven runs over his last seven games.

Carlos Zambrano pitched just one inning and left in the second with lower back soreness. He allowed one unearned run and walked two batters before heading to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for an evaluation.

"He got here this morning, [and] I think he was a little cranky when he talked to us," Cubs manager Mike Quade said on the team's site. "They worked on him extensively hoping he could loosen it up and give us what he could and hoping they wouldn't bunt on him because that was going to give him trouble bending over too much. And he threw quite a few balls up. He just didn't have the freedom and flexibility that he normally does."

Chicago hopes to get some flexibility in its bullpen, as the club is expected to activate reliever Kerry Wood off of the disabled list today. Wood has been sidelined since early June with a blister on his right index finger. He is 1-3 with a 2.25 ERA in 24 appearances this season.

Cubs starter Randy Wells hasn't had much success this season, going 1-2 with a 6.25 earned run average in seven starts, and will toe the rubber Friday. He is winless in his last six outings (0-2) and was tagged for six runs and 10 hits in six innings of a 6-3 loss at Kansas City on Sunday. He is 1-1 in four home starts and 1-1 with a 5.25 ERA in two career starts against the White Sox.

The White Sox won two of three games versus the Cubs at U.S. Cellular Field last week from June 20-22 and are 43-38 all-time in this series. The Cubs have lost nine of 12 and 13 of the previous 18 matchups between the two clubs, while the Pale Hose have prevailed in six straight series.