DETROIT — Sean Burke pitched two-hit ball over five innings, Andrew Benintendi tied his career high with his 20th homer and the Chicago White Sox beat the playoff-bound Detroit Tigers 4-0 on Saturday to stay at 121 losses going into their season finale.
Making his fourth big league appearance, Burke (2-0) struck out six and walked three, helping stop Detroit’s six-game winning streak.
Detroit had two baserunners in each of the first two innings. Burke allowed only one runner in his last three innings.
“We had a couple of chances early to change his day,” Detroit manager A.J. Hinch said. “They got somebody up early because I think he had 30 pitches in the first and never really broke through.”
Burke held playoff-bound San Diego to one run and two hits in six innings during his previous outing. He persevered through dreary playing conditions in Saturday’s start.
“It’s nothing I haven’t pitched in before,” Burke said, who played college ball at Maryland. “I’m from Massachusetts and went to a Big Ten school, so I got used to pitching in this stuff. After the first two innings, I kind of settled in.”
Michael Soroka didn’t allow a baserunner while striking out five in three innings. Gus Varland finished a three-hitter, just the seventh shutout for the White Sox.
Detroit, which will be the No. 2 or 3 wild card in the AL playoffs, on Friday clinched its first postseason berth since 2014 with its 10th win in 11 games.
A night after setting the post-1900 record for losses, Chicago (40-121) won for the fourth time in a five-game span for only the second time this season. The White Sox won a season-high four straight from May 8-11.
Benintendi also doubled and scored two runs and Bryan Ramos added a solo homer for the White Sox.
Jackson Jobe, a well-regarded 22-year-old Detroit right-hander, had a hitless three-inning relief stint. Making his second big league appearance, Jobe had his first two career strikeouts.
In a game that started 2 hours, 20 minutes late because of inclement weather, Ramos homered in the second off Beau Brieske (4-5) and Andrew Vaughn hit an RBI single in the sixth against Ty Madden.
Benintendi followed a leadoff walk to Zach DeLoach in the eighth a two-run homer. He also hit 20 in 2017, his first full season with Boston.
Hinch didn’t think there was a letdown after Friday’s celebration.
“I don’t want to make any excuses whatsoever,” he said. “There was a lot of energy this morning coming out of last night. Then we sat around a little bit and then go out and it wasn’t a great day to play. We’re going to chalk this up and get through it and bounce back tomorrow. We have a chance to win the series and the regular season on a much better note.”
UP NEXT
White Sox RHP Jonathan Cannon (4-10, 4.37 ERA) starts Sunday against a Tigers pitcher to be announced.