Buehrle Brilliant (again)

(September 4)  Game One.

Short take:  Grab the Tigers by the tail!

A few hundred friends and family members arrived at Comiskey on a weekday afternoon to watch the beginning of a twi-night doubleheader, a make up game for an early-season rainout.  Mark Buehrle and the Sox made it worth their while, putting on a fine show while taming Phil Garner's Tigers.  10-1 was the final.

Let's hope too many Sox Fans didn't get caught in traffic arriving late at Comiskey.  If they did they missed some of the best fireworks of the game.  #2 hitter Jose Valentin took a 2-2 pitch deep into the right field seats in the first inning to give our Pale Hose a 1-0 lead.  His teammates egged him on for another two-fingered kiss and chest thump for the dugout camera, but Manos simply smiled broadly, turned and walked the other direction.

Class act.

Jeff Liefer built on the lead singling home Paul Konerko who had reached on a fielder's choice.  The Sox looked to build the lead further but #8 hitter Royce Clayton popped out with the bases loaded.  That will happen with a career .259 hitter in your line up.

It didn't make any difference.  Mark Buehrle was simply brilliant.  He plowed through Detroit's line up, allowing just one hit through the first six innings.  He had a 5-0 lead before Detroit finally managed to string two hits together and tally one on the scoreboard.

Meanwhile the rest of the Sox were taking care of business.  Liefer finished 3 for 5 with 2 ribbies.  Royce Clayton (!) had two rbi's, too!  The team rapped out 15 hits.  Josh Fogg came in for another relief appearance and pitched a perfect ninth including one strikeout.  Quite a start the Sox rookie has had in the big leagues!

Couldn't we have used this sort of team performance last April?  Some of today's heroes were the team's biggest goats back then.