Michael Bourn Injured as White Sox Beat Indians 3-1

Jake Peavy outdueled Brett Myers and Michael Bourn left the game with a gruesome-looking hand injury Sunday afternoon as the White Sox beat the Indians, 3-1, to avoid the sweep in the finale of a three-game set at Progressive Field.

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At first it appeared as though the Indians were in for a great game. Michael Bourn led off the bottom of the first with a home run on Peavy’s first pitch of the game to put the Tribe ahead from the get-go. Meanwhile, Myers kept the White Sox’ bats quiet for more than half the game, taking a perfect game into the third inning and holding Chicago to five hits in his first five scoreless innings.

Things started going downhill in the top of the sixth. With two outs and the bases empty, Myers walked Adam Dunn before making a mistake pitch to Paul Konerko—which, as always happens whenever a Cleveland pitcher makes a mistake to Paul Konerko, ends with the ball leaving the stadium. The Pale Hose jumped out to a 2-1 lead, which they didn’t give back.

But the White Sox weren’t done; Alejandro De Aza welcomed Vinnie Pestano into the game in the eighth with a leadoff home run. Meanwhile, Bourn’s solo shot was the only offense the Indians mustered. Peavy went seven strong frames for Chicago before turning it over to Matt Thornton and Addison Reed to shut the door on a 3-1 Tribe loss.

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The Good: Brett Myers looked much better. He was far from dominant but he got the job done, giving up two runs on six hits (including a home run) in six innings pitched. Keeping the ball in the park looks like it could be an ongoing issue for him, but at least the results were better this time.

Also, Carlos Santana came off the bench to pinch-hit. Hopefully this means he’ll be back in the lineup before the Boston series starts Tuesday.

The Bad: Michael Bourn left in the eighth inning with an injury after Matt Thornton stepped on his hand at first base. Note to the kids at home: that’s why you don’t slide into first base. He’s currently listed as day-to-day; hopefully he’ll be back in action soon.

Meanwhile, the Indians were held to one run on six hits—and three of those hits came from Bourn, who won’t be in the lineup for a few days.

The “Huh?”: In the late innings of a one-run game, Terry Francona made the call to the bullpen and brought in…Bryan Shaw. It ended up working out as Shaw retired the side in order (it was Vinnie Pestano who ended up surrendering a solo home run), but it was somewhat surprising that Francona trusted a player who almost didn’t make the Opening Day roster in a relatively high-leverage situation.

Interesting Tidbit: The last time the Indians swept the White Sox was almost exactly three years ago: April 16-18, 2010.