NEW YORK (Interstat) — Gerrit Cole pitched six strong innings and the New York Yankees erupted for 10 runs in the middle innings Tuesday night, routing the Chicago White Sox 12-2 at Yankee Stadium II.

The Yankees won their fourth straight game and improved to 44-27, while the White Sox fell to 38-33.

Cole allowed two runs on three hits and struck out six over six innings, bouncing back from a loss to Cleveland on June 3 and a no-decision on June 9. Ryan Yarbrough followed with three scoreless innings of one-hit relief.

The White Sox struck first when Andrew Benintendi led off the second inning with a home run to right center field, his eighth of the season, giving Chicago a 1-0 lead.

The Yankees answered in the bottom of the second when Spencer Jones hit a solo home run to right field, his second of the year, tying the game 1-1.

New York seized control in the third inning, sending nine batters to the plate and scoring four runs. J.C. Escarra led off with a double to left field. Anthony Volpe singled, putting runners at the corners. Ben Rice walked to load the bases. Cody Bellinger then lined a single to right field, scoring Escarra and Volpe to make it 3-1. After Paul Goldschmidt struck out, Jazz Chisholm Jr. walked to reload the bases. Jones then walked, forcing in Rice for a 4-1 lead. Jose Caballero hit a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Bellinger to push the lead to 5-1.

The Yankees put the game away with a six-run fourth inning. Escarra opened with a single to center field. Volpe popped out, but Rice crushed a two-run home run to right field, his 20th of the season, making it 7-1. Bellinger followed with a single, and Goldschmidt launched a two-run homer to left field, his 10th, stretching the lead to 9-1. Chisholm Jr. singled, Jones walked, and Caballero struck out. Ryan McMahon then singled to right, scoring Chisholm Jr. for a 10-1 advantage. Escarra reached on a throwing error by White Sox pitcher Chris Murphy, allowing Jones to score and making it 11-1.

The White Sox got a run back in the sixth inning. Tristan Peters led off with a single to right field. After Drew Romo flied out, Sam Antonacci walked. Everson Pereira grounded into a force out, putting Peters on third. Benintendi walked to load the bases. Luisangel Acuna then singled to third base, scoring Peters to cut the deficit to 11-2.

The Yankees added their final run in the eighth when Caballero hit a solo home run to left field, his seventh of the year.

White Sox starter Joe Rock allowed four hits over three scoreless innings but exited after the third. Chris Murphy took the loss, giving up five earned runs in two-thirds of an inning.

For the Yankees, Bellinger went 3 for 4 with two RBIs. Goldschmidt finished 2 for 5 with two RBIs. Caballero was 2 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs. Rice went 1 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs. Jones was 1 for 3 with a home run and two RBIs. Escarra had two hits. Volpe had two hits.

For the White Sox, Benintendi was 1 for 2 with a home run and an RBI. Acuna had one hit and one RBI. Peters had one hit. Antonacci had one hit.

The Yankees collected 16 hits to the White Sox’s four.

The game’s pivotal moment came in the fourth inning when the Yankees sent 10 batters to the plate and scored six runs, breaking open what had been a 5-1 game. Rice’s two-run homer and Goldschmidt’s two-run blast within a span of three batters turned a comfortable lead into a blowout.

The White Sox had won two of their previous three games, including a 6-4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday. The Yankees had swept a three-game series at Toronto over the weekend, winning 8-3 on Sunday.

Both teams continue their four-game series Wednesday night. The White Sox then travel to Detroit for a three-game set beginning Friday, while the Yankees host Cincinnati for a three-game series starting Friday.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of New York Yankees 6, Chicago White Sox 5. Interstat’s ELO system had projected New York with a 68.40 percent probability to win. New York had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus 1.5. The total score of 14 went under the over/under line of 7.5.