CHICAGO — Jose Quintana pitched eight crisp innings for his third straight win, and the AL-leading Chicago White Sox cooled off the Boston Red Sox with a 4-1 victory on Tuesday night.
Jose Abreu had two hits and three RBIs as Chicago ran its record to 19-8 with its third straight win. It has won nine of 11 overall to keep up with the major league-leading Cubs, revving up the anticipation for an intriguing summer in the Windy City.
Hanley Ramirez’s one-out homer in the fifth halted Quintana’s scoreless streak at 20 1/3 innings, but the left-hander bounced back by retiring Travis Shaw and Chris Young on a pair of grounders. He retired three in a row after Xander Bogaerts’ leadoff single in the seventh, including swinging strikeouts of David Ortiz and Shaw.
Quintana (4-1) allowed four hits, struck out five and walked none while lowering his ERA to 1.40. David Robertson finished for his ninth save in 10 chances.
The Red Sox (15-11) were coming off a weekend sweep of the Yankees and had won seven of eight. But they wasted an effective start by knuckleballer Steven Wright in the opener of a six-game trip.
Abreu hit a run-scoring triple in the first and a two-run double in the eighth against Junichi Tazawa. He is batting .464 (13 for 28) during a seven-game hit streak.
Todd Frazier also had a run-scoring groundout in the third for the White Sox, who finished with just five hits.
Wright (2-3) allowed three hits and walked four in six innings.
Quintana got some help from his defense in the second when Austin Jackson made a leaping grab of Ortiz’s drive to the warning track in center. Adam Eaton also made a nice running catch on Jackie Bradley Jr.’s liner to right in the third.
PANDA SURGERY
Pablo Sandoval’s rocky second season with the Red Sox was cut short by left shoulder surgery on Tuesday. Sandoval had a torn labrum repaired by Dr. James Andrews in Florida, and the estimated recovery time for the slugger is six months.
Sandoval left San Francisco for a $95 million, five-year contract with Boston in November 2014. The third baseman reported to spring training visibly overweight and lost his starting job to Shaw.
NO DANKS
The White Sox plan to cut John Danks on Thursday, ending the left-hander’s 10-year run with the team. Erik Johnson will be promoted to pitch against the Red Sox, but general manager Rick Hahn said the fifth starter is “going to be a bit of a fluid situation.”
“This is about putting us in the best position to win ballgames going forward,” general manager Rick Hahn said. “We feel we have a pretty special thing going on in this clubhouse right now.”
Danks broke into the majors with Chicago in 2007 and pitched in some big games for the White Sox, including eight innings of two-hit ball in a 1-0 victory over Minnesota that lifted his team to the 2008 AL Central title. But he hasn’t been the same since he had shoulder surgery in 2012.
The 31-year-old Danks went 7-15 with a 4.71 ERA in 30 starts last season, and then was hit hard while dropping his first four outings this year. Hahn said he talked to Danks about some different options, but neither side felt good about the bullpen and the veteran decided he didn’t want to go to the minors.
“It’s never easy to make a move like this when you have as much respect for the player involved as we all do for Johnny,” Hahn said before Tuesday night’s 4-1 victory against Boston.
“He’s been a tremendous teammate for everyone in that locker room this year and throughout his entire White Sox career, and obviously an extremely hard worker who battled back from a very difficult injury to rehab from.”
It’s also a costly move for owner Jerry Reinsdorf, who was involved in the decision, according to Hahn.
The White Sox are responsible for the remaining portion of Danks’ $14.25 million salary this year, a little more than $11.7 million when he is designated for assignment on Thursday. If Danks signs a major league contract with another club, the amount owed by the White Sox would be reduced by a prorated share of $507,500 minimum.
While Danks struggled on the field, he was highly regarded among his teammates, serving as a mentor to fellow left-handers Chris Sale and Carlos Rodon, two of Chicago’s top starters. Danks went 79-104 with a 4.38 ERA in 247 games with the White Sox, recording double-digit wins in four different seasons.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Red Sox: Carson Smith (flexor strain) was activated from the disabled list and pitched a perfect seventh inning. … RHP Joe Kelly (shoulder impingement) had a bullpen session and is scheduled to make the first of at least two rehab starts for Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday. . LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (knee) pitched six innings of three-run ball in a rehab appearance with Pawtucket. Manager John Farrell said before the game he probably would need another minor league start.
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