CHICAGO -- Kenny Rogers isn't afraid to get in a jam because he is confident he can pitch his way out.
Rogers won his third straight start, tying for the major league lead with his seventh win, and the Texas Rangers beat the Chicago White Sox 7-4 Tuesday night.
Rogers (7-2) allowed two runs and seven hits in six innings, struck out six and walked one. The 39-year-old left-hander, off to his best start since 1995, joined Houston's Roger Clemens, Anaheim's Jarrod Washburn and Cincinnati's Paul Wilson as the only seven-game winners in the major leagues.
Rogers pitched out of his biggest jam in the fifth inning. With two outs and runners at the corners, Rogers got Magglio Ordonez to ground out.
"That was a tough out to get," Rangers manager Buck Showalter said. "That's probably the key out in the game there."
Rogers retired Ordonez on a pitch on the outside corner.
"I'm not afraid to get into a jam, not that I want to all the time. I think I can make any pitch in any situation," Rogers said. "I made the right adjustments after the second, when they were taking very good swings. It could have been a short night, but I made the right adjustment and threw quality pitches at the right time."
Francisco Cordero got four outs for his 15th save in as many chances.
Mark Teixeira and Herbert Perry hit solo homers for the Rangers, who have won four of their last five games, and Teixeira drove in three runs.
Chicago's Frank Thomas hit his 427th career homer, moving past Billy Williams into sole possession of 32nd place on the career list.
Ordonez left after the seventh inning, when he strained his left calf. He is day to day.
Scott Schoeneweis (4-2) gave up five runs and nine hits in six-plus innings.
"Early in the game he had trouble," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "He threw the ball around the plate and fell behind in the count. Anytime you fall behind guys you are going to get hurt."
With the score 2-all in the fifth, Eric Young doubled, Michael Young walked, and Eric Young stole third with one out. Teixeira hit a high bouncer to third baseman Joe Crede as the go-ahead run scored, and Perry followed with an RBI single.
Teixeira hit an RBI single off Mike Jackson in the seventh, and Chad Allen singled in a run off Kelly Wunsch.
Aaron Rowand's RBI double off Carlos Almanzar in the bottom half pulled the White Sox to 6-3.
Teixeira homered in the second, but Thomas homered in the bottom half and Crede hit an RBI single. Perry's homer tied it in the fourth.
Notes
- Rangers RHP Chan Ho Park is expected to miss his scheduled start on Wednesday because of a sore lower back and be replaced by RHP Joaquin Benoit (2-1, 5.40).
- The Rangers placed OFs Kevin Mench and Brian Jordan on the 15-day disabled list and purchased the contracts of Allen and Gary Matthews Jr. from Triple-A Oklahoma. Allen started in left and Matthews started in right.
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