Knights stymie Tides

Cliff Politte and Charlie Haeger combined on a five-hitter as Charlotte dropped visiting Norfolk, 5-1, on Thursday.

Politte yielded one hit and a walk while recording five outs in a rehab start. The White Sox placed the 32-year-old right-hander on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to June 5, due to inflammation in his pitching shoulder.

Haeger (8-1) gave up one run on four hits and three walks with seven strikeouts over 7 1/3 innings. The 22-year-old right-hander is second in the International League with a 1.57 ERA, while the team's 2.89 ERA leads the circuit.

Josh Fields and Ryan Sweeney sandwiched RBI singles around a run-scoring groundout by Casey Rogowski in the first for the Knights (50-23). Angel Gonzalez smacked a two-run single in the seventh, while Jorge Velandia went 3-for-4 with two runs scored.

An RBI groundout in the seventh by Tagg Bozied plated the lone run for the Tides (29-44) in the seventh.

Norfolk starter John Maine (2-5) took the loss, despite striking out eight over six innings. He gave up three runs on six hits and three walks in the opener of a four-game series. --Marissa Rega/MLB.com