CHICAGO (Interstat) — Miguel Vargas homered and scored in the first inning as the Chicago White Sox defeated the Detroit Tigers 3-1 on Saturday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field. The White Sox improved to 80-77 with the victory, while the Tigers fell to 74-83. The game drew 30,631 fans and lasted 2 hours, 39 minutes. Chicago bounced back from an 11-8 loss to Detroit on Friday afternoon and won for the second time in the three-game series. The White Sox had slipped to second place by one game behind Cleveland in the American League Central after Friday’s loss, and the victory helped them keep pace in the division race.

Vargas delivered the decisive swing in the bottom of the sixth inning. With Chicago holding a one-run lead, he connected on his team-leading 33rd home run, a fly ball to left-center field that gave the White Sox a two-run cushion. Vargas finished the afternoon 1 for 2 with a home run and one RBI. He also reached base in the first inning, walked, stole second and scored on Munetaka Murakami’s single. Vargas walked again in the eighth inning, giving Chicago another baserunner in the late innings. His combination of power, patience and speed caused problems for Detroit throughout the afternoon. The home run came after Detroit had tied the game in the top of the fifth, and it restored control for the White Sox.

Sean Burke earned the win for Chicago with six strong innings. He allowed one earned run on five hits and three walks while striking out five. Burke improved to 10-7. The right-hander worked around Detroit traffic and kept the Tigers from building a big inning. His recent form included a win over Cleveland on Sept. 14, when he pitched five scoreless innings and struck out four. Against Detroit, Burke relied on his defense and made key pitches when runners were on base. Jackson Jobe took the loss for Detroit despite a strong strikeout total. Jobe pitched six innings, gave up three earned runs on four hits, walked one and struck out nine. He fell to 2-3. Jobe struck out the side in the fourth and recorded multiple swings and misses with his breaking ball. Jacob Waguespack followed Jobe and pitched two hitless scoreless innings, walking one and striking out three. Noah Schultz tossed 1 2/3 scoreless innings with two hits and four strikeouts, and Grant Taylor recorded his 10th save by working 1 1/3 innings and allowing one hit. Chicago’s bullpen combined to keep Detroit off the scoreboard over the final four innings. Waguespack, Schultz and Taylor each contributed scoreless relief.

Detroit outhit Chicago 8-4 but managed only one run. The Tigers tied the game in the top of the fifth. Ben Malgeri was hit by a pitch, Brett Callahan singled and John Peck walked to load the bases. Kevin McGonigle then lifted a sacrifice fly to left field that scored Malgeri. McGonigle finished 1 for 4 with one RBI. Riley Greene had two hits in three at-bats for Detroit. Hao-Yu Lee also had two hits, including a single in the ninth, but the Tigers could not push across another run. Dillon Dingler, Max Clark and Brett Callahan added hits for Detroit. Max Clark singled in the eighth, and Detroit put two runners on base in that inning, but Chicago escaped without damage. The Tigers also threatened in the sixth. Riley Greene singled, Max Clark walked and Ben Malgeri walked to load the bases with two outs. Brett Callahan struck out to end the inning, leaving the runners stranded. That missed opportunity proved costly when Vargas homered in the bottom of the sixth.

Chicago scored first in the bottom of the first. Vargas walked with two outs, stole second and scored on Murakami’s single to left. The White Sox added a run in the fifth. Braden Montgomery hit a ground-rule double to left-center, moved to third on Brenton Doyle’s single and scored on Sam Antonacci’s sacrifice fly to left. Montgomery finished 1 for 3. Antonacci went 0 for 3 with one RBI. Doyle had the other Chicago hit. Murakami had the first-inning single. Kyle Teel reached on a fielding error by Detroit first baseman Colt Keith in the third, but Jobe stranded him. Chicago had only four hits, but the White Sox made them count. Murakami’s single drove in the first run, Antonacci’s sacrifice fly brought home the second, and Vargas’ home run provided the final margin. The White Sox did not need a big offensive day because their pitching staff limited Detroit’s chances.

Detroit’s best chance to break through came in the fifth. Malgeri was hit by a pitch to start the rally. Callahan lined a single to center, and Peck walked to load the bases with no outs. McGonigle followed with a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Malgeri and tying the game. Hao-Yu Lee struck out swinging to end the inning, leaving two runners on base. In the sixth, Detroit loaded the bases again. Greene singled, Clark walked and Malgeri walked. Callahan struck out looking, ending the threat. In the eighth, Greene was hit by a pitch and Clark singled, but Malgeri popped out and Eduardo Valencia grounded out. In the ninth, Hao-Yu Lee singled with two outs before Torkelson flied out to center. The Tigers finished with eight hits and three walks but left multiple runners on base. They failed to deliver a big hit with runners in scoring position, a key factor in the one-run output.

Chicago’s defense helped. Brenton Doyle made several plays in center field, including catches on flies from Kevin McGonigle, Brett Callahan and Spencer Torkelson. Colson Montgomery turned a double play, and Miguel Vargas contributed with his glove at third base. Vargas fielded grounders from John Peck and Dillon Dingler, and he helped Chicago keep Detroit from mounting a late rally. The White Sox turned a double play in the second when Max Clark grounded into a shortstop-to-first-base twin killing. Detroit turned a double play in the seventh when Braden Montgomery grounded into a double play, second baseman Hao-Yu Lee to shortstop John Peck to first baseman Spencer Torkelson. Those defensive plays helped keep the game moving quickly.

The game took 2 hours, 39 minutes and was played under afternoon conditions. The attendance was 30,631. Chicago will host Detroit again Sunday before traveling to Kansas City for a series starting Tuesday. Detroit will return home to face Washington on Monday after concluding the series in Chicago. The White Sox will then host Colorado the following weekend. Detroit’s upcoming homestand includes Washington and Pittsburgh.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Detroit 6, Chicago 3, and its ELO system gave Detroit a 51.2 percent probability to win. Chicago had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 4 went over the over/under line of 8.