CHICAGO (AP) - Mark Buehrle outpitched Johan Santana, Jim Thome homered in the sixth inning and the Chicago White Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 7-1 for their sixth straight victory.
Buehrle (3-0) allowed four hits over eight innings to get his third straight victory as the defending World Series champions captured their 10th win in 11 games. He lost his shutout when Lew Ford hit a two-out homer in the eighth.
Thome, who struck out in his first two appearances against Santana, the Twins' ace lefty and 2004 Cy Young Award winner, hit a 3-1 pitch over the fence in center following a single by Tadahito Iguchi with one out. His eighth homer gave the White Sox a 2-0 lead.
The White Sox were finally able to beat Santana (0-3), who is winless in four starts this season.
Santana dominated the White Sox in 2005, going 4-0 in five starts with a 0.92 ERA. He was 6-0 against Chicago in his previous seven starts and had not lost to the White Sox since July 1, 2004.
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And he was tough again Friday night, changing speeds and overpowering Chicago hitters at times before Thome connected. Santana threw 120 pitches in seven innings, allowing five hits with three walks and six strikeouts.
The White Sox scored five in the bottom of the eighth, thanks to a wild relay throw from Twins shortstop Juan Castro. Thome and Paul Konerko singled off Juan Rincon, and Jermaine Dye's double to left center scored pinch-runner Pablo Ozuna. Konerko was held at third, but Castro's throw landed in Chicago's dugout, allowing both Konerko and Dye to score and make it 5-1.
Brian Anderson added a sacrifice fly and Scott Podsednik an RBI double off Matt Guerrier.
Dye's single and Anderson's broken-bat blooper were the White Sox's only two hits through five innings.
Buehrle, whose 16-9 career record against the Twins represents his most wins against any opponent, retired the first 10 batters before Nick Punto singled to right in the fourth. Tony Batista singled in the fifth for Minnesota's second hit.
Ruben Sierra's infield single and a walk to Batista gave the Twins a threat in the seventh, but Buehrle got Rondell White on a fly ball to end the inning.
NOTES: Thome has scored a run in all 16 of the White Sox's games. That's the longest streak ever to start out a season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. ... Thome is now 2-for-12 in his career against Santana and both hits have been homers. ... Rondell White was out of the DH role and in left field. Shannon Stewart had left the game to be with his wife for the birth of their daughter Thursday. Second baseman Luis Castillo didn't play either because of a sore right knee that forced him to leave Thursday's game early. ... The first 41/2 innings took only 62 minutes to play. ... Attendance was announced at 31,287. There were also 325 dogs in attendance for the White Sox's 11th annual Dog Day.
