GAME PREVIEW
CLEVELAND (Ticker) -- The Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Indians, the top two teams in the American League Central, meet again, this time at Jacobs Field.

First-place Chicago holds a two-game lead over Cleveland and took two out of three from the Indians at Comiskey Park on May 26-28. The White Sox took the first two games by a combined score of 19-6 before dropping the finale, 12-3.

The White Sox have won nine of their last 11 games, but dropped the finale of a three-game set with the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.

Jose Valentin recorded his sixth career multi-homer game on Sunday and the White Sox have homered in 15 straight contests -- one shy of the club record set in 1987.

Cleveland squandered a five-run lead in the eighth inning en route to a 7-5, 13-inning loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday. The Indians left 14 runners on base while the bullpen blew a save for the first time since May 29.

It was the sixth time this year that Cleveland blew a lead of four or more runs and lost a game. The suspect bullpen wasted a solid effort by Chuck Finley, who allowed just three hits and was charged with three runs in seven-plus innings.

The Indians have been almost as hot as the White Sox, winning nine of the last 12 contests.

Cal Eldred (6-2, 4.16 ERA) guns for his fifth straight victory for Chicago. Eldred coasted through 6 1/3 innings against Cincinnati on Wednesday, allowing four runs and four hits, before the bullpen made things interesting in a 17-12 victory.

Eldred has not lost since May 10 at Boston, posting a 2.61 ERA during his winning streak. He has allowed three earned runs in each of his last three outings after not giving up one over 12 2/3 innings against the New York Yankees and Toronto.

Also included in the streak is a victory over Cleveland on May 26, when Eldred limited the Indians to three runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings. The win improved his lifetime record against the Tribe to 3-8 with a 5.62 ERA.

Indians rookie Paul Rigdon (1-0, 4.91) makes his third start of the season. Rigdon was activated from the disabled list prior to Wednesday's start at Milwaukee and he was pounded for four runs and four hits in one-third of an inning. But Rigdon did not factor in the decision during Cleveland's 9-5 victory.

Rigdon held the New York Yankees to two hits through seven innings on May 21. After that outing, he was placed on the 15-day disabled list with strained muscle on his left side.

Rigdon went 4-1 with a 3.07 ERA for Triple-A Buffalo of the International League with a complete game in seven starts. The 24-year-old righthander yielded 15 earned runs and 46 hits over 44 innings.