Good Home Cooking Can Help White Sox Pad AL Central Lead

By Rob Winn in News on Jun 1, 2012 2:00PM

When the White Sox return home Friday they’ll be riding the wave of an eight-game win streak. Even though they are one game below .500 at the Cell, this is the perfect opportunity for the Sox to stretch their lead in the AL central before the dog days of summer arrive.

Both the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians are, for the most part, going to face tough competition in the next three series. The Tigers first face the Yankees before the division-leading Reds next weekend, while the Indians play the cellar-dwelling Twins before a trip to St. Louis to play the Cardinals. Then starting Tuesday the Tigers and Indians will face off for three games in Detroit.

Meanwhile, the Sox start the weekend against the sub-.500 Mariners. While the Tigers and Indians beat up on each other, the Sox play a Toronto team that has (as of post time) only won four their last 10 games. Rounding out the homestand will be a bad Astros team that should pose little problem for the Sox.

With series against the Yankees, Rangers, Tigers and Red Sox on the horizon, now is the time for the Sox to open up a lead in their division. Eventually, the Tigers will live up to their potential and with the Indians’ Travis Hafner undergoing knee surgery, the AL Central might quickly turn into a two-team race. The Sox would benefit greatly from a large division lead when and if that happens.