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Saturday, Sep. 23 7:05pm ET
Chicago cuts magic number to one | |||||
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GAME LOG
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Keep the champagne on ice. At least for one more day. The Chicago White Sox are ready to celebrate and now maybe they'll do it the way they'd prefer -- with a victory on the field and not by watching TV. "I'd rather storm the field than sit here and wait for Cleveland to lose," White Sox winner Jim Parque said after Chicago beat the Minnesota Twins 5-3 Saturday night, reducing the magic number for winning the AL Central to one. Since the White Sox started an hour earlier, there was a chance they would win and then clinch if the Kansas City Royals beat Cleveland in a later game. It didn't happen. The Indians won 11-1 and now the White Sox must wait for their first division title since 1993. "It would have been kind of lame to come in here and say 'All right, great, let's get out the bottles.' It's better to celebrate right after the game," Parque said. With the Indians winning big, the White Sox didn't even need to track the scoreboard or switch on the TVs when they reached the clubhouse. "I think we'd rather do it on the field," said Sean Lowe, who will start Sunday's game for the White Sox. "Once we saw Cleveland was up, we stopped watching. We'll do it ourselves. Everybody will be extra keyed up tomorrow." The White Sox, with a five-game winning streak, must now beat the Twins again. And Sunday they'll face Joe Mays, who is 4-0 lifetime against them. "I hope to get it over with this weekend," Chicago manager Jerry Manuel said. "We're facing our nemesis in Mays. We're due to get him." Parque (13-6) won his third straight decision, allowing three runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings. Keith Foulke got three outs for his 33rd save. "We're not relying on everybody else. We're taking care of our own business by winning our games," Foulke said. "We can smell the title." Charles Johnson, acquired just before the July 31 trade deadline, hit his 30th homer, starting a three-run fifth off Eric Milton (13-10), who missed his previous start with a sore knee. Shortstop Cristian Guzman's error allowed Tony Graffanino to reach right after Johnson's long homer. Jose Valentin followed with an RBI double and Magglio Ordonez with a run-scoring single to make it 5-1. "A couple errors and a couple of jam shots and the next thing you know we're down four runs," Milton said. "With a first-place team, you can't give them extra outs and that's what we did." Torii Hunter homered for the Twins and another run scored in the seventh when John Barnes doubled and Valentin made his 35th error of the season at shortstop. Herbert Perry hit an RBI single in the fourth and Graffanino -- starting in place of Ray Durham, who still had sore ribs after collapsing on the field Friday night _ had a run-scoring single in the third. The playoff appearance would be the seventh for the White Sox, who began this season tied with the Twins as the AL's youngest team. Thomas is the only active player left on the White Sox from their 1993 playoff roster. Game notesOrdonez made the defensive play of the game, leaping high against the fence in right to snag Matthew LeCroy's long fly and then firing back to first to double off Jacque Jones. ... Paul Konerko also started a nifty 3-6-3 double play to end a Minnesota threat in the seventh. ... Twins manager Tom Kelly told the Minneapolis Star Tribune he wants owner Carl Pohlad to let him know about his future and those of his coaches by the end of Sunday's final homestand. Kelly's contract expires at the end of the season and the Twins finish the season with seven road games. ... Guzman left in the sixth because of a bruised calf. ... With three more wins, the White Sox clinch home field throughout the playoffs. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Chi. White Sox Clubhouse Minnesota Clubhouse Durham says he's OK after scary collapse at Metrodome
RECAPS NY Yankees 13 Detroit 8
Chi. White Sox 5
San Francisco 9
Milwaukee 5
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