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Last season when the Chicago White Sox tore through the regular season on their way to clinching the American League Central Division title, they did so by playing what manager Ozzie Guillen called "small ball." That is, the team executed the fundamentals -- running the bases well, laying down bunts when called for, sacrificing, and executing the hit-and-run -- consistently. This allowed the Sox to win many close one- or two-run ballgames.

Then when it came to the playoffs, the starting pitchers took over and dominated nearly every game. In fact, the White Sox had a string of four consecutive complete games in the League Championship Series against the Anaheim Angels to advance to the World Series, where their pitching was pretty much still untouchable.

This season, the White Sox show no sign of letting up. They are currently 49-25 through today's game, which is tied with divisional foe the Detroit Tigers for the best record in the Major Leagues. The Sox have won nine in a row and have been one of the hottest teams in all of baseball this past month.

One key ingredient to the Sox success this season has been the continuing dominance of pitcher Jose Contreras. Contreras was often overshadowed by Jon Garland and Mark Buerhle in 2005 because those guys were so strong right out of the gate while Contreras didn't really come on until the end of the year. But it was Contreras who proved to be the rock, the steadying influence in the starting rotation down the stretch run when the Sox were in danger of losing their grip on a double-digit lead in the division. It was also Contreras who emerged in the playoffs as the star of the rotation, earning the Game 1 start for the Sox in the World Series.

And just like the White Sox, Contreras is showing no signs of letting up in 2006. He is 8-0 on the season, making him the only undefeated starting pitcher in the Majors. What's even more amazing is that his undefeated streak actually dates back all the way to last season and covers 16 straight decisions in all. In fact, Contreras hasn't lost a game since August 15, 2005 against the Minnesota Twins. During that span, Contreras has started 21 games, which means that he has had 5 no-decisions along the way.

The 16 consecutive victories was enough to break the White Sox team record. The record was formerly shared by LaMarr Hoyt, who won 15 straight in 1983-84, and Wilson Alvarez, who got his 15 straight victories in 1993-94. Contreras' string of victories is also the longest in the Major Leagues since Johan Santana notched 17 straight victories in 2004-05. During Santana's streak, he managed to go 13-0 after the All-Star break in 2004 and earn the American League Cy Young Award that season.

As things stand now, it might be difficult for Contreras to be the front-runner in the Cy Young race because his other statistics aren't that great -- comparatively speaking, of course. For instance, Contreras doesn't lead the league in any statistical category. Tom Glavine has 11 victories for the surprising New York Mets, which compares favorably to Contreras' 8. Brandon Webb of the Arizona Diamondbacks has worked 116.1 innings through 16 starts for an average of 7.25 innings per outing, while Contreras has gone 91.1 innings through 13 starts for an average of 7.0 innings per outing. Contreras has an ERA of 3.15, which is 11th-best in the Majors, and his strikeout numbers are nowhere near the league leaders. Perhaps even more surprising is the fact that Contreras hasn't pitched a complete game all season long. In other words, even though Contreras keeps on winning games, he's not doing so in a dominating fashion.

Nevertheless, the White Sox will take those wins no matter how they come. They are locked in a fierce battle with the Tigers for the AL Central and need every victory they can get, whether it comes in a dominating fashion or not.

The bottom line is that the Sox need Contreras, who already spent some time on the disabled list early in the year, to remain strong and healthy for the rest of the regular season and into the playoffs. Contreras has become the defining pitcher of the Sox rotation and he has to keep things rolling along for the club.