CHICAGO (AP)—It took Luis Mendoza(notes) a long time to return to the majors and
he’s making a good case for staying there.

Mendoza pitched into the eighth inning for his second consecutive victory
and Jarrod Dyson(notes) hit a two-run double to lift the Kansas City Royals over the
Chicago White Sox 2-1 on Sunday.

“That was their `A’ lineup in there,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “He
really did a great job.

“He does a real good job of keeping hitters uncomfortable because they
don’t know what to look for. He’s come a long way.”

Chicago lost for the 11th time in 15 games and with its 82nd defeat ensured
the third losing record in manager Ozzie Guillen’s eight-year tenure.

“I didn’t expect anything less. It was a losing team when I got the ‘X’
next to me,” Guillen said. “I’m not here for stats, I’m here to win
divisions.”

The young Royals continued their late-season surge, winning for the 10th
time in 13 games.

Mendoza (2-0) limited Chicago to one run and five hits over 7 2-3 innings
after holding AL Central champion Detroit to two runs in seven innings last
Tuesday, his first big league start in nearly a year and a half. The Pacific
Coast League pitcher of the year struck out four and walked two.

“I just put it in my mind to pitch strong to finish the year and try to be
aggressive,” Mendoza said. “Just work inside, to lefties and righties, just
pound the zone inside and mix my pitches.”

Yost said Mendoza has put himself “in the mix” for next year’s rotation,
but the right-hander isn’t thinking that far ahead.

“Right now I don’t think about next year,” Mendoza said. “I just know
that this year, I (had) a good year and that’s all that matters to me.”

Greg Holland(notes) earned his fourth save, getting all four of his outs via
strikeout.

“A great pitching performance on both sides all the way around,” Yost
said. “You don’t see many pitchers’ duels in the American League anymore.”

Chicago starter Gavin Floyd(notes) carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning before
Lorenzo Cain(notes) and Chris Getz(notes) opened with back-to-back singles. After advancing on
Alcides Escobar’s(notes) sacrifice, Cain and Getz scored on Dyson’s double down the
right-field line.

It was the second straight day a White Sox starter carried a no-hitter into
the middle innings. On Saturday, John Danks(notes) was perfect for 4 2-3 innings before
Salvador Perez(notes) singled.

Floyd (12-13) matched his season high with 10 strikeouts and held Kansas
City to two runs and three hits over eight innings. Still, he finished with a
losing record for the second consecutive season.

“That was as good of a breaking ball as we’ve seen in a long, long time,”
Yost said. “We only got three hits on the day, but we pieced them together
perfectly.”

Adam Dunn(notes) went 0 for 3 with a walk, dropping his average to .161. Dunn needs
13 plate appearances in Chicago’s final three games to finish with the worst
qualifying batting average in big league history, surpassing Rob Deer’s .179
mark in 1991.

The 27-year-old Mendoza was 12-5 with a 2.18 ERA for Triple-A Omaha and was
selected the PCL’s playoff MVP for his role in leading the Storm Chasers to the
league title. But he hadn’t won a game in the majors since Aug. 3, 2008, until
he beat the Tigers last Tuesday.

Mendoza had to wait only five days for another win. Chicago failed to put
more than one baserunner on in any inning against him until Gordon Beckham(notes) and
Alexei Ramirez(notes) singled in the eighth.

Holland replaced Mendoza and gave up a bloop double to Paul Konerko(notes),
trimming Kansas City’s lead to one. After A.J. Pierzynski(notes) was intentionally
walked, Dayan Viciedo(notes) struck out with the bases loaded to end the inning.

Holland struck out the side in the ninth to preserve Mendoza’s win, which
came as no surprise to Cain, who played behind him in Omaha.

“I’m used to seeing that down in the minor leagues,” Cain said. “He goes
seven, eight innings strong each and every day. He’s been doing it all year.”

NOTES: Melky Cabrera(notes) went 0 for 4 and still needs one hit to become the
seventh player in Royals history to reach 200 in a season. … White Sox CF Alex
Rios(notes) was shaken up in the fourth when he made a running catch and banged into
one of the supports that hold up the screen on the fence in right-center at U.S.
Cellular Field. He was removed from the game for precautionary reasons and
replaced by Viciedo. … The Royals start a season-ending series at Minnesota on
Monday with Felipe Paulino(notes) starting the opener against Kevin Slowey(notes). Paulino
lost at Target Field on July 17 in his only career appearance against Minnesota.
… The White Sox wrap up their campaign with a three-game set at home against
Toronto. Dylan Axelrod(notes) will seek his first big league win in his third start for
Chicago against scheduled Blue Jays starter Dustin McGowan(notes).

Billy Butler has hit 30 points higher against lefties throughout his career. Just not John Danks.
Alex Rios and Brent Morel homered to back Danks, leading the White Sox over the Kansas City Royals 6-3 Saturday night and stopping Chicago’s five-game home losing streak.
“He’s a strike machine,” Butler said of Danks, who beat Kansas City for the third time this year. “The variety of his changeup is really tough to pick up, and he throws it with a lot of arm speed. He’s one of the tougher lefties for me. I’d rather face a righty than Danks.”
A night after Kansas City scored 11 runs and had 18 hits. Danks (8-12) retired his first 14 batters he faced before Salvador Perez’s fifth-inning single.
“We’ve had trouble solving Danks all year long,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “He’s really, really good against us. His arm action is very deceptive. He does a real nice job of keeping the ball down and away and then cutting it in on our hands.”
Danks improved to 5-0 in 12 starts against the Royals, allowing three runs and six hits in 7 1-3 innings. He’s 3-0 with a 2.77 ERA in four starts against Kansas City this year.
Danks is the only active pitcher with a minimum of 10 starts who is undefeated against the Royals. He also went 8-4 with a 3.69 ERA in his last 16 outings after skidding to 0-8 with a 5.25 ERA in his first 11 starts.
“Definitely good to end on a good note,” Danks said Danks. “Obviously, the season hadn’t quite gone as I had planned or hoped, but that’s part of the game. Happy to end on a good game and hopefully it will carry into next season.”
While Chicago won for just the fourth time in 14 games, the Royals lost for the third time in their last 12. At 77-81, the White Sox need to win their remaining games to avoid their third losing season in eight years under manager Ozzie Guillen.
Royals starter Everett Teaford (2-1) allowed five runs and six hits in five innings after giving up one run in 11 innings during his first two major league starts.
Teaford walked three in the four-run second, when Rios homered, Juan Pierre walked with the bases full and Alexei Ramirez hit a sacrifice fly.
“I wasn’t getting ahead and wasn’t getting the ball down,” Teaford said. “You put those two things together and it’s going to be a bad night.”
Melky Cabrera had a two-run double and two hits, reaching 199 for the season.
Cabrera’s 44th double of the season drove in two runs in the sixth, and Eric Hosmer’s RBI single cut the deficit to 5-3.
“You can tell even after we got three, (Danks) still settled down and got two more innings and not much more noise,” Butler said. “He’s got our number, and it seems like he’s always on.”
Rios had three hits, including a a two-run homer in the second and a leadoff triple in the eighth. Morel’s homer was his 10th of the season, including eight in September.
Chicago’s Adam Dunn went 0 for 3 with a walk, leaving him with a .162 batting average. He has 485 plate appearances and needs 17 in the team’s last four games to become an official qualifier. The post-1900 record for lowest batting average by a qualifier is .179 by Detroit’s Rob Deer in 1991, according to STATS LLC.
Morel homered leading off the fourth. His second-inning walk was his 15th of September — he had just seven this year before then.
NOTES: Alex Gordon was back with the Royals after spending Friday’s game at the team’s hotel because of flu-like symptoms. He was expected to play on Sunday. … Gavin Floyd will take the mound for the White Sox in Sunday’s series finale, looking to improve upon his 3-7 mark against Kansas City. The Royals will counter with Luis Mendoza, who allowed one run in seven innings Tuesday in his first big league start of the season.

Bruce Chen enjoys U.S. Cellular Field, especially since he’s figured out how to pitch on the home field of Chicago White Sox.
“I know it’s a hitter’s park, but if you keep the ball down, you give yourself a chance,” Chen said.
Chen allowed only two hits in eight strong innings and the Kansas City Royals hit four homers off Zach Stewart to rout the White Sox 11-1 Friday night.
Jeff Francoeur, Eric Hosmer, Salvador Perez and Alcides Escobar also homered for the Royals. Kansas City has won nine of 11 overall in a late-season surge.
Chen (12-8) finished 3-1 this season against the White Sox, with all three of the wins at U.S. Cellular Field. His lone loss to Chicago came last Sunday in Kansas City, when he gave up nine hits and four runs in 5 1-3 innings.
The only hit allowed by Chen through the first six innings was an infield single by Dayan Viciedo in the second. It was a grounder in the hole that third baseman Mike Moustakas fielded, and he spun around and threw high to first. Paul Konerko hit his 31st homer in the seventh inning.
Chen walked one and struck out four. Vin Mazzaro pitched a hitless ninth.
“Bruce has been good against us and pitching well all year long. Now it’s no mystery,” said White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, who was Chen’s teammate with Atlanta in the late 1990s. “He owns the White Sox.”
With Guillen’s future unclear, Chicago has lost 10 of 13. And Friday night’s defeat left the White Sox at 76-81, ensuring they won’t have a winning record despite a $127 million payroll.
“Obviously it’s been a very tough season for everyone,” Guillen said.
Hosmer hit a solo shot in the second, his 19th of the season. Perez had a three-run drive in the fourth, his third of the season, and Escobar followed one batter later with his fourth homer of the season.
Francoeur connected for his 20th of the season, a two-run shot, in the fifth to reach the 20-20 plateau. He also has 22 steals.
“It was a lot of fun. It’s something I really wanted to accomplish,” Francoeur said.
“It’s been a good year. To be able to do that tonight. I credit Seitz (hitting coach Kevin Seitzer), and with the base stealing, Siss (first base coach Doug Sisson) gets all that (credit). I came in the first day of camp and he was on my butt about stealing bases. He told me I’d steal 20. I didn’t believe him.”
Stewart, who gave up 12 hits and nine runs and also committed two errors in four-plus innings. Stewart (2-6) lost for the third straight time since pitching a one-hit shutout against the Twins on Sept. 5.
“It’s very frustrating. … it just makes you sick all the way around,” Stewart said.
Kansas City finished with 18 hits, four by Moustakas.
NOTES: CF Lorenzo Cain made his Royals’ debut after spending the season with Triple-A Omaha and had two hits. Cain was acquired in a trade that sent Zack Greinke to Milwaukee. He played 43 games for the Brewers last season … Everett Teaford (2-0) will pitch in Saturday’s game against the White Sox. John Danks (7-12) goes for Chicago. Teaford beat the White Sox last Saturday in KC, giving up four hits and a run over six innings. Danks is 2-0 with a 2.37 ERA in three starts against the Royals this season and 4-0 with a 2.63 ERA in his career against the Royals.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The surging Kansas City Royals are giving their fans a glimpse of a brighter future.

Mike Moustakas hit his third home run in four games and Jeff Francoeur hit a three-run homer and the Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 10-3 Saturday night for their seventh straight victory.

The winning streak is the Royals’ longest since winning seven consecutive Sept. 13-18, 2008. The White Sox have lost seven in a row, matching their longest losing streak of the year.

“I think our fans can see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Royals manager Ned Yost said.

Moustakas, Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez, a trio of highly regarded rookies, combined to go 7 for 14 with two RBIs and scored five runs.

Everett Teaford (2-0), a rookie left-hander, has won both of his starts since moving into the rotation after 23 relief appearances.

Nate Adcock, yet another rookie, worked the final three innings for his first major league save.

“As far as the nucleus, it’s encouraging for sure,” Teaford said. “We have to do it next year. Seven wins in a row in September isn’t going to put us in the World Series next year. Hopefully, it will be something we can build on for next year.”

Moustakas, who is hitting .519 during a seven-game hitting streak, said “absolutely” this can carry over until next season.

“I can’t wait for tomorrow,” Moustakas said. “We can’t look far ahead. Next year is next year and we’re all excited about that. We’ve still got to come out here and win a game tomorrow.”

Moustakas, who had three hits, homered in the fifth with Eric Hosmer, who had doubled aboard. Moustakas and Perez singled in the fourth and both scored on Alcides Esocbar’s triple.

Francoeur hit his 19th home run in the eighth with Melky Cabrera and Hosmer on base.

Perez and Cabrera each contributed three singles to the Royals’ 18-hit attack. Escobar doubled and tripled and drove in two runs.

“One through nine, we’ve got guys that can hit,” Moustakas said. “That’s what is awesome about this team. There’s not a drop off. Everyone is clicking, right now.”

Teaford held the White Sox to four hits and one run — Alex Rios’ homer to lead off the second — while walking two and striking out four.

In beating Seattle and Chicago, Teaford has allowed one run and seven hits in 11 innings, while walking three and striking out nine.

“I was very impressed with the way Teaford pitched, his ability to pitch his way out of jams,” Yost said.

Teaford pitched out of trouble in the third and fourth innings. He stranded runners at second and third in the third after a Moustakas two-base throwing error and a walk. Teaford retired Gordon Beckham on a fly to center to end the fourth with the bases full.

“They got a couple of guys on and I walked a couple of batters,” Teaford said. “I was able to keep the ball down and minimize the damage. It ate up a little bit of my pitch count, but to come out with zeros in those innings was big.”

White Sox rookie right-hander Zack Stewart (2-5), who was acquired in a July 27 trade with Toronto, allowed five runs and 11 hits in five innings. He has given up 18 hits and 11 runs in 10 innings in losing his past two starts.

“We’re not pitching well,” White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. “Our pitching staff has been pretty good all season, just not the last week and a half.”

The White Sox scored two runs in the seventh off Adcock. Tyler Flowers scored on an Adcock wild pitch, while Brent Morel came home on a Juan Pierre ground out.

Notes: RHP Luis Mendoza will be promoted from Triple-A Omaha and start Tuesday for the Royals against Detroit. Mendoza went 12-5 with a Pacific Coast League-leading 2.18 ERA. He went 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA in two playoff starts. Omaha wrapped up the PCL championship Saturday with Lance Zawadski getting four hits and David Lough hitting a two-run HR in an 11-6 victory at Sacramento to sweep the series. … Royals closer Joakim Soria remains sidelined with a strained right hamstring, which he injured Sunday. … White Sox DH Adam Dunn is 4 for 87 against left-handed pitching after a fourth-inning single off Teaford. … LHP John Danks, who is 0-3 with a 10.91 ERA in his past three starts, will start Sunday for the White Sox. … LHP Bruce Chen, who struck out eight and held Minnesota to two hits in eight scoreless innings in winning his previous start, will be the Kansas City starter in the finale of this four-game series.

9:43 p.m.: Final: Mariners 4, Royals 1.

9:17 p.m.: The Mariners tack on another run in the seventh. Ichiro singled with two outs, stole second, swiped third and scored on Alcides Escobar’s throwing error. It’s 4-1 Mariners heading into the eighth.

8:53 p.m.: Kansas City tied the game in the top of the sixth but, in the bottom half of the inning, Justin Smoak ripped a two-run shot to right field, putting the Mariners up 3-1.

8:23 p.m.: Royals get base runners for the first time since the second inning after Moustakas works a one-out walk and Salvador Perez singles, but Vargas continues to keep Kansas City off the board.

8:11 p.m.: Mike Carp hits a leadoff double in the fourth, but Luke Hochevar strikes out the next three batters to end the inning.

8 p.m.: Vargas is cruising right now. He’s thrown four scoreless innings, giving up just one hit. It’s still 1-0 Mariners heading into the bottom of the fourth.

7:38 p.m.:Mariners get a one-out ground-rule double from Adam Kennedy, but he ends the inning stranded at third. Still 1-0 Seattle after two innings.

7:28 p.m.: Mariners show some nice glove work in the top of the second. After Jeff Francoeur hit a one-out triple just out of the reach of a sliding Mike Carp in left field, Mike Moustakas hit a sharp grounder to second base.

Dustin Ackley fired home to get Francoeur at the plate, one-hopping the ball into catcher Chris Gimenez’s glove at chest level to get the out and save a run.

Still 1-0 Mariners after an inning and a half.

7:19 p.m.: Ichiro puts the Mariners on the board early with his 36th career leadoff home run, which breaks a tie with Bobby Bonds for sixth all-time. It’s 1-0 Mariners after one inning.

7:14 p.m.: Jason Vargas retires the Royals in order in the first.

6:50 p.m.: We’re about 20 minutes away from the first pitch at Safeco Field. There’s a sparse crowd here right now to watch the Mariners open a four-game series with the Royals.

Jason Vargas (7-13, 4.59 ERA) gets the start for the Mariners, while Luke Hochevar (10-10, 4.76) takes the mound for Kansas City.

8/27/2011

By TOM WITHERS

Associated Press

CLEVELAND — The Kansas City Royals handled Jim Thome. Ezequeil Carrera was their problem.

Cleveland’s pesky rookie leadoff hitter drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh inning off Kansas City’s Tim Collins as the Royals wasted a strong outing by Felipe Paulino and fell to the Indians 2-1 on Friday night in Thome’s homecoming.

Thome went hitless in four at-bats, striking out twice, as Kansas City’s pitchers stopped the burly slugger with minimal effort.

Paulino (2-6) blanked the Indians for six innings, but got into trouble in the seventh and Collins couldn’t bail him out.

Carlos Santana drew a one-out walk and Kosuke Fukudome singled. One out later, Jack Hannahan, who nearly drove in the tying run in the fifth, grounded a hard single to center. Santana never hesitated rounding third and slid home, tagging the plate with his outstretched left hand.

Paulino walked No. 9 hitter Lou Marson and was pulled for Collins. Carrera then worked his walk, taking ball four on a low full-count pitch to force in Fukudome. It was more tough luck in Cleveland for Paulino, who threw six shutout innings on July 31 against the Indians but got a no-decision.

Collins took full blame for blowing it.

“My job was to go in there and throw strikes and I didn’t do that,” he said. “That’s just unacceptable going in there with the bases loaded and walking the first guy. That’s not what you want to do.”

Manager Ned Yost was upset for Paulino, who has a 1.53 ERA in his last three road starts and zero wins.

“I feel bad for Paulino,” Yost said. “He doesn’t deserve the loss. He pitched far too good to lose the game.”

Ubaldo Jimenez (2-1) struck out 10 and allowed one run in seven innings, the kind of performance Cleveland had been needing from him since he came in a trade from Colorado. Other Eric Hosmer, who hit a leadoff homer in the fourth, the Royals struggled to make any real contact off Jimenez.

“Jimenez was awesome,” Yost said. “He threw the ball really, really well.”

The Royals got the tying run to third with two outs in the ninth but Chris Perez got Chris Getz to line out to right his 28th save. Kansas City is just 4-9 against Cleveland this season.

Yost knows that for the young Royals to ever become contenders, they need to start winning close games.

“Those are games in the future we’re going to have to find ways to win,” Yost said.

The Royals did all they could to spoil Thome’s return.

He received a thunderous standing ovation when he came up for the first time in the second inning. Holding “Welcome Thome” signs, fans clapped and yelled and he returned the love before his first at-bat with the Indians in nine years by taking off his batting helmet and bowing slightly.

Perhaps overanxious, he topped Paulino’s first pitch, hitting a weak comebacker.

Thome struck out looking his second time up in the fifth, fooled by a chest-high fastball for strike three that he thought was out of the strike zone. Paulino struck him out again in the seventh, this time on a vicious cut, and Thome grounded to second in the eighth. He didn’t have the impact he wanted, but the Indians won, and for Thome that’s all that will matter.

For Paulino, getting Thome out once an achievement. In July, he gave up a 490-foot homer — the longest in Target Field’s brief history — to Thome.

“I tried to pitch him different this time and it worked,” Paulino said. “It’s really special to pitch to him. Someday he’s going to be in the Hall of Fame.”

Hosmer put the Royals up 1-0 in the fourth, when he hit Jimenez’s first pitch over the wall in right-center. It was Hosmer’s 12th homer, and Kansas City kept pressure on by loading the bases on three consecutive singles. Jimenez, though, got Chris Getz on a pop to second and retired Alex Gordon on a soft liner.

NOTES: Hosmer is third among AL rookies in homers. His 30 mulithit games leads all first-year players. … OF Jeff Francoeur hit his 40th double, tying a career high. … Royals OF Alex Gordon recorded his major league-leading 20th assist, when he threw out Fukudome at the plate in the fifth. … Gordons’s assist was Kansas City’s 44th, also best in baseball.

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