BOSTON--Approaching 39 years old and winding down his 18th season, Dwight Evans accepted another challenge.

So did reliever Jeff Reardon, who celebrated his 35th birthday on the mound less than two months after back surgery.

The two old pros pooled their talents last night as the Boston Red Sox clinched a tie for the American League East title with a 4-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox.

"This is great, just a great feeling," Evans said after he drove in the tie-breaking run with an eighth-inning single. "But we still need to win one more. The job's not over yet. We want to win this thing--we don't want to back into it."

Reardon bailed out reliever Larry Andersen after the White Sox tied the score 3-3 with two outs in the eighth. Then, after Evans' hit, he retired three batters in a row in the ninth, striking out two.

With their fifth victory in six games, the Red Sox went two games ahead of Toronto with just two left in the regular season for both teams.