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CHICAGO - If the Twins couldn't win the Central title at home, Chicago was the next-best place for a party.
Torii Hunter and Corey Koskie hit two-run homers in the first inning, and Minnesota clinched its third straight division crown on its main rival's home turf, beating the White Sox 8-2 Monday night.
Henry Blanco and Luis Rivas also homered. When Timo Perez popped out to shortstop Cristian Guzman for the final out, the Twins rushed onto the field for hugs and handshakes at second base.
The scoreboard flashed congratulations to the Twins, who have won three straight division titles for the first time in their 44-year history.
The loss officially eliminated the White Sox from the playoffs. They have lost seven games in a row to Minnesota.
Carlos Silva had a shutout until the seventh inning, when Jose Valentin hit a two-run homer. Silva scattered seven hits over seven innings to win his third straight start.
Mark Buehrle got hit hard in losing his second straight start, both to the Twins. He gave up seven runs, four on homers, and 10 hits in eight-plus innings. He has allowed a career-high 32 home runs this season.
Buehrle also walked three and struck out three.
The Twins had a makeover after winning the division last season, losing Eddie Guardado, LaTroy Hawkins, A.J. Pierzynski, Eric Milton, Dustan Mohr, Denny Hocking and Kenny Rogers in the offseason and trading Doug Mientkiewicz in July. So most picked the White Sox to win this season, and Chicago had a half-game lead on July 24.
Two days later, the Twins were up by a half-game and came to Chicago for a three-game series.
Minnesota took the first game. In the second game, Hunter knocked White Sox catcher Jamie Burke over with a shoulder block at the plate so hard it might have made Hulk Hogan flinch. The White Sox then lost seven straight and 11 of 13.
By Aug. 7, the Twins had a seven-game lead and the White Sox were in third place. Since the All-Star break, the Twins are 41-22. They've won 11 of their past 13.
BLUE JAYS 6, YANKEES 3: Gustavo Chacin became the first left-handed starter to win his major-league debut against New York in the Joe Torre era to lead visiting Toronto.
With a shaved head and a 19-2 record in the minors, and fresh off a playoff win at Double A, Chacin held the East leaders to four hits before leaving in the eighth. The Yankees lost for the fourth time in 15 games.
ORIOLES 9, RED SOX 6: B.J. Surhoff hit a grand slam, and visiting Baltimore capitalized on the third straight poor start by a Boston pitcher. Tim Wakefield lost his control after three strong innings and fell to 0-3 in four starts.
TIGERS 3, INDIANS 1: Mike Maroth pitched splendidly into the seventh, and Dmitri Young and Brandon Inge homered for host Detroit.