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Power surge helping White Sox move atop standings

Aug 15, 2008 - 10:26 AM Chicago (68-52) at Oakland (55-65) 10:05 p.m. EDT

OAKLAND, California (Ticker) -- The Chicago White Sox used a power surge to move atop the American League Central Division.

The White Sox try to extend their first-place lead when they open a series against the Oakland Athletics on Friday.

Chicago, which owns a one-game lead over the Minnesota Twins in the AL Central, completed a sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 9-2 victory on Thursday. Jim Thome, Paul Konerko, Alexei Ramirez and Juan Uribe homered in order during a six-run sixth inning, marking the sixth time in baseball history that a team has hit four consecutive home runs.

The win was also the fourth in a row for Chicago, which leads the majors with 172 homers. Gavin Floyd (12-6, 3.84 ERA) tries to extend the White Sox winning streak against the hapless Athletics.

Floyd has won two of his last three starts, despite surrendering 11 runs in 17 innings over that span. The 25-year-old righthander allowed five runs in 5 1/3 frames on Sunday, but earned the win as Chicago claimed a 6-5 victory over the Boston Red Sox.

Dallas Braden (3-2, 4.62), who spent a majority of the season in the bullpen, makes his fifth straight start for the Athletics.