One Down, Two to Go

The White Sox passed part one of their gut check tonight with a solid 7-1 victory over the Detroit Tigers.

From MLB.com's game wrap:

Tuesday's complete White Sox performance also reinforced one point that has been abundantly clear for most of the past two seasons. The American League Central title still goes through Chicago, although neither team appears ready to yield the division crown after one lopsided victory.

Neither side will admit that the White Sox (58-34) have moved inside the heads of the Tigers (62-31), despite a 6-1 record against Detroit in 2006, a 4-0 ledger at Comerica Park and a 12-2 mark over the last 14 played in Detroit.

"I don't think it's a psychological edge," Detroit manager Jim Leyland said. "I think they've pitched better than we have and hit better than we have. Six times."

What the Sox got tonight, and what they'll need for the rest of the season was solid pitching. Garland continues to show signs that he just had a rough start and that last year wasn't an aberration. Now it is up to the rest of the rotation to shake off any rough outings and pick up the pace.

More from Scott Merkin, MLB.com:

Garland (9-3) won his fifth straight decision. He has not lost since June 8 at home against the Tigers. With 12 earned runs allowed in his last 38 1/3 innings -- a 2.82 earned run average over his last six starts -- Garland currently stands as the most consistent starter on the White Sox staff. The right-hander did nothing to hurt that status Tuesday, allowing one earned run on six hits over seven innings, striking out five and walking one.

Vazquez takes the ball tomorrow.

MLB.com: Entering his 18th start of the season Wednesday night, Javier Vazquez (9-4, 5.07) sits two wins short of 100 for his career and three losses short of 100. The right-hander is 2-0 with a 7.33 ERA in his last four starts and 1-3 with a 5.47 ERA lifetime against Detroit.