EditorsNote: fixes 3rd graf
Tim Anderson hit two of Chicago's five solo homers and Dallas Keuchel grinded through four innings in his return from the injured list as the visiting White Sox cooled off the surging Cincinnati Reds 5-0 on Saturday night.
Anderson, Yasmani Grandal and Jose Abreu hit back-to-back-to-back home runs in the eighth to break open a two-run game as the AL Central-leading White Sox (34-18) ended Cincinnati's six-game winning streak.
Keuchel, who dealt with back spasms and most recently started on Sept. 6, was far from dominant, but was good enough to make it through 75 pitches while allowing four hits, walking three and striking out seven. Matt Foster (5-0) pitched two innings of scoreless relief to get the win.
Cincinnati (26-27), which has worked its way back into postseason contention, failed to take advantage of Keuchel's mediocre stuff. The Reds, who homered four times in Friday's 7-1 win, stranded seven runners over the first three innings, including the bases loaded in the second.
Reds' Cy Young Award candidate Trevor Bauer (4-4, 1.80 ERA) allowed two hits through four innings until the Chicago bats woke up in the fifth. Nomar Mazara drove the ball just inside the right-field foul pole for his first home run since Sept. 22, 2019. Two batters later, AL MVP candidate Anderson went deep to center field to put the White Sox up 2-0.
Bauer yielded those two homers, five total hits and he struck out five with a walk over seven innings and 107 pitches. Robert Stephenson came on in the eighth for Cincinnati and promptly gave up home runs to the first three batters he faced.
Anderson, in the hunt for a batting title with a .366 average, recorded his fifth career multi-homer game. Abreu, also in the mix for the AL MVP, had two hits and homered for the third time in four games.
Joey Votto had two hits for Cincinnati, which managed just six hits and struck out 12 times against five Chicago pitchers.
--Field Level Media
