Kansas City, Mo. ? Excellent starting pitching is the biggest reason behind a big start for the Chicago White Sox.

Freddy Garcia threw seven strong innings, Juan Uribe had three hits, and the White Sox defeated the Kansas City Royals, 8-2, Friday night to stretch their winning streak to five games.

Chicago’s 13-4 record matches the best start in team history set in 1912, 1919 and 1935. The White Sox are 7-2 on the road, their best road start since the 1982 club also went 7-2.

“I have confidence because of my pitching staff we’re always going to be in the game,” White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. “I don’t think we’re going to have a seven-game losing streak, because we have five guys who are going to give you a good game.

“I feel proud about our start. The White Sox have been around for 100-something years, and to be compared with those teams feels good by itself,” he said.

Chicago’s starters — Mark Buehrle, Jose Contreras, Jon Garland, Orlando Hernandez and Garcia — are 10-3 with an AL-leading 2.88 earned-run average. They also top the league with 12 quality starts and 1151/3 innings.

“It’s not a surprise for me because I know what we can do,” Garcia said. “We know what we can do. We know how to pitch. We like to throw a lot of innings and try to keep guys in the game.”

Garcia (2-1) retired 12 in a row from the third inning until the seventh, when Matt Stairs led off with a single. Garcia allowed two runs and four hits, struck out three and walked none. He has worked at least six innings in all four of his starts.

“I threw a lot of strikes,” Garcia said. “I had pretty good location. It was better than last time. I threw more fastballs and moved my fastball in and out.”

Kansas City second baseman Ruben Gotay (30) is pulled off first base by a throw from Matt Stairs while Chicago's Juan Uribe safely crosses the bag on a bunt in the sixth inning. The White Sox won, 8-2, on Friday in Kansas City, Mo.

Royals right-hander Runelvys Hernandez did not throw many strikes. He was wild, walking six, which matched his career high, and hitting a batter with a pitch. Hernandez (1-3) gave up five runs, four earned, and six hits in six innings. He threw only 55 strikes in 102 pitches.

“He had a real tough time battling the weather,” Royals manager Tony Pena said, referring to the 50-degree temperatures and 25 mph wind. “That’s why we didn’t see his command. He tried to keep himself warm and get himself going, but he couldn’t grip the fastball and ended up throwing a lot of breaking balls.”

Hernandez, who missed last season because of elbow surgery, was not pleased with his performance.

“Runelvys Hernandez is better than that,” he said. “I’m very disappointed. I can throw seven, eight innings and not give any walks, but today six walks. That was unbelievable. That is hard. I was expecting a better performance.

“The weather was affecting me a little bit on my grip. The wind moved my two-seamer. I couldn’t throw my breaking ball for strikes. You never know what is going happen with the weather.”

Joe Crede had three hits and scored three times, extending his hitting streak to a career-high 13 games — the longest active streak in the majors. Crede, from Westphalia, Mo., had his own cheering section.

“My family and friends don’t get a chance to see me play in person very much, so it’s nice to play well in front of them,” he said.

Notes: Scott Podsednik stole three bases to up his total to nine in 10 attempts. He is tied for the AL lead. … The Royals are 2-9 in their past 11 games.