From the weekend:
The White Sox wound up dropping Saturday and Sunday's games to the Yankees, leading to a series split in New York and a 4-3 road trip. After clobbering Yankees pitching on Friday -- things got so out of hand for New York that Dewayne Wise pitched -- the Sox offense mustered two runs in 18 innings over the final two games of the series.
As of right now, three players will head to Kansas City to represent the White Sox in the All-Star Game later this month: Chris Sale, Paul Konerko and Adam Dunn. Jake Peavy is up for the final vote, but A.J. Pierzynski was pretty well snubbed. And AL manager Ron Washington pretty much knows that:
Although Pierzynski isn't buying it:
Jesse Crain threw on Sunday and felt better as he deals with a sore shoulder, although a trip to the disabled list hasn't been ruled out. And while John Danks left New York to undergo further testing on his left shoulder, he's expected to continue his rehabtraining program Tuesday in Chicago.
Here's something great: Peavy raised 24,100 for pancreatic cancer research on Saturday. CSN White Sox Insider Dan Hayes explains.
Chuck Garfien penned an outstanding, poignant piece on Pierzynski's relationship with the late Kevin Hickey that's definitely worth a read -- and be sure to keep an eye out for Inside Look: A.J. Pierzynski on Comcast SportsNet this month.
MLB
In his first season in the majors, Nate Jones has a 2.95 ERA while averaging just over a strikeout per inning. The rookie says he "never could've imagined" the role and level of success he's had so far in 2012.
Around the division: Both Cleveland and Detroit took two of three from AL East squads, as the Indians won their series in Baltimore and the Tigers took out the reeling Rays at Tropicana Field. As things stand, the Sox are 1 12 games ahead of Cleveland and 3 ahead of Detroit. Kansas City dropped three of four against the Twins, missing a chance to hold their ground in the division. They're now six games back.