The White Sox keep drifting along in the American League, managing to keep themselves on the edge of contention despite playing .500 ball since the last week of June.
“We’re not in the middle of a pennant race,” manager Jerry Manuel said. “We’re on the outside looking in.”
But with rookie Dan Wright earning his first major league victory Wednesday in the Sox’s 7-6 win over Kansas City, the Sox remained in the hunt for a wild-card spot.
They moved to within 7 1/2 games of wild card-leading Boston, the closest the Sox have been to a playoff spot since June 25, when they were 7 1/2 games behind Minnesota in the Central Division.
Jose Canseco hit home runs in his first two at-bats off Royals rookie Chris George and drove in five runs. Wright (1-0) earned the traditional beer shower from his Sox teammates that goes along with his first major league win.
He allowed four runs on seven hits and three walks in five innings, and was uncharacteristically wild, throwing only 53 strikes out of 101 pitches.
Kansas City greeted a jittery Wright with a three-run first, before Canseco tied it up in the bottom of the inning with a three-run homer that landed in the first row in left field.
In the third, Canseco blasted a two-run, opposite-field homer, handing the Sox a 5-3 lead.
Royce Clayton added a solo shot in the fourth, and Aaron Rowand’s RBI single increased the lead to 7-4 in the sixth.
Wright left with a two-run lead after five innings, and Rocky Biddle, Alan Embree, Gary Glover and Keith Foulke held on the rest of the way.
Rebounding from Tuesday’s loss, Foulke pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings, getting Gregg Zaun on a grounder to first to end it for his 25th save.
The Sox moved to one game under .500 at 52-53, and have won 6 of 8 against the Royals.
