Jake Peavy returned from the disabled list to get the victory, A.J. Pierzynski had a two-run triple and the White Sox beat the Cubs 4-3 on Wednesday night to win two of three in their first series this season.With the help of some strong work by their bullpen, the White Sox held on for the victory and have won 17 straight interleague series.Peavy (3-1), activated before the game after being sidelined by a groin strain, went 5 1/3 innings, giving up seven hits. He was driven out in the sixth when he gave up Carlos Pena’s 14th homer and three straight singles that pulled the Cubs within a run.Reliever Chris Sale struck out Koyie Hill before Kosuke Fukudome lined a ball off his glove for a single loading the bases. But the 22-year-old Sale got 21-year-old Starlin Castro on a grounder to third to end the inning.Jesse Crain and Matt Thornton notched key strikeouts and Sergio Santos pitched the ninth with two strikeouts for his 14th save in 16 chances.Pierzynski drove a two-run triple into right center in the fourth following consecutive singles by Alexei Ramirez and Alex Rios. Moments later Pierzynski broke for the plate and scored on Brent Lillibridge’s squeeze bunt single, giving the White Sox a 3-0 lead against Doug Davis (1-6), who beat the Yankees last week for his first win, allowed eight hits and four runs — three earned — in five innings. Castro singled home Fukudome, who had hit a two-out double, to pull the Cubs within 3-1 in the fifth.The White Sox loaded the base with two outs in the fifth on a walk, single by Rios and an error on Cubs second baseman Blake DeWitt before Davis plunked Lillibridge with a 1-2 pitch, forcing in the White Sox’s fourth run.Pena homered for the third straight game to cut it to 4-2 in the sixth — his fifth homer in the last seven games. One out later, Alfonso Soriano, DeWitt and Jeff Baker singled consecutively to make it 4-3 and drive out Peavy.The Cubs, who left 10 men on base, threatened again in the eighth but with a runner at third and one out, Crain struck out Hill before Thornton fanned Fukudome to end the inning.Paul Konerko, who had homered in five straight games, went 0 for 3 with an intentional walk.

NOTES—Bulls coach Tom Thibodeaux threw out the first pitch….New mayor Rahm Emanuel attended the game. … Slumping White Sox DH Adam Dunn, batting .175 with 91 strikeouts this season and the target of loud booing, was held out of the lineup against the lefty Davis. … Castro had a walk and two more hits and finished the three-game series 6 for 12. … Soriano had his first stolen base of the season in the fourth. … The teams play three more games July 1-3 at Wrigley Field. … Attendance was 35,403.Third straight game of this series that was NOT sold out,and just the fourth non capacity crowd since the Sox and Cubs started Inter-League play in 1997.

Paul Konerko senses a different flavor to the Cubs-White Sox crosstown series this time around. Maybe it’s that both teams have losing records, that the first three-game series is at night at the beginning of the week, instead of on the weekend. No complaints, though, from the White Sox’s hottest hitter.And that’s also how Konerko is approaching his latest power surge that has featured 11 homers in his last 20 games. He’s the sixth White Sox’s player to homer in five straight games and the first since Carlos Lee in 2003. The game was delayed for 1 hour, 44 minutes after a thunderstorm hit U.S. Cellular Field in the top of the sixth with one out and the Cubs having runners on the corners. Winds made it difficult for the grounds crew to get the tarp on the field and then when it was time to take it off, the infield was muddy and needed several bags of drying compound before it was ready for play. Sergio Santos struck out Aramis Ramirez with two on to end the eighth and then pitched the ninth for his 13th save in 15 chances, fanning Pena to end it.Before the storm, Reed Johnson and Starlin Castro had consecutive singles off Mark Buehrle, who then struck out Jeff Baker before play was halted. Jesse Crain (3-2) relieved Buehrle after the delay and surrendered a sacrifice fly to Ramirez, tying the game at 2-2. Buehrle, who was shooting for his major league-best 25th interleague win, gave up five hits and was charged with the two runs in 5 1/3 innings.Konerko’s 21st homer leading off the bottom of the second opened the scoring against Cubs starter Matt Garza, who gave up four hits and two runs in his five innings before the delay.Jeff Samardzija (5-3) came on to pitch in the bottom of the sixth. He gave up a leadoff double to Alexei Ramirez in the seventh before Cubs second baseman DJ LaMahieu made a nice stop behind the bag on A.J. Pierzynski’s grounder as Ramirez had to stop at third on the infield single.After Alex Rios popped out, Morel delivered a sacrifice fly to center for a 3-2 lead. Rios led off the bottom of the third with a double, stopped at third on Morel’s single and scored on Juan Pierre’s sacrifice bunt, giving the White Sox a 2-0 lead. Carlos Pena hit his 13th homer of the season and second in as many nights to cut the Cubs’ deficit to one in the fifth. Castro continued his stellar play at shortstop for the Cubs with two more defensive gems, including one to retire Pierzynski on a slow roller past the mound to end the fourth.

NOTES—Struggling White Sox DH Adam Dunn struck out twice and went 0 for 4 as boos continued from all over U.S. Cellular Field. Dunn has whiffed 91 times in 217 at-bats this season. He entered the game batting .178. He does have 41 walks. “I should put Dunn at leadoff because he’s the one who gets on base the most, but instead of striking out four (times), he might strike out six (times),” manager Ozzie Guillen said. … Guillen was asked about 22-year-old Dayan Viciedo, who is batting .328 with 11 homers and 49 RBIs at Triple-A Charlotte. But the White Sox want the young Cuban star, who is playing the outfield, to be in the lineup every day and not sit on the bench or platoon. … The game drew a less-than-capacity crowd (35,155) for the second straight night. Monday night’s opener drew 36,005. … The White Sox optioned right-handed pitcher Lucas Harrell to Triple-A Charlotte after the game, a move that will allow them to activate Jake Peavy from the DL to start Wednesday’s game. Harrell was 0-0 with a 7.20 ERA in three relief appearances over two stints with the White Sox this season.

The Rush have added QB JJ Raterink to roster after placing QB Russ Michna on Injured Reserve.   Raterink comes to the Rush from the Kansas City Command where he has accumulated 3,723 yards and 65 touchdown passes throughout the 2011 season.

“We are excited to have JJ back in Chicago,” said Rush head coach Bob McMillen.  “We hope that he can come to Chicago and help us prepare for the playoffs.  We are confident that he has the skills to learn the system we have in place quickly.”

Raterink, who graduated from the University of Wyoming, has led the Kansas City offense this year. This is the second time the Rush will turn to Raterink following an injury to Michna. In 2010, Raterink was called upon when Michna suffered a season-ending injury.  He appeared in four games throughout the 2010 season and completed 65 of 102 passes for 767 yards, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions. His QB rating during his limited action was 117.9.  Michna was placed on Injured Reserve following an ankle injury at the end of the first half during Saturday’s game against the Spokane Shock. The Rush will also rely on rookie QB Dominic Randolph to fill in for Michna. Randolph played the second half of the game on Saturday and was 11 for 17 with 113 yards and four touchdowns.

Carlos Zambrano kept his cool this time after a tough first inning, Carlos Pena hit a three-run homer and Starlin Castro drove in three runs as the Cubs rallied to beat the White Sox 6-3 on Monday night. The first matchup of six this season between the crosstown rivals with losing records drew a crowd of 36,005 at U.S. Cellular Field on a 75-degree night. White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen was ejected in the sixth inning after apparently arguing that a ball hit near the plate by Alexei Ramirez should have been ruled foul.He kicked Cub Catcher Geovany Soto’s mask several feet while arguing.Zambrano (6-4), who had a meltdown nearly a year ago at U.S. Cellular Field, recovered from a shaky three-run first that included Paul Konerko’s 20th homer. He allowed seven hits over eight innings.Carlos Marmol worked the ninth inning for the save,but did allow two singles before getting Juan Pierre for the final out.

PHOENIX—Not fully recovered from the kidney stone he passed earlier in the day, White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen was still feeling woozy through the first few innings.As Phil Humber kept throwing strikes and the rest of the White Sox started bashing balls all over the field, Guillen’s mind and body cleared.With a series against the crosstown rival Cubs coming up, it was a good ending to what started out as a rough day.Humber pitched effectively into the eighth inning, Paul Konerko homered for the third straight game and A.J. Pierzynski hit a three-run double, lifting the White Sox to an 8-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks Sunday in their last game before facing the Cubs.

“When the games start against the Cubs, it’s a different ball game,” Guillen said. “Chicago’s looking for this game and obviously the rivalry is there. You’ve got to step it up a notch because that’s as close as you come to the playoffs.”

Konerko hit a solo homer to match Harold Baines for 56th on the career list with 384, Alex Rios added a solo shot off Josh Collmenter (4-3) and Alexei Ramirez drove in two on a pair of groundouts. Pierzynski capped a five-run eighth inning with his bases-clearing double, sending Humber (7-3) to his fourth straight win. The Sox took two of three in the desert to win its first series over Arizona in three tries, a good way to head into a three-game series against the Cubs that starts Monday on the South Side.The White Sox had a rough 24 hours physically before Sunday’s series finale.Left-hander John Danks took a liner off the head during his start on Saturday, but stayed in the game and checked out OK after a CT scan. He’s expected to make his next start, most likely next Saturday with Jake Peavy expected rejoin the rotation.Guillen also spent some time with medical personnel Sunday morning, rushing to the hospital to pass a kidney stone. Guillen, who also passed a stone in 2004, was back in the dugout about two hours before first pitch.Humber certainly didn’t have any problems.The right-hander had the Diamondbacks baffled most of the day, staying out of trouble until allowing two runs in the eighth inning on Ryan Roberts’ RBI double and Justin Upton’s third hit, a run-scoring single to left.Humber lasted 7 2/3 innings, giving up two runs and seven hits to become the first White Sox pitcher to go at least seven innings in six straight starts since Jon Garland did it seven straight in 2007.After confusing opponents with his exaggerated over-the-top motion his first six starts, the right-hander hit his first big bump in his previous start, giving up five runs — one less than the previous 13 appearances combined — in five innings of a 6-5 loss to San Francisco.He was sharp early against the White Sox, holding them without a hit until Juan Pierre slapped a single to left to lead off the fourth inning and later scored on a groundout by Ramirez.Konerko added another run with a homer in the seventh inning, lining his 19th and ninth in 18 games over the wall in left. Rios made it 3-0 two batters later with his sixth homer on an 0-2 pitch. Collmenter allowed three runs and five hits in seven innings to lose consecutive starts after a 4-1 start to his rookie season.The Sox put it out of reach in the eighth against Esmerling Vasquez and Joe Paterson, the capper Pierzynski’s three-run double that made it 8-0.

NOTES—John Green, whose 9-year-old daughter was killed in the Tucson shootings in January, attended the game with his son, Dallas. Christina-Taylor Green was among the five people killed in the shooting that also wounded 13, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. John Green is a scout for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the son of former big-league manager Dallas Green. … Muhammad Ali, who lives in the Phoenix area, also attended the game. … Adam Dunn made his first start in right field since July 30, 2009, with Washington.

SPOKANE—The Rush (9-4) could not continue their winning ways as the team fell to the Spokane Shock (6-7) on Saturday night in front of 9,499 fans at Veterans Memorial Arena in Spokane, Washington.The Rush offense got off to a rapid start with a successful opening drive in which QB Russ Michna completed passes to each receiver on the roster before capping off the drive with a 17-yard touchdown reception by WR Reggie Gray. The Spokane Shock quickly answered with a perfectly placed 6-yard touchdown pass by QB Erik Meyer to WR Emery Sammons. The two teams would each trade an additional touchdown before the conclusion of the first quarter.Gray who finished the game with a nine receptions for 125 yards and five touchdowns, began the second quarter with a crucial fourth down 29-yard touchdown reception from Michna. However, Shock QB Meyer led Spokane to their first lead of the game with a 15-yard touchdown pass to WR Markee White, and the Shock would never look back. Shock WR/DB Antwan Marsh recorded a timely interception against the Rush offense, and they capitalized on the interception with a one-yard touchdown run by Marsh. The Rush offense suffered another costly turnover at the end of the second quarter when Michna fumbled the ball, which was recovered in the end zone,. Michna was 13 for 18 with 161 yards and four touchdowns before exiting the game at halftime due to an ankle injury.

The Rush began the third quarter on defense and could not contain the Shock as Meyer completed a 37-yard touchdown pass to WR Greg Orton to add to Spokane’s lead. Rush back-up QB Dominic Randolph took over the reins and led the offense to an 11-yard touchdown reception by WR Charles Dillon to capitalize on DB Perry Kyles’ interception. Randolph was 11 for 17 with 113 yards and four touchdowns while throwing just one interception within the second half. DB Vic Hall also recorded his 15th interception to add to his record-breaking season and allowed Randolph to connect with Dillon on a 4-yard touchdown pass that was caught off the rebound nets to cut the Shock lead to 10 before the end of the third quarter. Hall also led the defense with eight tackles on the night.

Dillon struck again to open the fourth quarter with a 31-yard touchdown reception from Randolph, and finished the game with three touchdown receptions. However, the offensive shootout continued with another Shock touchdown. The Rush defense forced two turnovers on consecutive drives which allowed the offense to capitalize and bring the score within three. But despite the strong fourth quarter performance, the deficit was too great to overcome as the Rush fell to the Shock in the final seconds.

The Rush will return home on Sunday, June 26th to battle the Iowa Barnstormers (3-10) at the Allstate Arena on “Teddy Bear Toss” day. Fans are encouraged to bring a teddy bear to toss onto the field following the first Rush touchdown. All of the teddy bears collected will be donated to the Red Cross of Greater Chicago. Kick off is set for 3 p.m. CST.

PHOENIX—John Danks took a line drive to the head and came up smiling.The White Sox left-hander was still grinning in the clubhouse after his seven-inning performance earned the admiration of teammates and foes alike in his team’s 6-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday night.”I’m OK, really,” he said.After talking briefly to reporters, Danks left with an ice pack applied to the large knot on the left side of his head for a precautionary CT scan at a hospital.Danks pitched three innings after taking the shot in the fourth.Stephen Drew’s line drive careened off the side of Danks’ head and bounced into the photographer’s well adjacent to the Diamondbacks’ dugout for a ground-rule double. The White Sox pitcher bounced to his feet smiling and assured everyone he was all right. He took a few practice pitches, then stayed in the game to the cheers of the crowd. He said he had “a hundred text messages” from his worried mother. There were others who contacted him with a bit less concern.He won his third straight after starting the season 0-8.Danks (3-8), who has allowed two earned runs in 22 innings in his last three starts, gave up two runs, one earned, on seven hits through seven innings. He struck out seven with no walks.Paul Konerko went 3 for 4 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored as the White Sox squared the three-game interleague series at one apiece. Alex Rios, who had four RBI, blew open a close game with a three-run homer off reliever Micah Owings in the eighth inning.Konerko homered for the second game in a row and is batting .446 (29 for 65) in the last 17 games. His home run Saturday moved him ahead of Carlos Delgado for third-most in interleague play with 51. Alexei Ramirez also had three hits, including a double, for the White Sox, who had scored two runs in their previous three games, all losses.Konerko broke a 2-all tie with one out in the sixth, sending Duke’s 0-1 pitch into the left field seats for his 54th RBI to make it 3-2.Drew’s double off Danks’ head put runners on second and third with no outs, the only serious trouble he experienced. Willie Bloomquist, who singled ahead of Drew, came home on Danks’ wild pitch. Drew scored on Justin Upton’s sacrifice fly to tie it at 2-2, The Sox got one in the second and another in the third. Konerko led off the second with a single, then moved to third on Ramirez’s double. Konerko came home on Rios’ groundout. In the third, Brent Morel doubled and took third when Carlos Quentin flied out. Konerko followed with an RBI single and the White Sox led 2-0. The Diamondbacks had runners on second and third with one in the seventh out after Xavier Nady beat out an infield single and Melvin Mora doubled off the glove of a leaping Brent Lillibridge at the left field wall. But Danks got Henry Blanco to pop out and struck out Owings on three pitches. Duke allowed three runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings.

NOTES—A line drive foul by Lillibridge hit Konerko’s father and brother in the stands. Dad was fine and the brother had a slight thumb injury. “My mother was talking the whole time and didn’t see any of it,” Konerko said. … After Sunday’s series finale, the Diamondbacks play 16 of 19 on the road leading up to the All-Star Game, to be played Aug. 12 at Chase Field. … Konerko (54) and Quentin (47) account for 101 of the Sox 283 RBI. … SS Drew’s 11 assists in Friday night’s 4-1 Arizona victory were the most in the majors since Pittsburgh 2B Ramon Vazquez had 11 against Houston on July 7, 2009. … The White Sox have won 14 of their last 17 interleague games. … Konerko is 17 home runs shy of 400.

Russell Martin went down the list as the ball came speeding toward the plate, a few ticks ahead of Carlos Pena barreling down the third-base line.Catch the ball. Get into position. Brace for impact. Hold on.Check, check, check, and one big check mark.Martin grabbed Brett Gardner’s perfect one-hop throw, absorbed a big hit from Pena and held on for an inning-ending double play in the sixth, helping the New York Yankees edge the Cubs 4-3 on Saturday.The Gardner-to-Martin connection preserved a 3-2 lead and capped a shoddy inning in the field for New York, which committed two errors that allowed the Cubs to load the bases with one out.Curtis Granderson, who was born in nearby Blue Island, had a tiebreaking sacrifice fly and two hits as the Yankees won for the seventh time in nine games, bouncing back from a 3-1 loss in the opener of their first series at Wrigley Field in eight years. Granderson’s fly ball to deep right gave New York a 3-2 lead in the sixth, but the Yankees almost blew it with lackluster defense behind A.J. Burnett (7-5), who struck out eight in 5 1/3 innings.Errors on shortstop Eduardo Nunez and second baseman Robinson Cano loaded the bases for Geovany Soto, who hit a sinking liner to left off Cory Wade. Gardner tracked it down and let loose with a strong throw that got to the plate a few strides ahead of Pena, allowing Martin to set up for the collision. Pena congratulated Martin when he singled in the top of the eighth. Hector Noesi and David Robertson each worked a perfect inning for New York before Nunez also atoned for his error with an RBI double in the ninth. Mariano Rivera allowed two hits, including Reed Johnson’s leadoff homer, but still managed to close it out for his 17th save in 20 opportunities. Pena hit a two-run homer and Starlin Castro added two more hits for the Cubs, who had won four of five. Castro has at least two hits in five of his last six games and is batting .415 (17 for 41) in his last 10 games overall. A crowd of 42,236 filled Wrigley Field for the middle game of this rare weekend series between two of baseball’s most popular teams, setting a season high for the second straight day. But this one had a much stronger Yankees presence than Friday’s opener.Alex Rodriguez was welcomed with a “roll call” greeting from a group of New York fans sitting in the bleachers. There were several “Let’s go Yankees!” chants, and Rivera and Jorge Posada each received a loud ovation when they entered the game.Cubs starter Ryan Dempster (5-6) was in trouble throughout the game, setting season highs with six walks and 119 pitches. The right-hander allowed three runs and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings.New York pushed across two runs in the third. With one out and runners on the corners, Cano hit a smash down the right-field line to get the Yankees on the board. Rodriguez moved to third on Cano’s RBI double and scored his 1,800th run on Nick Swisher’s sacrifice fly, snapping a tie with Ted Williams for 16th on the career list.Pena got the runs back in the fourth, hitting a tying drive to right with one out. The big first baseman, who spent four seasons with Tampa Bay before signing with the Cubs over the winter, was just 5 for 36 with 14 strikeouts against Burnett before connecting for his 11th homer of the season. Burnett allowed four hits and walked three in his first win since June 1 at Oakland. He also had a sacrifice that landed in foul territory before spinning across the first-base line and back into the field to help set up Granderson’s tiebreaking fly ball.

NOTES—Yankees RHP Phil Hughes (shoulder inflammation) threw in the outfield at the team’s spring training complex in Florida and is scheduled to throw around 65 pitches Sunday in a rehab appearance for Class-A Staten Island…..Dante Bichette Jr. has agreed to a deal with the Yankees, and New York’s top draft pick will begin his professional career with the club’s rookie-level team in Florida. Girardi played with his father, Dante, who hit .299 with 274 homers in 14 seasons in the majors.

PHOENIX—The White Sox search for their missing offense goes on. Paul Konerko’s leadoff home run in the seventh ended a string of 18 scoreless innings for the White Sox, but that was all they could muster against Daniel Hudson in a 4-1 interleague loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. The White Sox have two runs — total — in their last three games, all of them losses. Hudson, who came up through the White Sox minor league system, was traded to Arizona last July 30 for Edwin Jackson, the loser in Friday night’s game.Hudson threw a three-hitter in his first career complete game. Hudson (8-5) earned his eighth win in nine decisions since starting the season 0-4. His RBI double with two outs in the seventh ended the night for Jackson (4-6), who gave up four runs on eight hits in 6 2/3 innings. Arizona’s Justin Upton singled three times, his fifth straight multihit game. Upton, whose first career game-ending home run gave Arizona a 3-2 victory over San Francisco in 10 innings the Thursday night, singled in a run in the first inning, then scored from first on Miguel Montero’s two-out double.Upton has hit .591 (13 of 22) during that five-game span. He reached base for the fourth time when he walked in the eighth, then stole second. Hudson retired 16 in a row after walking Carlos Quentin in the first inning. The streak ended when shortstop Stephen Drew had trouble getting the ball out of his glove after fielding Alexei Ramirez’s grounder and his throw pulled first baseman Juan Miranda just off the bag. The error marred an otherwise outstanding defensive game for Drew, who fielded 10 grounders flawlessly, several of them tough plays, and threw the runners out. He also caught a pair of pop ups. He also was part of the game-ending double play on a grounder to Hudson. Drew singled in the first, took second when Jackson was called for a balk, then scored when Upton’s singled. Montero’s RBI double to the right field gap made it 2-0. After Konerko’s 17th home run of the season cut the lead to 2-1, Arizona got two more in the seventh. Ryan Roberts singled with one out, then after Jackson fanned Gerardo Parra, Hudson doubled to deep right-center to bring in the run. Left-hander Chris Sale replaced Jackson and gave up an RBI double to Kelly Johnson to put the Diamondbacks ahead 4-1. Hudson, who came into the night averaging 105 pitches per game, threw a career-high 119, 82 strikes. Jackson allowed four runs on eight hits in 6 2/3 inning. He struck out eight with no walks but was called for a balk.

NOTES—Hudson is 15-6 in 26 starts since coming to Arizona. … The White Sox lost only their third interleague game in their last 16 and are 41-17 in them since 2008. … The Diamondbacks are 4-0 in interleague contests this season. … Upton has 33 hits since May 29. … Jackson fanned the leadoff batter Johnson three times.