"White Sox general manager Ken Williams got his wish. Hoping the Cubs would inject a shot of adrenaline into his team and U.S. Cellular Field this week, the North Siders came through as always.

Starting pitcher Jake Peavy and catcher A.J. Pierzynski going nose-to-nose in the dugout after the sixth inning wasn't exactly Pierzynski vs. Michael Barrett in the main event, but it was an invigorating in-house undercard that sparked the Sox to a 4-3 victory that gave them two out of three in the series and pushed them to within two games of .500.

Pierzynski and Peavy both talked down the significance of their verbal exchange and made light of it while declining to offer specifics.

"Well, we were talking about Alabama vs. Florida," Pierzynski said. "He has bragging rights because Alabama beat them the last couple times. That's about it."

"Me and A.J. were actually arguing over who is the better hunter," Peavy said. "AJ went on a safari this winter. I claimed to be a real hunter, although I can't say I've been out of the states. We got in a pretty heated discussion. He's harvested kudu and a lion. I like to harvest white tail deer. We were kind of going over that. You know how that stuff goes.

"But listen, we are just competing and it's going to happen from time to time. We are both very passionate people. A.J. won us a ballgame tonight. There was no ill-will, nothing. It's part of playing the game and being a part of a team."

Peavy, who carried a 4-1 lead into the sixth inning, gave up a home run to Carlos Pena leading it off. After Reed Johnson struck out, Peavy allowed three consecutive singles and another run, and with his pitch count at 104, was pulled by manager Ozzie Guillen.

As Peavy walked off, he gestured with his glove toward Pierzynski on the mound. After Chris Sale pitched out of the jam, Peavy and Pierzynski, still wearing his mask, stood face-to-face in the dugout near the tunnel to the clubhouse, exchanging words. The White Sox telecast showed the confrontation."