Sean Burke kept rolling Sunday, and the White Sox kept climbing.
Chicago rode 6.2 scoreless innings from Burke and a steady offensive push from the Montgomerys to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-0 at Rogers Centre, a win that pushed the White Sox to 52-46 and into sole possession of first place in the American League Central. With Cleveland losing, Chicago moved one game clear of the Guardians.
Burke was in control from the start. He set down the first 10 Toronto hitters and didn’t let anyone reach scoring position until the sixth inning.
Over 98 pitches, he threw 69 strikes, generated 18 first-pitch strikes against 23 batters and finished with five strikeouts and one walk while trimming his ERA to 3.20. Toronto managed just two hits off him: Nathan Lukes’ infield single in the fourth and Daulton Varsho’s two-out single in the seventh.
The outing was the latest sign that Burke’s season has taken a sharp turn. From May 8 through June 13, he posted a 5.82 ERA and 1.56 WHIP in seven starts, with 20 walks and six homers allowed over 34 innings. Since June 18, though, he’s looked like a different pitcher entirely, putting up a 1.40 ERA and 0.88 WHIP across six starts and piling up 47 strikeouts against just six walks in 38 2/3 innings.
Chicago gave him just enough help early, then added on in the middle innings. In the fourth, Miguel Vargas reached on a fielder’s choice and Colson Montgomery moved him to third with a single. Andrew Benintendi then brought Vargas home with a sacrifice fly to center for a 1-0 lead.
The White Sox stretched it in the sixth. Colson Montgomery launched a two-out solo homer to right-center, a 388-foot blast that was his 24th of the season.
No other major-league shortstop has reached 20. Benintendi followed with a double, and Braden Montgomery singled him in to make it 3-0 before getting thrown out trying to take second.
That was more than enough for the pitching staff. Bryan Hudson handled four outs after Burke, including a strikeout of Luis Urías in the eighth.
Grant Taylor took over in the ninth and had to work through some traffic after consecutive infield singles by Ernie Clement and Lukes. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. lined out to right, moving Clement to third, and then Kazuma Okamoto grounded into a game-ending double play.
Taylor needed just nine pitches to finish off his fifth save.
The White Sox had four shutouts this season after Sunday’s win, and they’ve now won five of six since Munetaka Murakami returned to the lineup. Murakami went hitless with two walks and two strikeouts, but Chicago still improved to 5-1 in that stretch.
There were still some rough edges away from home - the White Sox are 7-15 in road day games and 21-29 overall on the road - but those numbers mattered a lot less with first place in hand.
Chicago heads to Texas on Monday to open a three-game series against the Rangers. Erick Fedde is set to face Jacob deGrom, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. CT on CHSN.
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