(670 The Score) Holding the second-biggest division lead in all of MLB, the White Sox have a golden opportunity to put even more distance between themselves and the rest of the pack in the AL Central over the next 10 days before the All-Star break arrives.
The White Sox lead the second-place Indians by five games in the AL Central entering play Friday. Chicago's next nine games are all on the road, but the schedule is favorable – three at Detroit (36-45), three at Minnesota (33-46) and three at Baltimore (27-54).
Put another way, the White Sox are in the driver's seat – even if manager Tony La Russa isn't adhering to that mindset.
"When it gets to be the end of September or early October, I will give you some kind of answer to that question," He said. "Right now we are getting ready to play the Tigers, who just swept Cleveland. After that, we go to Minnesota and Baltimore. We have a whole second half where we must play well."
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The White Sox (48-32) have risen to the top of the AL Central in large part because of their domination within the division. Chicago is 27-12 against AL Central foes, which is the best record of any team in MLB within its division. The White Sox finished off a sweep of the Twins on Thursday afternoon with an 8-5 victory.
"The one thing that we do is literally prepare for every series individually," La Russa said. "The most imperative thing you learn in the game is you can't get up for one series and disrespect the other. You must do it right in each series. We had been ready for the Twins because we respect them. We now have the Twins again and Baltimore after Detroit. We must do it right to play well against each one of them. It's just crazy to try to concentrate on just your own division. You do understand though that when you play in your own division, it's a two-game swing."
While their upcoming competition is against sub-.500 competition, the White Sox do face the challenge of being on the road for their final three series before the All-Star break. They're 17-18 on the road this season and 31-14 at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.
