Garcia, Pierre carry White Sox over Tigers

5/19/2010

DETROIT - For a change, Freddy Garcia is healthy and the Chicago White Sox are happy.

Juan Pierre's two-run double and run-saving catch in the fourth inning and Garcia's solid start helped the White Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 6-2 yesterday.

"We'll take any win, the way we are playing," Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen said.

The White Sox had lost six of nine and haven't won consecutive games since their season-high three-game streak almost a month ago.

Garcia (3-2) gave up two runs over six innings, going five starts without a loss for the first time since the end of the 2006 season.

"If my shoulder is OK, and it has been all season, I can still pitch," he said. "When I'm healthy, I can still put the ball wherever I want it."

After Garcia closed 2006 strong in his previous stint in Chicago, injuries led to him going a combined 5-10 with Philadelphia, Detroit, and the White Sox the next three seasons.

The crafty right-hander looks as if he could be back, winning three straight games after giving up two runs in each start.

"He has surprised a lot of people by how good he has been," Guillen said.

Rick Porcello (3-4) allowed four runs on eight hits in seven innings.

"He couldn't get the ball down, and they whacked it," manager Jim Leyland said.

Pierre led off the game with a walk and scored, hit a two-out double to give Chicago a two-run lead in its three-run fourth, and dove to rob Gerald Laird of an RBI single that would have made it 4-3 in the inning.

"When you've got a runner on third, you go for the catch," Pierre said. "If you don't get it, so what. The guy is going to score if you play it on the bounce, and he'll score if you miss it."

Detroit's Johnny Damon hit a homer - his third this month - in the first inning and Brennan Boesch doubled and scored a go-ahead run in the second.

Brandon Inge got to third with one out after putting the Tigers ahead in the second inning, but they continued to struggle scoring runners from third with one or fewer outs.

Garcia stranded Inge by getting Laird to ground out and Adam Everett to pop out.