White Sox sweep Tigers on the road behind Munetaka Murakami's 2-run homer

The Chicago White Sox pulled off a crucial road sweep of the Detroit Tigers, delivering the final blow with a 7-5 victory on Sunday.

Detroit had previously fallen to Chicago 9-5 on Friday and 4-3 on Saturday. It’s the first time that the White Sox have swept the Tigers since 2022.

The White Sox’s win came despite a mediocre showing from ace Sean Burke, who allowed four runs early in the game and was pulled after 4 1/3 innings. However, a two-run home run Munetaka Murakami and a vital relief outing from Sean Newcomb ended up being the difference in the sweep-clinching win.

Detroit struck first, scoring three runs in the bottom of the second off RBIs from Brett Callahan — a recent call-up who hit the RBI triple on his first major league pitch — and Max Clark. Chicago rookie Sam Antonacci got one back with an RBI single in the third, but a Colt Keith solo homer gave the Tigers an early 4-1 lead.

The White Sox then slowly built their way back into the game, first with Drew Romo’s two-run homer in the fifth and then an RBI single from Colson Montgomery to tie the game at 4-all.

That’s when Murakami stepped up, with the 26-year-old first baseman launching a ball into deep left field (nearly hitting the waiting Little Caesars’ glove, for what it’s worth). The shot was enough to send him and Antonacci home in what ended up being the game-winning runs.

The two-run bomb was Murakami’s 27th homer of the season, as the All-Star rookie continues to thrive in Chicago.

After Chicago reliever Huascar Brazobán allowed an RBI double from Dillon Dingler in the bottom of the seventh, Newcomb stepped in to start the save by closing out the inning. Newcomb then threw two no-hit innings to finish things off, including striking out Kevin McGonigle and Dingler for the final two outs of the game.

In the top of the ninth, a solo homer from Miguel Vargas added a cherry on top of a big win for the White Sox.

The White Sox, who are cruising at the top of the AL Central, give themselves even more wiggle room with the sweep, which also holds back the Tigers as the AL wild card race heats up.

Next up for the White Sox is a return to their home market for a rivalry series against the Chicago Cubs.