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Lowe, Peavy square off on the South Side

May 26, 2012 - 2:29 PM (Sports Network) - A pair of veteran right-handers off to unexpected fast starts will square off this afternoon at U.S. Cellular Field as the White Sox host the Indians in the second test of a three-game weekend set.

Derek Lowe was the hard-luck loser in Sunday's interleague matchup with the Marlins, as he allowed just two earned over six innings, the sixth consecutive start in which he allowed two runs or less. The loss was just Lowe's second of the season and his first since April 18.

The sinker-baller had won four of his previous five starts, including a masterful complete game shutout in the Indians' 5-0 win over Minnesota on May 15.

"It's been a really gratifying start." Lowe said of his 2012 campaign. "Coming into this season there were so many questions about, 'Are you done? Are you going to retire?' I worked my tail off, not just to prove people wrong but to get myself back to where I knew I should be."

Lowe hopes to continue his success against the White Sox, and while he is just 1-3 against them in his career, he has a respectable 3.55 ERA in 71 innings.

Chicago answers with a surprise story of its own in Jake Peavy, who after a few sub par and injury-riddled seasons on the South Side, has finally put it back together in 2012 to the tune of a 5-1 record, a 2.39 ERA.

Peavy recorded by far his worst outing of the year on May 15 in a 10-8 loss to the Tigers, allowing nine hits and six earned runs in 5 1/3 innings, but he bounced back beautifully on Sunday against the cross-town rival Cubs, tossing 6 1/3 scoreless frames while striking out seven.

Peavy has already been victorious once this season against the Tribe, allowing one earned run and striking out five over seven innings in a 8-1 win on May 9.

Though the first-place Indians made a statement earlier in the week with an emotional three-game sweep over the Tigers, they dropped the first game of this series on Friday, 9-3.

Adam Dunn smacked his 15th home run of the season for the White Sox, who have now won three in a row and are just 2 1/2 games back of the Indians.

The power supply was not limited to just Dunn however, as A.J. Pierzynski and Dayan Viciedo knocked their eighth and ninth homers, respectively. The longball brigade is starting to become a theme for the White Sox after hitting five home runs in a win over the Twins on Thursday.

"We have a good feeling," Pierzynski said of the Sox recent play. "There's been some up and downs, but at the end of the day, we know there's a positive vibe. Guys want to do well. They're working their tails off to do well. We know we're in a dog fight, but at the end of the day, we like where we're at. We like our chances. If we continue to pitch and get some hits like we have, we should be able to win."

The offensive outburst was plenty of support for Jose Quintana (1-0), who earned the win in his first major league start by allowing two earned runs in six innings while striking out four.

Jeanmar Gomez (3-3) was handed the loss for the Indians. He pitched 5 2/3 innings and allowed six hits, four walks, and six earned runs.

Shin-Soo Choo went 2-for-3 with two runs scored out of the leadoff spot, and he now has five multi-hit efforts in the past 10 games.