The only other time the Chicago White Sox were above .500 on this season, they lost their next three games.
Owners of a winning record again, the White Sox will try to avoid another regression as they go for their fourth straight victory Saturday in the second of a three-game set against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.
A 5-4 win in Friday's series opener moved the White Sox (8-7) above the .500 mark for just the second time this season. Chicago was 5-4 on April 13, but lost three straight and didn't regained a winning record until Friday.
The White Sox, who are also looking for a fourth straight win at Comerica, will face Tigers left-hander Nate Robertson, who went 0-3 with a 6.75 ERA in four starts against Chicago in 2006.
While Robertson (2-1, 1.80 ERA) is off to a solid start in 2007, he allowed 10 earned runs in 6 2-3 innings in Detroit's 10-0 loss to the White Sox on Aug. 24, his most recent start against the AL Central rivals.
He suffered his only loss of the season at Toronto on Sunday, when he allowed two runs and seven hits in seven innings of a 2-1 defeat. On Saturday, he will try to help Detroit (9-7) avoid a third straight loss.
Chicago center fielder Darin Erstad went 2-for-5 on Friday with a tiebreaking RBI single in the seventh inning. The former Los Angeles Angel is batting .185 in his first season with the White Sox, but has three hits in his last two games.
"When you're battling, you've just got to keep grinding and find a way, however you can,'' Erstad said.
Juan Uribe and Tadahito Iguchi each homered and Paul Konerko added a two-run single for Chicago on Friday.
Erstad, Uribe and Konerko are all hitting above .300 for their careers against Robertson.
Erstad is 3-for-9 (.333), Uribe is 12-for-32 (.375) with two homers and Konerko is 12-for-39 (.308) with four homers versus the left-hander.
Jose Contreras (1-2, 6.00 ERA) will take the ball for the White Sox on Saturday. The right-hander is coming off a solid outing where he allowed no earned runs and one hit in five innings, but was on the losing end of a 2-1 Chicago loss at Cleveland on Sunday.
"It's a shame when a guy pitches like that and you don't win," Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen said.
Carlos Guillen went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and Placido Polanco went 2-for-5 for the Tigers on Friday.
Guillen has hit Contreras well in his career, going 10-for-27 (.370) with a home run and three RBIs.
Gary Sheffield went 0-for-3 with a run scored Friday to drop his average to .125. The Tigers' biggest offseason acquisition is 2-for-20 in his last six games.
"He'll get it going," Tigers' manager Jim Leyland said. "We're not hitting throughout our lineup, and obviously, Gary's one of the guys who's not hitting at all."
Detroit's bullpen, which has allowed eight runs in the last four games, will be without veteran Jose Mesa, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list Friday with a pulled groin muscle.
The 40-year-old reliever is 0-1 with a 20.25 ERA in four appearances this month.