White Sox even series with Kansas City

Quick recap tonight, because it's getting late after a long rain delay. The White Sox and Kansas City Royals waited two hours to start Tuesday, and then the game itself took only two hours and two minutes to play. (Three cheers for the pitch clock!)

Thank goodness the Sox won, 4-2, because it would be embarrassing to lose to Kansas City two days in a row.

Luis Robert Jr. hit his eighth home run of the season -- a solo shot -- in the fourth inning. Andrew Vaughn's fourth homer of the year brought home two runs in the sixth, and Seby Zavala added an RBI single in the seventh to cap the Sox's scoring against Jordan Lyles (0-6), who pitched a complete game for the Royals despite taking the loss.

Lucas Giolito struck out nine over six innings of two-run ball for the Sox. Three relief pitchers combined to retire all nine Kansas City batters they faced. Joe Kelly pitched the seventh. Reynaldo Lopez worked the eighth. Kendall Graveman needed only seven pitches to induce three pop-outs in the ninth for his first save of 2023. 

Giolito is 2-2 with a 3.59 ERA. He's posted five quality starts in his past six outings. He is indeed back to being the Sox's most reliable starting pitcher. It is the final year of his contract, so he's got millions of reasons to continue pitching well.

The Sox are 13-24. The Royals are 10-27.

Yusmeiro Petit breaks Mark Buehrle's record

San Francisco Giants right-hander Yusmeiro Petit on Thursday became the first pitcher in major league history to retire 46 consecutive batters.

Petit entered Thursday's action having set down 38 straight hitters over his seven previous appearances (six of them in relief). He was given an opportunity to start in place of the struggling Tim Lincecum and retired the first eight men he faced against the Colorado Rockies in a 4-1 San Francisco win.

Oddly enough, opposing pitcher Jordan Lyles ended the streak with a two-out double in the top of the third inning.

Petit's accomplishment breaks the previous record of 45 consecutive batters retired, which was held by Mark Buehrle. The former White Sox ace tossed a perfect game against the Tampa Bay Rays on July 23, 2009, and followed that up by retiring the first 17 hitters in his next start against the Minnesota Twins.

The four longest such streaks were all recorded by members of either the White Sox or the Giants. Sox fans will recall that former closer Bobby Jenks had a similar streak in 2007.

Most batters retired consecutively:
1. Petit, Giants, 46 in 2014
2. Buehrle, White Sox, 45 in 2009
3 (t). Jim Barr, Giants, 41 in 1972
3 (t). Jenks, White Sox, 41 in 2007