Chicago ? Jon Garland trusts his catchers, his defense and — most importantly — himself. That’s why he’s the AL’s first seven-game winner this season.

Garland allowed eight hits in eight innings and struck out Miguel Tejada on a 3-2 changeup with two on to stop a late Orioles’ rally Thursday night, helping the Chicago White Sox beat Baltimore, 3-2.

“It was one of the best pitches I threw all night. There are some RBIs out there for him, and he wants to swing the bat and hit. He swung over the top of it.” Garland said of the eighth-inning strikeout.

“I knew if he got on, I was done. If he was going to beat me, he was going to hit something good. … He’s one of the best in the AL. He fouled off a couple of good pitches, and things went my way this time.”

Garland (7-0) won his seventh straight start. He’s five wins away from matching his career-high for victories, set in each of the last three seasons when he’s been 36-36.

“Garland’s ball seemed like it was moving all over the place tonight,” Orioles manager Lee Mazzilli said. “Tejada fouled off a couple of tough ones, laid off a couple tough ones and he got him on a good pitch.”

Garland, a former first-round draft pick of the Cubs, finally has combined his physical talent with a stronger mental approach.

“He’s more mature and has more confidence in his pitches,” White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. “We’ve given him the opportunity to be who he is, he thought about it and he’s performed.”

Dustin Hermanson pitched the ninth for his seventh save in as many opportunities. Hermanson has yet to allow a run this season, spanning 15 appearances.

Chicago pitcher Jon Garland delivers against Baltimore. Garland and the White Sox defeated the Orioles, 3-2, Thursday night in Chicago.

A.J. Pierzynski and Juan Uribe homered for the White Sox as Chicago took a 3-0 lead after three innings. Rafael Palmeiro hit a solo homer for the Orioles in the fifth.

Pitting the teams with the best records in the majors, the opener of the four-game set drew 29,031 on a 53-degree night at U.S. Cellular Field.

Many of the crowd had hoped to see Sammy Sosa’s return to Chicago, but the former Cubs slugger didn’t make the trip after going on the disabled list earlier in the week because of a foot infection.

Baltimore entered the game leading the American League in batting average, slugging percentage and homers with 48, but was short-handed without Sosa and center fielder Luis Matos, who was on the DL because of a broken finger.

Garland faced the minimum number of batters through four innings, thanks to double plays following a walk to B.J. Surhoff in the third and a single to Brian Roberts in the fourth.

But Palmeiro hit his third homer and the 554th of his career to cut the White Sox lead to 3-1 and end Garland’s bid for a third shutout this season. Scott Podsednik then made a nice running catch before hitting the left field wall to rob Surhoff of extra bases.