CHICAGO -- The first-place Cleveland Indians will try to maintain their distance from the rest of the American League Central on Monday as they open a three-game series against the Chicago White Sox.
At 83-59, the Indians sit seven games ahead of the second-place Detroit Tigers with 20 games remaining in the regular season. Cleveland is chasing its first division title since 2007 and already has exceeded its win total from a year ago when the club finished in third place.
Meanwhile, Chicago (68-74) knows a trip to the playoffs is almost certainly out of reach. The White Sox dropped two of three games during the weekend to the Kansas City Royals, including a 2-0 loss on Sunday that marked the team's 10th shutout loss of the season.
The Indians will not make life any easier on the White Sox. Cleveland is 9-3 against Chicago this season and has outscored the White Sox by a margin of 65-42 during those games.
"We need to muster more than two hits if we're going to win," said White Sox manager Robin Ventura, alluding to his team's hit total Sunday. "(The Indians) are leading the division. We have our hands full."
Cleveland will send right-hander Carlos Carrasco (11-7, 3.15 ERA) to the mound for the series opener. The 29-year-old from Venezuela has won four of his past five decisions thanks to tremendous command. Since Aug. 12, he has walked only three batters while striking out 52.
The White Sox have presented problems for Carrasco since he reached the majors in 2009. He is 3-8 with a 5.44 ERA in 16 appearances (15 starts) against the Chicago during his career. In seven appearances at U.S. Cellular Field, he is 2-3 with a 6.12 ERA.
Right-hander Miguel Gonzalez (3-6, 3.81 ERA) will make his 20th start of the season for the White Sox. The 32-year-old is coming off a strong outing Tuesday in which he pitched 6 2/3 scoreless innings against the Tigers to pick up the victory. The game marked his first appearance since Aug. 11 when he went on the disabled list because of a strained groin.
Gonzalez has fared well against Cleveland in his career. He is 3-0 with a 3.04 ERA in four appearances, including three starts. He has not faced the Indians this season.
Cleveland will have a couple of reinforcements for the three-game series. On Sunday, the team promoted left-handed relief pitcher Ryan Merritt and first baseman Jesus Aguilar from Triple-A Columbus. However, the club decided not to promote highly touted outfielders Yandy Diaz and Bradley Zimmer.
"We did talk about him a lot," Indians manager Terry Francona said to MLB.com when asked about Diaz. "Not just adding him to the roster, but we talked about him a lot because the people that have seen him think he's got a chance to be a really good player.
"I just think, right now, there wasn't really a place for him to play. ... I think his future has a chance to be really bright, though. This is not an indication that people don't like him."
