CHICAGO, Sept. 14 (UPI) -- Justin Verlander racked up 23rd victory of the year and the Detroit Tigers posted their 11th straight win Tuesday with a 5-0 whitewash of the Chicago White Sox.
Verlander (23-5) became the first Detroit pitcher since Hall of Famer Hal Newhouser in 1946 to win 11 consecutive starts. His major league-best 23 wins is the most for a Tigers hurler since Joe Coleman won that many in 1973.
The right-hander shut the White Sox down on six hits, issuing a pair of walks and striking out six as the Tigers cut their magic number to clinch the American League Central to three.
Joaquin Benoit and Jose Valverde completed the shutout with one scoreless inning apiece.
Victor Martinez cracked a three-run homer and Miguel Cabrera went 2-for-3 with an RBI double and two runs scored for the Tigers.
Gavin Floyd (12-11) absorbed the loss for Chicago, surrendering four runs on four hits over 5 1/3 innings.
