CHICAGO (Reuters) - White Sox left-hander John Danks struck out nine batters and allowed just one run to halt the Tampa Bay Rays' seven-game winning streak and give Chicago a much-needed 4-1 victory on Tuesday.
Danks (2-0) conceded only two hits in his eight innings to help the White Sox (5-9) get their first win in five games and dash the Rays' (10-4) hopes of setting a single-season club record with an eighth consecutive road win.
"There are plenty of teams I don't match up well against, but for whatever reason I have (against Tampa Bay)," Danks told reporters after improving to 5-1 with a 2.35 ERA in his career against the Rays. "It's a big game for me and the team."
Carl Crawford had all three Tampa Bay hits and their only run, a solo homer that gave his team a 1-0 lead that was wiped out by Paul Konerko's RBI double in the bottom of the first.
Konerko finished 3-for-4 and also had a solo homer in the eighth after the White Sox scored once in the second and sixth innings in support of Danks, who has allowed just one run in each of his three starts this season.
"He's good, and he had it all going on today," said Rays manager Joe Maddon. "He had that nice little cutter going on inside. Then he's got the changeup working away from the righty, and then he started mixing up the bigger curve ball toward the end."
Tampa Bay's young hurler David Price took his first loss of the season after allowing three runs in five innings.
(Editing Peter Rutherford)
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