Lance Lynn had another strong start, Andrew Vaughn hit another big home run — this time in a winning cause — and Tim Anderson emerged from a 2-for-24 slump to deliver some insurance in the White Sox’ 5-1 victory Monday night against the Cardinals.
Bouncing back from a three-game sweep against the Yankees, the Sox (27-19) got seven innings of one-run ball from Lynn (5-1, 1.51 ERA), who took a no-hitter into the sixth inning against his former team. Paul Goldschmidt’s low liner that handcuffed a drawn-in Anderson at shortstop was the Cardinals’ first hit, and it scored Tommy Edman from third with the first run.
But Vaughn, who hit a tying homer against the Yankees’ Aroldis Chapman in the ninth inning of a 5-4 loss Sunday, homered into the left-field bullpen with two outs against Cards left-hander Kwang Hyun Kim, scoring Yermin Mercedes ahead of him in the bottom of the sixth for a 2-1 Sox lead.
Anderson doubled against reliever Daniel Ponce de Leon, scoring two runs, to cap a four-run rally. Mercedes (2-for-3) had a sacrifice fly in the seventh.
“Lynn is like a bulldog; he fights and competes and gives our lineup some juice,” Vaughn said.
The largest crowd of the season (14,629) watched Lynn, who started his career in 2011 with the Cardinals — manager Tony La Russa’s last year in St. Louis — allow three hits and three walks and strike out four.
“That was probably the most satisfying win I’ve had in my career outside of playoffs,” Lynn said. “I enjoyed it, beating them. It was one of the teams I didn’t have a win against. I was able to get into another gear when I needed it.”
Michael Kopech struck out three in two innings of relief.
Good, but not there yet
The Sox’ bullpen entered with a 3.03 ERA, fifth-best in the majors, but had a 4.84 ERA in the previous eight games before Kopech put up two scoreless innings.
Left-hander Aaron Bummer has seen enough good things the last few weeks to trust it will be better.
“We’re in a better spot than we were a month ago, and I hope we’re in a better spot a month from now than we are today,’’ Bummer said. “Everyone is coming into their own, settling into the roles they’ll be used in. I still don’t think we’ve done as great a job as we need to and are capable of, but we’re trending in the right direction.”
West ties record
Joe West tied Hall of Famer Bill Klem’s record for the most regular-season games by an umpire, working at first base, and will break it Tuesday, when he works his 5,376th game.
Klem, who retired in 1941, umpired in the National League for 37 years. He was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1953.
West, 68, umpired his first game in 1976 when he was 23. He worked 23 years in the NL before covering both leagues beginning in 2002. This will be his last season.
In West’s honor, the Oak Ridge Boys will sing the national anthem Tuesday. West will umpire second base.
