Carlos Santana belted a go-ahead, two-run home run in the sixth inning and Daniel Schneemann and Angel Martinez also homered as the Cleveland Guardians defeated the host Chicago White Sox 4-2 on Friday in the opener of a doubleheader.
Cleveland extended its winning streak to four games as left-hander Logan Allen stopped a three-start skid and sparked a combined two-hitter.
Allen (6-7) limited the White Sox to two runs and one hit in six innings with two walks and five strikeouts. Relievers Cade Smith, Hunter Gaddis and Emmanuel Clase retired nine of the 11 hitters they faced.
Clase worked around Chase Meidroth’s leadoff single in the ninth to notch his 20th save in 24 opportunities.
The White Sox also brought the potential tying run to the plate in the eighth, but Andrew Benintendi flew out to the warning track in right field to end the inning.
Schneemann and Martinez smacked back-to-back home runs against Chicago starter Shane Smith with two outs in the second inning to stake Cleveland to a 2-0 lead.
Chicago’s Luis Robert Jr. tied the game in the bottom half, reaching Allen for a two-run blast. It was Robert Jr.’s ninth homer, one off the club lead, and first since the team reinstated him from the 10-day injured list Tuesday following a left hamstring strain.
Smith, a rookie right-hander, threw just 46 pitches over three innings in his final appearance before representing the White Sox at Tuesday’s All-Star Game in Atlanta. He scattered two runs and two hits with zero walks and five strikeouts.
Martinez, who has homered in three straight games, had two hits. White Sox pitching held the Guardians to five hits while registering nine strikeouts.
Tyler Alexander (4-9) took the loss, allowing two runs and two hits in 3 1/3 innings.
White Sox first baseman Tim Elko left the game in the fifth inning with right knee soreness. Elko struck out in his lone plate appearance and is hitless in his past 16 at-bats with 14 strikeouts.
Cleveland designated hitter Kyle Manzardo went 0-for-2 with a walk. Manzardo missed the past three games to be with his family after his mother, Windy, underwent successful heart transplant surgery.
The Guardians improved to 4-0 against the White Sox this season.
–Field Level Media
