SPORTSTICKER AL PREVIEW (NY YANKEES-CHI WHITE SOX) CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Hoping to avoid losing their fourth straight series, the New York Yankees send David Cone to the mound this afternoon as they face the Chicago White Sox in the finale of a three-game set. After Friday's opener was rained out, the teams split a doubleheader on Saturday. The Yankees posted a 10-2 victory in the opener behind Roger Clemens, who set an American League record with his 18th straight victory. But Mike Sirotka outdueled Andy Pettitte in the second game as the White Sox gained a split with a 2-1 victory. New York, which lost just seven series all of last season, is at risk of losing a series for the fifth time in 1999. The Yankees were swept in three games by Anaheim before losing two of three to both Chicago and Boston. Cone (4-2, 1.69), the major league leader in ERA, has dropped his last two starts after opening the season 4-0. Easily New York's most effective pitcher over ther first quarter of the season, Cone lost his highly-anticipated battle with Boston's Pedro Martinez on Tuesday, 6-3, allowing three runs and seven hits over six innings. Cone has been victimized by poor run support lately as he was on the short end of a 1-0 decision to Chuck Finley and the Angels on May 12. But the righthander has allowed no more than three runs in any of his eight outings this season. The White Sox counter with righthander Jamie Navarro (2-4, 7.13), who hopes to rebound from a disastrous outing. He surrendered nine runs and eight hits over just 1 2/3 innings in Monday's 13-9 loss to the Cleveland Indians. Navarro tossed a season-high eight innings in his previous outing, allowing just one run and four hits in a 5-2 victory over Texas on May 10. Chicago, which snapped a five-game losing streak Saturday, is trying to win a series from New York for the second time in just over a week.  